Hot Summer Music Festival Fun

Live4ever previews 8 great Festivals to get your groove on this summer!

Though the music business hasn’t shown signs of flourishing in years, music festivals seem to be standing out more than ever, even in this economic slump. And summer is by far the best season for these events – what better way to pass lazy summer days than camping out at a weekend-long concert featuring some of the hottest bands on the scene? Here are eight of the summer’s remaining and most anticipated musical galas.

North by Northeast
June 17 – 21
Toronto, Ontario

Toronto’s NXNE bills itself as Canada’s No. 1 showcase for the best new music and music related films, which isn’t a far stretch by any means. For five days and five nights in June, the festival celebrates musical talents and trends by giving hundreds of artists (on local, national and international levels) the opportunity to thrill fans, agents, talent buyers, media, promoters, labels and management companies onstage at various downtown Toronto venues.

NXNE has a staggering list of alumni; many acts have found their way to a larger scale audience through the festival, and past acts at the event include Silversun Pickups, Sufjan Stevens, MC5 and Dinosaur Jr.

The festival’s timetable plays host to music biz panels featuring Q&A sessions, demo-listening and mentoring sessions that attempt to guide new artists to success in changing musical times. Buzzed-about acts from the event are not only picked up by the trendy music bloggers, but receive coverage from about 600 media outlets, including the BBC, NY Times and Vanity Fair.

Hundreds of bands turn up in Toronto hoping that the media will throw them a bone, but NXNE also lines up a number of big name acts, attracting even more music lovers to venues. These include Black Lips, No Age, the Sonics, Burning Brides, Winter Sleep, the Cool Kids, and GZA.

Glastonbury
June 24 – June 28

The world’s largest – and Britain’s most famous – green field music and performing arts festival describes itself as having set the template for all other festivals, which it may well have. The biggest event to go down in England’s Somerset countryside each year also features the most elaborate lineup of musical acts, including Doves, Kasabian, Blur, Franz Ferdinand, Jarvis Cocker, Peter Doherty, and Bombay Bicycle Club.

There are more than 500 acts on this year’s billing, to perform on fifteen or so stages, on 1000 acres of property that will be home to about 200,000 festival-goers this year.

Going strong since 1970 when Stackridge was the first band to take the stage, Glasto is also known for its dance, circus, and theatre performances.

Besides requisite blasts from the past such as Neil Young and Crosby, Stills and Nash, the show will feature Spinal Tap, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Animal Collective, the Ting Tings, Passion Pit, Noisettes and Micachu and the Shapes. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band is expected to have been a big draw for the event. Like years past, Glasonbury has been sold out for months.

T in the Park
July 10 – 12
Balado, Kinross-shire, Scotland

This festival, held in a disused airfield in Balado and named after its major sponsor, brewing company Tennents, is now among the majors in the UK. Promoted by Big Day Out, and held the same weekend (and featuring a similar lineup) as Ireland’s Oxegen, the event is host to a number of stages and features such as a fairground, fancy dress Friday, Healthy T, concession stalls, and market stalls – in case attendees would like to buy a summer dress or find themselves in need of Wellies.

While regular festival food will be available (think: grease), Healthy T will make award winning cuisine from Argyll accessible (think: organic lamb burgers with home grown salad, Cullen Skink and hot smoke salmon rolls), as well as what have become staples of Healthy T: the Stoats Porridge Oats, Mutley’s Crepes and J’s Jackets and Stovies. This eatery comes equipped as an outdoor place to relax, slightly apart from the hectic stage schedule.

As one of the most anticipated events of the summer, T in the Park plays host to a supreme lineup including Franz Ferdinand, Kings of Leon, Lady GaGa, Blur, Snow Patrol, Elbow, the Script, Doves, TV on the Radio, Peter Doherty, the Streets, Keane, Camera Obscura, Maximo Park, and Of Montreal.

Non-camping weekend tickets are still available, but camping is sold out unless you are already a camping ticket holder. Friday and Sunday day tickets are still on sale, even if Saturday has completely sold out.

Latitude
July 16 – 19
Henham Park, Suffolk, England

Though its beginnings in 2006 were humble, Latitude is now one of Britain’s biggest musical events, as illustrated by the slated-to-appear-solo Thom Yorke. It may not be Glastonbury-huge, but the festival has attracted about 25,000 attendees in years past – and that demographic includes a lot of parents and their children, catered to by a children’s arena (home to a House of Fairy Tales) and a family campsite.

