The full line-up for Le Guess Who? 2017 is now revealed, and if we take a look at the list of 60 acts, we find a few interesting names.
Le Guess Who? is the Netherlands’ mainstay event for experimental, collaborative, and otherwise out-of-the-box musical thinking. The 11th edition of the festival takes place 9 till 12 November in the Dutch city Utrecht.
There are a couple of Japanese names on the list that will perform during the festival: Keiji Haino, Vampillia and VMO. The Dutch audience might know the last two mentioned, as they performed last year during the two Dutch festivals State-X New Forms and Incubate. If these names doesn’t say anything, the name Keiji Haino maybe is also a new name for you. Time for an introduction!
Keiji Haino
In his 45 years as a musician, Japanese sound wizard Keiji Haino devoted himself to one constant: to never repeat himself. To this day, Haino has done just that, always walking the unexplored passages of noise experimentation, avant-garde rock and DJing. Haino worked together with acts as Faust, Boris, Stephen O’Malley, Makigami Koichi, Ayuo, Merzbow, Oren Ambarchi, Jim O’Rourke, and many more. But also formed groups with Vajra, Knead, Sanhedolin among others. The musician distinctive style extends to his lifestyle: he has sported the same long hair, black clothes and sunglasses throughout his career, and is a strict vegetarian who has refrained from alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs for his entire life.
On Friday he will perform solo, but on Thursday he will give a performance with jazz drummer and percussionist Han Bennink.
Vampillia
Vampillia started in 2009, and describe theirselfs as Brutal Orchestra. The combination of classical instruments, heavy guitars and drums, together with opera singing and death metal grunts, where the band the genres drone, noise, droom and pop explores, makes it overall interesting. Vampillia is a live act, now consisting of 11 members, that knows to captivate from the beginning to the end.
The show of Vampillia at Le Guess Who? 2017 takes place on Saturday.
VMO
VMO is the abbreviation for Violent Magic Orchestra that offers overwhelming electronically-induced black metal with an interesting live show with stroboscopes, disturbing visuals and live dancers. The group started in collaboration with Pete Swanson (ex-Yellow Swans) and French composer Paul Régumbeau, aka Mondkopf, and a few of the band members of Vampillia.
The show of VMO at Le Guess Who? 2017 takes place on Saturday.
Tickets for the festival can be bought online, a pass for 4 days is € 130.00, and day passes ranging from € 35.00 to € 40.00.
Source: Le Guess Who?
