Rebellion Festival 2024 – Latest news – Gogol Bordello added to bill
With less than 150 days to go, it’s time to look at the latest news
Returning this summer over four days from the 1st to the 4th of August at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool, Rebellion Festival has once again pulled together a line-up that runs the full length and breadth of worldwide alternative and punk rock culture. From the four iconic, genre-defining headline artists of The Stranglers, Sham 69, Cock Sparrer and Stiff Little Fingers, to the young upstarts kicking up a racket in 2024 like The Chisel, The Meffs, Grade 2, Bar Stool Preachers, HotWax, and Meryl Streek, Rebellion Festival displays an ageless and timeless event annually that demonstrates just how big and welcoming our punk rock family continues to grow.
With The annual gathering a little over 5 months away, people are starting to plan their schedule, a massive jigsaw. Nobody wants to miss their favourite band but some clashes are usually unavoidable. With the line-up constantly having bands added to it as visa issues and illness take their toll, nothing is ever certain until the day the festival opens. The last two years have seen some major acts withdraw with just days to go.
The day splits have now been announced but the running order has yet to be made public. One change to proceedings is that the Loud Women Collective are curating this years Rebellion Introducing Stage (RIS) on the Sunday (4th Aug). The last couple of years have seen some amazing bands make their festival debuts on this stage. Many have then gone onto fill more prestigious slots the following year, and anyone who saw The Meffs open the Empress Ballroom stage in 2023, in front of a capacity crowd will appreciate that leg-up! It’ll be interesting to see which stages Meryl Streek, 18 Fevers and Dummy Toys find themselves on this year, after seriously impressing everyone last year on the RIS.
With over three hundred bands and artists playing and performing across the Winter Garden’s multiple stages, Rebellion Festival really does supply something for everyone with an interest in alternative culture. From the very roots of the movement with the proto 60s garage punk of Love guitarist Johnny Echols, performing with his version of the psychedelic legends, to 1970s glam stompers The Sweet who were a huge influence on the first waves of punk, Rebellion Festival goes from the very start to the wholly contemporary, and everything in between.
A recent and thrilling addition to the line-up this year is the eclectic and theatrical Gogol Bordello from the Lower East side of Manhattan, although they feature members hailing from Ukraine, Ecuador, Russia and Ethiopia for a truly worldwide sound. The band are notorious for their relentless touring, and they have lapped the world many times since their formation in 1999.
All this and so much more, these join many other highlights including Tom Robinson Band, UK Subs, Lydia Lunch, Toyah, Dead Boys, Ruts DC, GBH, Cockney Rejects, The Alarm, and The Men They Couldn’t Hang.
Got to Line Up (rebellionfestivals.com) for the full four-day line-up.
DAY AND WEEKEND TICKETS ON SALE HERE: https://rebellion.keekmerch.com/
Since its original inception in 1996 as the then named Holidays In The Sun festival, Rebellion has always aimed to bring together the best punk and alternative music from across the globe, and is still a family-run, family-orientated ALL AGES event and children under 12 are admitted free of charge (accompanied by an adult).
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