With the Isle of Wight Festival just around the corner, what better a time to compile a list of acts that you really don’t want to miss this weekend.
The Isle of Wight Festival has a history of bringing together artists from all genres for the united love of music dating right back to the 1970’s; last year’s line-up seeing the likes of The Who and Queen with this year’s seeing David Guetta, Run-D.M.C., Rod Steward and Arcade Fire taking the headline spots.
The festival is renowned for its jam-packed, star-studded line-up so this handy little guide below will ensure you don’t miss the ones to watch this year…
Sir Rod Stewart
Taking the headline spot on Sunday is no other than music legend Rod Stewart. Around since the early 60’s, Rod has built up a vast fan base and quite rightly so too; his music has been listened to and loved amongst many generations and he is still going strong on the festival scene.
Rod is one of the official best-selling music artists of all time, having sold over 100 million records worldwide and having 6 consecutive number one albums in the UK. Not to mention having a staggering 62 UK hit singles with 31 singles that reached the top ten.
Taking a break from his UK-based tour to take to the Isle of Wight Festival, Rod will unquestionably be full of energy and ready to give the performance of a lifetime; without a doubt performances of the classics such as ‘I Don’t Want to Talk About It’ and ‘Maggie May’ are bound to make an appearance on the set plus many more, including those from his latest album – released in 2015 – ‘Another Country’.
Arcade Fire
Having just announced their new album ‘Everything Now’, the Canadian based, 7 piece Indie-Rock band are expected to be full of life and ready to give a 10/10 performance as they take to the stage for yet another headline spot on Saturday. From the incredibly powerful ‘Wake Up’ to the incredibly catchy ‘Afterlife’ the setlist is bound to be jam-packed full of hits, resulting in an unmissable performance that needs to go straight on your ‘Ones to Watch’ list this weekend.
Founded in 2001, the band has been met with unprecedented success thereafter, their second studio album ‘Neon Bible’ won them both the 2008 Meteor Music Award for Best International Album and the 2008 Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year. Their early-day successes foreshadowed their many accolades to come, including the 2011 Grammy for Album of the Year, the 2011 Juno Award for Album of the Year, and the 2011 Brit Award for Best International Album. In 2013, The band’s first four studio albums have received nominations for the Best Alternative Music Album Grammy; Arcade Fire’s work has also been named three times as a shortlist nominee for the Polaris Music Prize.
Rag n’ Bone Man
After becoming a worldwide success after his first hit ‘Human’ reached number 2 of the UK singles chart – almost making the Christmas number one in 2016, Rory Graham, better known as Rag n’ Bone man has been met with non-stop success. Shortly after releasing his debut album, also titled ‘Human’ he was named British Breakthrough Act at the 2017 Brit Awards and also received the Critics’ Choice Award.
Having just collaborated with the Gorillaz – appearing on the song ‘The Apprentice’ from their fifth studio album ‘Humanz’ deluxe edition – Rag n’ Bone man is definitely one to watch in the future – expect big things to come. He takes to the Isle of Wight Festival on Friday and is definitely a must-see this weekend.
Run-D.M.C
The American hip-hop group from Hollis, Queens in New York are taking to the Isle of Wight stage on Friday as one of the co-headliners. The group is widely acknowledged as one of the most influential acts in the history of hip-hop culture. Run-D.M.C. are universally known for being one of the most famous hip-hop acts of the 1980s who, alongside the likes of LL Cool J, The Beastie Boys and Public Enemy, signified the advent of the new school of hip-hop music.
In 2007, Run-D.M.C. was named “The Greatest Hip Hop Group of All Time” by MTV, and “Greatest Hip Hop Artist of All Time” by VH1. The group are bound to home their smash hits such as ‘Walk This Way’ and ‘Just Like That’ on their setlist, meaning an unmissable, unforgettable performance is in sight, their live performances are regarded as being “always highly engaging and fun”. Having not toured since 2015, and without another tour nor festival announcement in sight, Run-D.M.C.’s performance at the Isle of Wight Festival promises to be special and undeniably not one to miss this weekend.
The Sherlocks
The Sherlocks will be headed to the Isle of Wight Festival on the final day, Sunday 11th June and promise to give a dazzling performance. The modern indie-rock band came to fame following the release of their first, incredibly catchy, single ‘Live for The Moment’. Following the release of their next two singles ‘Escapade’ and ‘Heart of Gold’ the band played Reading and Leeds Festival that same year and even went on to support The Courteeners.
The band’s history is scattered with festival and support slot performances, meaning that this is 100% their scene. Since 2014 The Sherlocks have played at Reading and Leeds, SXSW, Dot-To-Dot and are now adding Isle of Wight to their growing list. Their debut album ‘Live for the Moment’ is set for release on the 18th August of this year but this seems to just be the beginning to this band who are continually rising to success.
Jack Daniels – Jack Rocks Stage
Once again this year will see the return of the Jack Daniels Jack Rocks stage with This Feeling, bought in to deliver some of the best new music around right now across the UK.
This Feeling are the best around when it comes to punters wanting to discover the countries next gem. Bands from far and wide knock the door, but there are only a limited amount of slots up for grabs, which only makes the stage a magnet, in knowing you’re getting the best.
Over the course of 4 days, nearly 50 bands will fill every minute spare with what’s unmarked, fresh and filling the playlists of the young music fan right now. Kicking straight off on the Thursday, when you’ve shaken home life away, the sun has set, you’ve switched onto full festival mode, MINT, Shambolics and BlackWaters will set you right up for the forthcoming festival.
Over the coming days the stage will see the likes of Trampolene, The Cosmics, The Strawberries, VIDA, The Blinders, The Shimmer Band, Jordan Allen, The Assist, John Hassall & The April Rainers, Bang Bang Romeo, The Sundowners and Superfood.
If you’re one of the purists, or generally interested in which direction the music in this country is going, you wouldn’t be taking a wrong turn if you found yourself at the Jack Rocks stage. The place is a magnet and once you find yourself in front of the stage, you will struggle to leave.
