Glastonbury Festival 2024 is just around the corner. With the full lineup and set times now announced, it’s time for us to take a closer look at this year’s programme and bring you a selection of artists/groups to see at this year’s festival. With the likes of Coldplay, Dua Lipa, SZA and Little Simz occupying the Pyramid Stage’s headline slots, Qobuz looks to some of Glastonbury’s other stages in order to give you just a flavour of the endless list of must-see artists playing at Worthy Farm this year. Here’s a selection of 10 of our favourites!
Jungle (West Holts Stage - Friday)
Coming off the back of their Mercury Prize shortlisted fourth album, Volcano, British dance trio Jungle will play Friday’s closing slot at the West Holts Stage this year.
Originally formed in 2013 by Josh Lloyd-Watson and Tom McFarland, Jungle have been selling out shows right from their early days, expanding the group into a larger seven-piece band for live outings rather than simply playing their tunes through their laptops, bringing endless extra appeal and credibility to themselves as musicians.
Jungle became an official three-piece in 2023 with Lydia Kitto joining the duo on a permanent basis after having been a key piece of the group’s live outfit as well the main collaborator on 2021′s Loving In Stereo and 2023′s Volcano. Dance and disco, funk and soul, Jungle are sure to finish off a Friday at West Holt’s in style.
Fontaines D.C. (The Park Stage - Friday)
Are Fontaines D.C. the new kings of post-punk?
Since their 2019 debut album, Dogrel, the Irish five-piece have gone from strength to strength, now set to release their fourth studio album, Romance, in August 2024. Following on from the highly impressive A Hero’s Death (2020) and Skinty Fia (2022), the new album will mark their fourth in little over as many years. One could argue that the Dublin boys are yet to miss with their releases up to this point.
Now undoubtedly one of the key players and contributors in the post-punk revival, Fontaines D.C. return to Glastonbury this year for a highly-anticipated closing set at The Park Stage on Friday.
Quintessentially Irish, the group’s music often conjures up nostalgic images of the streets and pubs of Dublin, while also honouring literature and poetry at other points and, more recently, touching on the toxicity and fragility of modern love.
Whatever Fontaines D.C. evoke in their music, you can rest assured it will come in the form of a perfectly constructed piece of pure post-punk. Safe to say this one has been on our mind for a while!
Liam Bailey (Glade - Friday)
Discovered by Amy Winehouse in 2010 and a personal favourite of Paul Weller’s, reggae-infused soul/R&B singer-songwriter Liam Bailey can be found on Friday’s programme at Glade.
Now with four studio albums under his belt, as well as a couple of collab albums with El Michels Affair, Liam Bailey is a highly talented songwriter, blending reggae and soul seamlessly and drawing from a wide range of influences and eras to create a mix of toe-tapper tunes and more poetic tracks.
Bailey’s lush lo-fi vocals and harmonies are warm, inviting and perfect for a dance in the sun at Worthy Farm. However, the Nottingham-born artist also has a message he wants people to hear, breaking up his dancier tunes with tracks that revisit the eras of Black history and culture whose effects can still be felt today, maintaining a Caribbean bounce throughout.
An artist that can make you move but also give you something a bit deeper, look out for Liam Bailey at Glade on Glastonbury Friday.
Kojaque (Lonely Hearts Club - Friday)
Irish rapper Kevin Smith, aka Kojaque, will grace the Lonely Hearts Club on the Friday of this year’s festival having released his sophomore studio album, Phantom of the Afters, in October of 2023.
A native of Dublin, Kojaque relocated to London in order to pursue his career as a rapper, and many of his introspective and hard-hitting lyrics focus on this move away from his homeland and adapting to life in a new city, touching on topics such as loneliness and feeling misunderstood. But despite the very personal nature of his lyrics, there’s always a healthy dose of humour in Kojaque’s music.
Rapping on emotionally charged topics such as love, loss, grief, depression and gentrification, Kojaque’s move over to the British capital hasn’t seen him fall into the trap of trying to sound like your quintessential London rapper, with his Irish tones shining through his soft boom-bap style productions with impeccable flow.
Any hip-hop/rap fans looking for something fresh and exciting may want to make sure they bookmark this one.
Arooj Aftab (The Park Stage - Saturday)
Another artist with a huge range of styles making up her sound is Pakistani composer, producer and singer Arooj Aftab, who will take to The Park Stage on the Saturday of Glastonbury 2024.
Initially finding success in Pakistan, Aftab played a major role in the development of the country’s struggling indie scene before moving over to New York where she broke into film composing, while at the same time becoming an active member of the city’s jazz and new music scenes.
Becoming the first-ever Pakistani artist to win a Grammy in 2022 (Best Global Music Performance) for the track “Mohabbat” from her third album, Vulture Prince, Aftab’s combination of jazz and electronic with South Asian classical elements and Sufi poetry makes her a truly singular artist, receiving critical praise from countless outlets and working with a highly eclectic mix of artists throughout her career due to her multifaceted style.
Her fourth studio album, Night Reign, released at the end of May, was a deserved Qobuz Album of the Week; a concept album focusing, as the title may suggest, on all that happens after dark with collaborations from Moor Mother, Vjay Iyer and Cautious Clay among others. For something that truly defies categorisation, look no further.
