The main stage headliners included Raye, Central Cee, and The Prodigy. Other notable acts on the main stage were Flo, Leigh-Anne, The Wombats, Nelly Furtado, Bob Vylan, Myles Smith, and London Grammar. The main stage also had afternoon special guests each day, including Kaiser Chiefs, Rizzle Kicks, and Natasha Bedingfield. 

The Mordros stage featured artists Wet Leg, Maribou State, Hard Life, Caity Baser, and Interplanetary Criminal. The Unleashed stage, known for electronic music, included acts Patrick Topping, Sub Focus, Danny Howard, and Jazzy. 

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There were five other stages throughout the festival, including The View, known for emerging artists, Keg & Pasty, a space for pub quizzes, lively atmosphere, and karaoke, Surf Club 81, Banzai Bar, which included themed music and parties, and the Hospitality lounge, a space for VIP ticket holders. Boardmasters largest acts throughout the years included Snoop Dogg, Florence and the Machine, Stormzy, and The Chemical Brothers. 

Boardmasters is a unique festival in that not only does it provide a wide range of artists, but it is also known for its surfing and skateboarding competitions at Fistral Beach. Boardmasters started as a surfing competition in the 1980s and expanded to include music acts in 2005 through the decision of the event organizers, now reaching a capacity of around 58,000 people. Cornwall’s coastline is rooted in a passion for surfing culture.

The festival showcases international surfing professionals in men’s, women’s, and junior divisions. The competition included Boardmasters OPEN and Boardmasters Longboard OPEN. This year’s surfing champions are Annette Gonzalez Etxabarri, Martin Coret, Ginger Caimi, Willow Smith, and the two-time winner and local legend, Lukas Skinner.

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Aside from the music and surfing, Boardmasters offers a range of activities throughout the weekend, such as surfing lessons and coaching for beginners, other sports including paddle boarding, kayaking, diving, and volleyball. They also offered a wellness section for yoga and meditation, and a variety of wellness workshops. After the performances throughout the day, Boadmasters also had a silent disco and after parties throughout the town of Newquay.

Boardmasters already have their 2026 dates that will be held next August 5-9. The line up for next year has not yet been announced, however, loyalty tickets for next year go on sale this Wednesday, August 13, and Early Bird tickets are available on August 14. You can find tickets here.

The charity gig held on 10th August 2021 supported and thanked the nation’s NHS workers who have worked hard during the COVID-19 pandemic. Within the middle of the concert, ticket-holders were treated to live redemptions of the three new collaborative songs. The ‘Clint Eastwood’ performers teamed up with rapper and singer Jelani Blackman on track ‘Meanwhile’, Alicia Harley on the song ‘De Ja Vu’ and finally the British hitmakers joined forces with multi-talented British artist AJ Tracy on brand new track ‘Jimmy Jimmy’

The group took to their Instagram to post photos of the event and their collaborative performances.

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The triumphant event boasted an impressive setlist of 32 songs, the band also shared the stage with various other special guests. Some of music’s most respected and popular artists joined the band to entertain and thank the audience of NHS staff and their families. The Cure’s frontman and pop culture figure Robert Smith joined the group to perform a version of ‘Strange Timez’, a track which Smith featured on from the group’s seventh studio album ‘Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez’, the single was released on 9th September 2020.

Other artists who joined Gorillaz on The O2 stage included rapper Posdunos member of legendary hip-hop group De La Soul, Popcaan, Leee John, actress and singer Fatoumata Diawara, Happy Monday’s members Shaun Ryder and Rowetta, EARTHGANG, Little Simz, singer and DJ Sweetie Irie, Slowthai and Slaves who previously worked together with Gorillaz on track ‘Momentary Bliss’. The group were also joined by a member of another iconic and pioneering group within the dance and electro music genre, Peter Hook from New Order paired with the band in celebrating the healthcare key workers.

The charitable event marked the victorious return for Gorillaz, the group had not helmed a live performance since October 2018. The band have been a staple of the countries’ radio play since their first hit ‘Clint Eastwood‘ released on 5th March 2001. The single reached number four within the UK Singles charts and propelled the virtual band into popularity. The group was formed by Blur frontman Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett, the musician and artist who created the individualistic group which features a mix of animated and non-animated band members.

Damon has spoken to NME regarding the group’s new music, within the interview the musician also hinted that he has been discussing reuniting iconic Brit-pop band Blur, in which he started his musical career. In the interview Albarn revealed the virtual band’s new album’s sound, the singer also teased that the group’s new material will be a throwback to Gorillaz’s debut album ‘Gorillaz’ released in 2001. “Since then I’ve been working on carnival-themed music with Gorillaz with a lot of people from west London, We’re really going back to the spirit of the first record.”

Albarn continued to discuss the new album, whilst comparing the musical process to that taken whilst recording his second solo album ‘The Nearer The Fountain, the More Pure the stream Flows’. “It’s really exciting and we’ve been really enjoying it. It’s a nice kind of counter-balance to ‘The Nearer The Fountain…’, really. I’ve definitely needed a dose of something else after I finished that record. Steel pan drums and Casio MT-40s were always going to be a good cure.”

