Cutting-edge festival decides to diversify
The Synch Festival, a three-day music fiesta scheduled for early July on the outskirts of Athens, promises to be quite an event. Some 60 musicians and DJs, 36 hours of electronic music, four stages, and 200 experimental short films from around the world will crowd the program at the Lavrion Technical and Cultural Park – a 20-hectare expanse some 54 kilometers southeast of central Athens – from July 1-3. An ideal venue for such a festival, the park, under the auspices of the Athens Polytechnic, was once home to the country’s first-ever power-generating plant. The overarching theme of the festival, being held for the second time, is «synchronization,» or new international musical trends. It will also extend into the fields of digital art and experimental film. Attendees will have the chance to enjoy DJ sets, short films and online art within any of the festival’s eight specially prepared zones. A special tribute will be paid to hip-hop at this year’s event, with one of the style’s most renowned acts, De La Soul, booked to perform. Also included on the festival’s loaded agenda are Plaid, a pioneering British act, fellow UK artist Jamie Lidell – an eccentric performer who fuses contemporary electronica with soul elements – Pan Sonic, an experimental Finnish group, the post-rock New York band Liars, and Hiroshi Watanabe, a Japanese master of electronica. The local scene will be represented by Constantinos Beta, the former frontman of Stereo Nova who has been pursuing a solo career over the past decade or so. His performance, prepared especially for the Synch Festival, will focus on video art. Other Greek acts to perform include Marsheaux, Elecktroware, Razzastarr, and Milto Eph. Organizers are expected to make further announcements regarding the event’s agenda in the coming days.
