Sunday, December 15, 2019

Live: Plisskën Festival - Winter 2019 (Athens, December 7, 2019)

Snapped Ankles, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
The Winter 2019 edition of Plisskën Festival was slimmed down in comparison to previous years, taking place in two different venues on a single night. As was also the case in recent editions of the festival, the focus has shifted almost entirely to dance and electronic music, with little on offer for rock fans, which explains why we've skipped a couple of editions since the Winter 2017 event.


However, the participation of Snapped Ankles this year, convinced me to pay a visit to Piraeus 117 Academy early in the afternoon, as the eccentric London-based quartet is responsible for one of the most enjoyable records of 2019, the magnificent "Stunning Luxury".


Dressed in their shamanistic costumes, looking like creatures inhabiting an enchanted forest, Snapped Ankles sprang into action on stage, unleashing their infectious, kraut rock-influenced, post-punk sounds and spreading their joyous, mad energy to the few faithful who came early to the festival to see them.


Their 50-minute set comprised of songs from both of their albums, played at maximum velocity, with the beat augmented by DIY percussive instruments, while at some point their singer ended up performing in the crowd, expanding the party to the whole of the venue.



The performance by Snapped Ankles, as expected, was the highlight of the festival for us, while earlier we also enjoyed the 40-minute set by Australian singer and songwriter Carla Dal Forno, who opened the night with an atmospheric performance, somewhere between Cocteau Twins, trip-hop and the soundtrack to David Lynch's cult TV series "Twin Peaks".



Carla Dal Forno, who recently released her second album "Look Up Sharp", dresses her folk melodies with dark, electronic sounds and trip-hop beats, a gentle construction which was recreated on-stage by her bass and a table full of electronic equipment handled by her band-mate.

Carla Dal Forno, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
The festival's main stage was headlined by electronic music wizard Floating Points, while promising rapper Bishop Nehru and Quantic, William Holland's music project which combines electronic, jazz, soul and latin sounds completed the line-up at Piraeus 117 Academy. For those who enjoy clubbing, there was more on offer on Plisskën's Aquarium stage to dance the  night away, but as we were among the few early birds of the festival, we had to call it a night much earlier and leave just as the big white balloons started floating around towards the end of Quantic's performance.


Bishop Nehru, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019

Quantic, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
Check out below Snapped Ankles performing "I Want My Minutes Back" and Carla Del Forno in "Blue Morning" from their sets at Winter Plisskën Festival 2019.

Snapped Ankles - I Want My Minutes Back (live @ Winter Plisskën Festival 2019)


Carla Dal Forno - Blue Morning (live @Winter Plisskën Festival 2019)

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