Le Guess Who?’s Who 2019: Miranda Cuckson

08 October 2019

There’s less than a month to go before Le Guess Who? takes over Utrecht. With over 150 artists set to perform, how do we make sense of such a monumental line-up? We made a list of the artists we’re most excited to see and asked them for their recommendations.

Miranda Cuckson

Official Website

Performing Thursday 7th November at TivoliVredenburg, curated by Patrick Higgins

Photo: John Rogers

Exhibiting an unsurpassed mastery of the violin and the viola, Miranda Cuckson performs beautifully anything that comes her way. A renowned and unique performer, with numerous prestigious awards and accolades under her belt, she engages wholeheartedly and skilfully with her music, playing pieces ranging from the classical repertoire to contemporary ones. Over the past fifteen years, Miranda has performed and worked with an array of both established and emerging composers from around the world and obviously, we can’t wait to see her performing at Le Guess Who?. And now we know who she is looking forward to seeing too!

 

Sarah Davachi

Website

Performing Friday 8th November at Janskerk, curated by Jenny Hval

“I’m a fan of Sarah Davachi’s music – the tactility of the sound, the throbbing resonance, the stillness but inner intensity. I’m intrigued by how she really delves into the nooks and crannies of an instrument’s tone, just dwells there. I’m excited she’s performing. ”

 

Fatoumata Diawara

Website

Performing Sunday 10th November at at TivoliVredenburg

“I’m also thrilled about Fatoumata Diowara, both her own performance and her curation. Her music is exhilarating and I think what she does as an African and international artist is amazing.”

 

Ahmed ag Kaedy

Facebook

Performing Saturday 9th November at LE:EN, curated by Fatoumata Diawara

“I’m also eager to hear the songs and spirit of Malian musician Ahmed ag Kaedy in Fatoumata’s line-up.”

Le Guess Who? will take place 7-10 November. For the full line-up, tickets and more info visit leguesswho.com. And take a look at other artists we’re excited about picking their own Le Guess Who?’s Who.

Le Guess Who?’s Who 2019: Bremer/McCoy

02 October 2019

There’s just over one month to go before Le Guess Who? takes over Utrecht. With over 150 artists set to perform, how do we make sense of such a monumental line-up? We made a list of the artists we’re most excited to see and asked them for their recommendations.

Bremer/McCoy

Official Website

Performing Saturday 9th November at Janskerk

The compositions and soundscapes of Bremer/McCoy offer a space for contemplation. Melodic, tranquil and utterly engrossing, their music is infused with emotion. Childhood friends Morten McCoy and Jonathan Bremer formed the duo in 2013, first as a reggae group before morphing into a jazz, dub and neo classical outfit, intensified by the handbuild soundsystem they use when playing live. They are soon to release their fourth album, Utopia, and leading up to their performance at Le Guess Who? in November, we asked them what artists they were most excited to see. Read on to find out.

 

Jah Shaka Sound System

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Performing Saturday 9th November at TivoliVredenburg, curated by The Bug

“Jah Shaka has always had an deep and spiritual vibe in his works during the last 40 years. Both as a soundsystem operator, record producer and chanter. We very much look forward to experiencing the mystical vibration of a Shaka dance once again.
A proper soundsystem dance is not about getting wasted but about meditating to the conscious sounds. If its on his own soundsystem one can look forward to one of the most special sounding operating systems out there… it sounds like thunder & lightning and with harmonic distortions that can make the bass reverberate in a whole different key. If not, I really hope that we will still experience Shaka on a proper deep soundsystem. He should not be allowed to play on a standard club PA. This is spiritual music, but when the bass hits, it needs to hit you in the physical realm too.”


 

Mark Ernestus’ Ndagga Rhythm Force

Website

Performing Friday 8th November at TivoliVredenburg, curated by The Bug

“This is a very original blend of Ernestus’ Basic Channel roots and African rhythms and instruments. Formless, deep-sounding, partly handplayed and partly programmed. There’s something mystical about their sound and style. We very much look forward to seeing how they approach a live performance. “

 

Le Guess Who? will take place 7-10 November. For the full line-up, tickets and more info visit leguesswho.com. And take a look at other artists we’re excited about picking their own Le Guess Who?’s Who.

Le Guess Who?’s Who 2019: Joseph Shabason

27 September 2019

There’s less two months to go before Le Guess Who? takes over Utrecht. With over 150 artists set to perform, how do we make sense of such a monumental line-up? We made a list of the artists we’re most excited to see and asked them for their recommendations.

