Sunday wraps up with Bombino, Snoop Lion, Amon Tobin
Comatose brothers, Dumptruck Butterlips and reggae artist Snoop Lion will be some of the top bands to close out the fourth and final day of Wakarusa.
The 10th annual Wakarusa Music Festival boasts about 130 confirmed acts appearing on five stages over four days at Mulberry Mountain, north of Ozark.
Programming note: In assembling these daily lists, attention was paid to performance times, though a quick-turnaround might be required to travel between stages.
72C on SUNDAY (June 2):
• The Brothers Comatose (George’s Majestic Backwoods Stage – 1 to 2 p.m)
This festival is the perfect place to try on some new sounds for size, and today’s lineup offers a vast selection that will take you on a musical journey around the world. Start the day with The Brothers Comatose, a group founded by actual brothers Alex and Ben Morrison in San Francisco. The string quintet — guitar, upright bass, mandolin, fiddle, banjo — has smooth, rich harmonies and tight instrumentation. They have a song called “Pie for Breakfast,” so, really, what’s not to love with the first Sunday act?
• Dumptruck Butterlips (Revival Tent – 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.)
Make your way over to the Revival Tent for a Sunday afternoon treat from Dumptruck Butterlips, a trio hailing from Lawrence, Kan. The band offers intoxicating vocals, creating a sometimes bluesy, soulful sound. They blend guitar, upright bass and accordion/keyboard. Beyond the music, they also don impressive custom-made outfits, and show off some impressive hula-hooping skills. Don’t miss this fun, laid-back act.
• Bombino (Main Stage – 4:15 tp 5:30 p.m.)
Far from Kansas, Omara “Bombino” Moctar is a guitar player and singer-songwriter from the northern desert region of Niger, Africa. He’ll offer sounds unlike anything else you’ll hear at this festival. His new album, “Nomad,” was recorded with Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys (also a 2013 Grammy-winning producer of the year for non-classical music). Bombino's album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard World Music and iTunes World charts.
• Icona Pop (Revival Tent – 5:45 to 7 p.m.)
Dramatically shift gears, but continue your journey of experiencing musicians from around the world. Aino Jawo and Caroline Hjelt formed Icona Pop in the Stockholm suburbs in 2009. They, indeed, have a very pop, very electronic sound as they deliver their tunes, like the joyful, breakup anthem “I Love It.” The infectiously catchy song was featured on a fourth-season episode of “The Vampire Diaries.”
• Rebelution (Main Stage – 7:45 to 9:15 p.m.)
Take a break for some dinner, then head back to the Main Stage for a set by Rebelution. Members of this band met while in college in Santa Barbara in 2004, and they have a great reggae sound. Last year, they released a third studio album, “Peace of Mind,” on their own label, 87 Music. It debuted at No. 13 on the Billboard top 200 charts. The band will make a stop at Wakarusa before heading off later in June for a European tour.
• Snoop Lion (Main Stage – 9:45 to 11:15 p.m.)
The rapper formerly known as Snoop Dogg has transformed into the reggae artist Snoop Lion. A trip to Jamaica helped him tap into something that inspired him to leave behind the violence of gansta rap and record a song called “No Guns Allowed.” The lyrics to “Lighters Up” go like this: “east side, west side, north side, south side, unified/ come on and ride with us.” You don't want to miss the new musical sound and approach from this seasoned artist.
• Amon Tobin (Main Stage – midnight to 1:30 a.m.)
Finish off the last night of the festival with the amazing imagery and experience created by Amon Tobin’s sound and light show. Brazilian-born Tobin composes and produces electronic music. He also animates static objects using light projection, with a highly theatrical result that blends sound and technological performance art. He used to sample the music. Now, he mostly creates his own sounds by recording animals and objects and then digitally manipulating them. This is the perfect end to this four-day festival.