UK: Following an inaugural event last summer packed with performances from across the musical spectrum, all manner of scientific happenings and a mind-expanding programme of arts and culture, bluedot with Ovo Energy has revealed the first wave of its musical line-up for 2017, including all three headliners.
After a five-year hiatus, Orbital will return to headline bluedot in their only northern show of the summer. Veteran alt-rockers Pixies will also headline, along with indie outfit Alt-J.
Elsewhere on the bill are alternative rock / electronic band Soulwax performing with its full electronic live show; a UK festival exclusive from psych-swing revolutionaries Ezra Furman and The Boyfriends; LA dream-pop four piece Warpaint; experimental Squarepusher project Shobaleader One; Mancunian synth-pop prodigy Shura; the legendary Andrew Weatherall; post-industrial duo Factory Floor; anarcho art-rockers Moonlandingz, electro-pop singer songwriter Boxed In; ambient techno maestro Max Cooper with a performance of Emergence; psych chanteuse Jane Weaver; and cosmic Welshman Meilyr Jones.
Further support comes from Anna Meredith, Rival Consoles; The Comet is Coming; Marc Riley (DJ); Space Cassette Takeover starring Henge, Age of Glass and Anchorsong; Flamingods; The Early Years; Plastic Mermaids; Goat Girl; Makeness; Ider; TVAM; Wovoka Gentle; Ethan & The Reformation; Girl Sweat Pleasure Temple Ritual Band; Horsebeach; Team Picture; and Algorave.
Festival director Ben Robinson said: “We are incredibly proud to be able to present such an innovative and legendary collection of artists to perform at this year’s bluedot.
“The reaction to the first event has been incredible and we are only just beginning to realise the potential of curating a festival in such a unique location. We have a full programme of science, arts and culture still to come, it’s going to be an exciting summer ahead.”
The full arts, culture and science line-up will be announced in the coming months. Highlights already announced include the best selling author Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Tubular Brass, a newly formed brass band featuring some of the UK’s finest players performing a full brass band score of Mike Oldfield’s multimillion-selling classic Tubular Bells.
bluedot is also bringing The Men Behind The Mask to this year’s festival – providing an intriguing insight into the creation of one of the world’s most infamous villains, Darth Vader. Brian Muir, Ralph McQuire and the man inside the mask himself, David Prowse, will present their story and experience of Vader’s helmet.
There will be a full weekend of talks from best-selling authors and award-winning academics, covering everything from how to eat in the future to how the brain make us laugh and the science of magic and mindfulness. Highlights include afternoon of discussions on the rise of Fake News, with leading journalists and politicians discussing whether the increasing trend in our post-truth, post-Trump world threatens democracy itself; and The Dark Web – a magical mystery tour around the darker side of the internet, where anyone can operate under a cloak of anonymity, and why we should care what happens there, hosted by Geoff White, Head of Tech for Channel 4.
In the shadow of the Lovell Telescope, one of the world’s most iconic research instruments, bluedot will explore the latest scientific discoveries from outer space and our planet. There will be talks from world-class scientists and thinkers, updates on climate change and the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence, combined with an opportunity to ask the Big Questions of leading researchers. All of this is backed up by a full family-friendly programme of hands-on science experiments and interactive shows.
Professor Teresa Anderson MBE, Director of the Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to be planning the second bluedot festival here at Jodrell Bank this summer. It’s such a brilliant celebration of music, arts and culture – with a huge strand of real scientific authenticity through it all.
“It’s unique not only in the UK but worldwide – a really special event. We’re very proud to be hosting it again and look forward to seeing everyone in July.”
bluedot takes place from July 7 – 9 at Jodrell Bank, Cheshire.