Although the group has completed both of their London O2 performances, Gorillaz has one more UK appearance this month at the Cornwall festival, Boardmasters, on 14th August 2021.  After their last UK appearance, the group is set to hit the road on their European tour which starts on 29th August 2021 in the Netherlands. UK fans may have missed the band’s August UK dates, but fans can get excited about the new tracks’ possible release with new material being performed live.

The festival, (attended by 55,000 people in 2018), was set to be headlined by acts including Florence & The Machine, Foals, Franz Ferdinand and the Wu-Tang Clan. Organizers of the event declared that it’d been officially postponed on Tuesday night.

Boardmasters issued a statement regarding the last moment cancellation, saying. “The safety of you, the fans and attendees, as well as performers and crew comes first, and the potential risk is too severe for the event to go ahead at this time.” 

“We sincerely regret the disappointment to fans, and apologise for any disruption caused to local businesses, performers and crew who were looking forward to Boardmasters as much as we were”. They went on to mention that refund information would be shared “as soon as possible”. 

A yellow weather warning has been issued by The Met Office for the majority of England and Wales on Friday and Saturday. It has been predicted that a heavy rain band and thunderstorms may cause disruption for the Newquay festival at Watergate Bay, which dates back to 1981.

Due to forecasted severe weather Boardmasters has been cancelled. Please read full statement. pic.twitter.com/MAUfKj6EKl

— Boardmasters (@boardmasters) August 7, 2019

Driven 6 hours, 270 miles, booked a hotel to wake up to it being cancelled

— yasminefletcher (@yasminefletch) August 7, 2019

Gutted for daughter and her friends. They were so excited for #boardmasters2019, only to discover at 11pm that it has been cancelled, having just finished packing. Safety is always paramount, but shame they made the announcement so late.

— Soraya

It has been noted that a five day surfing event held at Fistral Beach nearby, remains set to go ahead, despite the imposed weather warnings on the music festival. Other acts set to perform at the festival included Jorja Smith, Lewis Capaldi, Dizzee Rascal and Razorlight.

Train operator GWR advised the festivalgoers bound for Cornwall to ensure they “check their train before travelling”. The chief executive for Visit Cornwall, Malcolm Bell, stressed that the county was “still open for business”. Megabus also tweeted saying that they would be organising extra seats on a service from Newquay to London for those affected by the postponement of the gig.

The Boardmasters event has been cancelled, please check your train before travelling.

— GWR Help (@GWRHelp) August 6, 2019

Extra seats have been made available on the 10:55 M6 Newquy to London service this morning for passengers affected by the cancellation of #Boardmasters. Passengers can go online and amend there return tickets for this morning service #megabusupdates

— megabusUK (@megabusuk) August 7, 2019

Photo Credit: Sharon Alagna.

]]> https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/boardmasters-festival-cancelled-a-day-before-opening-due-to-storm-forecasts/feed/ 0 https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/boardmasters-2019-headlined-by-florence-the-machine/ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/boardmasters-2019-headlined-by-florence-the-machine/#comments Wed, 28 Nov 2018 21:13:22 +0000 http://www.mxdwn.co.uk/?p=9054 Boardmasters 2019 Headlined by Florence + The Machine. The popular music and surfing festival in Newquay, Cornwall has announced today (Nov 28th) that it will be headlined by English indie band; Florence and the Machine.

Board masters 2019 attended by a huge 50,000 party-goers, will run from Wednesday 7th to Sunday 11th of August. Tickets are available via the website. The music and surfing festival is held across Fistral Beach and Watergate Bay, within walking distance of the popular tourist town of Newquay.

Other acts confirmed for the sun, sea, surf and music festival include; Brit and NME award winning Glaswegian indie rock legends Franz Ferdinand – British Grime super stars Dizzee Rascal and Giggs, UK Garage Legend DJ EZ, as well as  2018’s Brits’ Critics Choice award, Mercury Prize nomination and critically acclaimed debut album ‘Lost and Found’ artist; Jorja Smith. Joining them are – IDLES – Michael Franti & Spearhead – Lewis Capaldi – Lady Leshurr – Self Esteem – Boy Azooga – Pete Murray, and many more.

All music and camping activities will be held at the Watergate Bay site, whilst any surfing, skate, BMX and shopping will be at the Fistral Beach site near the town centre. Saturday nights headline act has been confirmed, with Florence + The Machine taking the main stage. Fresh from their critically acclaimed fourth album release ‘High As Hope’, alongside some of the worlds most eclectic and diverse acts. 

Florence and The Machine is fronted by vocalist Florence Welch and keyboardist Isabella Summers. They are usually joined by a varied array of other musicians, that form ‘The Machine’. The band have achieved huge success since 2007 with hits such as ‘Kiss with a fist’, ‘Rabbit Heart’ and a cover version of Candi Staton’s 1986 hit ‘You’ve got the love’.

