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Get fired up for Field Day festivals in London’s Victoria Park this year for one of the best weeks of music you’ve ever been lucky enough to see. British Airways called Field Day London’s favourite alternative music festival and said that “this year’s line-up is a triumph”—and we’re inclined to agree with them. From June 1-7 the park is going to be packed with people soaking up the sun and enjoying some righteous jams from some of the best acts in the business.
1. Patti Smith
Patti Smith. It’s Patti freaking Smith. What more do you need to know? She’s the undisputed high priestess of punk and the divine empress of cool. Smith is easily the coolest person on this whole line-up and it’s not even close. That’s not a diss on anybody else; there are some cool folks here, but that just goes to show how incredible she is. Lady is 68 years old and goes so hard she makes teenagers feels lame. Don’t miss your opportunity to see this living legend in action or you’ll never forgive yourself. We’d pay money to watch her read a phone book in a pub.
2. Ride
The iconic shoegazers and Brit-pop princes reunite for one last hurrah. Their 1990 LP “Nowhere” is considered one of the greatest of the genre and the band has graced mix tapes ever since, particularly in the book “Perks of Being a Wallflower.” Also, because the band’s sound doesn’t rely on aggressive tempos or bombastic stage shows, they’re sure to sound as good as ever when they take the stage. According to Consequence of Sound Field Day is set to be one of the last reunion shows by the band this year so make sure you catch them because who knows the next time you’ll get to see them.
3. A.G. Cook
The enigmatic head honcho behind PC Music has developed an ebullient and schizophrenic blend of candy-coated EDM that bucks the rules and uses high-pitched synthesizers and melodies that owe more to classic trance than Skrillex and is one of the most interesting and undeniably catchy artists out there right now. Hop on this train early because you’ll be hearing a lot about A.G. Cook and the rest of the PC Music in the next year.
4. Caribou
Dan Snaith and Caribou are at the top of their games right now. 2014’s splendid album, “Our Love,” was one of the best of the year and strikes the perfect blend of percussive pop and rave-ready dancefloor fillers. It’s no surprise that the band is known for making dance music for the thinking man given that Snaith has a PhD in mathematics from Imperial College London. When the dual drummers get going, all bets are off as the crowd explodes with excitement making Caribou a must-see band.
5. FKA Twigs
FKA Twigs is killing it. Just killing it. Her debut album, “LP1,” was another one of the top records of 2014 and was nominated for a slew of awards including the Mercury Prize. Twigs crafts a mesmerising blend of electronica, pop and R&B that has an edge that no one else can begin to touch. Toss in her chops as a choreographer (you might know her from that Jessie J video) and you have a total package that’s like the art-house lovechild of Aaliyah and Sade. She’s also engaged to Robert Pattinson, according to reports by Pitchfork, and that significantly increased my opinion of everyone’s favorite vampire because at least the dude has good taste.
To be honest we’ve barely even scraped the surface of the amazing acts they’ve lined up for this year’s festival. If we even tried to go through them all we probably wouldn’t make it out to the festival in time. But this is a good place to start and all of these artists are essential viewing for those lucky enough to find themselves in Victoria Park this June.
