Ray chats with Dan Nahum, the organiser of Essence Festival in Canberra, set to be held October 3-5 at The Baso. We discuss what went well last year, what will be different this year, and what some of the highlights might be for the 2025 iteration. There is also a brief guest appearance from Dan from Irreparable who wandered by while we recorded in The Tote beer garden.

Essence:

In the traditions of Canberra's Metal for the Brain and SoundOut, as well as Dark Mofo, Essence is a diverse underground music festival, taking in various metal subgenres (death, black, doom, sludge, and more) as well as other genres: noise, post-punk and post-rock, experimental, industrial, ambient, improvised, and even dark and contemporary takes on traditional music. The bill is from across the Australia and features a mix of impressive live stalwarts, cult artists that perform only rarely, and new and exciting acts. Many have never performed in Canberra before. This year Essence is co-presented by NSW/Qld label Gutter Prince Cabal, and has also added an explicitly visual element in the form of NSW visual artist Greallach.

Links:

Tickets

https://tickets.oztix.com.au/outlet/event/8e1e8ce6-2061-4037-8f12-285520dc45f4

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/essence_festival

Playlist

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6AiuxATeB2UGdNkk16cL6g?si=2ed3ac3ba03847b1

Full band list

Life Cult

Pod People

Diploid

Contaminated

Convulsing

Tir

Growth

Teeth Dreams

Golgothan Remains

Mammon’s Throne

raven

ZCluster

Nontinuum

Bacchus Harsh

Burden Man

Živa

Shay Doe and Jack Napier

Josh Shipton

Oar

Lithik

Bruxist

Knife

Marlēné Claudine Radice

Fukno

Canary Bones

Atavus Infectum

External Organ

Futility

Essentia Vermis Friday night pre-fest:

Destruktor

Aglo

Hebephrenique

Grotesque Bliss

Leaker

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