Shindig Festival (22nd – 25th May) reveals the full programme today. The family friendly event will be held at Charlton Park Estate, Wiltshire.
The vibrant showcase of international talent includes Gilles Peterson, Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 and Moonchild Sanelly – who’s collaborated with Beyoncé, Gorillaz, Self Esteem, and Ezra Collective among others.
From explosive live ensembles rooted in afrobeats, highlife to jump up and heavy basslines: Asian Dub Foundation, Ibibio Sound Machine, Gentleman’s Dub Club, Dub FX, Mr Scruff ft. MC Kwasi, Dan Shake, Algote Oho & His Sounds of Joy, Romare (Live) and The Reflex.
The Shindig family can look forward to: The Nextmen, A-Skillz, Krafty Kuts, Altern8, JFB, K.O.G., Channel One, Cut Capers, and Raz & Alfa, TC & The Groove Family.
Rap and hip-hop heads will enjoy Toya Delazy, GROVE, and Angry Blackmen - a Chicago-based industrial rap outfit known for pushing boundaries. Also Suedejazz Collective, The Scribes, Afrocluster, and Bin Bag Wisdom.
The festival has been dubbed “a pint-sized version of Glastonbury”. Recommended by Emily Eavis, Glastonbury organiser, as a good alternative to those who missed out on tickets and Voted ‘Best For Family Rave’ by Festival Kidz, it’s attracting an ever-more diverse crowd.
Stu Matson, Music Programmer, says:
“The Shindig 2025 line up is a global celebration of rhythm and culture. Where afrobeat meets electronic, reggae meets soul, funk meets industrial rap. Expect fresh beats, bold new sounds, and unstoppable energy. It’s still the ultimate destination for dance lovers – now with even more to discover.”
New for this year
Not only is the event being held on a new site, a huge number of collectives are coming together to make this festival extra special. These include Born on Road whose drum n bass line up includes Gray, Kelvin 373, Aries, Selecta J Man, OKO and others.
A new stage: Minirigs Sub Bus will host a couple of takeovers from some of the hottest crews in the South West: Gorilla Tactics and Thickboy Records.
Fingerlickin’ Records, whose hiphop and b-boy programme will feature A Skillz, Krafty Kuts, Freestylers, Jessica Joy and Soul of Man
Altern8 (35 Year Anniversary) will be celebrating with Leeroy Thornhill (ex The Prodigy) Slipmatt and Swankout.
Bristol-based collectives Gorilla Tactics will see Breakage, Bish Monrolla, Haych and Binksy on their bill
Tropical Tea Party, line up includes Jinx in Dub, Hiphoppapatomus Matuki (live), Waggles and more.
Thick Boy Records have programmed WBBL, Merkata, Extra Medium, Rua Tui
Bath outfit: Bacana Funk’s line up includes Cocoa Maria and Poly-Ritmo plus John Stapleton
Dress up theme
The eagerly-awaited theme is “Love is the answer.” It’s time to wear your heart on your sleeve.
Saturday is the day to strut your stuff and get involved with the parade to celebrate unity, joy, and good vibes.
A family affair
Part of what makes Shindig special is that it’s the ideal boutique festival for party people with families. The Kid’s area is the family-friendly area for babies, children and parents to hang out and play.
Think circus skills, climbing walls, space hoppers and sandpits. Older kids can get involved in the hugely popular Graffiti Wall and attend DJ, MCing and breakdance workshops.
The Craft Area will offer workshops on everything from felt making to spoon whittling, woodworking and jewellery making for all the family.
The healing field offers yoga, saunas and massages. Award-winning food is on offer from the hand-picked traders. Boutique camping offers luxury, a private bar as well as a pamper parlour.
Talks
Festivalgoers can listen to some of the most influential UK activists such as Mark Angelo Harrison (Spiral Tribe co Founder) and Pete Phoenix along with festival visionaries such as Luke Mitchell founder of Wake the Tiger and Boomtown festival.
Attention-stealing art installations
Expect mind-bending sculptures from the most trailblazing creatives of today. Mutoid Waste Company and artists from Rockaway Park will be bringing giant welded artwork, interactive diversions and fire-breathing sculptures. The Shindig spectacle is dialling up to ten.
Fiercely independent
The directors of Shindig Festival are an eclectic team consisting of a DJ and record label owner, a circus aerialist performer, a motorcycle stunt showman, an interior designer and an all-round festival stalwart. Their combined talents, experience, eyes and ears for detail is what makes Shindig so special. And fiercely independent.
It will be the eleventh year of the event. The family-friendly festival announced that 2024 would be its last, due to an extremely challenging economic climate - rising costs, tighter regulations and competition from larger corporate shows.
But the team refused to lose sight of what makes independent gatherings so important: a place in which to escape, reconnect with friends and reimagine different ways to live.
In a nutshell
There are no main stages, just a beautiful arrangement of stretch marquees and giant tipis. Plus plenty of secret venues amongst the arboretum and hidden playgrounds to discover. Bringing a healthy dose of foot-stomping funk and a packed programme of entertainment for all ages, Shindig Festival offers relaxation and revelry in equal measures.
Weekend adult tickets are on sale, priced at £205 plus booking fee.
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