Hit the Road: Music Festivals Outwith Scotland

Polygon Live LDN

Crystal Palace Park, London, 2-4 May
Polygon Live LDN is the largest 360° spatial audio festival in the UK and will feature the world premiere of Polygon’s dual-dome stage design, so for a fully immersive experience this is not to be missed. Tinariwen, Nitin Sawhney, Arooj Aftab, Kaitlynn Aurelia Smith and Jon Hopkins (360° Ritual) will all play. polygon-productions.live

The Great Escape

Brighton, England, 14-17 May
Known as the festival for new music, The Great Escape returns to Brighton this May for four days of music discovery. Alongside a full conference programme, around 500 live artists are expected to perform, with Bottle Rockets, corto.alto, Indoor Foxes and Water Machine representing Scotland. greatescapefestival.com

Wide Awake. Image: Luke Dyson.

Wide Awake

Brockwell Park, London, 23 May
Back in London, Wide Awake returns to Brockwell Park for its fifth edition, courtesy of Bad Vibrations, LNZRT and the team behind MOTH Club and the Shacklewell Arms. This year’s festival is headed up by Irish hip-hop outfit Kneecap, with CMAT, English Teacher, Fcukers, Marie Davidson, jasmine.4.t and Mermaid Chunky all on the bill. wideawakelondon.co.uk

LIDO Festival

Victoria Park, London, 6, 7 & 13-15 Jun
Taking place across two weekends, the brand new LIDO Festival are teaming up with Outbreak Fest to host their London leg on 13 June, while Charli xcx leads the charge on 14 June for a huge party girl sesh with A.G. Cook, Gessafelstein, Kelly Lee Owens, The Dare and more. lidofestival.co.uk

Outbreak Fest

Manchester B.E.C. Arena, Manchester, 14 & 15 Jun
Following a huge party in London, Outbreak Fest heads to Manchester for a two-day party. Originally focusing on all things hardcore and punk, Knocked Loose will likely be the big draw here, while artists like Alex G, Danny Brown, Slowdive, Feeble Little Horse and Kumo 99 show the festival's evolution. outbreak-fest.co.uk

MEO Kalorama

Parque de Bela Vista, Lisbon, 19-21 Jun
At Lisbon's MEO Kalorama festival, sustainability and diversity are key, and when it comes to the music, they're all about bringing the party. Alongside Pet Shop Boys, FKA twigs, Azealia Banks, Scissor Sisters, Róisín Murphy and L’Imperatrice, Flaming Lips will perform Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots in full. meokalorama.pt

Open'er. Image: Ewapłonka Kamil

Open’er

Gdynia, Poland, 2-5 Jul
In Eastern Europe, Open'er, on the Baltic coast of Poland, looks like an absolute banger. Crowned Best Major Festival at the 2024 European Festival Awards, this year’s lineup features Doechii, Linkin Park, Caribou, Camilla Cabello, FKA twigs, JPEGMAFIA, Justice, Magdalena Bay, St. Vincent and loads more. opener.pl

Durham Brass Festival

Durham, 13-20 Jul
This one's a bit of a wild card, perhaps, but it sounds brilliant. Highlights across the festival's eight-day-run include Barry Hyde performing his latest album, Miners Ballads, with the Durham Miners Association Brass Band, and Bill Ryder-Jones performing a special arrangement of Iechyd Da with The NASUWT Riverside Band. brassfestival.co.uk

Øya

Tøyenpark, Oslo, Norway, 6-9 Aug
If you missed out on tickets for Primavera Sound in Barcelona, Norway's uber-sustainable and pop-forward Øya festival could be the answer. Headliners Charli xcx and Chappell Roan are joined by the likes of Kelly Lee Owens, Kneecap, Lola Young, Nilüfer Yanya, The Chats, Pom Poko, girl in red and more. oyafestivalen.no

ArcTanGent

Fernhill Farm, Somerset, 13-16 Aug
After a hugely successful tenth anniversary last year, ArcTanGent bring all things noisy back to Somerset this August. Headliners include Norse dark folk outfit Wardruna, Australian prog-rock metallers Karnivool and British prog-metal lot Tesseract. Representing Scotland, catch Arab Strap, Maud the Moth and DVNE. arctangent.co.uk

Shambala. Image: Scott Salt.

Shambala

Secret location near Market Harborough, Northamptonshire, 21-24 Aug
The fiercely independent Shambala festival returns with its Adventures in Utopia theme this summer to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Digable Planets, Fat Dog and Moonchild Sanelly lead the charge on the lineup, while Glasgow faves corto.alto and Mungo’s Hi Fi will also play. shambalafestival.org

Forwards

Bristol Downs, Bristol, 23 & 24 Aug
Split across two stages on Bristol Downs, Forwards is one of those rare festivals where you should, in theory, be able to see everyone on the bill. With great sound and brilliant local food options, this year's lineup is another banger with Barry Can’t Swim, Doechii, Ezra Collective, Confidence Man and Katy J Pearson all set to play. forwardsbristol.co.uk

Left of the Dial

Rotterdam, Netherlands, 23-25 Oct
Taking over all sorts of spaces, from rooms in classic music venues and theatres, to retro arcades, art galleries and more, Left of the Dial is one of the coolest festivals, with a great cross-section of rising talent to match. This year, Soapbox, Bruise Control, Fuzz Lightyear, Clara Mann and Low Island are all set to play. leftofthedial.nl