Even in the frantic rush of Mad March, Womadelaide stands out from the crowd. For four days, Botanic Park transforms into a flag-filled wonderland where music and dance are the conduits for engaging with cultures from across the globe.
And after three Covid-interrupted years, 2023’s edition will be a fully international festival with headliners flying in from overseas. Florence & the Machine’s rapturous pop anthems helped Saturday tickets sell out more than a month in advance, while Bon Iver’s indie-folk will headline Friday night and Angel Olsen will take to the stage on Monday. And after thrilling Adelaide five years ago, the mischievous acrobats from Gratte Ciel’s jaw-dropping Place des Anges will return to blanket the site in pure white feathers.
And the food program includes a new pop-up restaurant at Adelaide Zoo’s Sanctuary – a three-course Thai banquet from Soi.38’s Terry Intarakhamhaeng.
But one of the great joys of Womadelaide comes from giving into temptation and following the exotic rhythms and melodies drifting through the park. If you want to make sure you don’t miss out on this year’s breakout hit, here are a few under-the-radar acts that just might become your next favourite band.
Kokoroko
This eight-piece London collective specialises in slinky, languorous funk that breaks down borders by fusing soul and jazz with West African-influenced forms such as afrobeat and highlife. The sinuous guitar licks, soulful horns and harmonised vocals are equally well-suited to a dreamy afternoon in the dappled shade of a Moreton Bay fig or a late-night groove.
Sunday, 6.30pm (Stage 2)
Ondatrópica
Like a Colombian Buena Vista Social Club, this pan-national supergroup combines three generations of talent into a rotating line-up of 70 musicians. Blending African, European and South American styles and instruments, the group takes inspiration from cumbia, tropical funk, salsa, ska and hip-hop to make breezy, sun-drenched jams with a healthy dose of fun (including a delightfully unhinged Black Sabbath cover that’s a favourite of ours).
Sunday, 10.30pm (Foundation Stage) & Monday, 3pm (Taste The World)
Beckah Amani
With just one release to her name (last year’s remarkable April EP), this Tanzanian-Australian artist is one of Australia’s most exciting new talents. Amani’s style switches from stripped-back folk to R’n’B and percussion-led jams, but the constant is her rich, emotion-filled voice soaring over everything as she sings about love, longing and finding her place in the world.
Saturday, 6pm (Frome Park Pavilion) & Sunday, 4.30pm (Moreton Bay Stage)
Meute
This “techno marching band” follows in the tradition of New Orleans brass bands, but instead of updating funk classics, the German band take on party-starting techno and house jams. Expect energy levels to be high when almost a dozen percussionists and horn players get in lock step to create a frenzied mobile disco with covers of tunes such as Dennis Ferrer’s Hey Hey and Flume’s You & Me.
Saturday, 2.30pm (Foundation Stage); Sunday, 9.30pm (Stage 2) & Monday, 5.45pm (Roving)
Mdou Moctar
Tuareg acts like Tinariwen and Bombino have provided some of the highlights of previous Womadelaide festivals, but this year Mdou Moctar is on deck to take the desert blues sound in an entirely new direction. Dubbed “the Hendrix of the Sahara” by the Guardian, Moctar augments the twisting, hypnotic guitar rhythms of classic desert blues with ’80s drum fills and wailing arena rock solos to create a high-octane sound as blistering as the desert environment he grew up in.
Sunday, 8.30pm (Stage 7) & Monday, 3pm (Foundation Stage)
