Kalistani Major History

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4423's Ganjam goes off without a hitchCrowd size smaller as Lourenne hosting plans fade for now
Kaliburg, Ananto
November 18, 4423


Kaliburg National Amphitheater hosted  the 4423 Ganjam to a sold out crowd

There was some question over whether 4423 would be the first year that the Ganjam was held outside of Kalistan.  The ODEN director seemed to have secured a deal with Lourenne in 4422 which would have allowed ODEN to host the show in Lourenne.  The last thing that was said on the matter was that Lourenne would be thrilled to host the event, but it was made clear that Lourenne would legalize the sale of tobacco first, and then move the ODEN treaty in the Lourenne legislature before further talks about hosting would go on.  4422 passed into 4423, and nothing was done, so ODEN Kalistan prepared for this year's International GanJam music and Arts Festival in Kaliburg.  And as predicted, the festival was a success, though more modest compared to previous years.

Fans from all over Kalistan arrived on the Island in late October for the festival, and were treated to a number of different types of music.  The year's theme was psychedelia, and everyone, from the various Szarybeat bands that have been playing in Kalistan for 5 years or so, to the Acid Rockers and RF artists on L Night, to the "All Dub" Final Night promoted the psychedelic sound.  In many ways, this GanJam was a return to form after the Szarybeat wave had crested over Kalistan, and had moved on to other shores. 


Righteous Fist, the Indrala-based hardcore band headlines their first GanJam this year on Night 1

The International  Showcase featured hip hop from Lourenne, where MC's dropped bars in Canrillaise to an adoring fan base, Acid Jazz Rock Fusion from Dovani, and Indralan YingPunk sensations Righteous Fist, who are far more popular in Kalistan than in their home country.  Overall, fans were thrilled with this year's international lineup.  Said one concert goer, "Yeah, Righteous Fist was definitely my favorite band.  They had Lou from [Kalistani Hardcore Band] Sick of Them All in one of their songs.  Plus, they really burned the place down.  What a great day of music!"

The Legacy Showcase on Day 2 featured primarily rock bands which were displaced on the rock charts by the arrival of Valruzia's Beat Brothers five years ago and the resulting Szarybeat movement.  Older fans were treated to appearances from bands like Guevara, SkyBlue Natural, and the Doggs, who headlined the Second Night.  Bob Neukirk of The Doggs said, "Well, it was good of the Jam to have us back.  We played in 4402, and, well, these last four or five years have been rough.  Henry [the band's original bassist] went into used tire sales, and Dave, our drummer, you remember, was in a skiing accident in '19.  But its nice to have three of us back together, and maybe this exposure will be what we need to get back on the road...  You know?  Bangin' tail and playing clubs again...  that'd be great...  You know:  I feel like we still got it, you know?"


Progressive Acid-Rockers Mr. Bluesky take the stage as headliners of L-Night

L Night focused primarily on RF bands during the day, and Acid Rock bands in the evening.  Crowd favorites Devon and Waterfall played their third Jam this year, and went on-stage an hour late due to the constant demands for encores from the band before them, Neveras' RF favorites, "Iron Drill.", who mix RF with more traditional electronic instrumentation and orchestration.  After Devon and Waterfall finished their set at around 7pm, the show focused on Acid Rock, with a fairly subdued light presentation compared to previous years, provided by the Headliners of L-Night, Xanadu's Mr. Bluesky, who played through the 2am hour.  Mr. Bluesky is a band with a different attitude toward psychedelia than most bands who have played L-Night.  Said lead singer Jeorg Kemper after Mr. Bluesky ended their set, "See:  We like to see what is possible with the instruments we have on hand.  It's about pushing the limits for us.  We include orchestration, and in fact, if you think of our music as classical music done with rock instruments, you can get kind of a picture of where we are going.  It is very progressive.  Prog-rock.  That's be an interesting name for what we are doing.  But definitely inspired by drugs.  We've been high for days.  L-Night has been a trip."

Headlining the Jam this year was the Suldanor Dub collective International Jahstifar.  International Jastifar closed the show after a full day of pure dub from some of the top producers in Kalistan, including DJ Dubplate, Evalasta, Specialist, Technician and Roto Dan and Filiosoph.  Szarybeat elements were present in a lot of the dub, most especially in Roto Dan and Filosoph.  But International Jahstifar brought the Dub back to the roots, and played a single dub riddim that lasted more than 2 hours.  The live band that was backing International Jahstifar up spent the entire time riffing, and International Jahstifar's two DJs worked overtime to keep up with the improvisation, but as thick clouds of marijuana smoke hung just over the crowd, it was obvious that a good time was being had by all.


International Jahstifar prepares to close the Festival while jamming out to Evalasta in the afternoon of Day 4

The only downside to this festival was the small number of ticket sales, meaning that ODEN needed to kick in more money this year than in years past.  Sources close to the organizers said that ticket sales were depressed due to the lack of early publicity for the show, as the possibility of playing in Lourenne was explored.  Others blamed the smaller than usual venue at the Kaliburg National Amplitheater, which has hosted the Jam only a few times in the past.  But ODEN sources stated that the show ultimately recouped costs.  "We made a little bit of money, mostly on vender fees.  But ticket sales were in the red going into the festival.  We will do a better job with promotion next year.  Otherwise, we had a lot of fun," ODEN-K's Director, Georgia Tass said.

One thing's for sure:  The Kalistani festival will continue on, And now with Sekowo poised to join ODEN, perhaps there is a possibility for an overseas show after all.