East Meets West – Uniting Local and International Up-and-Coming Musicians

Vienna’s Gürtel, Austria 20240905-07

If you have been living in Vienna for a while, you probably know there are few places more ideal for the music scene in the city than the well-known Gürtel. That’s what the Waves Vienna festival might have thought when deciding their 14th edition location.

This time, the festival encompasses more than 100 acts along ten different venues in the area, the perfect setting for discoverers and music lovers. Just rabbit-holing the lineup to get to know which bands to see and planning your schedule is a whole experience. It is like going to a candy shop as a kid and being told -Choose whatever you want-, get your sugar rush, and still crave more.

After planning the schedule meticulously, I got two different approaches and a combination of those two. First, jump mid-sets to manage to see the most amount of bands possible. Second, watch full sets to enjoy the complete experience each band had prepared for the audience, and third, the combination of both strategies. Years of festival going, and I can’t still pick the best approach, though. So, this is how it went:

Thursday

The first strategy was in motion, jump from set to set to cover as much as possible. I decided to start with the Canadian Housewife (@B72) and her exciting pop with indie rock seasoning like the single “New Girl” from her first EP or the recent “I Lied” and “Wasn’t You“, both released at the beginning of 2024. Lyrics that go from day-by-day situations to women’s empowerment and climate change. It was hard to leave such a fun set but Brighid mentioned she’ll be playing again on Saturday.

Next step, Spilif (@Chelsea) the Tyroleans were musically amazing, a set full of highlights like “retrospektiv” and “Rap ist“, I would be the kind who always appreciates a full band rap set. A smooth and cool bass served its function to reinforce the bit driven by a precise drummer, who closed their set with a solo by the end of “Ich bleib hier“. After this, I would encourage you not to miss their next show in Vienna, at Flucc (December 3rd).

Thirty minutes break, grab a drink and the next jump is back at B72, the British Automotion and their embracing sounds. They covered the venue with a characteristic dark wave feeling with songs like “Mind and Motion” or the deep/intense “Lost in the Spinal Labyrinth“. A great presentation by the guys from Brixton, melodic and heavy riffs all along.

Following, Ischia (@Kramladen) opened the stage representing the Viennese music scene. A warm welcome from their audience, happy to listen to a glimpse of their soon-to-be-released new album “leave me to the future” (September 27th). I’m personally looking forward to listening to more of their indie rock with catchy rhythms, like the single “fake” that saw the light only two days before their set at the festival.

The B72 lineup definitely got my attention that day, because I went a third time to listen to Freak Slug and their hypnotic and soothing dream pop like their acclaimed “Radio” and “Care“. Their sound flirts between Lofi Indie and shoegaze and there cannot be a better way to represent it than with their fantastic cover of “Disorder” by their fellow Mancunians, Joy Division.

Ten minutes walk from one end to the other, basically a journey through the festival area, and I was at The Loft to listen to the Riot Grrrl punk rock of A mess, the Danish do not hesitate to let herself heard and deliver her message, “Gender Traitor” and “We Gonna Fight” are some examples of Dorte’s powerful stance.

The venue hoping also implies some genres hoping, and next was the Polish Misia Furtak (@Loop), a sweet voice that embraced and joined the audience to chore and dance to “anioly“. However, the appeasing sound backs up a recognized activist on women and gender minorities in the music industry.

Finally, at the same venue, Sasha Adrian was the right way to close the night. There is always something about the Nordic sound that talks directly to one’s insides. Those potent yet calming sounds are the signature of the Danish, songs like “Token” and “Dog” are tough on lyrics but the delivery and sympathetic interactions with the audience made the set a wholesome experience.

Friday

On the second day of Waves Vienna, the strategy changed to a full set enjoying plan, as much as the venue commuting allowed. To start the day, Edna Million (@Chelsea), with the aestheticism and lyricism of a Viennese Patti Smith embraced our ears and souls. An example of that is the homonymous song “The Pool” from her latest album, released in March 2024, a deep and hypnotic voice that put us all in a trance.

Coming next after that mesmerizing set, the energetic pure punk of the Austrians Leber (@Kramladen) to shake our heads and face reality, political messages in “Gladis“, and live experiences about the nasty misogyny of the day-by-day in “Catcall“. Punk is not dead, Punk is female.

In the same line, like having a fun trip with an overstimulated mind, went Alien Chicks (@Coco) as if they had drunk an energy drink before playing with their best friends. Their set was full of songs that built up energy and sped up the blood flow like “Curtains Up” or “Steve Buscemi“. Alien Chicks are a worthy representative of energetic British rock music, a refreshing glimpse of a specific sound some could say was left behind in the first decade of the 2000s.

