The second day of the second Vip InMusic open-air was great – the problems from the day before were solved. There were no more ques for drink and food vouchers. Many people didn’t like that way of selling drinks, but we all have to get used to it, since all the festivals use vouchers instead of money now.
The main stages were the Vip stage and Nokia stage – besides that, there was also a DJ stage by Radio 101 in one of the tents, and other tents with their own programme. Apart from regular food and drinks, there could also be bought Chinese, vegetarian and vegan food. There was a stand with badges and T-shirts, and a booth where you could take a phone call in silence.
Everything was going well, apart from the weather – it seemed like it was going to rain, but luckily, it didn’t until 2 am, when pretty much everything was over, and it was time to go home.
The bands started playing around 5 pm, but I came there at 8, when it was time for the headliners. To be true, I was there to see Asian Dub Foundation, everything else was just a bonus. They were set at half past 8. before them, I heard and saw a part of The Hold Steady’s and Letu štuke’s show, but that was pretty much it.
And when ADF walked up the stage, it was suddenly maddness in the masses – among the first songs they played were “Tank”, “Take Back The Power”, “Riddim I Like”, “Flyover”,. The legendary British jungle/punk/dub band did their best to make us all have a good time – which we surely had. Since they’re one of my favourite bands, I couldn’t believe I finally got o see them live – it was the third time they played in Croatia, and I missed the first two shows, so this was my chance – let’s not forget they are regarded as one of the best live bands in the world. And the show was really something indeed – they’re pretty wild onstage, and are interesting to see, with their three singers, an unusual drummer, and a DJ in the back. Ghetto Priest sung most of the songs, ehile the guitarist Chandrasonic has had a great communication with the audience during the whole show. They went on with “Taa Deem”,”Warring Dhol”, and then it was time for a new song, called  “Superpower” – a song with a political message which Chandrasonic formulated in an idealistic call for “no more superpowers, but equal powers!”. The song itself is great, heavy, but live it seemed pretty melodic. I’m sure it’s gonna be the new “Fortress Europe”! Speaking of which the end of the concert was nearing – they played probably one of the greatest sonfs off “Tank” – “Oil”, and then they left the stage for a couple of minutes. Of course, soon they were back with a great and energic performance of “Fortress Europe” – all in all, they played a little bit longer than an hour. The audience wanted more, but one encore is all that can be expected on an open-air, since the stage had to be prepaired for Iggy and his Stooges. The DJ continued to play a mix of ADF songs, and then it was over. The pause began with The Clash’s “London Calling”, and continued with other British ’77 punk bands.
Then we went to the other (Nokia) stage – there !!! (chk chk chk) were doing there thing, which isn’t something I like very much, but their audience was obviously having a great time.
Soon it was time for Iggy&The Stooges – they played their part well, with Iggy all around the stage – after the show, people talked more about his jumping onstage then the music. They played some of their greatest hits such as “I Wanna Be Your Dog” “1969″, “No Fun”, and also some songs of their newest album, “The Weirdness”. On “No Fun”, fans joined Iggy on the stage and sand with him.
After that, there was one very interesting band left to see – Kultur Shock. They’re from the States, but members of the band are from all parts of the world – Bosnia, the US, Japan,. They play a crazy mix of Bosnian sevdah, rock and punk – a melting pot that isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it sounds great to me, and to most of the people that were there that night. Kultur Shock have a lot of fans here. They played in a tent, where it was very hot, but nobody did mind – people were singing, even moshing. Kultur Shock’s music breaks the barriers between cultures, not to mention the musical ones. They shatter stereotypes about Balkan music and cultures, and make punks and metalheads mosh to etno melodies. A great band, a must-see!
Around 2 am, Kultur Shock were doing their encore, and after that, the festival was close to its end. Well, let’s hope that the Vip InMusic festival will continue this way, maybe even with some newer bands – we can only profit off it, with a richer musical summer.

Report & photo: Sara Profeta