BEACH BREAK LIVE, Pembrey Country Park, South Wales, 14-18 Jun: Pitched primarily at a sand-logged student crowd, this four day seaside sojourn will host acts including Dizzee Rascal, Nero, Friendly Fires, Chase & Status, Ghostpoet, Wretch 32, Labrinth and Maverick Sabre, with many more performers yet to be confirmed. www.beachbreaklive.com

BENICASSIM, FIB Heineken, Valencia, Spain, 12-15 Jul: Alt-rock reformers At The Drive-In are newly booked as Benicassim’s third of four headliners in total, now sharing credits with bill supremos The Stone Roses and Florence And The Machine. The Maccabees, Little Dragon and Bat For Lashes sign up beside New Order, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, David Guetta, Bombay Bicycle Club, Crystal Castles, The Horrors and Spector on the roster as it exists so far. www.fiberfib.com

END OF THE ROAD, Larmer Tree Gardens, Tollard Royal, Salisbury, 31 Aug – 2 Sep: Taking place at the tail-end of the summer festival season, EOTR proves itself last but by no means least by drafting in the splendid likes of Anna Calvi, Perfume Genius, Villagers, Cold Specks, Toy and Trailer Trash Tracys. If prior line-up missives are to be believed, festival guests can also expect sets from Grizzly Bear, Tindersticks, Midlake, Beach House, The Antlers and First Aid Kit. www.endoftheroadfestival.com

FORBIDDEN FRUIT, Irish Museum Of Modern Art, Dublin, Ireland, 2-4 Jun: New Order, Leftfield, Death Cab For Cutie and Wilco are notable amidst an auspicious first announcement by organisers of Ireland’s Forbidden Fruit. Additional promise lies with further acts including The Rapture, Grimes, Austra, Atlas Sound, Modeselektor and Julia Holter. www.forbiddenfruit.ie

T IN THE PARK, Balado, Kinross-shire, Scotland, 6-8 Jul: Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Florence And The Machine, Two Door Cinema Club, The Maccabees, The Vaccines and The Horrors make for a strong complement to T’s line-up at large, joining sole prior bookings The Stone Roses on a blossoming 2012 bill. www.tinthepark.com

YARD LIFE, Hackney Downs Studios, Hackney, London, 28 Apr: Yard Life is London’s first free-to-enter invite-only festival, aiming to raise funds for Multiple Sclerosis Research by encouraging its guests to make voluntary donations via JustGiving. Featuring plenty of performers, who include Pete Doherty and a fleet of such tipped indie types as Babeshadow, Hatcham Social, Filthy Dukes and Gaoler’s Daughter, the programme also includes a vintage fair, a beauty parlour, several art exhibitions and, for later in the evening, a DJ area. www.yardlifefestival.co.uk

DIMENSIONS FESTIVAL, Fort Punta Christo, Pula, Croatia, 6-9 Sep: Organisers expand an electronic-flavoured Dimensions bill with news that Little Dragon, Jimmy Edgar, Machinedrum and Kode 9 are to join Gold Panda, Floating Points, Joy Orbison and Marcel Dettmann at this intimate Adriatic happening. www.dimensionsfestival.com

EYE O THE DUG FESTIVAL, various venues, St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, 14-15 Apr: KT Tunstall, Hot Chip, King Creosote & Jon Hopkins and Django Django are amongst the initial bookings for Fence Records’ inaugural Eye O The Dug fest, which will also host Errors, Dutch Uncles, Francois & The Atlas Mountains, James Yorkston, and a further raft of as yet unnamed additions. www.facebook.com/eyeothedug

LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY, various venues, Liverpool, 17-19 May: Fresh line-up extras including Mystery Jets, Michael Kiwanuka, Alkaline Trio, Niki And The Dove, Bleached and Jonquil, join the previously announced likes of Professor Green, Charli XCX, White Denim and Death In Vegas on LSC’s illustrious line-up as it stands so far. www.liverpoolsoundcity.co.uk

MELT! FESTIVAL, Ferropolis, Germany, 13-15 Jul: Justice, Plan B, M83, Gossip and Two Door Cinema Club figure highly amidst Melt!’s crucial first line-up supplement, which also features Modelselektor, Switch, The War On Drugs, and even a post-hiatus Bloc Party. www.meltfestival.de/en

