Latitude 2018 – Music

Recently awarded Best Major Festival by UK Festival Awards, Latitude Festival returns for its 13th edition, with an all-new look for 2018. Taking place as always at Henham Park in Suffolk, the festival will feature a refreshed programme and emboldened vision, retaining everything you loved about the festival, but also moving in an exciting new direction that looks to the future. The music line-up has been announced, and it’s an amazing and eclectic mix of popular contemporary artists, musical legends and rising stars.

Grammy-winning singer-songwriter of A Seat at the Table fame Solange performs her first –ever festival headline slot at Latitude in a UK exclusive. It’s been over a year since she released the critically acclaimed album that she has called “a project on identity, empowerment, independence, grief, and healing”.  Since its release she has introduced the work to new audiences as dynamic and daring performance art. Bold, exciting and innovative with a creative energy like no other, Solange crosses and combines artistic genres in a way that most artists wouldn’t dare and is the perfect Latitude headliner.

Latitude loves a success story, and is famed for breaking new talent and nurturing artists so it’s truly thrilling to host Alt-J as headliners once more. From performing on the Lake Stage in 2012 as an up and coming act, returning to headline the BBC Music Stage in 2013, and then closing the Friday night of Latitude’s 10th anniversary in 2015, we are delighted to welcome them “home” for what promises to be an exciting show – with the possible premiere of brand new material, this one is going to be unmissable. Alt-J said: “We are over the moon to be returning to Latitude for a fourth time. It’s a festival that’s nurtured us beyond any other, taking us from the Lake Stage to the 6music Stage and then to headlining in 2015. To do so again is a huge privilege.” 

The Killers, fresh from the success of chart-topping comeback album Wonderful Wonderful, headline Latitude for the first time. Part-rock show, part-art extravaganza, The Killers, led by charismatic frontman Brandon Flowers, are sure to bring something very special to this year’s line up with much loved hits ‘The Man’, ‘When You Were Young, and of course ‘Mr Brightside’.

Joining the headliners are Belle and Sebastian in a UK Festival Exclusive.  After a successful world tour and the release of the widely acclaimed triptych of EPs, How To Solve Our Human Problems Parts 1 – 3, Belle and Sebastian will make a triumphant return to Latitude Festival, playing the Obelisk Arena on the Friday night. With 9 studio albums and over two decades worth of experience, the Glaswegians are guaranteed to bring an unmissable performance to Henham Park with fan favourites such as ‘The Party Line’, ‘The Same Star’, ‘Another Sunny Day’ and more. Keyboardist Chris Geddes says: “Latitude is a great festival, we’re really excited to be playing at it again this year. Hopefully this time my mum will behave herself.”

The Latitude stages will also be alive with the sounds of The Vaccines, Wolf Alice, Rag’n’Bone Man, James, Mogwai, Jon Hopkins, The Charlatans, Benjamin Clementine, Jessie Ware, Alvvays, tUnE-yArDs, The BreedersFickle Friends, Bomba EstéreoClark performing latest album Death Peak live, Parquet Courts, IbeyiIDLES, Hinds, Fickle Friends and many more.

The Music and Film Arena will play host to even more exciting music names. Lee ‘Scratch‘ Perry, the legendary reggae producer, provocateur and dub pioneer comes to the festival for a late night set with Mad Professor. Also joining the bill is solo reggae star Hollie Cook, former member of The Slits, with her vibrant, spirited take on lovers rock. World-class beatboxer Reeps One will perform in the arena with his new show We Speak Music: Live, blending the latest technology, stunning visuals, and unbelievable vocal performances. Oscar Jerome will bring modern jazz to the festival, inspired by the greats from Gil Scott-Heron to The Clash, while contemporary composer and pianist Alexis Ffrench will open up your conception of classical music, making it more inclusive and diverse, and Grace Petrie brings a political charge to alternative folk music. Also added to the bill are Tim Arnold, a maverick artist whose work stretches the boundaries of the imagination and defies genre, and White Mink, who bring their electro-swing speakeasy themed entertainment, jazz and old-school hip-hop to the arena with a line up featuring Jenova Collective, Swing Zazou, Twin Swing and White Mink founder, DJ Nick Hollywood.

Stealing Sheep mark the centenary of the suffragettes with a mobile performance inspired by the movement, with a procession starting at Latitude’s stunningly picturesque Sunrise Arena. The sonic adventure continues on the Sunrise stage with underground London beatmaker Kiran Kai, Charles Watson – member of indie duo Slow Club and garage-rock super group The Surfing Magazines – who will perform his sublime new solo material, other-worldly pop duo Palace Winter, sonic architect K A R Y Y N whose soaring, operatic music has been endorsed by Björk, dreamy kraut-rockers My Sad Captains, and local Suffolk band Pianofield. Also performing is frenetic drummer Yussef Dayes, Scottish producer Makeness and his ethereal electronic menagerie, and Self-Esteem, the brand-new project from Slow Club’s Rebecca Taylor. A manic, melodic mash-up is guaranteed when The Go! Team bring their nostalgia-fuelled sassy hip-hop to the Obelisk Arena. Guitar wizard Kyekyeku and his Ghanalogue Highlife ensemble will rock the BBC Music stage with an irresistible fusion of Afrobeat past and present, and local Suffolk choir Pop Choir will open the stage with a medley of hits from Latitude performers past and present.

