33 music festivals coming to Scotland this summer

As my partner joked the other day, ‘spring has sprang’, and, well, he's not wrong. With the days now officially longer than the nights, crocuses are crocusing and blossoms about to do their thing, so too is the music scene about to burst into full colour as festival season starts to come ever closer, the blurriness of plans slowly coming into sharp focus.

With that in mind, we’ve pulled together some of the Scottish festivals we’re most excited about for the year ahead, from intimate multi-venue festivals in city centres to colossal greenfields festivals, and everything in-between. 

Multi-venue/indoor festivals

Festival season proper truly gets underway with Counterflows (3-6 Apr), Glasgow’s longest running festival of experimental music. This year’s carefully curated lineup includes a special focus on artists and vital new work from South-East Asia – seek out experimental pop from Vietnam (Tran Uy Duc and Vũ Hà Anh), uncategorisable sounds from Beijing (Yan Jun) and ramshackle pop from Japan (Maher Shalal Hash Baz and Foodman). Later in the month, alt-indie fest HOUSEGUEST (12 Apr), featuring Walt Disco, Tina Sandwich and Cowboy Hunters, returns for its sophomore outing, taking over Nice N Sleazy, CCA and The Variety Bar.

The following month, Stag & Dagger (3 May) takes over a whole host of Glasgow City Centre venues with Big Special, Grandmas House and Water Machine on the bill, while the same weekend sees Tectonics (3 & 4 May) return to Glasgow City Halls and Old Fruitmarket. With a focus on 'the profound act of listening and the potential of collaboration,' artists like Lauren Sarah Hayes and Beatrice Dillon will push the boundaries of their artform. 

Rascalton @ Tenement Trail. Image: Cameron Brisbane.

In June, Glasgow is set to host two brand new multi-venue music festivals. Wastelands (6-8 Jun) will take over Barras Art and Design (BAaD), Stereo, Slay and Room 2 with Mandidextrous, Ebi Soda, kitti, Pippa Blundell, Gaïa and more set to play. The following week, cross-cultural performances, installations and discussions between UK/Scottish and Ukrainian artists will take place at venues like the David Dale Gallery, Civic House and Glasgow Women’s Library under the banner Time Based: Sonic Interventions (11-15 Jun). Scottish sound artist Zoë Irvine and celebrated Ukrainian composer Alla Zahaykevich are part of the lineup.

Elsewhere, at this point in time, information is a little lacking for some of our faves. Glasgow Jazz Festival returns from 18 to 22 June, while under good authority, we’ve been informed that Glasgow-based rapper Bemz’s M4 Festival will be back, with the location, dates and the lineup all TBA at the time of writing. So too will King Tut's Summer Nights series, forming part of the iconic venue's 35th anniversary celebrations. Glasgow’s core., a festival celebrating all things noisy, returns to Woodside Halls and The Hug & Pint (12-14 Sep), Freakender’s three-day weekender once again takes over The Old Hairdresser’s (19-21 Sep) and Tenement Trail's festival for music discovery returns to East End venues (11 Oct).

VOMITON with Maranda @ Hidden Door. Image: Dan Mosley

In Edinburgh, offerings of this nature begin in May. Despite their convention not going ahead for the first time since its launch in 2010, this year Wide Days will host two nights of live music under the banner New From Scotland (1 & 2 May) at La Belle Angele and Sneaky Pete’s, featuring artists from their Talent Development programme among others. If traditional music is more your bag, then the mighty Tradfest (2-12 May) returns to the capital with a packed lineup. While the opening night will bring together piper and composer Ross Ainslie with the Sanctuary Band and Terra Kin, other fellow Scots headliners during the run include the likes of Siobhan Miller and Beth Malcolm, while Pelkkä Poutanen and Seckou Keita form part of their international offering.

After its first winter festival last November, Hidden Door (11-15 Jun) returns to The Paper Factory, a gargantuan former industrial site located in Maybury west of the city. The festival will bring another week of captivating live music, immersive performance, art and collaboration to the capital with names like Mermaid Chunky, Snapped Ankles, Alice Faye, Moor Mother and The Orielles all set to play. Back in the city centre, the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival (11-20 Jul) is set to return for its usual summer splash, while the Edinburgh International Festival (1-24 Aug) features an Up Late series as part of its contemporary programme with Alabaster DePlume, Kathryn Joseph and Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith announced. On 31 August, Edinburgh Psych Fest returns to the city with possibly its biggest and most exciting lineup yet with Nadine Shah, Deadletter, Du Blonde and Getdown Services amongst the lineup. And as the year unfolds, keep your eyes peeled for announcements from Dunfermline's Outwith Festival (3-8 Sep) and the second installment of Edinburgh's Soundhouse Winter Festival (27 Nov-1 Dec).

