Way Out West Day 3 (August 11)
It’s day 3 of Way Out West and I wake up to pouring rain and a thunderstorm. Later I learn that the opening of the gates is postponed an hour due to the weather. Well prepared for rain I head out to the festival to see the first act, which is Daniel Adams-Ray [stage: Linné].
Adams-Ray, who is a Swedish rapper, delivers a solid show, which unfortuantely is shorter than planned because of the delay caused by the rain. Seemingly filled with an inexhaustible energy Adams-Ray bounces up and down and the lyrics come rapidly like shots out of a machine gun. The mix of songs is vary from classic hip hop to grandiose ballads and from old songs to new songs.
Highlights: Gubben i lådan, Lilla lady och Dum av dig
Fleet Foxes [stage: Azalea]
I like Fleet Foxes but, for me, the set is a bit too long, and a bit too much of the same. Their stage presence is unfussy and unpretentious, singer Robin Pecknold is wearing a scraggly beard and a tan knit cap looking very ordinary. In fact, my friend says to me after a while: “Hey, isn’t that the guy who was standing in front of us smoking when we listened to Dirty Projectors before?”
The set seems focused merely on making their music well and weathering the many instrument changes required, from upright bass and bowed guitar to jazz flute and bass clarinet than to connect with the audience. It’s hard to tell when one song stops and another one starts. Frontman Pecknold sings with his eyes characteristically closed, not aware of the world around him. Actually, after the song He doesn’t know why he opens his eyes and says surprised: “Oh no, its raining. You guys are in different outfits”.
Thåström [stage: Azalea]
A heavy rain starts falling just in time for Thåström to take the stage. He opens with Körkarlen and Bluesen i Malmö and as I hear the thunder from afar I realise that the weather actually fits quite well with his music, which is dark, heavy and gloomy. The frontman himself is wearing a black hat, a black lether jacket and boots. Thåström paces anxiously up and down the stage, stopping only to sing the lyrics in his distiguished coars voice. It’s intriguing and stirring and I like it. The encores, Alla Vill till Himlen and Fanfanfan gorgeously close the set.
Arcade Fire [stage: Flamingo]
The closing act of the festival is the Canadian band Arcade Fire. Their nine piece band set off at high speed and the music is exploding supported by a glorious stage act with no expenses spared. One after the other dance hits like Put Your Money on Me, The Suburbs, Ready to Start and Reflektor are delivered with enormous energy.
Win Butler and Régine Chassagne are doing a good job getting the party started and people are dancing happily in their rain ponchos as it finally stops raining.
What better way to close this festival?
Way Out West
The music and film festival Way Out West (WOW), has attracted visitors from all over Sweden and from abroad for twelve years. Each year it fills Gothenburg and Slottskogen, which is a centrally located park, with three days of music, festivities and culture. After dark the festival moves to clubs in central Gothenburg and becomes Stay Out West.
Good bye, Way Out West 2018! See you next year!
Stray Bullet 
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