45 f
Above – Syria’s Omar Souleyman. Below – Ireland’s Sharon Shannon and Kenya’s Orchestre Les Mangelepa.
build this great continent? The endlessly charismatic and powerful Dobet Gnahoré from Côte d’Ivoire was an absolute sea- soned pro at entertainment, with energy levels to be envious of, unapologetic dance moves that radiated Wakanda vibes, and to top it all off one of the most beauti- ful and powerful voices, which left us proper emotional.
Calan, from Wales, were both an absolute delight and a surprise – Welsh folk has never sounded so accessible and vibrant. Not only did the music coming from their combination of instruments sur- prise me (harp, accordeon, fiddle and gui- tar), but also the poetry, the clog jigs, and their open positivity towards protecting and moving Welsh culture forward, which was inspiring. And last but not least, our Sunday funday vibes included Spain’s
Amparanoia, who did not let the audience down with a proper party in the sunshine, until the heavens opened and I realised I’d forgotten not only my raincoat but also my umbrella, so had to run to shelter!
Some other artists we loved and dis- covered along the WOMAD way were K.O.G. & The Zongo Brigade (Ghana/UK), Maâlem Hamid El Kasri (Morocco), Mélissa Laveaux (Canada/Haiti), Orchestra Les Mangelepa (Congo/Kenya), Sharon Shan- non (Ireland), and Omar Souleyman (Syria) who I have to especially call out for being an absolute legend, though kicking off his set with just his keyboard player stood in the middle of the biggest stage at WOMAD, singing from somewhere hidden for a good five minutes, got me very con- fused but then quickly amused when he popped out in his magnificent robes.
I
’ve said this before and I will say it again: WOMAD has an abundance of great music, you just have to keep your ears out for it as you walk around the arena, or in my case as I shop for more rings from Saharan Arts, drink cardamom iced coffee from Shepherds Ice Cream, buy my third pack of liquorice from St Valentine’s, and pur- chase my third plate of jerk-chicken, dumplings and plantain (on separate days, I’m not that obsessed…).
All in all, it was another great week- end of music, albeit with a tinge of disap- pointment at how the rest of the world now views Britain post-Brexit, and I cannot wait to see what the festival has in store for us next year. Stay World-Music-y folks, see you again in July 2019.
womad.co.uk more overleaf!
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