With the summer festival season now well and truly underway, it’s already that time of the year when the UK’s two biggest twin events – V Festival and Reading & Leeds – each return to spoil us with another weekend of action-packed musical extravagance. In addition to the usual festival-type madness, August has brought us another month of rock and pop overindulgence to keep us happy until those late summer nights start closing in. So, for the more indecisive amongst us, here are Stereoboard’s 10 top tips to help you take your pick for the month of August…
ARCADE FIRE
After their outstanding headline performances at last year’s Reading and Leeds and a massive outdoor event in Hyde Park in June, Canadian septet Arcade Fire will be returning to the UK in late August for a show at Manchester’s Evening News Arena for one last outing of their Number One album ‘The Suburbs’. Since its release in August 2010, ‘The Suburbs’ has entered the Top 10 in eleven countries, gone Platinum in the UK and has won a Grammy, a Juno and a BRIT. In September, the band will find out if the album has fought off competition to win this year’s Polaris Music Prize. Click Here to Compare & Buy Arcade Fire Tickets
BIG CHILL 2011
After Reading & Leeds and V, the third biggest festival in August is arguably Herefordshire’s Big Chill. Boating a line-up that includes The Chemical Brothers, Kanye West, Rodrigo Y Gabriela, Jessie J and Robert Plant, Big Chill looks set once again to compete amongst some of the largest outdoor events of the summer. Now in its 17th year, the two-day festival features one of the hottest bills on the musical calendar as well as a location to die for on the grounds of Eastnor Castle. Click Here to Compare & Buy Big Chill Tickets
BRUNO MARS
In the run-up to his appearances at this month’s V Festivals, Hawaiian singer-songwriter Bruno Mars will be warming up with a few dates in London and Birmingham, before returning later in the year for yet more gigs. In less than a year since its release, Mars’s debut album ‘Doo-Wops and Hooligans’ has gone 2x Platinum in the UK alone and has earned the vocalist three chart-topping singles. He has also received a string of award nominations and wins, most notably for the album’s lead single ‘Just the Way You Are’, for which Mars was handed a Grammy and an MTV Video Music Award in Japan. At the US version of the same award later this month, the singer will find out how many of his five nominations will be taking up more space on his mantelpiece. Click Here to Compare & Buy Bruno Mars Tickets
DESCENDENTS
After April’s semi-disastrous comeback shows from Californian punk legends Descendents, the group will be looking to make amends at this month’s Brixton Academy date and at their headlining performances on the Lock Up Stage at Reading and Leeds. With the promise of some serious rehearsal and vocal training to make up for singer Milo Auckerman’s voice problems in April, the band will almost certainly offering up some impressive performances at their first (proper) UK dates in 14 years. Click Here to Compare & Buy Descendents Tickets
IRON MAIDEN
Already halfway through their latest homecoming dates, legendary British metallers Iron Maiden will be completing their Final Frontier World Tour this month, culminating in a pair of massive shows at London’s O2 Arena this weekend. Upon its release in August 2010, the band’s 15th album ‘The Final Frontier’ was their first to reach Number One in the UK Albums Chart since 1992’s ‘Fear of the Dark’. By the first of this weekend’s two London shows, Iron Maiden’s Final Frontier World Tour will have reached a total of 100 dates. That’s not bad work for a band that have been rocking crowds for over 30 years. Click Here to Compare & Buy Iron Maiden Tickets
JANE’S ADDICTION
This month sees the return of LA rock legends Jane’s Addiction ahead of the September release of their first album in eight years. The quartet will be headlining the NME/Radio 1 Stage at Reading and Leeds before playing their own date at London’s KOKO venue on Tuesday 30th August. ‘The Great Escape Artist’ is the fourth Jane’s Addiction album to date following 2003’s ‘Strays’ and is the band’s first since their second hiatus. After a number of recent line-up changes, including a brief appearance from former Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan, the band recently settled on TV On The Radio guitarist Dave Sitek as their new bass player, although he is unlikely to join the band for their upcoming shows. Click Here to Compare & Buy Jane’s Addiction Tickets
MORRISSEY
If you can forgive Morrissey for his recent comments regarding the terrorist attacks in Norway, which he controversially compared to the activities of some well-known fast food chains, then you may be pleased to hear that the outspoken vegetarian and former Smiths vocalist will be playing two dates in the capital this month. After his recent appearances at Glastonbury and Hop Farm, as well as his June tour, these latest dates are sure to feature more of his well-known frankness and renowned showmanship. Click Here to Compare & Buy Morrissey Tickets
THE MUSIC
After just 10 years and three hugely-successful albums, Leeds-based rockers The Music recently announced that they would be bringing the band to an end. This week, the group will be playing a final London show at the city’s O2 Shepherds Bush Empire before two last homecoming dates in Leeds. Earlier this year, The Music released a compilation album entitled ‘Singles and EPs: 2001-2005’ and anyone hoping to attend this month’s farewell shows will no doubt hear some of these fondly-remembered tracks in all their live glory for one last time. Click Here to Compare & Buy The Music Tickets
READING & LEEDS
Following last year’s event is going to be a big feat for the second of August’s twin festivals. In 2010, the two cities featured headlining performances from Arcade Fire and Guns N’ Roses and hosted the big UK comeback shows of The Libertines and Blink 182. So, what have Reading & Leeds got in store for us this year to compete with such a boast. With the likes of Pulp, The Strokes, Muse, My Chemical Romance, Jane’s Addiction and Beady Eye topping the bill, it looks set once again to be the most varied line-up on the rock music calendar. Click Here to Compare & Buy Reading Festival Tickets Click Here to Compare & Buy Leeds Festival Tickets
V FESTIVAL
August’s V Festivals have always been the most widely-appealing events of the summer with their diverse mixture of the world’s finest acts from both rock and pop. In 2011, the festivals’ 16th year, the line-up is no exception. With Eminem and Arctic Monkeys headlining the event across the two days and two cities, festival-goers can expect the usual blend of popular music that is sure to satisfy a range of tastes. Click Here to Compare & Buy V Festival Tickets
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BRUNO MARS
