Saristra is one of the most special summer festivals in Greece and gives life again, from the 2nd to the 4th of August, in the abandoned village of Palia Vlachaton Sami in Kefalonia for three days full of music, art, cinema and many parallel activities.
In a unique setting with half-destroyed buildings and winding dirt streets, Saristra tries to unite the place of the place with the present of the festival, giving the visitor the opportunity to tour every corner of this "magical" village enjoying various events with free admission.
Having hosted numerous important ones in the past artists from Greece and abroad, this year returns with a special multi-collection line-up. With two scenes, the central stone scene that focuses on the guitar sound, and the most electronic and "hidden" in an eerie landscape in the olive grove of the area, it will present some of the most interesting names of the Greek independent scene, as well as important guests from abroad.
Shortly before this year's event, at newsbeast.gr spoke o Fotis Vallatos, Saristra journalist, co-organizer and communications manager.
- What exactly is Saristra?
Saristra is a three-day stay festival with free entrance which mainly includes concerts of important names of the Greek and international alternative scene, but also lectures, exhibitions, film screenings, theatrical performances, yoga classes and many more activities and is organized by the Non-Profit Organization Saristra in the ruins of the Old Village of Vlacha in the area of Sami . It is a village that was abandoned after the catastrophic earthquake of 1953 -which almost leveled Kefalonia and Zakynthos- and since then remains untouched and unchanged over time. The visitor can tour its dirt alleys and see the school, the church, the houses, the cafe in an environment among olives, pomegranates, grasses, herbs and sheep. It is a "ghost village" - like a movie set.
- How did the idea for its organization in a deserted village come about?
From the need to create a link between the past of the place and the present and from the need to explore how a later generation (like ours) translates such a significant event - as was the great earthquake of 1953 - and transforms it into a modern cultural event, a postmodern festival as we like to perceive it. And because we really like the festivals and we watch them in the various villages of Kefalonia but also in all of Greece, we said to set up one with the materials of our own generation.
- Do you know if something similar is happening in another part of the world?
In recent years there has been a global trend towards smaller niche summer festivals in more "unexpected" places - I think a trend that was originally created to meet the concert needs of 40+ who love music festivals but due to age are looking for better quality features in them and with a minimum of hassle - but without at the same time deducting points from the overall experience. Why do not you forget that we live in an age where experiences give (to their "owners") perhaps a greater status symbol than "traditional" material goods. That is why the concert is flourishing tourism worldwide (such as wine, etc.) - and it is a great opportunity for Greece to take advantage of this. We at Saristra are very happy because for the last 2-3 years the percentage of foreign visitors to the festival has been constantly rising.
- You are one of the inspirers of the festival and I imagine you have lived it up close all these years. Could you tell us about what they are experiencing or what you want those who watch it to experience?
The experience of attending a festival in such an environment is almost mystical. And it is very nice that visitors also perceive Saristra as a very special experiential experience - quite different from that of a "classic" festival.
- Are there any special incidents that impressed you and can you share them with us?
The emotion of the old people who were born and raised in this village and saw it come to life again after so many years, through an event that is theoretically far from their interests. And yet: Our grandmothers, and older people in general, come and tell us how much they liked that punk band or the poor electronic music producer.
- What are the criteria for the program of events?
Our criteria are largely imposed by the party. This is the aesthetic guide of the festival, not us. It could not e.g. to include a pop / pop artist in our program, because the environment itself would wash him away. That is why we choose the artists who appear with very strict aesthetic and artistic criteria and in no case commercially. As I mentioned at the beginning, the festival is non-profit, but fortunately it manages to have free admission and to be sustainable through the support of organizations such as the Onassis Foundation and the Ministry of Culture - while also contribute the Ionian Islands Region and the Public Benefit Enterprise of the Municipality of Kefalonia, as well as companies that have believed in our vision and the high aesthetics of the festival. It is also based on the non-profit work of the organizing and production team and the volunteer work of dozens of people - including our parents and relatives.
- Which artists is included in this year's program?
This year 's big guest of this year' s Saristra is Ian Svenonius, an active form of the underground scene of Washington DC, the great psychedelic Japanese Minami German with the reputation of one of the best live bands right now in the world, o Blaine L. Reininger "Legendary" frontman of Tuxedomoon, the Acid Baby Jesus who return to the scene of the old village after their last appearance in 2017, the The Callas with their holistic artistic universe, the Territory the explosive alliance of Larry Gus and Stathis Kalantzi (Mr. Statik) shortly after the release of their album in the influential Dutch company Dekmantel, the Jay Glass Dubs with his dark dub and rave reviews from the world music press, Corfu Restive Plaggona with its industrial techno, their supergroup $ OFT $ KULL with their "dirty" guitars, the newly formed Slaves with post punk concerns, their electro / darkwave duo Strawberry Pills with one of the best singles ("Verbal Suicide") of this year's Greek production, o Turbo Teeth with its post-industrial fragments, the Dury Dava with their temperamental Mediterranean (and somewhat "eastern") psychedelia, the s̶i̶s̶t̶e̶r̶ with their improvisational mystagogy, the Georgios Karamanolakis who will set up a wall of sound using various electroacoustic techniques, the MarcelDune in an improvised set that combines analog and digital sounds with natural space recordings, the Kolida Babo with a sound that acrobatizes between Greek traditional music and free jazz form, o Beyond the Mountains (the project of George Kontogiannidis of Numb Capsule Records) that combines techno with IDM, the Kostadis with improvisational moods and introverted low tempo soundtrack, o Bill Anagnos who will try to marry vaporwave with drone and lo-fi with world music, the Echo Canyon combining field recordings and noise soundtrack with multi-rhythmic spells, the Odysseas Tziritas -the new star of the Greek scene- with his immovable and versatile pop and Johnny Labelle with the dreamy lo-fi sound and the crooner voice, while after the end of the live the decks of the two scenes are taken over by great djs and producers like Xyn Cabal and ASTYTEKK, the web radio Cannibal Radio with b2b set by them Simos Ares and The Prudence Tapes, while the most rock 'n' roll program is undertaken by members of bands in the role of dj, such as Nolo Areola (Acid Baby Jesus) and Taboole + Big Baby (Dury Dava). The traditional orgy closing party of the festival undertakes its duet this year Express Skopelitis.
- What are the goals for the future?
Saristra's main goal is to establish itself (which it already has to a large extent) as one of the most important summer festivals of alternative music in Greece, but to enter the radar of more and more visitors from abroad.