This article would come out what would seem an extremely timely point in time, being as we are looking back to the original (and some might say best) music festival idea, Woodstock. This was almost the apotheosis of the "hippy" dreams of the 1960s, when freedom, free love and, in some cases, free drugs reined. This blueprint was taken on in many different directions, with arguably the most famous festival around the world taking place in our very own back yard. Glastonbury and the neighbouring village Pilton, spend most of the year in peaceful Somerset surroundings, but once every summer the biggest acts in the world descend on there and play to massive crowds. The whole vibe of festivals is something approaching nirvana for music lovers, with fun with friends and watching your favourite bands over a few days of relaxed partying. We also tend to cross our fingers in Britain, as if we are (in)famous for anything it is our changeable weather, which leads many to pack the wellies regardless of blue skies overhead.

 

However and what I just mentioned might be one of the reasons for this, many people in the UK now are seeing the festival scene as slightly, well, stale for them. This is especially true of those that have gone year in, year out to the festivals within the UK and want to branch out a little bit. Luckily for them, European festivals are especially strong, with a massive variety all over the summer months taking in all sorts of different genres of music and different lifestyles. Also, you will find that big British bands will be as, if not more, likely to be playing at these festivals too, so you would not be missing out on seeing them at all. You might be wondering just what is on offer on the mainland, so I will endeavour to give a quick overview of what festivals you could be planning to get to next year.

First and foremost and I can report from experience, the Benicassim Festival in Spain has become an extremely popular destination for many festival going Brits. Situated in the port town of Benicassim, the festival has the best of the sunshine climate and has many big name bands, who tend to play on later through the night, as opposed to other festivals. Another very big festival is the Rock Werchter, which takes place in Belgium and boasts headline acts like Oasis and Coldplay. Again, this used to be primarily a festival for Belgians and Dutch, but there has been a big British presence in the past few years. Finally, the last festival worthy of a quick mention here is the Roskilde festival, which takes place in Denmark. One of the five biggest festivals in Europe, Roskilde really entered the mainstream in recent years and, due to its proximity to England, offers a very good place to go if you tire of the British festival scene.

In any case, there are a lot of European music trips ready and waiting for you next summer, so get in there and snap up your music festival tickets early to avoid any disappointment.

 

 

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3.20 Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."