Eastern France has been a productive source for 12 points over the years and OZMA continue in the tradition of Strasbourg bands like Donkey Monkey and Le Poche a Sons who’ve previously graced the festival. All four members have grown up in the city, cutting their teeth at jam sessions, then onward to the conservatoire, and this is a band that bears all the hallmarks of many days and nights together honing a formidable group philosophy. It comes out in the deft use of rhythm materials, taut ensemble playing and collective endeavour when it comes to big riffs and exciting dynamics. With four albums already under their belt, guitarist Adrien Dennefeld, bassist Edouard Séro-Guillaume, saxophonist David Florsch and drummer Stéphane Scharlé are clearly in it for the long haul, and with collaborations ongoing in India and West Africa, their horizons are expanding, just like the NASA research programme from which they take their name.

Presented in association with Alliance Francaise.