André 3000, Kim Gordon, Genesis Owusu, Tkay Maidza to headline Volume festival
All four Volume headliners will perform at the Art Gallery of New South Wales’ unique space, The Tank. (Supplied: Dana Trippe/Getty Images: Kai Regan/Supplied: Danielle Neu/Supplied: Bec Parsons)
Following its successful launch last year featuring Solange, Sampa The Great and more, Volume is returning this winter with a red hot line-up.
Hosted at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, this year’s edition of Volume is headlined by four visionary artists: André 3000, Kim Gordon, Genesis Owusu and Tkay Maidza.
These trailblazers will perform through July at the Art Gallery’s Tank, a former WWII oil tank that’s been transformed into the venue’s central performance space.
In an Australian exclusive, Volume audiences will get to experience André 3000 – one half of hip hop titans Outkast, turned experimental flute maestro – performing material from New Blue Sun, his first full project in 17 years.
A meditative set of experimental jazz instrumentals orbiting around André’s woodwind and flute playing, New Blue Sun was one of 2023’s most surprising (and soothing) releases. Who knew the brains behind Hey Ya! Was capable of such cosmic ambience?
Joining André 3000 for his two headline shows will be the revered American jazz and new age musicians featured on New Blue Sun, including percussionist and multi-instrumentalist Carlos Niño, guitarist Nate Mercereau, keyboardist Surya Botofasina and Deantoni Parks on synthesizer and drums.
Grunge pioneer, founding member of Sonic Youth, writer, fashion designer. Kim Gordon is nothing less than iconic, and she’s headed back to Australia.
She’s playing two Volume performances, in addition to dates at Unsound Adelaide, Brisbane Powerhouse, and Melbourne’s Northcote Theatre.
Gordon will showcase her solo music, including The Collective, the 70-year-old’s latest, hip-hop inspired album where she spits half-sung, half-spoken lyrics over icy trap beats and noisy guitar.
The album’s opening song and lead single, BYE BYE, also gave Gordon a career first: a viral TikTok hit. “I don’t even know what that means, honestly,” Gordon mused to Double J earlier this year. “I don’t know. It’s fun. It’s funny. It’s so abstract to me.”
It’ll be interesting to see if a curious, younger demographic comes out to witness this influential legend of the New York music scene in action.
Genesis Owusu seems incapable of putting on anything less than an exhilarating performance.
Whether fronting an orchestra, New Year’s Eve celebrations, or his , the Ghanian-Australian artist is a chameleon of the live stage.
The multi-ARIA scooping and J Award winning Owusu will open Volume with the premiere of a “new visual arts-inspired performance” featuring brand new music as well as material from his two trophy-hoovering albums: 2021 debut Smiling With No Teeth and 2023 follow-up Struggler.
He’ll also be joined by his all-star Black Dogs band, featuring guitarist Kirin J Callinan, multi-instrumentalist Jonti, bassist Touch Sensitive, drummer Julian Sudek and producer/manager Andrew Klippel.
If you’ve somehow missed seeing Genesis Owusu in the flesh, prepare to be blown away.
Rounding out the bill is Zimbabwean-Australian powerhouse Tkay Maidza.
A musician’s musician, who’s scored opening slots for pop heavyweights Dua Lipa, Lizzo and Billie Eilish, Maidza is based in L.A. these days, but returns to Sydney for her first headline Australian shows in 2024.
Expect the intoxicating mix of tough hip hop, silky RnB and neo-soul that defined her second solo album, November’s Sweet Justice, and her ARIA winning trilogy of EPs, Last Year Was Weird.
In addition to these seven ticketed performances, Volume will announce a wider program of free events in May. For now, here’s what’s on offer:
Genesis Owusu – Friday 5 & Saturday 6 July, 2024
Tkay Maidza – Saturday 13 July, 2024
Kim Gordon – Thursday 18 & Friday 19 July, 2024
André 3000: New Blue Sun LIVE – Saturday 20 & Sunday 21 July, 2024
Volume takes place at the Art Gallery of New South Wales on Gadigal Land from Friday 5 July to Sunday 21 July. Tickets are on sale from 11am, Wednesday 22 May. For more information visit the Volume website.