Scottish Music Festivals: Our 2022 Calendar

With festival season just around the corner, here's a handy calendar featuring all the key Scottish dates for the year ahead

Preview by Tallah Brash | 05 Apr 2022
  • Kelburn Garden Party

Crowds gather in front of an indoor stage, surrounded by red lights and smoke

Terminal V: Resurgence

Royal Highland Centre, Edinburgh, 16-17 Apr
Terminal V makes its long overdue return this Easter Bank Holiday weekend, very appropriately named Resurgence. After an unfortunate run of cancellations due to you know what, we’re feeling hopeful that this one will go ahead and the line-up is, as we’ve come to expect, stacked. Expect live sets from KiNK, Robert Hood and 999999999, alongside world class DJs like Helena Hauff, HAAi, Amelie Lens, Eats Everything, Austin Ato and more. terminalv.co.uk 

Crowds celebrated under a colourful tent surrounded by balloons and lanterns

Knockengorroch

Carsphairn Hills, Kirkcudbrightshire, 19-22 May
The Knockengorroch World Ceilidh is finally set to return this May, ushering in the start of ‘taps aff’ weather and getting the camping festival season off to a strong start. This year the much-loved world music/trad/hip-hop/fusion knees-up welcomes the likes of Afro Celt Sound System, Lowkey, Mungo’s Hi-Fi Sound System, Nova, Callum Easter and Plump DJs to the stunning Carsphairn Hills beside the Water of Deugh. knockengorroch.org.uk

Anna B Savage stands on an indoor stage surrounded by red lights as she performs with a guitar

The Great Eastern

Various, Edinburgh, 21 May
Following a successful first outing for The Great Eastern last November in Edinburgh’s Southside, the festival returns this spring for round two to The King’s Hall, The Queen’s Hall and the many rooms of Summerhall. So far the line-up includes Brighton indie quartet Porridge Radio, London psych outfit Soccer96, indie-pop trio Peaness and the inimitable Kathryn Joseph, with Anna B Savage and The Joy Hotel back for round two. thegreateastern.org

An electronic artist plays for a large crowd under blue and green lights

Riverside Festival

Riverside Museum, Glasgow, 2-4 Jun
Following a euphoric September outing for Glasgow’s Riverside Festival last year, the weekender returns to its rightful place in the calendar, taking full advantage of the Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend. Taking place in the shadow of the Riverside Museum on the banks of the River Clyde, Charlotte De Witte, Róisín Murphy and Carl Cox head up a bill which also includes FJAAK (live), Joy Orbison, TAAHLIAH (live), Lisalööf and more. riversidefestivalglasgow.com

The facade of the Old Royal High School in daylight

Hidden Door

Royal High School, Calton Hill, Edinburgh, 9-18 Jun
After an exceptional return to form from Hidden Door last year, which saw them take over the Granton Gasworks, the location-hopping festival will take over the old Royal High School on Calton Hill this June. Featuring both an outdoor and indoor stage, this ten-day extravaganza will welcome music, art, theatre and more to this unique setting, with music from This Is the Kit, Warmduscher, Dry Cleaning, EFÉ, Makeness, Girl Ray and more. hiddendoorarts.org

A crowd of people stand in front of Kelburn Castle. The building is surrounded by trees and the walls are painted with colourful murals

Kelburn Garden Party

Kelburn Castle, nr Largs, 1-4 Jul
After a three year break, we can't wait to get back to Kelburn this year. The line-up is as suitably diverse as we’ve come to expect from the team behind the Garden Party, and we’re delighted to say we’re programming the Pyramid Stage for all three days of the festival this year with Nova, Free Love and Maranta all set to play alongside the likes of Kapil Seshasayee, Bemz, Swiss Portrait and Katherine Aly. Bring on the sunshine! kelburngardenparty.com

Crowds sitting in a field enjoying the weather, surrounded by tents and flags

Doune the Rabbit Hole

Cardross Estate, Port of Menteith, Stirling, 14-17 Jul
We almost choked on our coffee earlier this year when the family friendly Doune the Rabbit Hole announced that Patti Smith would headline the festival’s opening night. Returning after a few years off, the 2022 line-up is one of the most exciting on the Scottish festival circuit, where alongside Patti you’ll find Boney M(!), Yard Act, Belle and Sebastian, Camera Obscura, Snapped Ankles, Nadia Rose, Porridge Radio, Stanley Odd and more. dounetherabbithole.co.uk

