Sonic Youth, Konono No 1 and Sunn O)))

SONIC YOUTH (US)
KONONO NO 1 (DRC)
SUNN O))) (US)

During Easter, a few exciting acts were confirmed, and we’re happy to tell you that Sonic Youth will be returning to the Medieval Park. The band contacted us a short while ago and said they would love to come back and play at the festival. Naturally, we could not refuse. Doomsday riffmeisters Sunn O))) will also pay us a visit, and not least the amazing and groovy African party pop band – Björk’s favorite orchestra – Konono No 1, hailing from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Stay tuned for more releases in the weeks to come.

SONIC YOUTH (US)
In August, the eternally young and always current Sonic Youth will return to the Medieval Park and the Øya Festival. This legendary New York band hasn’t visited Oslo too often (1992 and at Øya in 2005), but now you’ll get a new opportunity to experience these indie pioneers live in heart of the Norwegian capital. Since the start back in the 80s, they’ve explored the soundscape spanning between the noisy and the melodious, with Lee Ranaldo, Thurston Moore, and Kim Gordon in front. During their last visit, we also got to see Ranaldo solo and Moore as part of the trio Diskaholics Anonymous. In addition, they made guest appearances with The Thing and Dinosaur JR. Since then, Sonic Youth have released the album
‘Rather Ripped’ (2006), and several narrow releases are currently in the works. Throughout the years, the band has always been unpredictable, and they’ve maintained complete artistic control, even when signed to large record companies, and even though albums sometimes have climbed significantly on American charts.
Sonic Youth were a part of the so-called no wave scene in New York, drawing inspiration from underground heroes such as Glenn Branca (who several of the band members played with in the beginning), The Stooges, Velvet Underground, Patti Smith, John Cage, Television, and Captain Beefheart. They soon came up with their own musical ideas and were led by a curiosity that still makes them one of the most exciting American bands to this day. After a few years, the line-up stabilized, with drummer Steve Shelley firmly placed behind Ranaldo, Moore, and Gordon. Their long career is filled with highlights, both classics, such as ‘Evol’, ‘Sister’, ‘Daydream Nation’, ‘Goo’, and ‘Dirty’, as well as newer releases, like ‘Murray Street’ and ‘Sonic Nurse’. For a period of time this decade, Jim O’Rourke came aboard as a fifth member, but has now left. At times, Sonic Youth is marked by a clear pop nerve, other times by savagery and an almost uncontrollable energy. Often, the band is like a surprising and impressive rendezvous between psychedelia, punk, and contemporary music. It is no secret that today’s indie scene would have been quite different without the influence from Sonic Youth. Apart from their main base, the members have been active in bands like Ciccone Youth, Dim Stars, and Free Kitten.
We can’t make any promises as to what you’ll get to hear during their gig in the Medieval Park, but we can guarantee that you’ll encounter a vital and energetic band that has a thing or two to teach the world about uncompromising rock and walls of guitar noise. Seeing Sonic Youth live is always a new experience, as one gig rarely resembles another.

Sonic Youth on MySpace

KONONO NO 1 (DRC)
Put on the excellent album ‘Congotronics’ (2005), but remember that Konono N°1 is much more wicked live. Then switch to the energetic live recording ‘Live at Couleur Café”, but keep in mind that the feeling of seeing the band on stage right in front of you has been far from successfully caught on tape. However, do not despair, because at this year’s Øya Festival, you’ll get a chance to see them perform live.
Konono N°1 was founded 25 years ago in the (un)Democratic Republic of Congo, called Zaire at the time. This Kinshasa-based band plays, in addition to the traditional thumb piano likembé, instruments they’ve made from other people’s trash. Old magnets and car parts have become microphones, while the drums are made from pots, kettles, and other scrap metal. The whole sha-bang is filtered from the stage through gigantic megaphones. As the homemade equipment has somewhat of a rustic edge to it, Konono N°1 have developed a rather distinct sound, in which feedback and distortion have become integral parts. This has made many Western music critics point to references within the lo-fi and electronica genres. But Konono N°1 are avant-garde due to circumstance, not because it was a deliberate choice. Gradually, they have still embraced this distorted sound, which has also contributed to giving them an international audience with a liking for improvisation, DIY esthetics, and punk values. The New York Times wrote about their latest release that it is “one of the most startling of recent world-music releases” and drew comparisons to German electronic-music pioneers Kraftwerk and the reggae producer Lee Perry. BBC gave the following description: “It could really be from anywhere, at any time; its rawness at odds with the slow fall towards slickness and a polished, homogenized sound so sought after these days. And like all the best music, it needs to be played loud, as loud as their legendary, dizzying live performances.”
Beneath it all, however, you’ll still find the traditional music of founder Mawangu Mingiedi’s people, the Bazombo, which aims at putting the listener in a trance. Konono N°1 sound mighty, psychedelic, (poly)rhythmic, and highly danceable. Pitchfork reviewer Joe Tangari quite simply claimed that the band plays the most fascinating music he has ever heard. It is not unlikely that Øya visitors will think the same, come August.

Konono No 1 on MySpace

SUNN O))) (US)
The Seattle-based guitarists Greg Anderson (Goatsnake, et al.) and Stephen O’Malley (Khanate, et al.) began playing together as Sunn O))) back in the 90s. Earlier, the boys had cooperated in the doom band Thorr’s Hammer (with Runhild Gammelsæter from Norway on vocals). From 2000, Sunn O))) have released a series of powerful, mystic, and heavy drone metal. Among these we find highlights like ‘White 1’ (2003), ‘White 2’ (2004), ‘Black One’ (2005), and ‘Altar’ (2006). On the latter, they play with the Japanese band Boris. The inspiration for their tenacious, dark, and violent universe comes from bands like Melvins and Earth, but these ideas have been taken quite a few steps further. According to Anderson and O’Malley, Sunn O))) play power ambient, which is a genre found somewhere between brutal metal and noisy avant-garde rock. Live, their wall of amplifiers provides an extreme volume, and they’re sometimes helped out by Attila Csihar, singer of the Norwegian band Mayhem, on vocals. Shrouded in cloaks, and with enough smoke to cover an average-sized Norwegian town, the mysticism surrounding the band is well maintained. We’ve still not recovered fully after previous encounters with Sunn O))). This will be a concert experience you’re not likely to forget anytime soon.

Sunn O))) on MySpace