Field Day 2018

Actor, model, muse: Charlotte Gainsbourg seems to excel at any task she turns her hand to. But more than three decades on from her debut album, singer-songwriter is still the occupation we think suits her most, largely because she seems to go from strength to strength with each subsequent release. Over six months since its release, her latest album Rest remains a revelation; a tour de force of string-tinged disco, tackling grief with huge sensitivity. Prepare to shimmy to ‘Deadly Valentine’ et al at the Eat Your Own Ears Stage on Saturday, 2nd June.

It’d be remiss of us to preview the Field Day line-up without mentioning Friday night’s headliner. Making a rare stopover in the UK, Erykah Badu’s scheduled performance promises to be the highlight of the entire weekend, if not UK festival season full stop. If you haven’t had the pleasure of catching the neo-soul legend live yet, you’re in for a treat. Get set to luxuriate in her silky, mezzo-soprano vocals and to enjoy a mix of fresh material and classics tracks, hopefully including cuts from her classic debut Baduizm, which turned 20 last year.

When Swedish sibling act The Knife bowed out in 2014 via their ‘Shaking Their Habitual’ tour, we expected solo projects to follow imminently. As it turned out, we had to wait ‘til October of 2017 for frontwoman Karin Dreijer to unveil new material, in the shape of her second solo album as Fever Ray. Fortunately, Plunge’s celebration of libertarian ideals, queer desire and electronic-pop were more than worth the wait. Her live show promises to be a spectacle too, featuring an all-female cast of musicians-cum-superheroes, performing choreographed routines.