WHAT: WOMADelaide Festival & Adelaide Festival
WHERE: Botanic Park
WHEN: 6-9 March 2020 – tickets here (still 2 more days left!!!)

It’s a LONG weekend ahead, and we are showing no signs of slowing down with our summary of day 2! With a jam-packed lineup WOMADelaide continues to uphold their reputation as a world-class festival. Read on to see a small snippet of what we got up to…

Marina Satti & Fonés

The first performance we caught was Marina Satti & Fonés, they hail all the way from Greece and were keen to entertain. Marina was so tuned in to the audience she changed her set mid-way through to include a special dance number so everyone could participate. Her melodic voice was driven by two drummers and carried through by four other vocalists, creating beautiful harmonies and synchronised dancing.

Circolombia

Circolombia was a last minute addition to the lineup but they did not disappoint. One would think that acrobats on roller skates, flipping and summersaulting around the stage is a complete distraction during an act, but this group pulls it off! In a strange combination of acrobatics and soulful singing their performance was a crowd pleasing delight. I might add, it was on a smaller scale to their ‘normal’ performance for the WOMADelaide stage.

The Blind Boys of Alabama

Look, I know we saw them yesterday, but I wanted to catch The Blind Boys of Alabama again! In their matching outfits, supported by a tight band, and catchy upbeat tunes, they had me bopping along. Their set takes us through their vast musical history as a group over the past seventy years. With five grammy awards under their belt, they are no strangers when it comes to performing or getting the audience to cheer on command.

Gravity and Other Myths

I was anticipating seeing Gravity & Other Myths leading up to the festival, and I was not disappointed. By stacking themselves upon one another in human defying positions and pushing each other to their physical limits, we are privy to seeing some of the best acrobatics nation wide. Catch them up close and personal on the grass area with no fancy stage lighting to disguise, anything.. see the sweat on their brow as they pull off these amazing stunts!

Iberi

After interviewing Iberi in our pre-festival hype, I went to catch them at Stage 7 where all the bats were also listening intently from above (I approached with trepidation). This group produces a robust yet monastic sound, it echoes and booms through the park. I was not expecting their voices to have such a diverse vocal range. In parts it sounded similar to birds chirping or yodelling, and they transitioned throughout the set between a cappella arrangements and also introduced various traditional Georgian instruments.

Sprigga Mek

Sprigga Mek, these guys had the crowd bouncing from the get-go. The small stage area of Moreton Bay could barely contain the masses of people wanting to dance to the infectious beat. With melodic synth sounds underlying their syncopated verses, all the bopping was completely justified.

Minyo Crusaders

Minyo Crusaders are a large group that have travelled from Toyko, Japan. Their set was incredibly chill and relaxed, they just wanted to have a good time, and the audience reciprocated that. Songs were a mixture of traditional influences with a contemporary bent. The entire crowd ended up clapping and grooving along to the hypnotic beats.

Liniker e os Caramelows

First things first. What a voice. Liniker e os Caramelows brought us smooth and moving vocals in a hot pink power suit. Also, shoutout to the saxophone and jazz flautist player. You are the real MVP here, those solos gave me goosebumps, I could feel the intention behind every note.

B.DANCE

All the way from Taiwan we have B.DANCE, this time we were able to get closer to the action. With the hypnotic screen projections happening behind the dancers, coupled with the eerie and sinister sound track, it was an effective accompaniment to the constantly evolving dance routine. At one moment they would be fluidly moving, the next they were rigid and shaking in a seizure of movement. Something so graceful, ensconced in white fluffy tulle to suddenly seize up in that way was an effective contrast.

Salif Keita

To finish off the day we caught Salif Keita and his band. Starting the set off slow, he gradually moved in to faster more upbeat territory. I enjoyed how much he is invested in his performance, an emotional display from the ‘The Golden Voice of Africa’.

That’s it from us for Saturday WOMADelaide recap. Stay tuned for the next couple of days, and watch it live on our Instagram stories @CollageAdelaide – thanks everyone!