By PAN PYLAS Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — Glastonbury Festival is clearly aiming to go out with a bang this summer before taking one of its regular fallow years off to allow the southwest England farmland where the music fest takes place to recover after hosting some 200,000 revelers.
Festival organizers announced the lineup on Thursday, including the headline acts, for arguably the world’s most famous music festival. This year, it will take place at Worthy Farm from June 25 to June 29.
The main news is that English band The 1975 will headline the main Pyramid Stage on the festival’s Friday night, while American singer and actress Olivia Rodrigo will take top billing on the Sunday evening.
Neil Young, the legendary 79-year-old Canadian-American singer-songwriter, was previously announced as the headliner for the Saturday night, while his Scottish peer Rod Stewart had been confirmed for the coveted legends slot on the Pyramid Stage on Sunday afternoon.
Not making the top of the bill, but very much in vogue and likely to draw huge crowds, is Charli XCX, who will perform on the Other Stage on the Saturday night. Last week, the singer behind the “Brat summer” phenomenon, won five Brit awards.
The word “brat,” used by the singer as the title of her sixth studio album, was declared word of the year by Collins Dictionary. For those not in the know, it’s been defined as “characterized by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude.”
Closing out the Other Stage on the festival’s Sunday night will be English electronic group The Prodigy, most famous for the pumping 1996 track “Firestarter.” The performance will be particularly poignant as it will mark the band’s first at the festival since the death of frontman Keith Flint in 2019.
Other acts include Canadian singer Alanis Morissette, making her Glastonbury debut, and the recently reformed U.S. pop group Scissor Sisters.
There are no scheduled performers on the festivals first two days, Wednesday and Thursday, though many ad hoc events take place as attendees arrive and pitch up their tents.
A lot of interest will focus on Manchester-formed The 1975, which is fronted by Matty Healy. The band has headlined various festivals in the United Kingdom — but not Glastonbury — and elsewhere, with controversial stage antics.
Last month, a London judge ruled that the band cannot be held personally liable for losses of a Malaysian music festival that was shut down by authorities after lead singer Healy kissed a male bandmate on stage. The organizers of the Good Vibes Festival were claiming 1.9 million pounds ($2.4 million) in losses after Healy criticized the country’s anti-homosexuality laws and then kissed bassist Ross MacDonald at the Kuala Lumpur show in July 2023.
Footage of the kiss sparked a backlash in the predominantly Muslim country, where homosexuality is a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison and caning. Some LGBTQ+ groups also criticized the band for endangering its community and disrupting the work of activists pushing for change.
There will be more acts named over the coming weeks and those who haven’t got tickets yet will be able to do so in a resale. As always, the festival, which was first held in 1970, was sold out quickly despite the ticket price — nearly 380 pounds ($490) each.
While the price may be fixed, the mid-summer weather isn’t. As always, the hopes of everyone going are the same: Please, no mudbath!