The Journal previews the best of this year’s local and international festivals. You’re welcome
All Tomorrow's Parties (7-9 May, Butlin's Holiday Centre)
All Tomorrow’s Parties fuses the boundary between music festival and holiday. Held in Butlins, ATP trades in grotty camping hoarding legions of unwashed revellers for a cosy cabin, hot running water, onsite restaurants and 50’s seaside kitsch. This year's ATP curator is legendary creator of The Simpsons, Matt Groening.
Tickets are on the expensive side, but you’ll be able to take full advantage of Butlins' facilities at no extra charge; who knows, you may find yourself go-karting alongside car insurance flogging loon Iggy Pop and his Stooges, who have been announced as this year’s headline act. [Hollie E. Smith]
Lineup: Iggy And The Stooges, Toumani Diabate, Spiritualized, The XX, Joanna Newsom, Deerhunter, Liars
TITP (9-11 July, Balado)
Now in its 17th year, T in the Park returns to Balado in 2010 with a line-up that proves its credentials as Scotland’s biggest festival. Kasabian, Muse, Eminem, Jay-Z, The Prodigy, Madness and Faithless are only a few of the big-names that have been announced so far – with all 85,000 tickets for the event snapped up in under 90 minutes. Renowned for its “unpretentious audience”, in the words of organizer Geoff Ellis, T in the Park is a weekend crash course in Scottish culture: flat lager, hangovers, sunburn, rain and music are all guaranteed – and, of course, the Proclaimers will be there too. [Ryan J. Gallagher]
Lineup: Muse, Eminem, Jay-Z, Kasabian, Madness, Faithless, The Prodigy, Plastikman, Dizzee Rascal
Soundwave (23-25 July, Petrcane, Croatia)
Croatia’s Soundwave festival has been likened to The Big Chill and Bestival due to its musical eclecticism, and the tropical setting is similarly diverse; expect tiki huts, beach terraces and shady canopies galore. The line-up is a flavoursome mix of fresh talent, heavy on soulful dub and laid-back broken beats. Woozy warp pioneers Paul White, Bullion and Lone ebb alongside the reggae-tinged rhythms of Toddla T and Gentleman's Dub Club, with RSD, Paper Tiger, Blue Daisy and The Cinematic Orchestra flooding the azure tides in an array of experimental hues. Amidst this summer’s effluvium of beach festivals, Soundwaves shines like golden treasure. [Lorena Bechelli]
Lineup: Dam Funk, Paul White, Toddla T, DJ Vadim, DJ Format, Cinematic Orchestra, Milly Blue, RSD
Exit (8-11 July, Novi Sad, Serbia)
Serbia's Exit festival was awarded Best European Festival 2007, and for good reason. In a medieval fortress overlooking the Danube, the turreted enclosure invokes otherworldly acoustics and welcoming, wide-eyed locals. Complimenting Serbian vampire folklore, Exit is a dusk ‘till dawn affair - last year, 2manydjs spun a set to raise the dead, finishing to bursts of Balkan sunlight splintering the balustrades. This year’s Dance Arena summons rave scions The Chemical Brothers alongside arch emo rockers Placebo, with Royskopp, Missy Elliot, LCD Soundsystem, Erol Alkan, Moderat and Crookers lending a decidedly beat-driven edge to proceedings. Stock up on sunscreen and Slivovitz but be warned: those who enter Exit find it difficult leave. [LB]
Lineup: LCD Soundsystem, Placebo, Moderat, Crookers, Ricardo Villalobos, Erol Alkan, Moderat, Crystal Castles, DJ Shadow, Mika (yes, we thought so too...)
RockNess (11-13 June, Loch Ness)
RockNess is now five years old, but its proper epoch came in 2007. Daft Punk had just released Alive, the definitive last word on their inimitable legacy of electronic music. A coruscating display of noise and ecstasy within the confines of the Clash Arena remains ingrained in folklore. Loch Ness - itself no stranger to such things - is the sole source of stillness behind a festival that continues to mature beyond its dance music pubescence – headline acts The Strokes, Vampire Weekend and Ian Brown will see to that. Regulars need not fret though. Keep an eye out for Vitalic and Optimo, both of whom are peddling superior wares (Flashmob and Fabric 52), and French DJ supergroup Club 75. [Ray Philp]
Lineup: The Strokes, Leftfield, Vampire Weekend, Ian Brown, Friendly Fires, Blondie, Pendulum, Boys Noize
Wickerman (23-24 July, East Kirkcarswell)
Seen by some as Scotland's plucky retort to Glastonbury, Wickerman's friendly DIY ethic offers an interesting alternative to the UK's corporate festival heavyweights. The three-stage setup presents a colourful mix of big name headliners (Summerisle Main Stage), punk veterans (Scooter Tent) and the very best young Scottish talent (Solus Tent), and while the weather is typically changeable the atmosphere is remarkably congenial. As the name suggests, the climax of the weekend is undoubtedly the Saturday night immolation of a colossal wicker man. Rest assured, however, that Christopher Lee will not be on hand to ruin your fun. [Marcus Kernohan]
Lineup: Ocean Colour Scene, The Saw Doctors, The Futureheads, Sons & Daughters, The Undertones, Unicorn Kid, FOUND
www.thewickermanfestival.co.uk
Sonar (17-19 June, Barcelona/A Coruna, Spain)
Europe’s most venerated electronic music festival has enjoyed 17 years of curational guidance from – among other things - human-animal hybrids, Diego Maradona, and the acid house Smiley. Such iconography sums up Sonar’s appeal as a sun-drenched fortress of counter-culture. Roxy Music, Ryoji Ikeda and The Sugarhill Gang (!) are this year’s standout envelope pushers, but Sonar is an equally impressive multimedia space that showcases some of Europe’s finest contemporary art collectives. For the first time, Sonar will run full festival programmes concurrently in Barcelona and A Coruna, Galicia, and beyond that, hedonistic Off-Sonar parties dotted around the imperious MACBA are worth checking out, too. [RP]
Lineup: Roxy Music, Air, The Chemical Brothers, LCD Soundsystem, DJ Hell, Aeroplane, Hudson Mohawke, Joy Orbison
[Photo: David Anderson]
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