American author Zora Neale Hurston may have said these words over 50 years ago, but they still ring clear and true today: this soulful musical style continues to resonate with modern audiences, largely thanks to its ability to evoke deep emotion.
And at this weekend’s “Back To The Blues” festival, Malaysians will be able to enjoy stellar performances by various local and international blues bands, while enjoying workshops, exhibitions and other events that will be fun for the whole family.
“‘Back to the Blues’ is an urban art festival that brings together different art forms in a common space. As organisers, our love for music was birthed by the blues, and we wanted others to be able to share that experience with us,” festival operations director and co-founder John-Paul Ponnudorai told FMT Lifestyle.
A fascinating component of the festival will be the fusing of live painting sessions with live music. “It has always been something we wanted to do – so when we received the support from MYCreative Ventures and the communications ministry, it was a dream come true,” he added.
The festival, which takes place at the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre on Saturday, features a stellar lineup including Christian & The Groove Therapy, Khaimano, Keith Kamalaraj & The Casualties, Billie Blue & The Nowhere Men, and Josh Thomas.
Also performing will be Australians Dom Turner and Al Terry, as well as Indonesia’s Gugun Blues Shelter.
“Most of the bands performing are those we follow and love listening to, but have had more of an indie presence and not mainstream.
“We wanted to create a platform for them to put their original material out, as well as network with similar genre bands and regional festival performers,” said Ponnudorai, who shared that he hopes to make “Back to the Blues” an annual event.
The festival is also a great opportunity to catch local band Azmyl & the Truly Asia: this will be their last show for a while, as they will soon go on hiatus to work on new songs and recordings.
The band will perform seven Malay songs from their recent album “John Bangi Blues”, including “Orang Kita”, “Skodeng Blues”, “Lori Hantu”, and “Penghasut Blues”.
“We’re packing our 30-minute set with all-original songs that address the blues we experience as Malaysians – hence, I call it Malaysian Blues,” said band frontman Azmyl Yunor.
“These are the songs we played when we toured the United States last year at the Beale Street Music Festival in Memphis.”
There will also be a host of other activities to be enjoyed. For instance, young ’uns can have the time of their lives at the Children’s Creative Corner from 10am-5pm.
The programme includes a woodworking workshop with Kita Bina, an arts and crafts studio, in addition to face-painting and slime-making sessions.
Another highlight are film screenings: according to Ponnudorai, screening partner SIAR TV has an amazing lineup of local classics to “knock you off your seats”.
The main screening, by invitation only, will be a documentary about Blues Gang, one of the acts featured in the festival.
Finally, don’t miss the range of music workshops, including a cigarbox guitar-building session by Khaimano, and blues-harp and blues-guitar clinics by Al Terry and Dom Turner, respectively.
Ponnudorai said he hopes the event will help people discover how blues music has impacted many popular genres over time.
“We also want people to gain a wider appreciation of the arts in general, as well as the immense talent that this country has to offer. Every single detail of this festival has been curated to create an immersive art experience.
“The best part of the blues is its honesty – it’s always been about honest expression – and it doesn’t get any truer than this,” he concluded.
‘Back to the Blues’
Where:
Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre
Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah,
Sentul, 51100 Kuala Lumpur
When:
Saturday, Feb 24 @ 10am-12pm
Tickets, priced at RM158 or RM88 for students, can be bought here. Learn more about ‘Back to the Blues’ via Facebook and Instagram.