Afterward, to catch some air, and rest from jumping all around. Emily Underhill from Hastings, UK, better known as Tusks (@B72) was presenting her last album “Gold” released in April 2024. Her set was an experience that built her own atmospheric vibe, “Wake“, and guided us through these apparently unexplored lands, “The Way“, that in the end felt well known, “Body Ache“.

After, to break the spell of the past set, and go back to fuzzy sounds, the Ukrainian musician Maksym Semeniuk and his project I Hate Myself Because (@Kramladen). It was a full house, impossible to fit another person in there but I managed to sneak in front of the stage to bounce to an extended version of his song “i don’t dance” which sounds even better live than on record. Very characteristic of his garage punk sound “I Feel Bad” and “Fck Me” were highlights of the set. I Hate Myself Because will be back in Vienna on September 19th at B72, do not hesitate to see them live.

And lastly, pun non-intended, right after I Hate Myself Because, We Hate You Please Die (@B72) another representation of a female lead scathing punk band. “Adrenaline” was her most recent single by then, however, they were presenting “Automatic Mode” a single just released at the time I was writing this review, September 11th. Shoutout to Mathilde for keeping the tempo and rhythm at that level, the powerful stage presence of Chloé, and Joseph’s energy.

Saturday

The third and last day, this time was a mix of both strategies, venue hopping and full set watching. It started with a fantastic set by Dunya (@Chelsea), a tri-lingual band that easily blended English, German, and Turkish to create their dreamy sound world. Songs from their last album like “Incir Agaci” and “Oleander” resonated in the audience’s minds. A cocktail of Eastern European sounds with a twist of psychedelic guitars and bass.

Next were the locals, Potato Beach (@B72), and their garage surf rock that felt like chilling under a parasol at Donauinsel on a hot summer, “Beach Drive“. Fun to listen, and vibe to “Love Signs” or “Meltdown” from their latest album “Dip In“, released in March this year. The perfect band to listen to on the last weekend of this year’s summer.

Right after, an alternative pop with a dreamy touch by Montesco (@Kramladen), who released their first LP “Sol de Medianoche” in February. One could easily sense the Catalan blood with their heartwarming and passionate lyrics, like in “Todo el Oro” and “Esta Noche“. Very good reception by the audience, hopefully, we will be seeing more Spaniard bands touring here.

To continue, I was lucky to listen to a couple of songs by Marta Duarte d’Almeida (@Café Carina), brilliantly using loops to reproduce vocal percussions and melodies in “Guess What“. Truly a One-woman band in the whole definition of the word.

Following that, were the French Cosmopaark (@Kramladen) and their shoegaze/introverted pop with notes of post-rock, playing songs like “Sorry“, perfect for a melancholic heart. And “Mr. BigYellowSun“, energetic and involving, cathartic one could say. In April they released the single “Pure Intention” and announced “Olive Tree“, their new single arriving in September 17th. I cannot wait to listen to it.

Afterward, it was time to catch the old-school rock of Girlband! (@Chelsea), who just played Glastonbury for the first time and released “Heartbreak Town” their latest EP with singles like “Not Like The Rest“, and the energetic “21st Century Suffragette“. Guitar solos, and the energy of a stadium band at a small venue. I would define their sound as a crisp fusion of punk rock and indie with a pop sensibility to make catchy songs.

As promised, Brighid Fry, better known for her project Housewife (@The Loft) played again on Saturday. And this time I managed to listen to her full set. I was happy I could see them again fully and jig to her songs.

And lastly, to close an awesome and fun festival, what could be better than the spiritual pop dance bits of Modular (@B72), songs like “Trümmer dieser Stadt” built the ambiance, ideal to dance to “Zeit Steht” and keep that energy flowing.

While it is the Autumn of big comebacks like Oasis and Linkin Park, the Waves Vienna Festival showcased over one hundred newcomers. Since its beginnings over a decade ago, it moved several times throughout the city and many acts from all around the world have acted. This time, it was set at the Gürtel and its venues under the U-Bahn.

The lineup was comprehensive in genres and geographical backgrounds. I was very pleased to see a lineup as such that not only encompassed a lot musically speaking, but that had a balanced representation by all means. As an experience it was fun to be “venue hopping” and experiencing the city as such while being part of a music festival, a detail that you might lose when going to other festivals where the norm is to host them outside the city in a remote big area.

Another highlight of the festival is how it is by concept and structure a good chance to either interact with your favorite artists or even do some networking if you are somehow related to the music scene. Even considering how tight was my schedule each day, I managed to meet amazing people. No spoilers but some interesting album reviews were agreed on these networking opportunities.

Without a doubt one of my favorite festivals as it is a great opportunity to listen to new music, and get an overview of the world music scene. The date for the 15th edition has already been set to October 2-5, 2025. And you can already get your Hyper Early Bird Festival Passes. We will see each other then.

Special thanks to Méi Lán, Chris, and Nati for the photos.