This weekend will see the inaugural FORWARDS Festival take place, rounding off a heavy summer for live music with a bulletproof lineup.
Billed as “a new breed of inner city festival, committing to positive change with social initiatives at its core”, Bristol’s Clifton Downs will play host to forward-thinking panel discussions alongside an eclectic list of international artists.
For a fledgling event of its size, FORWARDS have booked an ambitious mixture of performers from a range of scenes, and look more-than ready to punch above their weight in the UK festival stakes.
Fred Again
Fred has become one of the UK’s most sought-after electronic talents since the release of his two-part Actual Life album. Bare bones production and a heavy use of lo-fi sampling has seen Fred Again grow into an unlikely musical heavyweight; racking up a BRIT nomination in 2022 alongside recent performances at Coachella, Primavera and All Points East.
Khruangbin
Texas trio Khruangbin bring one of the most enjoyable live shows you are ever likely to see. Tessellating a light-hearted disco energy with the lofty groove of space-funk, a Khruangbin gig is always a party to remember.
Warmduscher
Post-punk at their core, with hefty nods to the world of wonky lounge music; Warmduscher are the London underground music scene’s worst kept secret.
Connie Constance
Connie has been ascending in the public’s consciousness for a couple of years now, reliably adding to her canon of earworm indie bangers throughout. Check out new single ‘Mood Hoover’ below.
Kojey Radical
With a Mercury Prize nomination under his belt for recent album Reasons To Smile, it looks like mercurial East London visionary Kojey Radical is finally picking up the industry props that he has sorely deserved for so long.