Camping Festivals

If you’re serious about living that most classic of festival lifestyles throughout the spring and summer, there are loads of camping festivals on offer across the country. We've picked out eight for inspiration. Starting on the Isle of Skye, this year Skye Live (8-10 May) celebrates its tenth anniversary with the live music programme including the likes of Skippinish, Beth Malcolm and Kinnaris Quintet, with Eclair FiFi, Lord of the Isles and Optimo (Espacio) on DJ duties. Later in the month, Knockengorroch (22-25 May) returns to the beautiful scenery of the Carsphairn Hills in Galloway, South West Scotland with African Head Charge, Dub Pistols and Elephant Sessions heading up the bill.

Up in Argyll, Fynefest (30 May-1 June) returns to Glen Fyne courtesy of the Fyne Ales brewery. With a lineup just as delicious as their beers, expect live music from the likes of Talisk, Sacred Paws, Pictish Trail, Man of Moon and loads more. In the middle of the month, consider heading down to Moffat in Dumfries & Galloway for the four-day Eden Festival (12-15 Jun) where Bob Vylan, Orchestra Baobab, Slum Village and Leftfield (DJ) top the bill. The following weekend, more family-friendly camping adventures await at Errol Park in Perthshire courtesy of Solas Festival (20-22 Jun), who since 2009 have been a solid fixture of Scotland's summer festivals calendar. Hamish Hawk headlines this year, with Katie-Gregson Macleod, Theo Bleak, Alice Faye and Iona Zajac also set to perform.

Kelburn Garden Party. Image: ReCompose.

Sliding into July, Kelburn Garden Party (3-7 Jul) is back on the grounds of Kelburn Castle, near Largs, for its 15th edition with another exceptional lineup. Expect DJ sets from Sofia Kourtesis, Jamz Supernova and Auntie Flo, while performing live you can catch The Allergies, Romare, She Drew the Gun and TAAHLIAH, who headlines our very own stage on the Friday night. If you fancy a really big trip from the mainland, then we’d suggest checking out Tiree Music Festival (11-13 Jul) on Tiree, a gorgeous island in the Inner Hebrides often referred to as the Hawaii of the North. The festival, co-founded by Skerryvore’s Daniel Gillespie, could well be one to tick off the bucket list – lineup TBA. And rounding out those summer camping months, you’ll find Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival (31 Jul-2 Aug) at its home in the Belladrum Estate, Kiltarlity, near Inverness. Texas, Paul Heaton (featuring Rianne Downey), CMAT, Tide Lines, Natasha Bedingfield, Karine Polwart and loads more are all set to play a festival that truly does feature music for all tastes.

Big In the City

Of course, camping isn’t for everyone, and big day festivals are happening in the major cities too. In Glasgow, big things are happening in Rouken Glen Country Park thanks to The Reeling (6-8 Jun). Taking place over three days, expect some of the biggest names in Scottish trad like Malin Lewis, Tide Lines, Talisk and more. On 21 June, get your eyeliner and safety pins at the ready for the Punk All-Dayer in Bellahouston Park with the Sex Pistols featuring Frank Carter, The Stranglers, Buzzcocks, The Undertones and more set to play. The following month, the enormous TRNSMT returns to Glasgow Green (11-13 Jul) with Wet Leg, Kneecap, Fontaines D.C., 50 Cent and Gracie Abrams topping the bill, with the brand new BBC Radio 1 Dance Stage featuring the likes of Jaguar, Big Miz and Arielle Free.

Jam Eye @ Jupiter Rising. Image: Charlotte Cullen.

Just outside of Edinburgh, Fringe by the Sea (1-10 Aug) takes over the seaside town of North Berwick with French duo Air playing Moon Safari on the 2nd in the Big Top. Courtesy of a collaboration as part of Edinburgh Art Festival, Jupiter Rising returns to Wilkieston art park Jupiter Artland (16 Aug), with electronic producer TAAHLIAH headlining the late night stage in Jupiter's gorgeous woodlands. And on the same day back in Glasgow, as part of the Summer Nights at the Bandstand series (29 Jul-16 Aug), Mogwai’s all-dayer Big City returns, the lineup still TBA at the time of writing.