Wednesday 10 June 2009

Latitude - Of Montreal, Lykke Li, Goldheart Assembly, Sky Larkin...

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16th – 19th July 2009
Henham Park Estate, Southwold, Suffolk

OBELISK ARENA
~ Of Montreal ~

UNCUT ARENA
~ Maps ~ Lykke Li ~ Fever Ray ~ Paloma Faith ~

SUNRISE ARENA
~ Local Natives ~ Mirrors ~ Sky Larkin ~ Villagers ~
~ Goldheart Assembly ~

THE LAKE STAGE
~ Alfonzo ~

ALSO CONFIRMED
~ Camera Obscura ~ St Vincent ~

The pioneering, award-winning Latitude Festival returns to England’s Sunrise Coast for another spectacular year. Taking place on 16th – 19th July, near Suffolk’s stunning seaside town of Southwold, organisers Festival Republic are promising Latitude will be the perfect British summer destination.


OBELISK ARENA

The open-air Obelisk Arena has been the stage for some epic performances over the past three years and the line up for Latitude 2009 will continue in this success. Lay out your picnic blanket, bask in the sunshine and get down to some of the best music around. The latest act to join the likes of Pet Shop Boys, Grace Jones, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Editors, Doves, Pretenders, Regina Spektor, White Lies is:

The brainchild of singer/guitarist Kevin Barnes, euphoric indie popsters Of Montreal. Among the second wave of bands to emerge from the sprawling Elephant 6 collective, Of Montreal from Athens, Georgia, appeared in mid-1997, with their sunny, sixties-pop styled debut ‘Cherry Peel’. Since then, over the course of nine albums, they have continuously explored new styles and concepts fusing afro-beats, psychedelic and reggae, with their distinctive indie pop melodies. The upbeat and bouncy music is often off-set with gloomy and surreal lyrics which make the band an interesting and forever intriguing outfit and certainly ones to check out at Latitude.


UNCUT ARENA

The impressive structure of the tented Uncut Arena houses a line-up of alternative, leftfield music; a hotbed of genre-spanning artists all offering something unique. This year will once again host a myriad of musical musts from the fields of folk, world, experimental, electronica, rock, indie and any other musical style you can think of. It’s all on offer at the Uncut Arena.

Critically acclaimed sound-sculptor James Chapman better known as Maps joins the bill on the Uncut Arena. Nominated for a Mercury Prize for his last album ‘We Can Create’, Maps have come a long way from Chapman’s bedroom-produced songs. After playing Latitude in 2007, Maps are back once again to present their ‘Turning The Mind’, a darker, angrier and more mature new album.

One of the sensations of last year, Swedish Lykke Li will be bringing her beautiful mix of blues, electro and "powdered-sugar pop". Li’s quirky voice combined with bass-heavy dance has a charismatic charm and her fantastically energetic, inspiring and magical live set proves why she has been causing a stir all around the world.

Fever Ray is Karin Dreijer Andersson, former singer with ‘90s pop hopes Honey Is Cool and one half of electronic duo The Knife. After winning six Swedish Grammys with The Knife, Karin embarked on her new project, Fever Ray which brings us an intense and anxious, yet luminous sound. Inventive, emotional and magical lyrics come through an electronic, slightly minimal foundation that is embellished with traditional instruments. A performance that will certainly have the audience hypnotised.

Paloma Faith is an explosive mix. She is a singer, actress, burlesque performer, ex-magician’s assistant. Singing blues and soul with a vampish feel, she has been described as "Björk meets Róisín Murphy while possessed by the ghost of Billie Holiday". Paloma Faith has been known in the underground arts circle in London for quite a while, and now the whole world is learning to appreciate the wonder of her music. What to say about her live show? Expect the unexpected!


SUNRISE ARENA

Take a stroll through Latitude’s fairytale woods with art exhibited within the trees and dappled sunlight shining through the leaves and you will stumble across the most exquisite space of all; the Sunrise Arena, home to tomorrow’s biggest stars. With a full schedule still to be announced, this cosy and cherished arena is the place to find the most exciting new talent. Discover the next big thing at Latitude’s stunning Sunrise Arena.

One of the big breakthroughs from this year’s SXSW showcase Local Natives have been wowing crowds both here in the UK and on home soil in USA. With epic soaring music reminiscent of Arcade Fire and strong vocals working beautifully together to make sweet sounding harmonies, this band has true musical talent. Their debut, due later this year, is already eagerly anticipated and their performance on the Sunrise will be hotly tipped. Catch them before they hit the big time.

Brighton three-piece Mirrors echo the early 80’s synth-driven art pop of Depeche Mode, New Order, and Echo & The Bunnymen. They call it ‘pop noir’ which is an apt description for their, at times, sombre but beautifully dark music. Visually and musically rich – this is a band to look out for.