The musical powerhouse is currently on tour with their ‘High As Hope’ album tour. After a brilliantly successful 2018, including the release of their second album, ‘Joy As An Act Of Resistance’, which was also named as BBC 6 Music’s album of the year, the fantastic IDLES will also be joining Florence + The Machine to play at Boardmasters 2019.

Last year’s event was popularised by headline performances by The Chemical Brothers, George Ezra, Rag ’N’ Bone Man, Years & Years as well as Catfish and the Bottlemen. Boardmasters organisers said they will continue their work to keep the festival environmentally conscious, organising a working partnership by teaming up with the Surfers against Sewage charity, with beach cleans throughout the year, as well as during the festival.

This year’s successful reusable cup scheme, as well as incentivising festival-goers to clean up after themselves. Beyond the music, Boardmasters returns with its surf competition, which is part of the World Surf League Qualifying Series, with the biggest names on the International surf scene battling it out for supremacy on the water.

]]> https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/boardmasters-2019-headlined-by-florence-the-machine/feed/ 0 https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/boardmasters-festival-announces-headliners-alt-j-jamiroquai-and-two-door-cinema-club/ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/boardmasters-festival-announces-headliners-alt-j-jamiroquai-and-two-door-cinema-club/#comments Thu, 19 Jan 2017 22:37:08 +0000 http://www.mxdwn.co.uk/?p=5731 Boardmasters Festival have made the first line-up announcement for this Summer’s instalment, with Alt-J, Jamiroquai and Two Door Cinema Club topping the bill, according to NME.

The deep line-up will also include Andy C, Jake Bugg, Slaves, Patrick Topping, Wild Beasts, Roger Sanchez, Becky Hill, Solardo, TQD, Theo Kottis, Tom Grennan, Cadenza and Youngr.

Boardmasters’ Andrew Topham expressed delight and eager anticipation for the festival in a statement, saying, ‘We are hugely excited to announce our three headliners and other world-class musical talent as part of what’s shaping up to be the best Boardmasters line up yet. Every year, the biggest names in music and surfing keep Cornwall firmly on the map as the festival continues to go from strength to strength. Boardmasters has an incredible community of dedicated fans who we look forward to welcoming everyone back for another summer of awesome surf and music action on two amazing sites – Fistral Beach and Watergate Bay.’

The news comes just a week after funk icons, if that’s the right word, Jamiroquai announced they would return with a string of overseas dates in Japan, South Korea and continental Europe between May and August. They also shared a teaser video for their forthcoming eighth album, ‘Automation’, which is expected to be released at some point this year. The video features a new item of wacky headwear for the notoriously bonneted and eccentric frontman Jay Kay. You can check out the video below, as well as the full list of the band’s tour dates:

25/5 – Tokyo International Forum – Tokyo
28/5 – Seoul Jazz Festival – Seoul17/6 – Release Athens Festival – Athens
9/6 – North Sea Jazz – Rotterdam
11/7 – Firenze Summer Festival @ Visarno Arena – Florence
14/7 – Pori Jazz – Pori
16/7 – Musilac – Aix-Les-Bains
18/7 – Moon & Stars – Locarno
22/7 – Colours of Ostrava – Czech Republic
5/8 – Sudoeste – Portugal

Jamiroquai aren’t the only Boardmasters headliner with a new album due to be released this year; Alt-J will release their as yet untitled third album later this year. The exact release date is unknown but based on the festival dates the band have lined up this year, speculation is rife that it will be some time before their first set, at INmusic festival on the 19^th June. You can check out the full list of their announced festival dates at the bottom of this article. As for the sound of the new album, drummer Thom Sonny Green was rather cryptic as he told NME, ‘There’s been a lot of ideas. We’re very excited about it, I think it’s going to be pretty interesting. I feel like it’ll be different, but I don’t know. It’s funny – we write together so well and it comes pretty naturally and pretty quick, but I can’t predict it. We write what we feel.’

19-21/6 – INmusic Festival – Zagreb
23-25/6 – Southside Festival – Tuttlingen
23-25/6 – Hurricane Festival – Scheessel
29/6-2/7 – Rock Werchter – Rotselaar
6-8/7 – Mad Cool Festival – Madrid
6-8/7 – NOS Alive – Algés
6-8/7 – Pohoda Festival – Trencin
12-17/7 – Electric Castle Festival – Cluj-Napoca
19-22/7 – Colours of Ostrava – Ostrava
28-30/7 – Panorama Festival – New York
17-19/8 – Pstereo Festival – Trondheim
18-20/8 – Lowlands Festival – Biddinghuizen
1-2/9 – Popaganda – Stockholm

The festival will be held between the 9^th and the 13^th August at Fistral Beach on Watergate Bay in Cornwall. Tickets are on sale now, available from the Boardmasters website here.

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