50 candid snaps from Indonesia’s exalted Salt A Way

Making its triumphant return to the Sunda Strait coastline, Salt A Way welcomed back hundreds to its 24+ hour non-stop presentation of Indonesia’s finest talents.

The festival has piqued the interest of its cult following from all across the country ever since its humble beginnings at a local B&B in 2017. Braving the almost 5-hour drive across congested toll roads from Jakarta, the masses gathered at Bodur Beach to experience a somewhat spiritual offering of stellar beats by the shore. Set in motion by local surfer collective Carita Boys with individual organizers and supported by Studiomaja, Salt A Way made sure attendees reached their step goal as they treaded rapturously back and forth between two stages, a good two-minute walk apart.

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Commanding the sandy dancefloor over on the Away stage were Ricky Virgana, Dreadsmad, Kenya, Guling, Seabass and Saturn, who supplied an endless offering of sonic bliss until the early hours of twilight the following Sunday. Ranging from feel-good vintage melodies and rhythmic reggae beats to nocturnal disco tunings, the stage over by the shore might have been smaller in size but definitely wasn’t lacking in energy radiating from both behind and in front of the deck.

Over on the larger “main” stage, the lasers and luminous trippy visuals supplied by Jakarta’s Azeten embraced the lively crowds who continued to dance from dusk to dawn. Boogiemax, Talking Machine, Sunmantra, Anton Wirjono & Hogi Wirjono of Future10, Komodo and the Dekadenz trio presented their expectedly exciting sets filled with hypnotic resonances, relentless grooves, dark disco sensibilities and dashes of ambient melodies. As sunrise came around, so did a shift in the atmosphere. Gentle Tuesday, Aryo Adhianto and Namoy Budaya ended the stage's festivities with their respective sets that echoed an array of romantic psychedelia, experimental electronic prowess and soulful reggae tunes.

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Those not on the line-up were also invited to join in with an open deck session hosted by Mantrino Records from Yogyakarta. Flashdisk in hand, a number of attendees-turned-selectors contributed their crowd-favourite tracks to a crowd that seemingly didn’t want the experience to end.

Enjoy the images we’ve gathered from Salt A Way 2022 and read a more in-depth review on the event here.

Amira Waworuntu is Mixmag Asia’s Editorial Assistant, follow her on Instagram.