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Feb 25, 2024 By Dom Gourlay Web Exclusive

Next weekend, Under the Radar makes what’s becoming an annual pilgrimage to the Netherlands city of Leiden for what will be the 14th edition of Peel Slowly And See. Taking place over the first weekend in March (Friday 1st and Saturday 2nd), Peel Slowly And See prides itself as a festival where “curious music enthusiasts explore new horizons, and nobody leaves without discovering something out of their regular musical comfort zone, including the performing artists themselves.”

Held across three stages on Friday then seven on Saturday spread around multiple venues all within a stones throw of one another, Peel Slowly And See brings together the very best in (mainly) European left field music from electronica, avant garde jazz and folk, noise and obtuse punk rock, to ethnic roots music and all kinds of experimental goodness. Last year’s event featured showstopping performances from the likes of Pip Blom, KOIKOI and SIKSA among others while previous editions have hosted memorable shows from Shortparis, Altın Gün, Personal Trainer and Tramhaus along with dozens of others.

While not pre-empting too much, it’s probably fair to say Under the Radar are particularly excited about seeing Dutch punk legends The Ex celebrate their 45th year in existence by playing a set consisting entirely of brand new material on Saturday especially for Peel Slowly And See. Formed in 1979 through Amsterdam’s then-thriving squat scene, The Ex have gone onto make seventeen studio albums while inspiring a generation of musicians and artists ever since.

Likewise, we’re also quite stoked to see Czech Republic based trio sinks, whose incendiary take on noise induced post-punk has been causing ripples across the EU circuit in recent years. Representing the US is highly respected multi-instrumentalist and composer Peter Broderick, who’s earned a reputation for creating music that transgresses every genre, whether it be dance, classical or cinematic ambience. Elsewhere, Belgian trio Use Knife have become one of the hottest, must-see acts on the planet thanks to their fusion of western underground and traditional Arab musicality that takes the listener on a journey through a plethora of styles and genres.

Friday’s programme includes performances from Rwanda native and now Belgium based experimental pop artist Porcelain ID, Columbian psychedelic folk collective Romperayo, and Dutch post-punk veterans Zwardsick whose music has been compared to the likes of Pere Ubu, Captain Beefheart and Tom Waits among others.

Tickets are still available for Saturday HERE but Friday has now sold out.

Here’s the full running order for both days.