Tale of two jives in Malawi

There are 12 months in a workaholic’s year, but only one seems to have the vibe. Typical of the season of fun October sun brings, merrymakers are in for a tale of two towns—with the Moon-Rock Festival introduction in Nkhata Bay and the three-year-old Sunbird Sand Festival back to its birthplace in Mangochi this weekend.

Coming a week after Blantyre Arts Festival, the Dickensian affair might not only be construed as a sign of irreconcilable competition in the show business but also a tribute to the tourism and entertainment potential of Lake Malawi which mothered the globally acclaimed Lake of Stars (LOS) arts festival eight years ago.

However, the newer fiestas transport holidaymakers trekking to the lake into an avoidable dilemma, especially where to launch the countdown to the Mother’s Day on Monday.

One cannot easily divine which destination will be happening more, but each promises a one-off experience and contrasting attractions await revellers on both spots of the palm-studded beaches of the third largest fresh water body in Africa.

When the Sand Festival starts at Sunbird Nkopola  Friday night, organisers must prove that their act has the capacity to fill the vast venue inherited from LOS and steer clear of downgrading local musicians. In 2010, Soldier Lucius Banda, Black Missionaries and Tay Grin launched the event at Zitherepano Pub on the same night Oliver Mtukudzi was opening Lake of Stars Nkopola about three kilometres away to protest the K100 000 appearance fees which they described as meagre and degrading.

“We gave every performer a chance to name and negotiate their fees. We are proud to say that we have left no single popular performer on the land,” Lucius told the press in Mangochi recently.

But the playlist of the homespun festival —starring Lucius’ Zembani Band, the Blacks, Skeffa Chimoto, Alleluya, Edgar ndi Davis, Piksy, Armstrong, Maskal, Dan  Lu, Great Angels—seems to be just another date with the artists who perform every week. Rarities include Overtone Chimombo, Snowden Ibu, Lucky Stars, Ben Mankhamba and Waliko Makhala.

In this regard, Moon-Rock debut looks like a worthwhile break from the familiar jazz and a pool of silent giants. Its organisers could not have chosen a better gig grounds than Chintheche Inn where Briton Will Jameson held the first Lake of Stars in 2004. However, the strides Jameson’s brainchild has made locally and overseas do not add any glory to Moon-Rock. What becomes of the newborn begins with what Wilderness Safaris Malawi (WSM) offers from today.

According to WSM marketing manager Roshenka de Mel, the bus to Chintheche will be headlined by Peter Mawanga and largely comprises Afro-beat fusionist who are seldom on show and on air. They include headliner Mawanga’s Amaravi Movement, Mafilika, Body-Mind-and-Soul, Soul Raiders, Konkalazi, Sally Nyundo, Young Chilaga and Black Survivors, Prince Martin and the Soul Raiders, the Rainmaker, Chiozo, Malingaka and North Side Connection.

“The festival will be a celebration of local musical talent and features artists from across Malawi at the very place where Lake of Stars began,” said Roshenka when asked why South African Pop Idols finalist Mark Haze is the only international act at Moon-Rock.

This is phenomenal, for Sand Fest, which is solely held by locals, has cast home-grown talent in the shadow of familiar imports such as South Africa’s Professor and DJ Tabs, Zambia’s General Kanene and Dalisoul, Mozambique’s Masukusa as well as Botswana’s Makhirikhiri.

Sizzling is the strife that has blighted—or brightened—the countdown to the outing, but fans know that the taste of the pudding is in the eating.