The ALB Festival has run annually since 2021, which originally celebrated the end of national lockdown. Emerging during the Corona Virus pandemic, the Anti Loo Roll Brigade (ALB) established themselves as a unified community group who provided a support network during the pandemic by providing education, food, gifts, additional support and PPE to local care homes and communities. However, since then, the ALB have brought communities together with their annual music festival, the ALB Festival.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ALB Festival (@thealbfestival)

Ellis-Bextor recently witnessed a resurgence in popularity following the use of her 2001 hit ‘Murder On The Dancefloor’ in new cult classic Saltburn, released in 2023. With the iconic disco-pop track’s re-emergence into the top 10, the singer has earned a prominent place in pop culture.

It was reported that Ellis-Bextor witnessed one of her busiest years yet in 2024, playing a total of 110 shows, and touring with the likes of Nile Rodgers and Take That. One of which saw the pop star as the leading lady to welcome in 2025 during the BBC’s annual New Year’s Eve concert.

The singer’s appearance at ALB Festival will be highly anticipated, the event’s organiser Peter Dutch stated: “Sophie is just incredible and is going to completely fit into our ethos of fu and partying and dancing”.

Taking place on September 13 and 14, Ellis-Bextor will have her headline set back to back with exclusive performances full of nostalgic hits from Pixie Lott and RPJ. With more act announcements on the way, attendees of the event’s second day will experience the exquisite sounds of Colchester’s Live 40 Piece Orchestra, alongside celebrating musical legacies with some of the Best Tribute Acts in Britain.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ALB Festival (@thealbfestival)

Pixie Lott’s return to Essex will be legendary not only for attendees but for the singer herself, as it was only last year, she reminisced with BBC Essex on Chelmsford’s V Festival, which discontinued in 2017. She played the gig in 2014 and has urged for its revival ever since.

The nostalgic-pop that seems apparent in ALB’s choice of lineup this year proves to be an unmissable event for music lovers this summer.

Tickers for this year’s ALB Festival are on sale now and can be accessed here.

In a press release shared with local paper the Stratford-upon-Avon Herald, festival organiser Shelley Mears said “The sense of community, joy and togetherness that festivals bring is something we are all longing for right now. Following the recent government announcement we are optimistically moving forward and planning for the best Camper Calling yet. We can’t wait to be back in a field dancing with you and your loved ones under the sun!”

Camper Calling will return this August bank holiday with headliners Manic Street Preachers and Supergrass plus Pixie Lott, Embrace, Symphonic Ibiza and more are confirmed for the line up. Tickets are on sale NOW! https://t.co/nVm5otufq8 pic.twitter.com/uTEfogEwHc

— Local Sound Focus (@LocalSoundFocus) March 18, 2021

Manic Street Preachers‘ performance at Camper Calling could coincide with the release of their highly-anticipated fourteenth studio album this summer. The Manics drip-fed early details of the as-yet-untitled LP via social media in January, telling fans to expect an ‘expansive‘ and ‘broader‘ record than 2018’s Resistance Is Futile.

The Blackwood trio, who recently marked the 20th anniversary of their historic 2001 gig in Cuba and their cult sixth record Know Your Enemy, are also due to perform two sold-out concerts in Cardiff this summer in support of the NHS. In an interview with NME last year, frontman James Dean Bradfield – fresh off the back off his acclaimed Victor Jara-inspired solo album Even In Exile – said: “The NHS is the biggest employer in Wales, and all around us we saw people giving and giving and giving and not getting enough back. We just thought that this should be for them.”

Supergrass, who are also due to perform at Nottinghamshire’s Splendour Festival and the South Facing Festival at Crystal Palace in London this summer, reformed in 2019 after a nine-year break. The Oxford outfit had been scheduled to tour the USA, Australia and Europe last year – topping off what was set to be a bumper 2020 with a comeback gig at Glastonbury – prior to the pandemic scuppering their plans. It has yet to be confirmed whether the group will bring new material on the road this summer, with thirteen years having passed since their last LP Diamond Hoo Ha (2008).

Pixie Lott can add to Camper Calling to a growing roll-call of festival commitments this year, with sets at Park Proms in Hampshire and Cleethorpes’ new POP-Live 2021 showcase already in the Mama Do star’s calendar. The Essex-raised singer is currently at work on her fourth studio album, which will be her first record in nearly eight years.

Other artists set to feature at Camper Calling include West Yorkshire pop-rockers Embrace, dance collective Symphonic Ibiza, Leeds indie five-piece The Pigeon Detectives, DJ-drummer duo The Stickmen, sibling folk-pop troupe The Magic Numbers, and Dodgy, who are best known for 1990s’ hit Good Enough. Tickets for Camper Calling are available through the festival website.

Back in summer, Pixie Lott designed a festival-inspired t-shirt in collaboration with Hard Rock Cafe which was a popular addition to Hard Rock Cafes iconic collection of clothing ultimately selling out across the UK. The Bromley-born singer and songwriter has a love for Hard Rock Cafe that is fueled with passion. In a Hard Rock Youtube ‘behind the scenes’ video for the making of the t-shirt she states “I’ve visited Hard Rock Cafe’s all over the world with my family and friends since I was young, and it always brings back so many amazing memories for me, so it’s always a real pleasure to be working with them.” Now, the Brit Award-nominated artist is working with Hard Rock a second time to jump back into the live music limelight by exclusively performing at the London based Cafe.

With the combination of Will Best – TV presenter and founder of audiosplitter.fm – hosting this exclusive event, the  famous cocktails and authentic American cuisine served by Hard Rock alongside the wonderful voice of Pixie Lott and her crowd-rocking material, this is a gig you will regret missing!

If you’re a Pixie fanatic then you should be even more pleased to hear that the London based Hard Rock cafe have announced on their Facebook page that they are running a one time only chance to win a pair of front row tickets for twenty lucky fans. To be entered into this competition, you simply have to follow the directions on their page. The competition will close on Tuesday 10 November where winners will be randomly selected and notified.

Want to win tickets to see @PixieLott perform at @HardRockLondon ? Head to our Facebook page for further details! pic.twitter.com/zI4HtMhset

— Hard Rock London (@HardRockLondon) October 26, 2015