Sludge metal from Belgium, Afrobeat from Ghana and nayda from Morocco – there’s lots to see at Sziget today. And Kings of Leon are headlining!
Festival information
It's Sziget week! For details of how to get to Budapest's best fest, see here. For the full line-up, see here, and for tickets, here.
1/10
La Perla
La Perla from Colombia bring the atmosphere of Latin
America and the Caribbean to Sziget. This pioneering trio are not only at home
in the genres of cumbia, merengue and bullerengue, but in their songs they also
regularly speak out against social injustice and violence. Global Village, 5pm
2/10
Stake
Belgium has produced a number of great rock and metal bands over the past two decades, including Stake (formerly Steak Number Eight). You might wonder what a band combining post-rock and sludge metal are doing at Sziget, but as there not been a separate metal stage for some time, the heavier groups regularly appear here on the Európa Stage. Stake have already toured with Mastodon, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Deftones, and come to Sziget after festivals such as Wacken and Hellfest. Európa Stage, 5.10pm
3/10
Surma
This concert by the Portuguese multi-instrumentalist Débora Umbelino, aka Surma, will be about relaxation and intimacy. Thus one-person project combines ambient, post-rock and jazz, and the end result is a rather unique mix, ideal for slowing down a little in the midst so much stimulation and spin. Európa Stage, 6.40pm
4/10
Meskerem Mees
Belgian Meskerem Mees is barely 20 years old,
and only released her first album last year, yet she can say that she has already
played stages such as the Montreux Jazz Festival. In her songs inspired by
North-American folk, you can also discover the influences of Bob Dylan and Joni
Mitchell, complemented by the cello of her friend, Febe Lazou. In
January, at the Dutch Eurosonic Festival, the jury awarded Mees the grand prize
of the Music Moves Europe Awards, granted by the European Commission to the
most talented new artists. Music Box, 8pm
5/10
Santrofi
Ghanians Santrofi are following in the footsteps of legendary compatriot
performers such as Ebo Taylor and Pat Thomas, but lending a much more modern
sound to the highlife genre, involving Afrobeat, jazz, funk and tribal
elements, all developed in Accra over the last century. Great atmosphere and
dancing guaranteed! Global Village, 8pm
6/10
Kings of Leon
Kings Of Leon visited Sziget in 2015. Since
then, two LPs have been released, and although they may be past the peak of
their popularity, their concerts still bring a crowd. This will certainly be the
case tonight, many remembering singing along to Sex on Fire or Use
Somebody with thousands of others here. Main Stage, 9.15pm
7/10
Luidji
A relatively recent favourite from the world of French rap is Luidji, who quickly gained great popularity in Francophone countries with his R&B, soulful, sometimes trap-style sound. With A Colors Show, he’s managing to gain a foothold elsewhere. This will be his first appearance in Hungary. DropYard, 11pm
8/10
Bab L’Bluz
As one of the best-known representatives of the Moroccan nayda youth trend,
Bab L’Bluz are constantly looking for new paths and breaking new ground in
North-African culture, while at the same time their music is based on the
traditional local blues and gnawa. The elements of psych-rock, jazz and
funk are brought into the mix, with loud political statements in their lyrics. This
is all interpreted in strong fashion by singer Yousra Mansour, female frontmen not exactly ten a penny in this genre. Global Village, 11.15pm
9/10
John Talabot
House producer and DJ Oriol Riverola, aka John Talabot, has only released one solo album so far (Fin, 2012), but it has since been considered one of the classics of the genre. The Catalan has already made a number of appearances at Sziget but now he’s returning after an almost ten-year hiatus. He’s produced a joint album with Axel Boman, called Talaboman, and his remixes can be found all over the place. Colosseum, 1am
10/10
Mezerg
Frenchman Mezerg is an unusual phenomenon, a one-man live act who can
create an instrument from almost anything, even a melon, but what he always has
with him is a synthesiser, a drum machine and a theremin. It is difficult to
decide whether his performances are electronic or acoustic productions, but
perhaps it doesn't matter, it will be enough just to let yourself be immersed
in the beat, sometimes in the virtuosity. FreeDome, 1.30am
