The opening night of Lytham Festival on Wednesday July 03 will see internationally acclaimed Irish singer-songwriter Hozier captivate audiences with a mesmerising headliner performance. His distinctive ethereal blend of folk, blues, and rock has earned him a special place in the hearts of music fans worldwide. Hozier’s breakthrough hit, Take Me to Church, became a global sensation, dominating airwaves and earning him widespread recognition. In addition to chart-topping songs like Someone New and Nina Cried Power, Hozier’s extraordinary talents have garnered him a multitude of accolades, including a Grammy Song of the Year nomination and the prestigious Ivor Novello Award for Songwriter of the Year.
Hozier will be supported by Brittany Howard, Alabama Shakes frontwoman-turned-solo star. With nine Grammy Award nominations under her belt, fans can anticipate a night of sound that transcends genres, finding inspiration in rock, soul, funk, and R&B. Enigmatic Los Angeles-based indie folk band Lord Huron will also join the line-up with their cinematic song storytelling and lush harmonies.
Friday night (July 05) will see the already announced Manchester-based guitar band Courteeners perform their only North of England headline show of the summer with support from English pop-rock outfit The Kooks and indie pop riser Nieve Ella.
One of the most successful UK bands of recent years, Courteeners are made up of Liam Fray, Michael Campbell and Daniel Moores.
All their albums have gone Top 10 and earlier this year, their 2008 debut album St. Jude reached Number 1 for the very first time with its 15th anniversary edition making it the album with the longest time between release and charting at Number 1 in UK chart history. The band also played their third sold-out 50,000 capacity headline show at Heaton Park in June to celebrate the anniversary of the album.
The Kooks have enjoyed an impressive rise to fame since the release of their debut album, Inside In/Inside Out which reached Number One in the U.K. Album Charts. Since then, they’ve gone on to release five further albums, their most recent last year with 10 Tracks to Echo in the Dark. Continually attracting a new breed of fans, the band have gained countless streams across multiple platforms and embarked on a number of world tours.
Indie pop riser Nieve Ella will open the show. Nieve’s popularity has soared since she first picked up a guitar during lockdown – three years later she has achieved hundreds of thousands of streams and recently supported Inhaler on their UK tour.
Saturday July 06 will see the return of one of Lytham Festival’s most popular artists – Madness.
Pop’s Nutty Boys headlined Lytham back in 2017. In a career spanning five decades they have chalked up 15 UK Top 10 singles – including the timeless Our House, It Must Be Love, One Step Beyond, My Girl, Wings Of A Dove and Baggy Trousers – together with ten Top 10 albums. This month they released Theatre of the Absurd Presents C’est la Vie, their critically acclaimed lucky thirteenth full-length album.
They will be supported by another returning artist – pop icon Rick Astley. It’s 11 years since he performed on Lytham Green and almost 40 years since he first shot to fame, but Rick Astley is now arguably a more prominent force in popular culture than he ever was. Continuing to win the adoration of fans old and new, recent years have seen him perform with Foo Fighters, Take That and Blossoms. Rick recently released his ninth studio album Are We There Yet? and since returning to the Number One spot in 2016 with album 50, he has enjoyed the strongest run of album chart positions of his entire career.
Joining Madness and Rick Astley will be Liverpudlian hitmakers Lightning Seeds. It is 35 years since they first hit the charts and the Lytham audience can expect to singalong to a string of hits including Life of Riley, Lucky You and football anthem Three Lions.
And the closing night of Lytham Festival on Sunday July 07 will see a 2024 UK festival exclusive from indie legends James accompanied by the Orca22 Orchestra and the Manchester Inspirational Voices Choir.
Still every bit as popular, adventurous, melodically gifted and politically eviscerating as ever, this year James marked 40 years with Be Opened By The Wonderful, 20 tracks of some of their most loved and rare tracks, re-imagined with the 22-piece orchestra and eight-piece choir who will grace the stage with them at Lytham Festival with composer and conductor Joe Duddell.
James are one of Britain’s most enduring success stories, having released 16 studio albums, selling more than 25 million copies with their recent run of Top 5 albums proving to be a golden era for the band.
Supporting them in Lytham will be founding member and songwriting genius of The Smiths, superstar collaborator and sensational solo artist in his own right, Johnny Marr.
Quite rightly regarded as a bona fide British music icon, Johnny Marr’s live shows include songs from across his whole career, from classic Smiths and Electronic hits to his lauded and diverse solo work such as fan favourites Easy Money, Night and Day, Spirit, Spiral Cities and Power and Soul.
