A highlight event for the alternative crowd in Zagreb, the ZEZ Festival (Zavod za Eksperimentalni Zvuk, 'Institute of Experimental Sound') returns slightly later than usual with a four-night programme. ZEZ is the experimental music section of KSET, which has played a key role in Zagreb’s live scene since 1976. Though organisers are temporarily homeless while their venue is being renovated, they haven’t let it stop them, this year taking the festival to four different venues.
The opening salvo tonight, Wednesday October 9, is at Močvara, doors opening at 8pm. Headline act Deli Girls are a New York queer electronic punk outfit known for aggressive and high energy live shows, taking their inspiration from a whole host of genres, from metal to hyperpop – just as long as it’s loud and makes people move. They’ll be supported by SsmKOSK, a Slovenian glitch multi-instrumentalist.
On Thursday, ZEZ moves to PriMarius Craft Pivovara, where Zagreb’s noise-math rockers Naum Toga will support a headlining combined-set performance between US-based The Body and Berliner Dis Fig, who are putting on a show of abrasive and angry noise music. Friday sees Austro-Serbian Jelena Popržan, a classically-trained instrumentalist who collaborates extensively with the wider experimental scene, take the spotlight for a more tender headlining show at Žarište in Klub Kontesa. She’ll be followed by fellow Vienna-based experimental jazz group /kry, who blend electronic sounds into the traditional instrumental cast of the genre.
The festival closes on Saturday at AKC Attack, where chaotic jazz-rockers TDK will be backing Otay:onii, a multimedia artist and music producer working out of Shanghai and the USA, with the closing afterparty being led by Croatian producers Natalij4 and A’jitam Da’a.
Festival passes for all four nights cost €35 and are available here, with a full breakdown of single-ticket prices listed below. More details about the programme and artists can be found on the event’s Facebook page. Doors for all four nights open at 8pm.
October 9
Where: Močvara, Trnjanska struga 34
Tickets: €15 online (€20 on the door)
October 10
Where: PriMarius Craft Pivovara, Slavonska avenija 3b
Tickets: €17 online (€21 on the door)
October 11
Where: Žarište, Klub Kontesa, Augusta cesara 2
Tickets: €13 online (€17 on the door)
October 12
Where: AKC Attack, Pierottijeva 11
Tickets: €15 online (€20 on the door; €6 for afterparty only)