Vinyl Souk Mini Festival

“This festival aims to strengthen the alternative music community as well as introduce new audiences to the underground sounds and creative vibrancy of Dubai” – it should be a groovy evening to celebrate the UAE’s nearest approach to an alternative subculture scene There will be DJ sets, live performances (they’re cramming five stages into the Monkey Bar, apparently), a film screening and panel chat, marketplace pop-ups, and “exclusive experiences”.

It runs 4pm till late (they’re aiming for 2am) and the ticket price includes one free drink (but confusingly there’s a free-entry option too: see this link). This is what we know so far:

Live Stage by Temple

Radish Cheddar Experiment jazz, fusion, funk exploration
Sandra Ivette Quartet Cuban and Latin funk
Shilpa Ananth & Beatbox Ray electronic fusion
Niki Mukhi Trio Indian-influenced jazz fusion

Electronic Stage by The Flip Side: top local DJs with back-to-back sets

Bood
Omar Fayyad
Shadi Megallaa

Bass Stage by Sawt Systems: high-energy bass sets

Baby B
Brown Panda
Cyril Reaidy
Motion

Souk Sessions by Nightjar: eclectic mix of beats and grooves

Artifact Sun
Leon Surynt
Mr. Fresh
Tarik Omar

Screening & Panel Conversation at Cinema Akil in 25hours

Screening: God Said Give ’Em Drum Machines (dir Kristian R. Hill, 2022)

Totally excellent survey of the roots of Detroit’s techno revolution, its cultural impact, and the artists who shaped its sound

Panel: Tracks to Tribes – Cultivating Community & Running Record Labels

Zico KitchenSync Records
Dea Secta Records
Raghd Coussa L316 Records
Hassan Alwan Boogie Box Records