Our rundown of the best music festivals within a short hop of Cambridgeshire
Secret Garden Party
21-24 July Abbots Ripton
Secret Garden Party, or SGP as it’s affectionately referred to by those in the know, takes place between 21 and 24 July. Wild, wonderful and doused in glitter, this hedonistic party in the Cambridgeshire countryside lays claim to the most beautiful festival site of them all, boasting lakes, woodland and incredible art installations dotted around every corner.
This year’s headliners include Caribou, Air and Primal Scream, but as anyone who’s experienced this dazzlingly creative festival will tell you, there’s far more to SGP than the main stages. Have a rave on the floating dance floor on the lake (the Pagoda stage), play daft games in a huge straw amphitheatre, be wowed by the explosion of colour and craziness of the Sunday paint fight or just relax and soak up the glorious surroundings and great food. Either way you’ll have a weekend to remember.
Cambridge Folk Festival
28-31 July Cherry Hinton Hall
This is a gorgeous little festival and it’s been around for a long time, unlike so may of festivals that seem to launch yearly. The Cambridge Folk Festival is in its 52nd year, and way back in 1965 a young Paul Simon played there, just after the release of Like a Rock. More recently the festival has seen performances by Emmylou Harris, Kate Rusby, Laura Marling, Joan Baez, Beth Orton and Frank Turner.
This year’s line-up features Christy Moore, KT Tunstall and the gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello, who will have your feet dancing before the rest of your body even knows what’s happening. It’s become a stop on the road to stardom for many up-and-comers, so take some time to explore those further down the line-up. You’ll find some treasures, and many artists will perform more than once over the course of the weekend.
If you’re not into the whole camping thing, then the festival offers glamping for full ticket holders, and it’s also one of the more child-appropriate festivals, with some very well-organised activities. Top marks for civility go to the Cambridge Folk Festival, but then we’d expect nothing less.
Wysing Polyphonic
2 July Wysing Arts Centre
Namechecked as one of Vogue magazine’s best independent festivals, the annual Wysing Arts Centre music and arts extravaganza is building a reputation as one of the hottest tickets in town. Taking place on 2 July at the centre’s sprawling rural site in Bourn, the event features a diverse, genre-spanning line-up of innovative acts.
Uniquely, this year’s event will be fully acoustic, with no microphones, speakers, backing tracks, laptops or electronics. Performances will include abstract sound experiments, drone, choral ensembles, improvised jazz, whistling, song, spoken word and performances using ancient instruments. Be sure to check the Wysing Arts Centre website for the full line-up.
Latitude
14-17 July Henham Park
Latitude is one of the big ones now. In fact it’s run by the same people who used to run Glastonbury and now run Reading and Leeds. Aside from the music, it’s got a lot to offer, placing much emphasis on dance, literature, poetry, comedy, theatre, art and even politics. This year’s line-up sees old favourites The Maccabees headlining on the Friday along with Beirut and British Sea Power.
The National take the top spot on the Saturday night and New Order will be winding things down on Sunday. On the comedy front things are looking good, with Russell Howard as the big name and Reggie Watts not far beneath him. This is a good place to catch comedians on the rise, so if that’s your thing it’s worth spending some time trawling the names and doing a bit of research in preparation.
Standon Calling
29-31 July Standon Lordship
It’s a small festival but therein lies its beauty. The name throws out images of The Clash and Luton, but that couldn’t be further from the festival’s vibe and it’s a great one for the kids. This year’s theme is Legend of the Lost Sea – and there’s a swimming pool too.
The festival started when a bloke threw a barbecue. Well, that party got out of hand and today this unsponsored festival can boast alumni including Florence and the Machine and Mumford and Sons.
This year you can catch Suede, Jess Glynne, The Hives and… Kelis! Yes, really. Supporting them will be the usual calibre of rising and established talent from across the globe. There’s something about the way Standon Calling is run that makes it a breath of fresh air; it’s managed to stay just small enough to avoid drowning the magic in mud, pathetically annihilated adults and backed-up Portaloos…
Red Rooster
2-4 June Euston Hall
A rhythm and blues festival? In Suffolk? It’s true. Couldn’t be more different to America’s deep south, but when the music’s this smooth and you’re licking fired chicken off your fingers, you won’t even notice the twee landscapes.
The other great thing about this one is that it’s still a really young festival, which means that you can be there in the glory days, before it gets too hectic. Its prices are also pretty reasonable, so worth taking advantage of because no doubt they’ll rise before long.
Aside from the Rhythm and Blues you can expect to hear a fair amount of country music and general Americana too, so dig out those cowboy boots (we know you’ve got some). This year features performances from King Khan and The Shrines, The Handsome Family, The James Hunter Six, Tav Falco & The Panther Burns, Big Joe Louis, Flats & Sharps and Daddy Long Legs.
