The dog days of summer may be behind us but that doesn’t mean we have to give up on the rituals of summer quite yet. Swim in the lake. Lick that ice cream. And - go to a music festival. The Perlaton music festival takes place from Thursday to Saturday at Grubenstrasse in Binz. The festival itself will have 14 acts, including bands, video installations and dance performances, and 5 djs playing across the 3 nights. The performers come mostly from Zurich, but that is all they have in common as Perlaton purposely brings together acts that differ as much in genre as they do in performance style.
Thursday to Saturday from 7 pm, Grubenstrasse 15, 8045

 

 

As you wander the streets of Kreis 4 you may occasionally notice, through an alleyway or opening in the buildings, open courtyards hidden at the centre of the surrounding architecture. Unless you live in the apartments, these courtyards are normally inaccessible but this Friday, Zukunft are organising themselves a little HofFest. They will open up their own private space behind Bar3000 and fill it with live music from Teké Association, grilled homemade sausages from the Lier family and a Thai food corner. If summer is lingering for a while longer, I don’t see why we shouldn’t encourage it. Entry is free.

Friday 5 pm, Zukunft (behind Bar3000)

 

 

 

 

 

Bogen 33 is a great vintage furniture and accessories store in town, that has great character and some cool people working down there, and this Saturday they will be celebrating their 12th birthday, and in some kind of weird coincidence they’ll also be offering a 12% discount on their garden furniture. But that isn’t all. They’ll also be opening up their storage premises at Hohlstrasse 122 for a party (not the main store). Music, food and drink will be on offer, as will, I assume, some cool vintage chairs to sit in and sofas to relax on.
Saturday 12 pm, Bogen 33, Geroldstrasse 33, 8005 but party at Hohlstrasse 122, 8004

 

 

Jef Lee Johnson died a couple of years ago but was a respected soul and jazz guitarist and singer who added his own musical magic to the likes of The Roots, Common, D’Angelo and Erykah Badu, as well as having his own thing going on with the Soultronics. Now, Reggie Washington, himself an revolutionary modern jazz bassist from America, has produced a latest album, Rainbow Shadow – A Tribute to Jef Lee Johnson, in which he conjures the spirit and music of Johnson. He’ll be playing the album, plus other stuff from his career, live at Moods on Monday night.
Monday 8.30 pm, Moods

 

 

This year’s season opening of the opera house begins with an open house. Usually a visit to the opera or ballet is a rather stilted affair with its glowing perfection and black tie dress code. But how do they achieve such flawless performances? What does it involve behind the scenes? This Saturday you get to see it all: Watch the ballet ensemble train their spins, get a tour through costumes and make-up, hear the orchestra perfect their notes, listen to the actors practice their lines. All 'shows' are free but require tickets which are obtainable one hour in advance. The entire programme and times you'll find on their website, as well as on their flyer.
Saturday from 10 am, Opera House

 

 

I almost walked past the small coffee stall at Bellevue, mistaking it for Starbucks at first glance. Only my second glance revealed that this espresso bar couldn’t be further away from the global coffee chain. And still it seemed like a déjà-vu. Ah, yes, The ViCafe at Bellevue has a twin brother at Goldbrunnenplatz (brother, not sister, as the people behind this project are all male). Both offer freshly brewed coffee that earns its place on my 'best coffee in town' list. You can taste that it’s made with love, as do all the small details such as the stamped cups, the drawings with the foam or the funny sayings on the board.
ViCafe Bellevue, Theaterstasse 14, 8001. Opening hours: Monday to Friday 6.30 am to 6 pm, Saturday & Sunday 8 am to 6 pm
ViCafe Goldbrunnenplatz, Birmensdorferstrasse 240, 8003. Monday to Friday 6.30 am to 2 pm, Saturday 8 am to 4 pm

 

 

During the construction work at Quaibrücke, the street artist Redl sprayed the wooden panels that were part of the scaffolding - painting fish, insects and several lions, mostly in blue. Since the beginning of the month, you can now buy a piece of this original street art (while donating some money to Glückskette at the same time). Just visit the Redl’s website, find a piece you like and and make an offer.

 

 

Whenever I look around a bus stop while waiting for my bus to show up, it never strikes me as anything beautiful. You can tell that it serves a purpose and that the design has to answer to standards and norms. In the former USSR this was different. Canadian photographer Christopher Herwig introduces us, in his unusual photo-series, to some Soviet bus stops that are works of art. More pictures