The Beachdown festival returns to Devil’s Dyke on August 28th-31st for its 2009 outing, with acts including Grace Jones, Super Furry Animals and Saint Etienne set to perform.
Her recent Royal Festival Hall appearances area already the stuff of legend, so Beachdown will be aquiver with excitement at the prospect of the headlining show from the inimitable Ms Jones. Time-honoured festival favourites Super Furry Animals will be drawing from their massive back catalogue and new album for Rough Trade, while Saint Etienne will doubtless be playing a hit-centric set culled from their recent London Conversations ‘best of’.
Also confirmed to play: The Zutons, French house hero Laurent Garnier (performing live), reggae legend Prince Buster, The Rakes, hip-hop aristocrat Grandmaster Flash, and, led by the ever-venal Mark E. Smith, a resurgent incarnation of The Fall. Oh, and let’s not forget the small matter of Ethio-jazz legend Mulatu Ast`tke performing with Stones Throw-affiliated funk outfit The Heliocentrics. The full line-up is listed below.
The Beachdown site is located on the jaw-droppingly beautiful South Downs just north of Brighton. Even if it rains, there’s no chance of a mudbath – thanks to the Downs’ chalk base, rainwater "simply seeps away". Good music and, er, good drainage: that’s your two most important festival ingredients taken care of then.
Celebrating music, film, food and comedy from the local area and around the world, with a wealth of heavyweight international acts and Brighton bands performing on four stages we offer a total of 42 hours of entertainment across the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Live acts:
Grace Jones, The Zutons, Laurent Garnier (live), Super Furry Animals, The Rakes, Saint Etienne, Grandmaster Flash, Prince Buster, The Fall, Ida Maria, Hospitality, Mulatu Astatke & the Heliocentrics, Jazzanova, Good Times – Norman Jay, James Hunter, Acid House Brass Band, Secret Affair, Joey Negro & the Sunburst Band, The Blockheads, JTQ, Dreadzone, Snowboy & the Latin Section, The Apples, Jazz CoTech Dancers, Lack of Afro, Tru Thoughts – Natural Self, Rob Luis, Kinny, The New Mastersounds, Nostalgia 77 Octet, Funkshone, Alice McLaughlin, The Fantastics!, Jah Shaka Sound System, Favela Chic
For more information, tickets and a full list of the Brighton bands involved, click beachdownfestival.com.