Tipped by Radio 1’s Huw Stephens Leeds trio Sky Larkin are emerging from the underground. Their debut album 'The Golden Spike' arrived in February to critical acclaim after releasing a string of singles and EPs. Bright and warm guitar hooks effortlessly combine with indie pop melodies resulting in a heartfelt and memorable effort.

Goldheart Assembly create moving melodies that has seen them being touted as the British Fleet Foxes. Although currently unsigned they will surely be snapped up by a record label soon seeing as the band have already scored page features in music weeklies and have gained the support of tastemaker DJs. Steve Lamacq has described them by saying “they take a joyous acoustic beardy bunch of ideas and mess around with them like a cat playing with a ball of string”. Check them out for yourself when they play the Sunrise Arena at Latitude.

Villagers (aka Conor J. O'Brien) hail from Dublin and create a unique form of dream-like indie. The collective began life as a nameless collection of musical poems penned by O’Brien before evolving into songs. The band recently released the 'Hollow Kind' EP that was written and performed solely by Conor, recorded by guitarist Tommy McLaughlin, and released on drummer James Byrne’s own label.


THE LAKE STAGE
curated by DJ Huw Stephens (Radio 1)

With the shimmering lake as a stunning backdrop The Lake Stage is an open air hub of rising stars handpicked by Radio 1 DJ and new music aficionado, Huw Stephens. A place for discovery and recognition The Lake Stage brings you the freshest new acts before they even register on the radar of the music press. It is a place for up-and-coming creativity from across the musical spectrum to be unearthed and given a chance to shine. Come witness the next generation emerge at Latitude’s wonderful Lake Stage.

For lovers of 70s rock, check out Alfonzo rocking their stuff on the Lake Stage. Hailing from Edinburgh they were nominated for the Indy Music Awards 2008 with their Hendrix/Who/Zeppelin hi-level riffage. They are currently making their debut album with award-winning Scottish producer Jim Sutherland and are about to set the world alight with their incendiary live performances. They have gigged in the main venues around Scotland with the likes of Snow Patrol, Doves and Feeder and with their debut album out next year, the world is waiting for the next generation of rock to shine through.

Legendary Glaswegian band Camera Obscura have been making music for the last 10 years, and like wine it gets better with time. Imaginative, powerful and brutal lyrics still describe the daily pain in our lives and this year they come to Latitude to play their critically acclaimed new release ‘My Maudlin Career’. NME said about it: Make no mistake, this is a remarkably beautiful record. (It) exists to reward those both mad, and sad, in love” (9/10).

Two years ago, Annie Clark’s recorded debut as St. Vincent, ‘Marry Me’, gave immediate notice that a dizzying new talent had emerged from the flatlands of Texas. Critics from all points of the cultural compass—from Pitchfork to Spin to the New York Times Magazine—were entranced by the album’s precocious arrangements and elegant lyrics, and the steadily growing crowds at St. Vincent’s live shows were astonished by Clark’s gargantuan musical chops and her magnetic stage presence. St. Vincent’s beguiling, sophisticated new record, ’Actor’, takes that debut’s ambition as its starting point and never looks back.

Elsewhere, the very best in film, theatre, comedy, literature, poetry, dance, art and cabaret will be pitching up at the fourth edition of Latitude Festival. Sadler’s Wells and the Royal Opera House will be showcasing stunning performances on The Waterfront Stage; Royal Shakespeare Company, The Bush, National Theatre, Paines Plough, and nabokov plus more will all be coming to the Theatre Arena along with the English Touring Theatre presenting Latitude’s first musical ‘Been So Long’. Also for the first time is the dynamic orchestral brilliance of Britten Sinfonia performing in Latitude’s outdoor spaces. The House Of BlueEyes collective will be presenting a stunning fashion show over the lake at sunset plus stellar poets Andrew Motion, Brian Patten, Jackie Kay and Simon Armitage will be in the Poetry Arena. The Cabaret Arena welcomes Pippa Evans, Ida Barr, Dusty Limits, Johnny Woo, Timberlina, David Mills and Watson & Oliver plus plenty more exciting performances to announce.


TICKET INFORMATION

Weekend tickets £150 plus booking fees • Day tickets Fri, Sat, Sun £60 plus booking fee. Weekend tickets prices include car parking and camping • Days include car parking only.

Credit Card line: 0871 231 0821
Online at: www.festivalrepublic.com • www.seetickets.com • www.latitudefestival.co.uk

For a full list of national and regional outlets please visit www.latitudefestival.co.uk

For further Press info contact: 020-7792-9400
Charlie Caplowe: charlie@presscounsel.com
Dani Cotter: dani@presscounsel.com
Anthea Thomas: anthea@presscounsel.com
Dan Griffiths: griff@presscounsel.com

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