OFF Festival Katowice 2016: OFF WE GO!
After an amazing 10th anniversary edition we’re pleased to announce that the 11th OFF Festival Katowice will take place August 5–7, 2016, and will feature Napalm Death, Sealford Mods, Machinedrum, Beach Slang and more. Early bird priced passes are now on sale!
Instead of giving into the fall-winter blues, why not start planning your summer adventures now? Instead of giving your friends and family another reindeer sweater for Christmas, why not get them an OFF Festival Katowice pass? Like every year, we’re offering you three days and three nights of the best music in excellent company, with performances by furious Napalm Death, the painfully honest Sleaford Mods, visionary Machinedrum and cheerfully ear-splitting Beach Slang, from August 5 to 7.
OFF Festival Katowice 2016 passes are now on sale and are available at the reduced price of 230 złoty until February 29. For the first three weeks of ticket sales, the Early OFF special offer is available to our regular guests registered at the OFF Shop www.offshop.pl.
We realize that our audience needs no introduction to the artists we’ve invited, but just for old time’s sake, here it is:
Napalm Death
These grindcore pioneers have spent the last 36 years on the avant-garde wing of an already extreme genre. Their excellent 2015 LP, Apex Predator — Easy Meat, and their previous release, Utilitarian, featuring a guest appearance by John Zorn, testify to the fact the band is still in peak artistic form. But they’ve admittedly had plenty of fuel to drive their rage: the brutal, relentless sound of Napalm Death is no accident. It’s their weapon against social inequality, the corrupt world of politics and the predatory endeavors of multinational corporations. We’re looking forward to seeing them wage another battle in Katowice.
Sleaford Mods
What do you call music made in the most wretched neighborhoods of English cities, forsaken by both god and the government? A forty year old would tell you it’s punk rock. Someone from the younger generation would call it hip hop. Both would show up at a Sleaford Mods gig. This Nottingham duo is captivating in its eclecticism: who says you can’t combine the Wu-Tang Clan, Guns N’ Roses, rave and black metal on a single album? These guys embody the zeitgeist: nowadays music is made the same way it’s listened to. Sleaford Mods’ added value lies in their discerning eye and their frustration and anger. If you’re wondering why they’ve been such a hit, the answer is simple: the band’s gritty minimalism is 100% real.
Machinedrum
Travis Stewart, known to the world as Machinedrum, rose to fame as a producer for his work alongside Azealia Banks and Jamie Liddel. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. This Berlin-based American’s musical output is impressive both in terms of quantity (which is hard to calculate, considering the myriad configurations and names he’s worked under, but Sepalcure is one act you can’t miss!) and quality. Suffice it to mention the excellent album Vapor City and the follow-up LP Vapor City Archives, on Ninja Tune.
Beach Slang
With bands like Beach Slang still around, it’s hard to lose your faith in rock’n’roll. This Pennsylvania quartet’s unpretentious punk rock hymns have to be listened to at full blast, preferably while screaming along with the vocalist. If you see them live, you have to get sweaty, and you have to identify with their witty yet uncomplicated lyrics (“Too young to die, too late to die young”). It’s funny that the title of their full-length debut, released in the fall of 2015, is The Things We Do to Find People Who Feel Like Us: all you really have to do is come to Katowice. OFF you go, Beach Slang!
Watch videos from last years event
Day 1: www.youtube.com/watch?v=
Day 2: www.youtube.com/watch?v=
Day 3: www.youtube.com/watch?v=
More info here: http://off-festival.pl/
