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Dominic Allum

WOMAD Festival @ Charlton Park Review

Dominic Allum delivers his thoughts on his visit to the electrifying WOMAD Festival, on their 40th anniversary.


As its name suggests, WOMAD (World of Music, Arts and Dance) is a festival that has always tried to showcase the best our planet has to offer. Despite moving location a number of times over the years, it has always carried its ethos of community and celebration along with it. Now taking place in the beautiful, scenic grounds of Charlton Park in Malmsbury, we headed down to the woods to join in the 40th anniversary celebrations. Whilst only there for the Saturday, we could have easily stayed for a week. One of those festivals where surprises wait round every corner; and new delights can be found underneath every tent; the best way to approach WOMAD is to simply allow yourself to be swept up in its wonderful waves.


Beginning our afternoon at the Siam tent, we join the large crowd gathered to enjoy the infectious grooves of 9-piece afro-jazz collective Nubiyan Twist. A band who, no matter how many times you have seen them, create a sound that feels completely new every time it enters your eardrums, vibrations travelling through the bones in your body till each one of your toes is wriggling. Clearly a festival close to bandleader Tom Excell’s heart, he speaks passionately about WOMAD, saying how he first came to the festival when he was 11, and is honoured to be performing in a tent that he watched so much amazing music in as a child. As young and old alike cheer and dance, the audience echoes the spirit of community and collectiveness that Nubiyan Twist project from the stage, creating the feeling that we are all part of one big…


…Moon. Big Moon. There’s a giant replica of the moon looming over us in the woods. We take one small step towards it, looking up at its intricately detailed surface. The project of British visual artist Luke Jerram, the 7m diameter internally lit orb, located in the heart of the secret forest, is a truly magnificent spectacle. Whilst some lie down amongst the leaves, we stand in awe as Yazz Ahmed’s accompanying score plays out through the speakers attached to the tree trunks around us. A fully immersive experience, the soundscape at times feels like being in Ben Wheatleys forest-horror film In the Earth. A hypnotising experience that taps into all your senses, it is like you’re walking on…



…Air. We’re now suspended in the air. How did we get here? Having boarded the giant Ferris wheel that stands in the middle of the arena, we are spun slowly round and round as we are given a breathtaking view of the site in all its glory. Rising above the tree tops, we take in the stunning vistas and landscapes, looking peacefully down on all the festival goers, as the arena is stretched out below us. Each time we return back down to the ground, the festival compresses together as the sound of the nearby stages can be heard once more. As we rise and fall, it’s at times like these that you really get the chance to stop and think about…


…Food. Cooking demonstrations are not something you see at every festival. As we take a stroll through the World of Wellbeing, we encounter healing rituals, handmade sculptures and the Taste the World stage, where artists throughout the day cook their favourite dishes, whilst soundtracking their own food prep with live performances. Heading from here to the D&B Soundscape stage, we enter the tent to the enchanting percussive sounds of Sarathy Korwar, his bands unique blend of Indian drones and experimental jazz having a hypnotising effect that is only broken when the set finishes to the sounds of rapturous cheers and…


…Chants. Eastern European chants echo from the Charlie Gillet stage, as Ukrainian free folk band Folknery perform a set of traditional folk music that is both powerful and moving. Pausing mid-set to deliver an emotional speech on the horrific events taking place back in their homeland, they make clear that the mistreatment innocent civilians are facing in Ukraine are issues that have always existed in their country, only now being made truly visible to the rest of the western world by the presence of war. It is far from over and the country needs all the support it can get. To be able to use this platform in this way shows how WOMAD is so much more than a music festival. Whilst many festivals are simply created as an escape from reality, WOMAD ensures those who attend it are more finely tuned and connected to the world around them, being a festival that not only seeks to entertain, but educate others on the various cultures and plights of our planet. Heading from here to the Open-Air stage, we see how this is true once again in the presence of West African female supergroup Les Amazones d’Afrique. Politically charged, Les Amazones d’Afrique empower and celebrate women (Heavy is a tribute to the strength and courage of their female ancestors who made their own way in the world), whilst simultaneously urging that violence against women must stop; whether that be the barbaric practise of female genital mutilation carried out on young girls in Africa (denounced in tracks Love and Power) or domestic and sexual abuse that still occurs in so many households across the globe. Delivering these condemnations alongside beautiful harmonies and meticulously choreographed dance routines, Les Amazones d’Afrique create a perfect blend and fusion of afrobeat, pop and breakbeat. As we wave our arms in sync from side to side, it is impossible not to feed off their endless energy, activism and good…

"Whilst many festivals are simply created as an escape from reality, WOMAD ensures those who attend it are more finely tuned and connected to the world around them, being a festival that not only seeks to entertain, but educate others on the various cultures and plights of our planet."

…Night. Suddenly it is night time, the sun having sneakily set whilst we were looking the other way. Yet as the rain just about holds off, the perfect conditions are created to finish off the evening with psychedelic rock legends The Flaming Lips. Emerging onto the Open-Air stage with a barrage of lasers and lights, the band arrive in spectacular colourful fashion. Clutching a mechanical bird, charismatic frontman Wayne Coyne begins with a long softly spoken speech about what the bird symbolises in opening track My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion. Intending to fly amongst the crowd during the track, he releases the bird only for it to be thrown drastically off course by the wind and crash head first into the roof of the stage. Although not the aim of its inclusion in the show, its fate is quite poetic. As the band storm through classics such as Do You Realize?? and She Don’t Use Jelly, the audience is treated to one visual feast after another as the lights, screen projections and mass speakers combine in one ecstatic sensory overload. An inflatable rainbow is replaced by the unveiling of a massive giant pink robot, bringing to life the nemesis from Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. Coyne then fires out confetti cannons into the crowd, before climbing into his trademark Zorb to sing crowd favourite Waitin' for a Superman. Despite appearing to have arrived from some nearby space colony, Coyne remains completely down to earth, humbly talking to the crowd about how grateful he is to be appearing at the 40th anniversary of the festival. At one point, following an outrageously good outro guitar solo by Steven Drozd, the stage remains quite for a moment before Coyne remarks “man, I was so lost in that solo I forgot where I was for a second... and I was singing the song!”. Perhaps the highest compliment you can receive from your fellow bandmate. One of the most effective strengths of The Flaming Lips is their ability to take you on a full emotional journey with each track they play. Whilst at times your brain may feel lost or overwhelmed by the electronic dissonance created, you always emerge with clarity and resolution, emphatic melodies making you feel as if this was always where you were meant to end up (the outro of Moth in the Incubator is testament to this). The night drawing to an end, Coyne addresses the crowd once more, stating how as far as he’s concerned, “there is no cooler place to be in the world, right now, than right here”. As the triumphant encore of Race for the Prize echoes out, and giant balloons spelling ‘Fuck Yeah WOMAD!’ are brought onto the stage, we couldn’t agree more.


Dominic Allum

 

Edited by: Jodie Averis

Cover image of Mamani Keita of Les Amazones D'Afrique courtesy of Getty Images. In-article image courtesy of Dominic Allum.


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