SONISPHERE, Knebworth, 6-8 Jun: The line-up for the UK leg of the Sonisphere has been announced. Kiss will headline the Friday night, Faith No More the Sunday, while the big Saturday night bash will be closed by Queen with Adam Lambert. Bolstering the Saturday evening line-up are Evanescence, Tim Minchin, and The Darkness. It sounds horrible. www.sonisphere.co.uk

WAKESTOCK, Abersoch, North Wales, 6-8 Jul: Katy B, Azealia Banks, Flux Pavillion, Doctor P and Youngman form the latest batch of acts added to Wakestock’s 2012 roster, which thus far also boasts the presence of Rizzle Kicks, DJ Fresh, Burns, and co-headliners Calvin Harris, Ed Sheeran and Dizzee Rascal. www.wakestock.co.uk

If you’re wondering quite how Dublin can have its own Camden Crawl, well, there’s a Camden Street isn’t there? Ha, that’s you told.

Yes, a new spin-off from the North London multi-venue festival will launch in Dublin this May, taking place in fifteen venues between the city’s Camden Street and Temple Bar on 11 and 12 May. The new festival will be sponsored by phone firm Meteor, whose name will be included in the title. Bands already confirmed to play include Alarmist, Becoming Real, Clock Opera, Dutch Uncles, D/R/U/G/S, Hands Up Who Wants To Die, Jogging, LaFaro and Laura Sheeran.

Says Meteor’s Retail Marketing Manager John Anslow: “Meteor is a brand with a long standing association with music and Irish music in particular. Supporting emerging talent is key for us and this partnership will bring with it the opportunity to showcase some of our country’s best musicians whilst creating an affordable live music event”.

Also expanding beyond its home city is the Ultra Music Festival, the Miami-based dance music shindig that conventionally takes place towards the end of the city’s Winter Music Conference in March.

Announced last week, this year there will also be editions of the event in Buenos Aires (5 May), Ibiza (27 May and 7 Oct), Warsaw (13-14 Jul) and Seoul (4 Aug). Ultra already had one extra edition, in Sao Paolo, and that will take place once again in November or December this year.

The Miami edition in March is set to include performances from Kraftwerk, New Order, Justice, Tiësto, Fatboy Slim, Avicii, David Guetta, M83, Flux Pavilion, Kaskade, Bassnectar, Chase & Status, SBTRKT and Flying Lotus.

2000TREES, Upcote Farm, Withington, Gloucestershire, 12-14 Jul: Friday headliners 65daysofstatic stand foremost in a horde of brand new bookings, with Pulled Apart By Horses, The Xcerts, Rolo Tomassi, Brontide and Johnny Foreigner also amongst those newly set to join longer-standing line-up fixtures like Imperial Leisure, Tall Ships, Tellison and Straight Lines. www.twothousandtreesfestival.co.uk

BEVERLEY FESTIVAL, Beverley, Hull, Yorkshire, 15-17 Jun: Festival bosses give a boost to early bird ticket sales with the announcement that Beverley’s premier acoustic roots roster will be headlined by none other than Peatbog Faeries, folk-rock icons Steeleye Span, and Joe Brown, with sets from Chumbawumba, Furnace Mountain and tipped Americana band Ahab also on the cards. www.beverleyfestival.com

INDIETRACKS, Butterley Station, Derbyshire, 6-8 Jul: Tender Trap, Veronica Falls and Britpop legends Dodgy lead the first acts confirmed for this intimate outdoor happening, which will also see performances from Allo Darlin, Tigercats, The June Brides, Language Of Flowers and Evans The Death. www.indietracks.co.uk

JUBILEE FAMILY FESTIVAL, Hyde Park, London, 2-3 Jun: Taking place, quite fittingly it seems, over HRH’s forthcoming Diamond Jubilee weekend, this Sainsburys-sponsored bash will host a family-focused concert that climaxes with some sort of Disney spectacular. More artists are due to be announced in the coming weeks. www.sainsburys.co.uk/jubilee

ATP’S I’LL BE YOUR MIRROR, Alexandra Palace, London, 25-27 May: Death Grips, Aiden Moffat & Bill Wells, Harvey Milk, Tall Firs and Forest Swords are amongst the latest acts destined to play ATP’s springtime incarnation, as are post-rock types The Make-Up, who will reform especially for the Mogwai-curated event. www.atpfestival.com/events/ibymlondon2012.php