Joseph Shabason

Official Website

Performing Saturday 9th November at Theater Kikker

Staggeringly talented composer and multi-instrumentalist Joseph Shabason has been a favourite of ours for a long time. A busy recording artist and touring musician, he has also played and collaborated in various projects, including Destroyer and DIANA. Last year he released one of our 15 Album Picks of 2018, Anne, a beguiling, poignant and enveloping album blending jazz and ambient. Needless to say we can’t wait to see him perform at Le Guess Who? and we asked him which bands he’s most looking forward to. Find out his recommendations below, with a few words from him:

 

Cate Le Bon

Website

Performing Sunday 10th November at TivoliVredenburg

“Been such a huge fan of hers for a bunch of years now and I can’t wait to finally see her live. I’ve heard that she’s incredible. Plus her new album is so on point and I’m excited to see how she does those songs live.”

 

Visible Cloaks, Yoshio Ojima & Satsuki Shibano

Website

Performing Thursday 7th November at Janskerk

“Basically I just want to see Visible Cloaks so badly. They make sounds that are so tactile and precise and their new record with Yoshio Ojima & Satsuki Shibano is gorgeous.”

 

Le Guess Who? will take place 7-10 November. For the full line-up, tickets and more info visit leguesswho.com. And take a look at other artists we’re excited about picking their own Le Guess Who?’s Who.

Le Guess Who?’s Who 2018: Circuit des Yeux

02 November 2018

There’s less than a week to go before Le Guess Who? takes over Utrecht. With over 150 artists set to perform, how do we make sense of such a monumental line-up? We made a list of the artists we’re most excited to see and asked them for their recommendations.

CIRCUIT DES YEUX

Official Website

Circuit des Yeux presents ‘Reaching For Indigo: Gaia Infinitus’
Performing Sunday 11th November at TivoliVredenburg

Photo: Michael Vallera

We love Circuit des Yeux to bits. Haley Fohr, the immeasurably talented and adventurous vocalist, composer, and producer behind the project, counts five stellar albums under her belt, including two that found their way to our album picks of the year, 2015’s In Plain Speech and 2017’s Reaching For Indigo. A year on from its release, we can’t stop playing it and we are incredibly excited with the special one-off performance lined up for Guess Who?. Circuit des Yeux will present an augmented version of the album, Reaching For Indigo: Gaia Infinitus, rearranged for an eight-piece ensemble featuring members of the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra. We’ve asked her what other bands she is looking forward to. Read on to find out!

 

“Here’s the scoop – I am SO excited for Le Guess Who this year. Mainly because of my own selfish reasons of performing newly arranged music with the Netherlands Philharmonic on Sunday, November 11th ! But when I am not rehearsing and preparing for my performance, I will definitely be digging into the amazing musical buffet that the festival has so graciously provided. So here it is,the big one, two, three on what I will be seeing at LGW? Festival 2018!”

 

Art Ensemble of Chicago

Official Website

Performing Thursday 8th November at TivoliVredenburg, curated by Moor Mother

“How ironic is it that a Chicago musician will be seeing this band for the first time in Utrecht? I have many of their albums, and have heard many iterations of this ensemble. They are a huge inspiration in terms of what they present sonically, and the benevolent nature of their music. I am particularly excited for the younger participants (Tomeka Reid especially), and to witness how the modernity of our time folds into legacy of The Art Ensemble of Chicago.”

Meridian Brothers

Official Website

Performing Friday 9th November at EKKO

“I hadn’t heard of Meridian Brothers until Tyler, a drummer I have been performing with during “Reaching For Indigo”, played some for us while driving through some small unknown European town this last February. I love the sounds they create – there is something vaguely beyond time about the sounds they produce. They are also a mysterious project…I am looking forward to seeing who they are, and what instruments they play live. I recently went to Colombia, where Tyler considered “going on the search” for the Meridian Brothers, but I can now thank my lucky stars that LGW has done the hard work for us. “

Ka Baird + Pekka Airaksinen

Ka Baird’s Official Website
Pekka Airaksinen’s Official Website

Performing Sunday 11th November at TivoliVredenburg

“This first time collaboration is going to be pure gold, I can just feel it. I am excited to be in the audience, and hear what unfolds – these are two mindful manipulators of sound that have a very wild and “on-the-loose” approach to composition. I am a huge fan of Ka Baird’s “Sapropelic Pycnic”, which came out last year on Drag City. The result of these two performing together are completely unpredictable, and that is why I will make sure to be present when their minds meet. “

 

Le Guess Who? will take place 8-11 November. For the full line-up, tickets and more info visit leguesswho.com. And take a look at other artists we’re excited about picking their own Le Guess Who?’s Who.

