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Latitude Festival: Latest Additions + Updates

Spring is finally here and with the recent sunshine that familiar festival feeling is starting to take over. We have already reported on a few of the other festivals that are are happening in the UK over the summer, but with a host of latest additions and updates, it is time to take a closer look at the Latitude Festival.

Latitude is based around the stunning setting of Henham Park where you can spend the weekend full to the brim of watching amazing and exciting bands, hearing some of the countries best poetry, listening to a book reading by some incredible authors, taking part in a bespoke theatre production, losing yourself in cabaret, or witnessing fantastic dance compositions on a floating stage on the lake. The Latitude Festival is up with best of them.

Boasting four Music Arenas, the Obelisk, Uncut, Sunrise and The Lake Stage span a wide range of genres and music hand-picked especially for the festival; bands and artists are chosen with the essence of Latitude in mind. More established bands play in harmony alongside the freshest new acts and with so much more to be announced – it only gets better!

Friday

On Friday, the imposing Obelisk Arena will host Brit-award winning folktronic songtress Beth Orton. Her distinctive vocals and sweet melodies have earned her a career spanning over ten years and seven albums; her eighth will follow towards the end of the year. Also appearing on Friday night is Scottish psychedelic pop outfit Aliens, consisting of former members of The Beta Band. Their album ‘Astronomy For Dogs’ which came out last year is a upbeat pop/rock record, quite different from the trip-hop of The Beta Band. It spawned the track ‘I Am The Unknown’ which is featured in the recent blockbuster movie ‘21’. Headlining this year’s event on the Obelisk Arena, Scottish art-rock heroes Franz Ferdinand play their only English festival show.

On the Uncut Arena the Black Kids, will bring their unique style of danceable disco indie spliced with 80’s pop vibes. It has been quite the year for Florida five piece. Their debut single ‘I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You’ reached Number 11 in the UK charts and performed the track on the first ever live edition of Later…..with Jools Holland. Legendary performer Julian Cope will also perform on the Uncut Stage. Since the fame and success of The Teardrop Explodes, Cope has added to his legacy with a prolific solo career releasing over 20 albums and writing four non-fiction books including ‘Krautrocksampler’ and ‘Japrocksampler’ as well as two critically acclaimed autobiographies.

Saturday

The Obelisk Arena will feature influential Belgium quintet dEUS. These underground heroes have been enjoying a resurgence of late with their fantastic new album ‘Vantage Point’ which showcases their trademark fusion of all types of music, pop, folk, rock, free jazz, neo-prog, punk and heavy metal. They’re one of the most successful and influential Belgian rock bands ever, inspiring the likes of Muse and Radiohead to name but two. Manchester’s cult three-piece I Am Kloot join Saturday’s line-up. Hailed as one of the best songwriters in the country by Pete Doherty and Guy Garvey from Elbow, Johnny Bramwell from I Am Kloot writes fantastically dark and sometimes sinister brooding songs that are compelling and catchy. Icelandic post-rock outfit Sigur Ros head up Saturday’s line-up.

Over in the Uncut Arena, Guillemots are back with a new album and one of the catchiest singles of the year in ‘Get Over It’. Expect massive singalong choruses from the quirky indie popsters when they take to the stage. Essex four piece Magistrates mix Klaxons style beats with funky pop rhythms to create a sound “so fresh you won’t even have to shower”. Already causing a buzz, the band have supported Top 10 newcomer Sam Sparro and will be ready to impress when they groove into the on Saturday.

Sunday

The Obelisk Arena will also be host to one of Britains “most exciting new bands” – Foals. After bursting onto the scene in 2007 with underground hits like ‘Hummer’ and ‘Mathletics’ it wasn’t long before Foals were in the spotlight with record labels scrambling for their signature and the NME putting them on the cover. More hits in the shape of ‘Balloons’ and ‘Cassius’ followed before they released their eagerly anticipated debut album ‘Antidotes’ in March of this year reaching number 3 in the UK album chart.New York titans Interpol close the arena on the Sunday with their unique brand of powerful and atmospheric inventive indie rock.