COSTA DE FUEGO, Valencia, Spain, 21-22 Jul: Staged by organisers of Benicassim, this 30,000-capacity rock riot will see in its first ever edition to the sounds of Guns N Roses and Marilyn Manson, with a further horde of acts due to fill its three stages. www.costadefuego.com

DOWNLOAD, Donington Park, 8-10 Jun: Killswitch Engage, Shinedown, Black Veil Brides, NOFX, Opeth and Nightwish are fresh on the Download scene, taking up space on an increasingly crowded bill that also features The Prodigy, Metallica, Soundgarden, Black Sabbath, Chase & Status, Megadeth and Biffy Clyro. www.downloadfestival.co.uk

HEINKEN OPEN’ER, Babie Doly Airfield, Gydnia, Poland, 4-7 Jul: Bon Iver, Wiz Khalifa, Friendly Fires and Bat For Lashes make for a satisfying supplement to Open’er’s 2012 bill, which also boasts Franz Ferdinand, Bjšrk, The xx, Julia Marcell and Justice. opener.pl/en

HENLEY FESTIVAL, Henley On Thames, 4-8 Jul: Henley is to mark the venerable occasion of its 30th anniversary with a headline slot by aptly august singer-songwriter Sting, who is down to perform on 4 Jul. Overall proceedings will take in five nights of live music, cabaret, street theatre, firework displays and fine foods, with the festival’s full roster yet to be unveiled. www.henley-festival.co.uk

RHYTHM FESTIVALS, Mansion House, Old Warden Park, Bedfordshire: 24-26 Aug: Appearing across Rhythm’s three sub-festivals are brand new conscriptions including Show Of Hands, David Knopfler, The Travelling Band, Lau and Richard Dignance. Recent line-up revelations confirm that Scott Matthews, Peatbog Faeries, Wishing Well and Strawbs are also amongst those set to perform. www.rhythmfestival.com

ONE-FEST, Tumuli Field, Rockley, arlborough, Wiltshire, 14 Apr: Having just been rechristened One-Fest, the festival formerly known as Honeyfest is fortunately still set to host headliner Damon Albarn, who’ll recreate a section from the score of his opera ‘Dr Dee’. Other line-up fixtures include Dry The River, Nick Harper, Ragu Dixit Project and Kidnap Alice, while Gaz Brookfiled, Young Blood, Old Colours and Crash & The Bandicoots, all acts aspiring to Albarn-like levels of greatness, will appear on the BBC Introducing Stage. www.onefestuk.com

BEACONS FESTIVAL, Funkirk Estate, Skipton, Yorkshire, 17-19 Aug: Organisers open additions to the Beacons Festival’s 2012 billing with news that Roots Manuva, Ghostpoet, Factory Floor, Willy Mason and Cass McCombs are all slated to appear at this resurgent Skipton bash, which was cancelled last year due to excessive flooding. On the sunny side, this year’s edition also plays host to the likes of Errors, King Krule, Gross Magic, Bos Angeles, Peaking Lights and Mazes, which sounds a very weatherproof programme indeed. www.greetingsfrombeacons.com

CAMBRIDGE FOLK FESTIVAL, Cherry Hinton Hall, Cambridge, 26-29 Jul: Irish folk nobility Clannad will be accompanied by Joan Armatrading, The Proclaimers, and Canadian singer-composer Loreena McKennit at this year’s edition of this Cambridge-based happening. Also joining already announced fixtures Lucy Ward and June Tabor & Oysterband are Billy Bragg, who’ll celebrate what would’ve been Woodie Guthrie’s 100th birthday with a commemorative set, and Nic Jones, who will perform in public for the first time in thirty years at the festival. www.cambridgefolkfestival.co.uk

EVOLUTION, Gateshead Quayside, Tyneside, 3-4 June: The North East’s very own Evolution festival has just announced its full 2012 line-up. Headline sets will be provided by Dizzee Rascal and Deadmau5, with performances from Maximo Park, Noah And The Whale, Rizzle Kicks, Here We Go Magic, Devlin and more. Plus the likes of DJ Fresh, SBTRKT and others will be on hand with DJ sets too. www.evolutionfestival.co.uk