Divided up into “arenas,” the festival is home to more than just musical acts; also featured are players from a variety of arts. The genres of literature, theatre, comedy, poetry, film, and “open art” are all represented by various artists in each field. Theatre retains an especially strong presence at the event, with appearances from the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, and Paines Plough and Fuel.

In addition to Thom Yorke’s solo performance, the lineup will include Bombay Bicycle Club, Editors, Grace Jones, Doves, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Bat for Lashes, Spiritualized, and the Pet Shop Boys. A weekend pass to the festival is available for £150.

Camp Bestival
July 24-26
Ludworth Castle, Dorset, England

Camp Bestival, one of the rare festivals to feature a fancy dress theme, is back on the summer scene for 2009 with the only solo show to be had by PJ Harvey this year, as well as performances from Phoenix, Will Young, Bon Iver, and Florence and the Machine. (If you’re preparing for this year’s fancy dress theme, get out your Animal Magic gear.)

Those who get decked out in the theme can participate in the Fancy Dress Parade, which isn’t the only ridiculously indulgent activity to be had; Bestival will be home to a medieval jousting with the Knights of Lulworth, and a kids area that will host dressing-up, a miniature version of jousting, and storytelling. Bestival is one of the more kid-friendly affairs of the summer, great for kids too young to fully appreciate the massive crowds at Glastonbury.

Unique to this summer’s festival, Rob da Bank will be putting on an incredible sound and light show each night, and this year sees the implementation of a cocktail bar in Castle Field as well.

All Points West
July 31 – August 2
Liberty State Park, New Jersey

With a view of Manhattan across the Hudson River, All Points West features three days and nights of excellent music, including that of Coldplay, Echo and the Bunnymen, MGMT, St. Vincent, and Arctic Monkeys.

Since the venue is working toward a few environment-friendly improvements, a portion of ticket sales will go toward Friends of Liberty State Park.

Golden Voice, the same company that brings Coachella to California, is behind All Points West. Promises have been made that this year’s layout and transportation options will exceed those from last year. A reduced-cost ferry from Manhattan has been added, as well as free transport for ticket holders on the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail trains. The festival will also implement larger concession areas with shorter lines.

Other acts on this year’s billing include the Cool Kids, the National, Fleet Foxes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, My Bloody Valentine, Beastie Boys and the Ting Tings.

Tickets have been on sale since April 3, for $89 a day pass can be purchased, and an entire weekend goes for $199. A layaway option expired at the end of May.

The Big Chill
August 6-9
Eastnor Castle, Herefordshire, England

Late in the summer is one of the more original festivals the season; featuring a film shoot and a band contest, the Big Chill will be providing maximum entertainment to concert goers with tickets ranging from £4 for kids under twelve to £140 for adult weekend passes. All ticket prices include the cost of camping, but not booking fees.

This year organizers behind the Big Chill are making an extra effort to provide more space by way of facilities, campsites, and car parks in an event that features indie-friendly names like Andrew Bird, Amadou and Mariam, Friendly Fires, and British Sea Power.

Director Chris Boyle will be on site to film the world’s first post apocalyptic festival mockumentary, and beginning August 6 concert goers will be able to dress up as zombies to be shot in the film.

Another unique aspect of the upcoming Big Chill is that one lucky band has the opportunity to win a slot in the festival’s lineup. The competition is running until August 5, and the winner will be selected by online voters at Alterhit.com.

Reading and Leeds
August 28 – 30

The sold out twin festivals will be held over the August bank holiday this year, and unlike other festivals, you won’t find a jumble of band reunions or resurrections on the lineup, but rather an extensive list of bands currently in the hot seat. Of the entire lineup, Radiohead are the only band who neither released an album nor are planning to release one this year.

This will be Radiohead’s first appearance at the Leeds festival – now in its tenth year – though they played at Reading in both ’93 and ’94, though not as headliners. The band will play Leeds on Saturday August 29 and Reading on Sunday August 30.

This year’s lineup seems to be more indie-flavored – in opposition to the usual plethora of hard rockers at Reading and Leeds, like AC/DC, who at one point were rumored to be joining the lineup, though their name never materialized on the billing. The lineup does include sounds that are a bit heavy on the ears – Defones, Rise Against, and Atreyu are all slated to perform.

Besides Radiohead, indie and Brit rock lovers can indulge themselves with Friendly Fires, Arctic Monkeys, Kings of Leon, Crystal Castles, Vampire Weekend and Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

Grab a Tent, your favorite faded T shirt and your Wellies  and have a rocking summer festival of a time !