Over at the Uncut Arena, Latitude are delighted to announce that the legendary New York trailblazers Blondie, who will be celebrating the 30th anniversary of seminal album Parallel Lines - which spawned many of their renowned hits including ‘Heart of Glass’ and ‘Hanging On The Telephone’. Their set promises to be a veritable romp through their classics as they belt out some of the best new wave hits in musical history such as ‘Atomic’, ‘Rapture’, ‘One Way Or Another’, ‘Maria’ - the list is endless. 600 million album sales to date and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in 2006, Blondie’s legacy is unmistakeable and their slot at Latitude will no doubt be a festival highlight.

As Latitude is dedicated to bringing the very best in emerging talent, the Sunrise Arena will host a line-up of tomorrow’s stars.

With the release of their imminent second album ‘Nights Out’ landing before the festival Metronomy (Joseph Mount) will undoubtedly be on top form when Latitude hits the Suffolk coast. Originally from Devon and now based in London, Metronomy has not only been brought to the public eye with his own material but also as a sought-after remixer for Obelisk headliners Franz Ferdinand, Klaxons and Kate Nash to name only a few. Oscar Cash and Gabriel Stebbing will be joining Joseph Mount on the Sunrise Arena for a set not to be missed. Rosie & The Goldbug will be showcasing their incredible piano lead harmonies and haunting vocal melodies. The Cornish three piece featuring Rosie (Rosie Vanier), Pixie (Lee Matthews) and Plums (Sarah Morgan) have been described as a ‘Prozac-ingesting mix of Tori Amos, Cabaret’s Sally Bowles…’ and ‘Kate Bush on Crack’! Joining them is the dreamy pop of London trio The Joy Formidable. The newcomers have already had a song featured on an advert for cult show Skins and gigs supporting Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. Irish musician Wallis Bird will be taking to Latitude’s Saturday afternoon line-up, guitar-in-hand to forecast a unique combination of traditional folk music, blues and funk that will be the perfect accompaniment to the Suffolk sunshine.

But of course, Latitude is so much more than a music festival. This year’s Latitude can boast the exclusive involvement of BAFTA in the Film and Music Arena. Exclusively for Latitude, English composer of minimalist music, pianist, librettist and musicologist Michael Nyman will be presenting a programme specifically for the intimate environment of the Music and Film Arena. Perhaps best known for the many film scores he’s written during his lengthy collaboration with the filmmaker Peter Greenaway and for the incredible score for award-winning film ‘The Piano’, Nyman will be performing a solo piano piece of excerpts from some of these most emotive and ground breaking film scores and will include excerpts from the Peter Greenaway classics.

Now with a larger tent and screens outside to accommodate its heaving audience, the ever popular Comedy Arena returns with another staggering line up that reads like a who’s who of the current touring comedy circuit. A programme of the biggest names in comedy including Omid Djalili, Ross Noble, Frankie Boyle, Rich Hall and Simon Amstell as well as up and coming performers. Michael Fabbri is quickly getting a reputation as one of the most exciting new acts on the comedy circuit. As a finalist of the BBC New Comedy Awards, Fabbri’s off-the-wall routine has been toured all over Britain since he first appeared on the circuit in 2003. His Edinburgh fringe show ‘Hearing Voices’, with regular touring partner Mike Manera, was well received and he has gone from strength to strength since with his unique, sharp style gaining the plaudits.

The Literary Arena is packed full of top authors including Simon Armitage, Hanif Kureishi and Iain Banks as well as Latitude favourites Vox ‘N’ Roll, WordTheatre and Marcus Brigstocke’s The Early Edition. The National Theatre, Royal Court Theatre, RSC and The Bush all bring exciting new shows to the Theatre Arena. Plus stellar poets Adrian Mitchell, John Hegley and Carol Ann Duffy are all confirmed for the Poetry Arena hosted by Luke Wright.

The Cabaret Arena welcomes the ever hilarious and inventive Vauxhallville with plenty more exciting performances to announce in the pipeline. And that’s not to mention the awe-inspiring Sadler’s Wells who will perform their world class dance on a beautiful stage floating in the middle of the lake as will The Irrepressibles with their orchestral brilliance.

Ticket Information

Weekend tickets £130 plus booking fees. Day tickets Fri, Sat, Sun £55 plus booking fee. Weekend tickets prices include car parking and camping. Days include car parking only.

C/Card line 0870 060 3775

Or online at www.festivalrepublic.com, www.seetickets.com, www.latitudefestival.co.uk

For a full list of National and Regional outlets please visit www.latitudefestival.co.uk

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