Festival Watch: Sounds From The Other City, Riverside, Sonisphere, Nuits Sonores and more

Feature by News Team | 12 Feb 2014

Salford's Sounds From The Other City (4 May) is a one-day festival showcasing art, music and culture from Salford, Manchester and beyond, and this year, it celebrates its 10th anniversary. This week, the festival announced its initial lineup, with more names to be added as the event draws near. Taking place at venues across Salford, the festival has previously played host to names like Alt-J, James Ferraro, Deptford Goth and Marina and the Diamonds, giving them a much-needed platform early in their careers.

The first wave of artists confirmed for the 2014 festival are The Travelling Band, who will be performing a one time only interpretation of Neil Young’s album On The Beach, Canadian underground sensations Solid, performing in the UK for the first time, and singer Rosie Lowe, who has previously collaborated with Kwes and The Invisible's Dave Okwumu. A huge list of bands are still to be announced. Stages at various venues throughout Salford will be curated by lcoal promoters, including Now Wave, Hey Manchester and Faktion. Art performance collective Volkov Commanders will be in charge of masterminding the look and feel of the festival. Find out more, and book tickets here.

Over in France, Nuits Sonores (28 May-1 Jun) is a showcase festival with a strong focus on alternative, experimental and electronic music and digital culture. This year's festival, which takes place in Lyon, sees over 250 locations within the city transformed into bespoke gig venues, from galleries and swimming pools to rooftops and stretches of industrial wasteland. 

This year's lineup offers an embarrassment of riches, with DJ sets from Daniel Avery, Andy Votel, Deetron, Kode9, and Nina Kraviz. Glasgow is well represented, with a DJ set from Optimo, and live performances from Dam Mantle, Ubre Blanca, Jacob Yates and the Pearly Gate Lock-Pickers, and Golden Teacher. Also performing live at this year's event are Gold Panda, Babe, Crocodiles, Dum Dum Girls, Lee Ranaldo and the Dust, and Wooden Shjips, among others. Details and tickets here.

A Nuits Sonores Flash from Partizan on Vimeo.

Back in Glasgow, the Riverside Festival (3-4 May), curated by Electric Frog and Pressure, has announced a first wave of artists for their two-day extravaganza - leading the proceedings will be Lord Sabre himself, Andrew Weatherall, alongside Jamie Jones, Aphrohead aka Felix Da Housecat, Derrick Carter, Derrick May, Moritz Von Oswald, DJ Sneak, Slam, Sunday Circus, Tiga, Visionquest, and a very special live performance from French techno don Vitalic. Find out more here, and book tickets here from Friday (14 Feb). 

Sonisphere (4-6 Jul) have announced another crop of artists for their metal-based festival at Knebworth. The big news is that Deftones have joined the bill for their only UK show this year. In addition to the trio of headliners already announced - The Prodigy, Metallica and Iron Maiden - are Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls, Reel Big Fish, Protest The Hero, Alestorm, Truckfighters, Kerbdog, Only Crime, Blitz Kids, Itch, Max Raptor, and Hounds. Not counting a few name changes, it's Knebworth's 40th anniversary this year too, so it's bound to be some party. Details and tickets here.

Last but not least, Hop Farm Festival (4-6 Jul) have announced some more additions to their bill - they welcome Beach Boys songwriting supremo Brian Wilson, as well as Squeeze, James Blunt, Caro Emerald and The Feeling. They announce their full lineup on 7 March - keep your eye on their site for details.