Le Guess Who?’s Who 2018: Manu Delago

31 October 2018

There’s just over a week to go before Le Guess Who? takes over Utrecht. With over 150 artists set to perform, how do we make sense of such a monumental line-up? We made a list of the artists we’re most excited to see and asked them for their recommendations.

MANU DELAGO

Official Website

Anoushka Shankar & Manu Delago with MO Strings
Performing Saturday 10th November at TivoliVredenburg

Photo: Lukas Lorenz

Known as a pioneer of the hang, with a staggering technical ability and boundless creativity, Manu Delago is one of the most interesting contemporary musicians, experimenting and expanding what can be done on the instrument. Parasol Peak is his latest album and film, a giant sonic venture recorded with an ensemble of seven musicians on a mountaineering expedition in the Alps. A highly in demand musician both on stage and in the studio, the percussionist and composer’s gifts were first noticed by Björk, and he has performed and recorded with an impressive list of artists, including Anoushka Shankar, Poppy Ackroyd, the London Symphony Orchestra, The Cinematic Orchestra, Ólafur Arnalds, and many others. Following on from his collaboration with Anoushka Shankar, the pair will bring a special performance to Le Guess Who?, with the Metropole Orkest Strings conducted by Jules Buckley. Needless to say we can’t wait for this performance, and we asked Delago which bands he’s most looking forward to. Find out below.

 

Colin Stetson

Official Website

Performing Thursday 8th November at Janskerk

“Colin is an incredible musician. It’s almost unbelievable that he’s creating the sounds you hear. I particularly love his album with Sarah Neufeld.”

 

Serpentwithfeet

Bandcamp

Performing Friday 9th November at TivoliVredenburg

“I fell in love with his music after I heard the track ‘Four Ethers’. It’s a brilliant rework of the legendary ‘Symphony Fantastique’ by Hector Berlioz. “

 

STUFF.

Official Website

Performing Friday 9th November at De Pastoe Fabriek, curated by Shabaka Hutchings

“We are sharing the same booking agent who made me aware of this brilliant and highly energetic band. Check them out!”

 

Le Guess Who? will take place 8-11 November. For the full line-up, tickets and more info visit leguesswho.com. And take a look at other artists we’re excited about picking their own Le Guess Who?’s Who.

Le Guess Who?’s Who 2018: Yonatan Gat

29 October 2018

There’s less than two weeks to go before Le Guess Who? takes over Utrecht. With over 150 artists set to perform, how do we make sense of such a monumental line-up? We made a list of the artists we’re most excited to see and asked them for their recommendations.

Yonatan Gat

Official Website

Performing Thursday 8th November at TivoliVredenburg, with The Eastern Medicine Singers

Yonatan Gat has been stirring it up for a long time, first as the founder and one half of cult riotous band Monotonix, and in recent years as a solo artist, keeping the same ferocious energy. A wildly inventive and prolific guitar virtuoso, his compositions combine an improvised free jazz approach and influences from all over the place. Gat is heading to Le Guess Who? with Native American powwow drum group The Eastern Medicine Singers, bringing his recent second album Universalists to audiences at the festival. We’ve asked him what other bands he is looking forward to and as it was no easy task, Gat picked only bands that he played with recently. Find out his recommendations below, with a few words from him.

Senyawa

Official Website

Performing Thursday 8th November at TivoliVredenburg

“I improvised with Rully, along with Arrington De Dionsyo and Brian Chase once in Brooklyn. It was deep. Rully and Arrington were summoning the demons. An audience member put a strange, terrifying mask over his head and started dancing with it in the front row, I was hallucinating from the music, close to terrified, but one can never gets truly scared when you’re performing, every emotion just becomes a positive experience and a part of the music. I never felt that way until I heard Rully sing.”

Sons of Kemet

Official Website

Performing Saturday 10th November at TivoliVredenburg, curated by Shabaka Hutchings

“I just played with them in LA two weeks ago. They are versatile. they were making everyone dance, and then everyone were standing watching, then dancing again.I remember the show ended very sweetly with a pindrop, lengthy, tender saxophone solo.”

 

Hailu Mergia

Bandcamp

Performing Saturday 10th November at TivoliVredenburg

“we played right before him in a festival in North Carolina in September. The organ sounds like an accordion and the accordion sounds like an organ. At the end of the day it could have only come out of Ethiopian music, and it could only sound like him.”

Le Guess Who? will take place 8-11 November. For the full line-up, tickets and more info visit leguesswho.com. And take a look at other artists we’re excited about picking their own Le Guess Who?’s Who.