WITH the dog days of summer over and the tourist crowds thinning, September is the beginning of a three-month late summer/autumn run that takes in a huge number of the most interesting festivals in Europe (and beyond). Here are five of our top picks for September.
Romania’s music scene has been in what might be optimistically termed a state of flux since October of last year, when a fire at Bucharest’s Colectiv Club claimed the lives of 64 people and injured 147 more. Battling through this adversity are the Bucharest promoters behind Interval Natural (September 9 and 10, €25), a new two-day event at the 13th-century Rasnov Citadel in Transylvania (above) a couple of hours drive north of the capital. Interval Natural’s small but deftly curated line-up features the likes of Mathew Johnson, Onur Ozer and Thomas Melchior, and the Boiler Room will also be there if you want to gloat to your friends in real time via the internet.
If a late-summer southern European odyssey appeals (and why wouldn’t it?) then something not hugely dissimilar can be found in Malta immediately before Interval Natural in the shape of Glitch (September 7 and 8, €64.90). Ben Klock, Midland and Fatima Yamaha are among the big draws on another small but enticing bill at a “secret fortress” on the south-western side of Malta’s main island.
Later in the month Oasis Festival (September 16 to 18, €180) comes to The Source Music Resort in Marrakech, Morocco, a city that these days is easily accessible via budget airlines from London. Helena Hauff, Prins Thomas, Margaret Dygas and Bicep are among those bringing the heat to a festival that’s unlikely to be short on it.
Croatia still goes hard as a festival destination during September, and this year adds the first Selectors (September 1 to 5, weekend tickets sold out, single-night tickets still available at €15 each) to an already heady mix. Taking place at The Garden in Tisno and programmed by the impeccable musical brains behind Amsterdam’s Dekmantel, it gathers together a dauntingly great bill that includes The Black Madonna, Joy Orbison and Motor City Drum Ensemble, the latter of whom put together the first Selectors compilation, which came out in March on Dekmantel’s in-house record label.
Our final pick for the month takes place in The Hague, where the third edition of TodaysArt (September 22 to 25, €60) relocates from its previous seaside location to the centre of the Dutch city. Standouts on a very adventurous bill include Dopplereffekt and Paula Temple.
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