Five new names are ready for the main stage in August, and a common denominator for today's release is that the artists combine different musical traditions with innovative and cutting-edge expressions. At Rådhusplassen in August you can look forward to Ali Doğan Gönültaş's heartwarming presentation of Kurdish musical traditions, Calle Mambo's Latin-American genre mix with political undertones, Etran de L'Aïr's desert blues with Pan-African inspirations, Vassvik, Silvola and Strype's Sami-Finnish-Norwegian synergy, and Raganor making their debut on Oslo Mela's main stage with their qawwali with a personal twist.
This year's festival will be held August 15-17 at Rådhusplassen in Oslo. Admission to the festival is free.
About the artists:
Ali Dogan Gonultas
– Heartfelt presentation of a piece of Kurdish music history
Kurdish Ali Doğan Gönültaş grew up in a family where stories were primarily told through music. With his expressive voice, he now performs many of the rhythms and languages of oppressed minorities in Turkey.
Ali Doğan Gönültaş studied both archaeology and media studies and started his musical career in the post-rock band Ze Tijê. In parallel with composing music for film and television, he has conducted in-depth field studies on the musical traditions of his hometown of Kiğı, Eastern Anatolia. For over ten years, he studied the specific musical language and style of an Anatolian/Mesopotamian settlement and the result was the album Kiğı, released in 2022, which ensured Ali Doğan Gönültaş's international breakthrough.
He was one of the most impressive artists at Womex last year and we look forward to being captivated by his heartfelt and heartwarming presentation of a 150-year-old musical history.
Calle Mambo
– Latin American genre mix with political undertones
With their distinctive blend of genres from Latin American folk and Afro-Caribbean tones to electronica and rap, Calle Mambo has created a unique and captivating sound that always gives listeners a sense of closeness to their roots - no matter where in the world they come from or reside.
Calle Mambo fuses the Andes and their charango with Caribbean rhythms, bagpipes and timbales, while cumbia is infused with electronica and rapping. Their lyrics reflect the present, addressing themes such as the destruction of natural ecosystems, oppression and xenophobia.
On stage they play over 10 instruments, including quena, quenacho, cuatro, charango, tiple, gaita, zampoña, ronroco and timbales, and every concert feels like a euphoric and dancing journey through the entire Latin American continent. In the last two years they have played at several European festivals and at Melahuset , and we are really looking forward to seeing them bring Rådhusplassen to life during Oslo Mela.
Etran de L'Äir
– Desert blues with Pan-African inspirations
Translated, Etran de L'Aïr means "the stars from Aïr," a mountainous region in northern Niger, which has given rise to the band's hypnotic guitar solos and sunny melodies that evoke the heat and dust of the Sahara.
Based in Agadez, Etran de L'Aïr have gone from wowing local weddings to playing stages around the world over their 25-year career. Their music is rooted in celebration, often evoking the lush atmosphere of a typical Agadez wedding, with the various guitar solos playfully passing each other with a restrained precision that is powerful but never over the top.
Where other desert blues artists have drawn inspiration from Western rock, Etran de L'Aïr plays in a Pan-African style that captures the essence of all the cultural influences that characterize their hometown – from Malian blues and Hausa bar bands to Congolese soukous, with a result that is both dynamic and hypnotic.
RagaNor
– Qawwali with a very unique twist!
From deep Sufi vibes to raw Bollywood energy, RagaNor takes you on a musical journey full of pulse, poetry and genuine emotion. With rabab, harmonium, tabla and guitar in perfect symphony, they create a sound that is as unique as the band itself.
RagaNor has its roots in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Italy, but their common base is in Norway. The musicians in RagaNor have been regulars at both Melahuset and at the festival for many years, they have established themselves as a concert band that provides both energy and atmosphere, and this year they are taking the step from MelaKlassisk to the main stage itself.
On stage:
- Syed Ali: Vocals and harmonium
- Islam Umar: Rabab
- Wali Ammar: Vocals and guitar
- Sam Roberts Tabla
- Lorenzo Semeraro: Guitar
- Jamil Malik: Vocal and harmonium
- Faheem Ajmal: Vocal and harmonium
Vassvik / Silvola / Strype
– A Sami-Finnish-Norwegian synergy
Joik noir. Freestyle guitar. A Sami-Finnish-Norwegian synergy that offers a playful and experimental meeting between strong performers and where traditional Sami melodies are transformed into animistic avant-garde joik. Creative vocal expression, innovative electric guitar playing and sound design merge into a new form of music where the past stretches towards the future.
In December they released the critically acclaimed album "White" and in February they played at Melahuset , and we look forward to them recreating the magic from that concert at this year's Oslo Mela.
Med:
- Torgeir Vassvik – joik, vocals, guitar, Govvadas
- Juhani Silvola – electric guitars
- Audun Strype – sound design
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The Sami musician, composer and bandleader Torgeir Vassvik from Sápmi, Norway, is a representative of the second wave of Sami music, and especially the coastal Sami tradition. He has developed his own musical expression with a style-defining aesthetic, and his musical explorations have led to collaborations with choirs, orchestras and various jazz and classical musicians.
Finnish composer, musician and producer Juhani Silvola has made a name for himself with folk music, experimental compositions and improvisations. In his electro-acoustic work, the focus is on creating rhythm and phrasing in the broadest sense, and on producing distinctive melodic lines and as deep, animated timbres and textures as possible.
Sound designer Audun Strype is characterized by a unique experience, but also a constant curiosity for music, technology and other earthly activities. He has a particular love for the sounds of the forest and therefore prefers to spend as much time as possible away from anything that needs gasoline and has a noisy engine. His favorite weekend hi-fi: Tandberg system 20 with Tripath amplifier and solar panel.