The Last Dinner Party (Other Stage - Saturday)
Not many bands can say that they opened for The Rolling Stones at Hyde Park before having even released a single. Such was the buzz around The Last Dinner Party’s live show which will be coming to Worthy Farm’s Other Stage this year. The group released their debut album, Prelude to Ecstasy, in February of 2024, receiving critical acclaim and topping the UK charts with their baroque indie rock/art-pop sound.
The Last Dinner Party are theatrical and over-the-top in their approach, often sporting frilled blouses, gowns or corsets complete with flower crowns as their onstage attire. Their experimentation with fashion on stage and their dedication to excess in general, paired with their incorporation of elements of musical theatre in their brilliantly written brand of indie rock, make The Last Dinner Party one of the UK’s more unique groups.
Unapologetic in their lack of regard for what is considered cool, The Last Dinner Party speak to all the misfits out there, or perhaps just those who value something sincere and different that goes against the status quo. If that’s you, a visit to the Other Stage may be in order this Glastonbury Saturday.
Nia Archives (West Holts Stage - Sunday)
Built on a foundation of influences spanning reggae, disco, hip-hop and, perhaps most evidently, jungle, Nia Archives’ vibrant and seemingly effortless blend of soul and jungle, which she dubs “future classic”, is heading to the West Holts Stage this Glastonbury Sunday.
Half Jamaican, Bradford-born, Leeds/Manchester-raised and London-based, Nia Archives’ music was bound to incorporate a diverse range of sounds. Discovering a love for rave culture upon relocation to Manchester at the age of 16, she began to develop her unique style in 2019, with her debut single, “Sober Feels”, releasing in 2020. A string of EPs followed, as well as the hit single “Baianá”, leading up to her debut full-length, 2024′s Silence is Loud. For a high-energy dose of jungle, littered with a plethora of other influences, get yourself down to Nia Archives.
Mount Kimbie (The Park Stage - Sunday)
British electronic outfit Mount Kimbie, initially made up of Dominic Maker and Kai Campos, are constantly chopping and changing, never content to stay in one place or to stick to one style.
Since meeting at Southbank University (London), they have slalomed between post-dubstep, art-pop, hip-hop, R&B, and techno on their various EPs and LPs, as well as experimenting with field recordings in their early days and later leaning more on live instrumentation.
Aside from their own original material, Mount Kimbie have always been prolific remixers, remixing tracks by artists such as The xx, Foals and The Big Pink to name but a few, adding yet another facet to their craft.
Past guests on Mount Kimbie’s releases have included James Blake, Danny Brown and King Krule, the latter of which returned to feature on their most recent album, A Sunset Violent, which is a blatant indie rock record with hints of Radiohead and Joy Division, showing clearly the group’s knack for innovation with each release.
Now a four-piece with the addition of Andrea Balency-Béarn and Marc Pell to the group, it’s impossible to know which side or sides of Mount Kimbie will present themselves at The Park Stage this year. But frankly, any side will more than do for us.
Jordan Rakei (West Holts Stage - Sunday)
Kiwi-Australian musician and singer Jordan Rakei heads to Worthy Farm this year having only very recently released his fifth studio album, The Loop, which saw him take things to a whole new level. In terms of production, harmony and orchestrations, The Loop certainly has a shout for his most impressive LP to date. But, of course, production and instrumentation isn’t everything, and Rakei’s velvety soul/R&B vocals are as impressive as ever, never being drowned out despite the change in production level on his most recent opus.
A keen collaborator, Rakei has worked with the likes of Bonobo, Nightmares On Wax, Loyle Carner, Disclosure, Alfa Mist and a host of other artists. You might say he’s high-demand when it comes to featuring for other artists, and with good reason. A truly impressive voice in modern soul and alternative R&B, we’re massively looking forward to hearing his tones echoing out from West Holts. Not one to miss for all the soul and R&B fans out there.
Matthew Halsall (West Holts Stage - Sunday)
It’s safe to say we’re loving the Sunday lineup at West Holts this year. And if you’re partial to a bit of jazz, Matthew Halsall might just be the answer.
Trumpeter, DJ, composer, producer and record label founder Matthew Halsall’s style is highly influenced by the likes of Miles Davis, Pharaoh Sanders, Alice Coltrane and Don Cherry, but his influences and tastes stretch far and wide. Classic jazz, contemporary experimental electronic music, labels such as Warp Records and Ninja Tune as well as selector DJs such as Mr Scruff, Matthew Halsall’s palette is highly diverse.
An artist with a strong connection to nature, Halsall set up his Manchester-based label, Gondwana Records in 2008, putting a strong emphasis on community, having himself been earlier influenced by Manchester’s jazz community. Gondwana now boasts a strong roster of talented musicians with whom Halsall collaborates frequently in various configurations, including on his own albums.
A blend of spiritual jazz, electronica and global influences made up the sounds of Halsall’s most recent full-length, An Ever Changing View, a record of true beauty which feels almost like a series of paintings. But who knows what he might bring to West Holts this year? Whatever it is, it’s bound to soothe the soul.
Selection by Euan Decourt - UK Music Content Manager
For the full Glastonbury 2024 lineup visit: https://glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/line-up/line-up-2024/