East of Culture – Different Sounds: The Final Music Acts
East of Culture – Different Sounds is just around the corner so it’s time for the final music announcements and closing out this year’s line-up. Joining the festival are Whispering Sons with their unique blend of experimental and frenetic post-punk, the Estonian duo Bedless Bones, combining – among others – dark wave, industrial, and electro elements, the Canadian duo Miesha & The Spanks, bringing a powerful fusion of garage rock, grunge, and punk, and the German project Lucy Kruger & The Lost Boys, exploring genres such as psychedelic folk, ambient punk, and art pop. Between 6-9 July 2023 we’re meeting in Lublin for the 16th edition of Different Sounds and its 10th iteration as part of East of Culture – a project carried out by the National Centre for Culture in cooperation with three cities in eastern Poland – Lublin, Białystok, and Rzeszów, with funds provided by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
We are thrilled to announce the final music acts for this year’s East of Culture-Different Sounds festival, featuring four bands from different countries and representing four unique music styles. First up, we have Belgians from the excellent post-punk band Whispering Sons, who are masters of creating mood and one of the best bands in their genre in Europe. Next, we have the Estonian duo Bedless Bones, who experiment with various noir genres, building bridges and pushing the boundaries between dark wave, dark EBM, techno, industrial sounds, and an abstract atmosphere reminiscent of IDM. Flying over from Canada, we have Miesha & The Spanks, bringing their uninhibited energy and a powerful fusion of garage rock, grunge, punk, and related genres. The spectacular Lucy Kruger and her band The Lost Boys complete the lineup. Hailing from Germany, the singer-songwriter and guitarist seamlessly navigates between indie rock, folk, ambient, and post-rock sounds. It’s worth noting that the latter three performers are associated with the global Keychange network, of which Different Sounds is the official Polish partner.
Keychange is a ground-breaking international initiative dedicated to achieving gender equality in the music business. Every year, a group of women and gender minority artists and music industry professionals from 12 countries are selected to take part in a year-long development programme and later spearhead this global initiative in their countries and communities. This year, from over 830 applications, music industry experts have selected 74 emerging artists to take part in a year-long professional support programme. Different Sounds is proud to be a partner of Keychange, and as such, we will be featuring three Keychange projects and three female innovators who are participating in the educational module of the festival.
About the artists:
Whispering Sons – Whispering Sons, a band from Belgium, is currently one of the most intriguing European acts at the intersection of post-punk, cold wave, and alternative rock. The band’s precise sound, combined with the low, hypnotic vocals of frontwoman Fenne Kuppens, evokes legends such as Joy Division, Bauhaus, or Killing Joke. On top of that, Whispering Sons brings a freshness and energy to their music, particularly evident in their live performances. While both of the band’s albums, „Image” and „Several Others,” were well-received by audiences and the music industry, it is their live shows that have rapidly built the band’s legend. The concert in Lublin is sure to be one of the highlights of the programme, appealing not only to fans of guitar music. Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to see Whispering Sons live!
Lucy Kruger & The Lost Boys is an art-pop-noise project led by singer-songwriter Lucy Kruger, an artist born in Cape Town, South Africa, and currently residing in Berlin. Lucy creates slow, meandering folk music that is both intimate and ambient. It is filled with atmospheric and intense vibes. The artist made her debut in 2014 with the release of the EP titled „Lucy Kruger & The Lost Boys.” Three years later, her first studio album, „Summer’s Not That Simple,” was released under the Permanent Record label. Over the past four years, the band has released three more albums and embarked on successful tour to promote them. This was a trilogy called „tapes,” documenting growing unease and ultimate liberation. Their latest album „Heaving” was released in April 2023, and we will have the exciting opportunity to experience it live for the first time in Poland during East of Culture -Different Sounds festival. Lucy Kruger & The Lost Boys are part of the Keychange 2023 programme.
Bedless Bones is the project of Kadri Sammel, an alternative electronic and visual artist from Tallinn. Kadri has a background in cultural theory, audiovisual media, and photography, and for a decade, she sang in choirs. Her personal musical style evolved into the solo project Bedless Bones, where she experiments with various noir genres, building bridges and pushing the boundaries between dark wave, dark EBM, techno, industrial sounds, and an abstract atmosphere reminiscent of IDM. In addition to Bedless Bones, Kadri is a member of the Estonian avant-garde deathbeat/outdustrial band Forgotten Sunrise and the vocalist of the British-Estonian dystopian industrial group Deathsomnia. For the past few years, she has also been a key part of Beats From The Vault, a series of underground dark music events in Estonia that has been active since 1998. Bedless Bones is part of the Keychange 2023 programme
Miesha & The Spanks – Miesha Louie is an artist representing the Canadian Secwépemc ethnic minority, and The Spanks are the many drummers who’ve stood beside her on stage over the years. However, her longest musical partner is Sean Hamilton, with whom Miesha has spent the last 5 years, building and enhancing their garage rock sound. Deeply influenced by proto-punk classics (such as The Runaways, MC5, The Stooges) and 90s riot grrrl/grunge (including L7 and The Gits), Miesha & The Spanks conjure up an energy that hits the listener in the face, throwing them into a world of killer riffs and sweaty gig venues. Their latest full-length album, „Girls Girls Girls,” released in 2018, landed at the top of the Canadian !earshot National Loud Chart and also reached the number one spot on the Indigenous Music Countdown, earning them three local music awards. In 2021, Miesha & The Spanks were nominated for Rock Artist of the Year at the Western Canadian Music Awards. Miesha & The Spanks are part of the Keychange 2023 programme.
The other musical acts scheduled to perform at East of Culture – Different Sounds 2023 include Ladytron – the legendary group from the British electronic scene, Stian Westerhus – a Norwegian guitar virtuoso, Nuha Ruby Ra – a rising star in the British contemporary music scene, To Rococo Rot – the legends of the German music scene blending electronic music with live sound, the Italian masters of poetic vibe Dead Cat in a Bag, and excellent Polish bands – Szorstkie, Tuleje, and Atol Atol Atol, Contemporary Noise Ensemble, who are making a big comeback, Jakub Skorupa, whose career is on fire, phenomenal young groups like ta Ukrainka and Kisu Min, as well as the jazz-blues band Koń. Our eastern neighbours will be represented by projects from the alternative scene: the jazz band Hyphen Dash and the electronic music artists The Lazy Jesus and Monoconda
More announcements are on the way. From now on, they will be related to activities other than music, including an excellent film programme, exhibitions, panels, book launches, events for children and young people, and workshops and discussions for music professionals.
East of Culture – Different Sounds
6-9 July 2023
Błonia near the Castle, Lublin
Admission free.
More information about the festival can be found at en.innebrzmienia.eu and http://www.wschodkultury.eu/
East of Culture – Different Sounds 2023 – Organisers:
The Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, The National Centre for Culture, the City of Lublin, Workshops of Culture in Lublin. The festival has been granted honorary patronage by Krzysztof Żuk, the Mayor of Lublin, and is part of the programme of European Youth Capital Lublin 2023. As a member of the Keychange network, our festival is committed to promoting gender balance in the music industry.
