Overcast Skies Fail to Outshine the Line-up

After a relatively dry end to Friday, day three of the festival had a definite overcast start as grey clouds gathered over the site of Colours of Ostrava. The sporadic rain showers from the previous day had done little to effect the second day’s proceedings. Colours of Ostrava is perhaps the first ‘stoney festival’ I’ve encountered. The well thought-out festival grounds have a noticeable lack of mud and puddles which are generally familiar with mid-summer outdoor events these days. I have thoroughly enjoyed walking around the litter free festival site and taking in the spectacular architecture.

The ArecelorMittal stage provided my first musical experience of day three. Sauti Sol, the four-member Afro-fusion band from Nairobi, Kenya engaged the audience with their fresh distinctive sound. The band, who have enjoyed huge success in Kenya are a perfect example of the modern musical melting pot that is the East African music scene. The energetic band played a rousing set, incorporating trademark acapella vocals which gradually got the early-birds into the festival spirit.

Day three had quite a few stand-out names on the line-up, singer/songwriter & guitarist: Alanis Morissette, Animal Collective and Czech Pop outfit Skyline all graced stages with adoring fans singing and dancing in the unfavourable weather. But it was the sweet Parisian tones of Zaz (see the top image) that cleared the late afternoon clouds that had gathered and drizzled over the festival site for most of the afternoon.

The ‘Play on’ recording artist ran through her songs encouraging her enthusiastic audience to participate at every possible occasion. The 32 year old vocalist gave a sincere and heartfelt performance. The strain on her voice could clearly be heard by the end of the show.

UK experimental band Portico Quartet captivated their audience in the Gong Vítkovice stage for an intense performance. The packed auditorium watched in awe as the band combined tracks from their 3 albums. The band combine sounds and samples taken from instruments played on stage to create a truly magical sound that cannot be compared to any genre or category. Their live show was totally engrossing, the Londoners performed effortlessly and received the much deserved admiration from the audience.

The final day of Colours has performances from Ninja Tune’s Fink, up-beat Czech folk from Cirkus Cermaque and of course the headline show from Janelle Monáe. Keep your fingers crossed for clear skies!