The enchanting British singer-songwriter Nilüfer Yanya, the painfully forthright rapper Pa Salieu, the crazy American duo Machine Girl, and Yaeji, whose DJ sets take a hammer to genre boundaries: Get ready for the latest additions to the OFF Festival lineup, August 1–3. Tickets are now on sale.
Pa Salieu
“I am the voice of the voiceless,” says the Gambian-born rapper Pa Salieu, who grew up on the streets of Coventry, where he witnessed his share of violence, and even dodged a couple of bullets – experiences he shares on on his debut mixtape, Send Them to Coventry. The release landed him a BBC Sound Of distinction, previously bestowed on such artists as Adele, Michael Kiwanuka, and HAIM. The famous DJ and radio journalist Annie Mac praised his unique perspective on life in the United Kingdom. Others have hailed him as the “missing link of British rap.” His work is a compelling blend of ominous, dirty British sounds and his African heritage. Pa Salieu has been nominated for a BRIT Award; he’s recorded with slowthai, FKA Twigs, and Mura Masa, and now, at long last, he’s coming to Poland. He was scheduled to perform here three years ago, but this will be his first live show in the country, and it’s happening at the OFF Festival Katowice.
Machine Girl
When you read comments like “This is going to hit hard live,” you know you need to get up close to the stage. And that’s the sort of thing you see written about Machine Girl online. The project, featuring singer/producer Matt Stephenson and drummer Sean Kelly, is infamous for its insane and unpredictable concerts, rife with explosive guitar riffs and electronic sounds. Punk, breakcore, jungle, noise, gabber, industrial, rave: there’s no point even trying to pigeonhole Machine Girl into a single genre. “Everything is permitted, and nothing is true,” Stephenson chants on the duo’s latest, excellent release, MG Ultra. Their lyrics feature references to science fiction, horror, and anime, drawing a dark picture filled with fear, hatred, and algorithms of the future, but tinged with hope that they can be escaped if we combine our efforts. Don’t miss this show at the OFF Festival!
Nilüfer Yanya
Nilüfer Yanya passed up an opportunity to join a girls band created by One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson, preferring instead to focus on her own songwriting. “For me, writing is definitely problem-solving. It’s a process that lets me understand myself better,” says the artist, who traces her roots to Turkey and Barbados, and records for the cult label Ninja Tune. Her last two records have won a Best New Music distinction from Pitchfork, and other artists are taking note of her talents. Adele invited Yanya to open her first show after a long hiatus, and she also supported Roxy Music on the band’s 50th-anniversary tour. Wherever she plays, she inevitably enchants audiences with her hypnotic voice, her subtle delivery, and melodies that combine indie rock, soul, jazz, and trip hop. Don’t say we didn’t warn you: you’re sure to be enchanted at the OFF Festival, too.
Yaeji (DJ)
With its blend of British rave sounds, New-York house beats, and Korean folk music, Yaeji’s debut has garnered rave reviews across the board – from Resident Advisor to The New Yorker – and artists are lining up to have her remix their tracks. So far, Charli XCX, Dua Lipa, and Robyn have made the cut. So has Drake; Yaeji’s cover of “Passionfruit” showed him how the song’s supposed to sound. The international music press is unanimous: “Few artists are truly smashing genre boundaries quite like Yaeji – and with her debut album she’s doing that smashing with a hammer.” And her debut album, With a Hammer, has been hailed as an ingenious redefinition of electronic music. Do the reviews line up with reality? Find out this August at the OFF Festival.