EXIT FESTIVAL, Novi Sad, Serbia, 12-15 Jul: New Order, Wolfmother, Gossip and Buraka Som Sistema are perhaps most notable amongst EXIT’s initial line-up missive, with Richie Hawtin, Miss Kittin, Maceo Plex and Kenny Larkin down to appear at the festival’s specialist Dance Arena. www.exitfest.org

FLOW FESTIVAL, Suvilahti, Helsinki, Finland, 8-12 Aug: Taking place, as is Flow tradition, on the site of a former power plant, this fully-charged Finnish fest will this year take in new bookings St Vincent, Feist, The Black Keys, A$AP Rocky, Nicolas Jaar, The War On Drugs and Caibou, all of whom join Björk, Bon Iver and a host of others on the existing line-up. www.flowfestival.com/en/

GLADE FESTIVAL, Houghton Hall, Kings Lynn, Norfolk, 14-17 Jun: German production duo Plantage 13 are set to make a sole UK appearance at this year’s Glade, while Stanton Warriors, System 7, Lewah and The Correspondents form further fresh additions to the dance and electro festival’s 2012 roster. The previously announced likes of Andy C, Sven Vath and Vitalic top the bill as it stands just now. www.gladefestival.com

PRIMAVERA SOUND, Porto, Spain, 7-10 Jun: Team Primavera supplement an already appealing bill with such extra draws as The Flaming Lips, Rufus Wainwright, The Rapture, The Walkmen and Spiritualized. The existing bill also includes Björk, Saint Etienne, The Afghan Whigs and Explosions In The Sky. www.optimusprimaverasound.com

ROUGH BEATS, Bottom Farm, Clapham, North Yorkshire, 8-10 Jun: Topmost confirmations for this Bottom Farm-based happening are Azealia Banks, Gruff Rhys, Pulled Apart By Horses and Mahala Rai Banda, who are due to reign supreme over a tbc overall bill. www.roughbeatsfestival.co.uk

SLAM DUNK, University Of Hertfordshire, 27 May: Taking Back Sunday front the first acts confirmed for Slam Dunk’s one-day programme, as also features Architects, The King Blues, Every Time I Die, Make Do And Mend and Set Your Goals. www.slamdunkmusic.com/slam-dunk-festival

Y-NOT FESTIVAL, Matlock, Derbyshire, 3-5 Aug: A stretch of Peak District national parkland will provide a green and pleasant setting for performances from Summer Camp, The Subways, The Pigeon Detectives and headliners The Wombats, with extra acts and headliners yet to be announced. www.ynotfestivals.co.uk

BESTIVAL, Robin Hill Country Park, Isle of Wight, 6-9 Sep: First announced to reign over this year’s Bestival Big Top are esteemed line-up supremos New Order, whose royal subjects will include Friendly Fires, Zulu Winter, Flux Pavilion, Death In Vegas, Blawan and Django Django. This lot join the likes of The xx, Sigur Ros, Justice, Emeli Sande, Azealia Banks, Rizzle Kicks and the great Gary Numan on the wider Bestival bill. www.bestival.net

CHAZZSTOCK, Stanford Hall, Leicestershire, 10 Jun: Held in homage to late Ou Est Le Swimming Pool singer Charles Haddon, this charitable fest is so far set to host The Horrors, The Vaccines, Alex Starling and Jen Armstrong. www.chazzstock.org

LOVEBOX, Victoria Park, East London, 15-17 Jun: Team Lovebox have booked a well-stocked roster of acts including Hot Chip, Kelis, Friendly Fires, Azealia Banks, The Rapture, Niki & The Dove, Little Dragon, Skream and Sub Focus for their tenth anniversary bash. www.lovebox.net

SONISPHERE, Yverdon les Bains, Switzerland, 30 May: Taking place across a single day’s worth of ear-splitting musical revelry, the Swiss edition of this year’s Sonisphere (which also takes place with differing line-ups in Finland, Poland and Spain as well as the UK) will host the mighty Metallica as its overall headliners. Slayer, Motorhead and Mastodon are also confirmed to play. sz.sonisphere.eu

ROCK AM RING, Nurburgring, Germany, 1-3 Jun: Anthrax, Azealia Banks, Crystal Castles, The Maccabees and Evanescence are the latest eclectic inductions to Rock AM Ring’s 2012 roster, with Linkin Park, Soundgarden, Gossip, Skrillex, Tenacious D and MIA also set to perform. www.rock-am-ring.com/en

