WOMAD New Zealand 2018 is on at Brooklands Park, New Plymouth, from March 16 to 18.

www.womad.co.nzwww.womad.co.nz

The internationally established three day world music, arts and dance festival is known for its exciting and diverse line-up and this year’s event is no exception.

Over the weekend Brooklands Park will ring with the sounds of a melting pot of folk, afro-funk, hip hop, classical, jazz and punk rock performed on violins, ouds, koras and squeeze boxes. With artists from countries as varied as Cameroon, Canada, Chile, Iraq, Israel, Lebanon and Mauritania delivering a blend of traditional and modern performances; expect diverse languages, cultures, harmonies and rhythms from the big names and to discover glorious artists you’ve never heard of. 

Making up the 33 exciting and eclectic artists from across the globe performing at WOMAD 2018 will be familiar festival favourites; the pioneer of bass-dominant, dub flavoured dance tunes, UK’s Adrian Sherwood, the heavy metal inspired acoustic guitar duo from Mexico, Rodrigo y Gabriela and Washington D.C. based DJ collective, the uniquely diverse dub inspired Thievery Corporation. 

Joining them will be; the highly anticipated Los Angeles saxophonist, composer and jazz superstar Kamasi Washington, the Indian classical and progressive sitar virtuoso Anoushka Shankar and classic Kiwi band Dragon. 

Brazilian 10 piece, Bixiga 70 will deliver dizzying heights of progressive Afrobeat, Tinariwen will delight audiences with their scorching Mali desert blues and Havana Meets Kingston's sound-clash of reggae, dub and dancehall with salsa and rumba will be sure to make the crowds move. 

Lebanon’s soulful, classically trained Ghada Shbeir and Israel’s vocal hip hop star Victoria Hanna will deliver tales from ancient texts and stories of current social injustices. Chilean political-punk-poet Nano Stern and Ghanaian Jojo Abot who seamlessly blends electronica, indie-soul, reggae and hip hop, will be  part of a growing global conversation with audiences.

Always a highlight of WOMAD are the talents of local artists and 2018 looks to be one of the most exciting yet with the “toweringly talented song writer” Aldous Harding and Auckland city’s Hopetoun Brown, who will stomp and parp their way into audience hearts with nothing but brass, a bass clarinet, two sets of tambourines and tonsils. West Auckland newcomers, The Miltones will deliver some excellent knee slappin’, foot stompin’ and booty shakin’ tunes. The award winning Māori soul acoustic artist Maisey Rika will capture hearts, and with deep roots in the classical world, Black Quartet will impress with their vast sea of influences, from blues, rock, jazz and pop. From Taranaki, The Slacks will bring home some classic kiwi messages of unity, aroha, and community.

“WOMAD 2018 is a fantastic representation of World music today and continues to support diverse voices on stages” - Emere Wano, WOMAD Event Director & NZ Programme Manager.

WOMAD New Zealand 2018 is on at Brooklands Park, New Plymouth, from March 16 to 18. Tickets on sale from www.womad.co.nz

Groove WOMAD song of the day - Tamacun - Rodrigo Y Gabriela

From now until 16 March Groove will be featuring one of the artists coming to WOMAD 2018.

Before they became the most visible flamenco duo of the early 2000s, guitarists Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero bonded over heavy metal while growing up in Mexico City. They combined their talents for a time in the metal group Tierra Acida, playing around D.F. in the roughest clubs the city had to offer. Though they recorded some material, Tierra Acida never hit it big, and an album was never released. Instead, Sanchez and Quintero concentrated on learning more guitar styles, teaching lessons during the day and playing bossa novas in hotel bars at night. Bored and frustrated with their chances in the Americas, the two decided to try their luck in Europe instead.

Rodrigo y Gabriela traveled to Dublin, where a friend had offered them a place to stay. The musicians spoke no English, carried little money, and upon their arrival found that their offer of European hospitality had vanished. The pair soon turned toward busking on the streets of Dublin, a move that enhanced their reputation and helped land them several contacts. Among their newfound friends was fellow busker Damien Rice, who soon asked them to accompany him on tour. The Mexican duo had, by this time, developed a large repertoire of original material in a variety of styles, and they released their debut record with 2003's Re-Foc. A concert album, Live: Manchester and Dublin, followed one year later.

Rodrigo y Gabriela became the newest fixture of the world music circuit, known for their nimble-fingered guitar work and diverse background (few flamenco guitarists could boast a background in metal music). Their third album, Rodrigo y Gabriela, was released in 2006 and debuted atop the Irish charts, beating out Arctic Monkeys for the number one spot. They continued to tour, making their way through Japan (as evidenced by their second live album, Live in Japan) and America, and 11:11 expanded their discography upon its 2009 release. The duo went on a touring hiatus in September 2010 due to stress injuries to Gabriela's hand. In January of 2011, they collaborated with film composer Hans Zimmer on the score for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, which was released in May of that year, followed by Live in France, a document from the 11:11 tour that, like the studio album, mixed Rodrigo y Gabriela's dazzling nylon-string guitar chops with electric six-strings for a dueling shredfest.

Since their inception, the pair had always envisioned working in Cuba. They recruited pianist and arranger Alex Wilson to come up with charts for a new set of songs. Wilson and the duo worked out a set of tunes, rhythms, and charts in three days in Mexico City, then Wilson went on to Cuba to hire a band. From June through September, the duo recorded with Wilson and C.U.B.A. (Collective Universal Band Association) in Havana, with producer Peter Asher. A number of special guests joined the proceedings as well, including Anoushka Shankar, flamenco and jazz bass legend Carlos Benavent, former Testament and White Zombie drummer John Tempesta, Le Trio Joubran, and Los Van Van drummer Samuel Formell Alfonso. The resulting album, Area 52, was released in January of 2012, and the duo toured the globe in support. They were the subject of an Alejandro Franco documentary film on their formation and early years entitled For Those About to Rock: The Story of Rodrigo y Gabriela, which debuted at SXSW in March of 2014, just in time for their next studio album, 9 Dead Alive, which appeared in April 2017.

For more see:  http://www.rodgab.com/