Scone Palace

Otherlands

Scone Palace, Perth, 19-21 Aug
Partnering with the likes of BBC Introducing, Sub Club, Sneaky Pete's and Boiler Room, Fly Club launch their debut Scottish camping festival this summer which will see them taking over the grounds of Perth’s Scone Palace. Best known as the site where both Macbeth and Robert the Bruce were crowned, this summer it will be best known as a place for dancing the night away to world class acts such as Bicep (live), Jamie xx, Honey Dijon, TSHA and Elkka (live). otherlandsfestival.com

Tents and flags have been set up in a clearing in the woods. Crowds sit on the grass enjoying the sun

Jupiter Rising

Jupiter Artland, 26-28 Aug
Jupiter Rising was a real highlight of 2021 for us and we can’t wait to be back in the beautiful surrounds of Jupiter Artland this August for more fun. So far, this year’s festival features guest curators Alloysius Massaquoi (Young Fathers) and Tamara Schlesinger (MALKA / Hen Hoose). The line-up so far includes Emma Pollock, AMUNDA, Poster Paints, Susan Bear, jayda, Djana Gabrielle, Distruction Boyz, Dylema and Mychelle. jupiterrising.art

Stuart Braithwaite of Mogwai plays guitar on stage under blue lighting

Connect Festival

Royal Highland Centre, Edinburgh, 26-28 Aug
At the end of 2021 it was announced that after 14 years Connect Festival would return in 2022, much to the delight of many on social media. With a relocation to Edinburgh’s Royal Highland Centre, Massive Attack, The Chemical Brothers and The National are set to headline this year’s fest with Mogwai, Self Esteem, The Twilight Sad, Black Coffee, Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul, Caribou, Sudan Archives and more further down the bill. connectmusicfestival.com

Some more dates for your diary

As if all of that isn’t enough, there’s plenty more going on across the country this year that’s worth shouting about. Counterflows kicks things off in Glasgow at the end of March (31 Mar-2 Apr). Skye Live (13-14 May) gets things underway in the Highlands and Islands, with the Orkney Folk Festival (26-29 May) following shortly after, before Lost Map Records’ Howlin’ Fling invites you to the Isle of Eigg for Island Family Gathering (1-2 Jul). The following weekend sees the Tiree Music Festival take place (8-10 Jul), before the Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival (27-28 Jul) brings revellers to the Belladrum Estate near Inverness. 

Back in the central belt, the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival takes over the capital from 15-24 July, warming up the city ahead of the Edinburgh International Festival (5-28 Jul). Coinciding with the Edinburgh festivals, Fringe by the Sea takes place in the seaside town of North Berwick (5-14 Aug), while the Edinburgh Summer Sessions bring big names to Princes Street Gardens for a run of shows from 7-14 August. Meanwhile in Glasgow, Summer Nights at the Kelvingrove Bandstand are well worth checking out (27 Jul-13 Aug), while later in the year Tenement Trail takes over Glasgow’s East End on 8 October, with The Great Western taking place the following month (12 Nov).

Eight more festivals to catch in 2022

Stag & Dagger
Various, Edinburgh, 30 Apr; Various, Glasgow, 1 May
Dream Wife, Let’s Eat Grandma, Protomartyr
instagram.com/staganddaggerofficial

Tectonics Festival
Various, Glasgow, 30 Apr-1 May
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Douglas R Ewart, FUJI||||||||||TA
tectonicsfestival.com

Wide Days
Various, Edinburgh, 21 May
Savage Mansion, Bemz, Katherine Aly
widedays.com

Fly Open Air
Hopetoun House, Edinburgh, 21-22 May
Peggy Gou, DJ Koze, Horse Meat Disco
flyflyfly.co.uk

Eden Festival
Raehills Meadows, nr Moffat, Dumfries & Galloway, 9-12 Jun
Coolio, Hollie Cook, Pictish Trail
edenfestival.co.uk

Solas Festival
Errol Park, Perthshire, 17-19 Jun
Stanley Odd, Lewis McLaughlin, Callum Easter
solasfestival.co.uk

TRNSMT
Glasgow Green, Glasgow, 8-10 Jul
The Strokes, Wet Leg, Self Esteem
trnsmtfest.com

HebCelt
Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, 13-16 Jul
Texas, Seasick Steve, Admiral Fallow
hebceltfest.com