One Love Sound Fest 2005: Abassi All Stars, Hypnotix and reggae at the Feature Film Studio

The second edition of Wrocław reggae festival ONE LOVE SOUND FEST promises to be exceptionally exciting! Poland's largest indoor reggae event, and one of Europe's biggest, will feature the very best Polish reggae and dancehall artists alongside international stars.

This year’s festival surprises with the ambitious scale of its preparations. It will take place in the vast halls of Wytwórnia Filmów Fabularnych, renowned for their excellent acoustics. Across two stages, one for live concerts and the other for sound systems, audiences can hear almost every variety of reggae and dancehall in its freshest and most contemporary forms. The central idea behind ONE LOVE SOUND FEST is to break away from festival conventions, showcase the most interesting Polish reggae artists and promote young bands. Each year, we also want to invite major international stars.

This year’s biggest festival stars will undoubtedly be Abassi All Stars. Audiences can expect uniquely heavy sounds generated by mixing-desk master DJ Perch of Zion Train, supported by no fewer than three vocalists and an excellent horn section. A concert by legendary Czech group Hypnotix, much loved in Poland, promises to be equally interesting. Renowned for their mystical, almost ecstatic sound, they successfully combine traditional, ethnic reggae with contemporary electronics.

Hungary’s Irie Mafia Band could be the major surprise among ONE LOVE SOUND FEST’s international stars. They combine traditional Jamaican sounds, hip-hop, dancehall, acid jazz and roots reggae explosively. Polish representatives include hugely popular kings of positive sounds from Szczecin, Piotr Banach and Gutek with Indios Bravos, alongside Wszystkie Wschody Słońca, freely crossing genre boundaries and mixing dub, Slavic ethnic music and ultra-modern club sounds.

A major event for Wrocław audiences will certainly be legendary roots-reggae band Stage Of Unity’s first hometown concert since reuniting. Wrocław is also home to the excellent Natural Dread Killaz, young hopes of Polish reggae and dancehall whose recently released debut confirmed their major ambitions. The sound-system stage will host a major confrontation between German stars Germaican Scout and Polish sound systems led by this year’s Poznań Sound Clash winners, Lublin’s Love Sen-C Music.

They will be supported by Silesian high-flyers East West Rockers, Jah Free & JVSS, Yasman and his Cuban friend Tony Junior, the energetic Warsaw crew Tisztelet Sound System, and the experienced, dynamic Singledread Sound System. Lithuania's Soul Star Sound System also promises an excellent performance. Each concert will be a celebration in its own right: almost all the invited performers have prepared special surprises for the audience.

The organisers have also arranged numerous activities around the concerts. It is therefore worth arriving early at Wytwórnia Filmów Fabularnych to take part in the many workshops, lectures and film screenings. A seminar on Rastafarian culture led by Radosław Łazarz, a doctor of philosophy at the University of Wrocław, promises to be particularly fascinating. Visitors can also watch screenings of unforgettable concerts by stars such as Seeed and Steel Pulse. Hungry fans will find a special vegetarian kitchen serving inexpensive, tasty meals. The entire event will take place in the spirit of love and nothing but love. ONE LOVE SOUND FEST will warm hearts and make sitting still impossible on this extraordinary November evening. There will not be a dull moment!

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