Free concert on the small castle square:
Joe Astray: Offside. Outlandish. Deviant. These are common conditions in a world that is constantly evolving and in which progress is advancing at breakneck speed. Consistency has become an unknown variable, leaving countless people by the wayside. Joe Astray is an artist who successfully tackles this complex dilemma and reflects on it through sincere and authentic indie music. The singer-songwriter is a musical nomad whose music is a veritable kaleidoscope, unabashedly traveling through the annals of music history and incorporating dozens of its elements. Heavy, socio-critical lyrics blend with volatile, unpredictable compositions to create a damn exciting mixture that has its own unmistakable signature.
Joe Astray deals with everyday situations and the thoughts that go with them, and in particular the music circus and its absurd seriousness are taken apart with biting yet charming humor. Particularly interesting is the enigmatic accent of Joe Astray's vocals, which can never be assigned a specific geographical location. Influences range from The Eels, Bright Eyes and Leonard Cohen to the sardonic, socially critical humor of Billy Bragg, but there is a clear punk rock DNA in Joe Astray's work. The name says it all, because Joe Astray is everyone and no one at the same time, writing songs for the landless and dispossessed, a walking mystery that cannot be pigeonholed and who, despite all the darkness, still holds a candle of hope aloft.