VF Europe's weekly news round-up

Oasis, Kings of Leon, Aphex Twin and more

02 March 2009

Boy oh boy did our fellow Europeans throw a few names at us these past few days.

The mighty Roskilde announced Oasis as headliners this week, a move which had been churning around the Virtual Festivals rumour mill for a good long while. The band returns to the Danish bash for the first time in 14 years.

A massive summer beckons for the Gallagher brothers who were lined-up for Germany’s Melt! festival. Bloc Party will join them in taking a top spot under the site’s industrial cranes, as will the collaborative genius of Richard D James and Florian Hecker who are set to take the summer by storm under alias Aphex Twin & Hecker.

Dour in Belgium also picked up on the buzz surrounding the duo. Indeed, the legendary fest began whetting appetites with the announcement of the pair on Wednesday. More names are due shortly, and with the online requests piling in via the online referendum who knows who else Dour 2009 has in store?

Keeping things in the Benelux region for a second, Lowlands revealed Boys Noize and Enter Shikari as the latest confirmations for 2009. The Dutch festival famously loves mixing up the genres and will stay true to form with Basement Jaxx, Bon Iver and headliner the Arctic Monkeys taking centre stage.

The British quartet didn’t stop there this week with another European major added to their ever growing summer schedule. They will be joined as headliners at Poland’s Heineken Open’er by the likes of Placebo, Madness and global chart toppers Kings Of Leon who are far from taking any form of break from playing for the masses.

The Followil’s will also be returning to Oxegen for the second consecutive year. The Best European Festival of 2008, as voted for exclusively on Virtual Festivals, treated us to host of big names, beginning with Lily Allen and Keane. Paulo Nuttini, Digitalism, The Mars Volta and more were confirmed for the Irish weekender. Click here for the latest Oxegen 2009 line-up.

Down on the Mediterranean meanwhile, a runner-up in the European category at the UK Festival Awards also took a prominent place in the news this week. FIB Benicassim announced Psychedelic Furs, White Lies, The Bishops and Friendly Fires, a VF pick for 2009. Keeping the line-up connections alight, Boys Noize will also be playing, as will, you guessed it, the Kings Of Leon.

A little further up the Spanish coast Sonar confirmed ‘Nightclubbing’ singer Grace Jones and reformed dance act Orbital among a slew of names. A traditionally eclectic line-up began to take shape with the likes of Late of the Pier, Deadmau5 and Erol Alkan also added. Click here for the latest Sonar 2009 line-up.

Things were also happening across the border in France, beginning with Franz Ferdinand, Jason Mraz and Seal confirmed to play the stunning Roman Amphitheatre which hosts Festival de Nimes. Ayo, Alela Diane were also announced to join Metallica and French singer-songwriter Benabar at the month-long event.

Another prominent French event created a stir this week with a complete line-up confirmation. Le Printemps de Bourges, a true spring-time bonanza announced Ebony Bones, Digitalism and Yuksek as well as Get Well Soon, Etienne de Crecy and more. Ben Harper, Birdy Nam Nam and Tryo were already down on the bill. Click here for the final Printemps de Bourges 2009 line-up.

A few weeks before spring hits the snow season will be drawing to a close with a couple of top class Alpine parties. The latest to hit the VF headlines was Snowbombing who unveiled The View as their latest confirmation. The Scottish garage rockers join the likes of Fatboy Slim, Dizzee Rascal and Plump DJ’s in Mayrhofen, Austria.

A little closer to sea level Band of Horses were confirmed for Oya Festival which happens amongst Oslo’s medieval ruins. The Bronx, Lily Allen, Royksopp and the Arctic Monkeys, yes them again, were previously confirmed on the bill.

To round things off we head back to where we started as our final announcements have a distinct Danish tinge to them.

Beatday announced the Ting Tings and indie-rock charmer Jenny Lewis to play alongside the likes of Basement Jaxx and Mew while Skive Beach Party are set to adapt to the increasing popularity of electronic music in the country with the creation of a new marquee stage, baptised Club Stoj.

Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso and Steve Angello are the big names already pencilled in to play alongside a couple of representatives from London’s Ministry of Sound and many many more. Skive Beach Party 2009 will be headlined by Tiesto and The Killers.

Finally, on the ticket front...

In a move to get the German, Italian, Austrian and Slovene student communities on their feet, defying the credit crunch and heading to the Alps, Snowside festival announced a generous student discount on ticket prices this week. The six day event will take over the resort of Nassfeld Hermagor, southern Austria this March. Click here to browse and buy tickets for Snowside 2009.

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