Wilderness, a self-described “weekend of escapism, high jinks and wholesome hedonism”, is returning this August to Cornbury Park in Oxfordshire and as well as allowing its guests to dance the night away to some amazing bands and DJs and nourish their body and mind through dining experiences and yoga classes.
One of the festival’s multiple venues, which leans heavily into the high jinks and hedonism side of things, is The House of Sublime, known for its flamboyance, inclusion and sense of celebration – values integral to the festival – and its programme offers up “a world of intersectional and queer-centric artistry”.
It provides a very fitting stage for CHEWY SHE, a French goth performing Moth Popera and known for their exuberant costumes and Lynchian themes. Think Peaches crossed with The Dresden Dolls directed by David Lynch (or Cronenberg if we follow the moth theme) and you might be on the right track. We caught up with Queen Moth CHEWY to get a feel for what’s in store.
For anyone not familiar with your music, how would you describe your sound?
We describe it as trash-electro-disco!
If you had to recommend one of your songs to a new listener, which one would it be?
Mustard with no hesitation.
What can we expect from your set at Wilderness?
Expect the unexpected, but also clown dancers, live metamorphosis, costume changes, audience participation, punk campness, and even chaos.
Are there any bands you’re particularly excited to see over the weekend?
We’ve been making our new album The Moth Popera, a concept album from our live show of the same name. Which is a surreal musical journey about a human insect on a spiritual quest, going through fornication, the darkness within, to emerge from the chrysalis shimmering and transformed. For this, we’ve been working with some amazing people (can’t wait to reveal more about that!). So we’re very excited to have lots of new music for you later this year!
You can find CHEWY SHE on Instagram / bandcamp / YouTube / their website
They will be performing at The House of Sublime at Wilderness with a set time TBC. There is still time to grab tickets.