JULY 8–12, 2015
The 8th edition of the festival—and the second under the East of Culture brand—took place from July 8 to 12. The festival hosted nearly 200 artists from 13 countries. Over the course of five days, a total of more than 70 artistic events were held, ranging from concerts and contemporary art, photography, and poster exhibitions to meetings, debates, film screenings, and workshops for the festival’s youngest participants

The programme featured exclusive Polish appearances by legendary figures, including a phenomenal career-spanning concert by global alternative icons Einstürzende Neubauten, and a performance by the master and pioneer of Afrobeat, Tony Allen. Both concerts left a lasting impression on the crowds of fans who traveled not only from across Poland but from across Europe and the world.

For the second time, the festival showcased a selected independent label. This year, participants were introduced to the cult Czech imprint Guerilla Records. Audiences experienced live performances by two legends of the Czech alternative scene—The Plastic People of the Universe and DG 307—as well as Nevypar Kovatjezd and Kabaret dr. Caligariho – representing the younger generation of the Czech independent scene.

Following tradition, the festival also presented special productions commissioned specifically for Different Sounds. The first was a concert titled “War is Obsolete,” curated by Tymon Tymański and accompanied by the Different Sounds Orchestra with guests Ania Rusowicz, Natalia Pikuła, Olaf Deriglasoff, and Daniel Hertzov. The second project was led by Olo Walicki and his Kaszebe ensemble, featuring special guest Zbigniew Namysłowski, in a modern interpretation of traditional Armenian music.

The festival program was organised into nine thematic modules, including:
Move East Movie: An outdoor screening series dedicated to Armenian cinematography.
Eastreet 3: The largest exhibition of Eastern European street photography.
The Armenian Ark: Featuring Armenian calligraphy workshops and discussions on a century of cultural transformation in Armenia.
Eastern Express: A series of meetings and debates with artists and intellectuals.
Tales of Eastern Content: Staged and improvised fairy tales from the Caucasus.
Słowobranie: A pop-up festival bookstore and reading room dedicated to Eastern contemporary art and culture publications.
Little Different Sounds / Let’s Play: A dedicated children’s series where young participants performed with the band Me Myself and I, built their own instruments, played the world’s largest drum, and recorded their own song and music video.

The festival attracted thousands of attendees from across the globe. Lublin welcomed music lovers from Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, Australia, the United States, and Mexico, reaffirming that Different Sounds is a global meeting point where high-quality sound serves as a universal language.

This year’s edition left a permanent mark on the city in the form of a mural created by Aleksey Kislow on the building at 55 Lubartowska Street.