In addition, Alex Cameron will be playing the Obelisk Arena fresh from supporting The Killers on tour, as is modern day one-man band Jeremy Loops, and Irish folk duo Hudson Taylor. The BBC Music Stage will see BRIT Award Nominated R&B songstress NAO perform, as well as the ‘Miss You’ hit maker Gabrielle Aplin. Manchester’s rising hip-hop queen IAMDDB will headline the Sunrise Arena off the back of her upcoming sold out solo UK tour. Also performing on the Sunrise Arena are future soul star Connie ConstancePorches following their trio of synth-pop albums, South London’s Phobophobes, soul sensation Durand Jones & The Indications, post-disco punk threesome The Orielles, plus there will be Late Night DJ sets from Object Blue, and Willow.

The worlds of folk and classical music meet on Latitude’s Music and Film Arena stage as renowned folksinger Sam Lee performs his songs of lost love with City of London Sinfonia, one of the UK’s leading chamber orchestras. Gizmo Varillas also joins the bill fresh from supporting Jack Savoretti on his European tour as well as his own sold-out show at Ronnie Scott’s. Talented young musicians from youth ensemble Britten Sinfonia Academy (BSA) and Oxfordshire project Waiting For Smith also perform.

Master wordsmiths will also perform at The SpeakEasy across the weekend. Hip-hop and feminism are on a collision course in Testament’s show, WOKE. Amy León and her band perform Something Melancholy, the glorious Octavia Poetry Collective led by Rachel Long, come to Latitude for the first time, plus Jemima Foxtrot, dazzling Brigitte AphroditeSarah Bennetto, viral sensations Harry and Chris and TS Eliot prize nominee Caroline Bird will all pack a lyrical punch.

Meanwhile, over at The Lake Stage, the line-up of new talent – as curated by BBC Radio One’s Huw Stephens – includes ethereal indie rock goddess Bryde, DIY pop-grungers BLOXX, “g-folk” creator Hak Baker, the genre-bending Husky Loops, and more. The Alcove Stage’s hidden gem reputation is not to go unnoticed this year as art-pop trio Caro, producer and artist Malena Zavala, wonky-rockers Francobollo, Bullion-produced artist Westerman, Danish trio Nelson CanLionAadae, and locals Gaffa Tape Sandy join the line up.

The Lake Stage will also see the fearsome Bodega – the New York art-punks hailed by NME as “New York’s most exciting new band at SXSW’, Lucky Number’s punk-pop starlet Suzie Wu, and Hip-Hop artist, rapper and multi-Instrumentalist Dylan Cartlidge hailed for his genre-defying jams.  BBC Introducing have also picked three cutting-edge bands for the Lake Stage including Psychedelic Noise Pop band Sun Scream, Ipswich born rising MC Piers James, and Woodbridge based electro-soul star Caswell.

Meanwhile,  Latitude’s Alcove Stage is where you’ll discover the stars of tomorrow at the very start of their musical journey. AK Patterson make their Latitude debut, alongside Communion Records soul sensation Joseph J. Jones, plus Wildwood Kin, dubbed “the hottest new UK folk act in years”, Justin Bieber championed songstress Rothwell, Bob Harris Emerging Artist Award Winners Wandering Heart, Scotland’s up and coming electro Punk Star LUCIA, West London’s new soul-filled R&B princess Abi Ocia, killer alt-rock band and ReBalance artists Projector, and Suffolk locals Highest House.

The chill-out haven of immersive music and art installations SOLAS will see appearances from folk-tinged acoustic troubadours, ambient electro, and dark pop, right to the spacier end of electronic music, with a selection of healing treatments and holistic arts to boot! Acts booked this year include emotive electronica producer Bearcubs, the bewitching Lilla Vargen, electro-psyche-disco duo Ruby Empress, dreamy shoegaze trio Honey Lung, mysterious country music artist Honey Harper, Berlin’s favourite electro kitten Catnapp, Dylan-esque folkster Holiday Oscar, and many more.

Also playing will be: …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, Æ MAK, Alfa Mist, Black Honey, Boy Azooga, Bruce, Confidence Man, DJ Boring, Eclair Fifi, Fazerdaze, Gang of Youths, Hannah Peel with Tubular Brass, Jacob Banks, Jade Bird, Japandroids, Juanita Stein, Kalyde, La Femme, Marlon Williams, Meggie Brown,  Naaz, Nabihah Iqbal, Object Blue, Octavian, OR:LA, Pangaea, Pip Blom, Preoccupations, Sam Fender, Sleeper, Sorry, Spinning Coin, Superorganism, Trudy And The Romance, whenyoung, and Yellow Days.

The comedy and theatre line-ups for 2018 have also been announced too.  Something for everyone would be an understatement – Latitude 2018 has a mind-blowing line up that you won’t want to miss!

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