SOUTH WEST FOUR, Clapham Common, London: 25-26 Aug: Production duo Chase & Status have been confirmed to bring their signature bass-and-beats blend to the Saturday bill at this year’s South West Four, with additional acts and a second headliner yet to be announced. www.southwestfour.com

WAKESTOCK, Abersoch, North Wales, 6-8 Jul: Rizzle Kicks, High Contrast, Burns and DJ Fresh join proceedings at this waterlogged wakeboard fest, which prior to this latest booking boasted co-headliners Dizzee Rascal, Ed Sheeran, and Calvin Harris. www.wakestock.co.uk

So, are The Rolling Stones reforming for the Olympics, well, are they, go on, tell us, are they, are they, are they? No, no they’re not. Even though the Evening Standard reported last week that organisers of the Olympic concerts due to take place in the capital’s Hyde Park, Victoria Park and Trafalgar Square this summer were in talks with Keith Richards about a Stones show.

The London paper said Mick Jagger remained hesitant, despite his more general support for the London Olympics (partly based on his father competing in the last London games in 1948), though might be persuaded to play a concert in Hyde Park, having previously said he didn’t want to appear at the Danny Boyle programmed opening ceremony because he wouldn’t have enough artistic control.

But whatever, ignore all that please, because organiser Live Nation told reporters on Friday: “The line-up for the London Live 2012 Celebration Concerts as reported in the Evening Standard is not what we at Live Nation will be announcing soon and is based on unsubstantiated speculation”. So, there you go. Fans of unsubstantiated speculation might also be interested to know the Standard also tipped Adele and Blur for Olympic shows.

Promoter Live Nation, of course, is still involved in a legal squabble in the US with one of its former execs, Michael Cohl, over whether or not they can both bid for the right to run any future Stones tours, Cohl says not. Whether that would affect any one-off London Stones show isn’t clear.

2000TREES, Upcote Farm, Withington, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, 12-14 Jul: 2000trees stalwarts Imperial Leisure, Tellison, Tall Ships, Straight Lines and The Cape Of Good Hope have all secured slots on this eco-conscious festival’s first-day roster, with headliners and additional acts to be revealed in the coming weeks. www.twothousandtreesfestival.co.uk

CAMBRIDGE FOLK FESTIVAL, Cherry Hinton Hall, Cambridge, 26-29 Jul: Taking their cue from the results of the recent BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, Folk Festival organisers have booked Folk Singer Of The Year winner June Tabor and her recent collaborators and fellow award winners Oysterband, not to mention this year’s Horizon Award recipient Lucy Ward, as initial fixtures on their 2012 bill. www.cambridgefolkfestival.co.uk

NEUBORN OPEN AIR, Worrstadt, Germany, 24-25 Aug: Huddersfield thrash merchants Evile are newly nominated to join an existing programme boasting sets from the noisesome likes of Crematory, Deadlock and Mystic Prophecy. Heads will bang. www.noaf.de

OFF THE TRACKS, Donington Park Farmhouse, Leicestershire, 25-27 May: Hawkwind, Wilko Johnson and Dub Pistols have been confirmed to co-headline at Off The Tracks, with Warsaw Village Band and psych supremos Cabbage completing the first batch of line-up announcements. www.offthetracks.co.uk

ROCK WERCHTER, Werchter, Rotselaar, Belgium, 28 Jun-1 Jul: Latest musical add-ons for this Belgian rock riot include Mumford & Sons, Gossip, Calvin Harris, Incubus, Miles Kane, The Maccabees and The Kooks, all of whom join Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Justice, Florence And The Machine, Elbow and many, many more. www.rockwerchter.be

SHREWSBURY FOLK FESTIVAL, West Midlands Showground, Berwick Road, Shrewsbury, 24-27 Aug: Freshly unveiled to top Monday afternoon proceedings, Scottish folk-pop sort KT Tunstall joins an overall array that features Richard Thompson, Kate Rusby, Show Of Hands, Lau, Jim Moray and Dervish. www.shrewsburyfolkfestival.co.uk

DEER SHED, Baldersby Park, Topcliffe, North Yorkshite, 20-22 Jul: Deer Shed will this year house acts including Villagers, Cherry Ghost, Dutch Uncles, Beth Jeans Houghton And The Hooves Of Destiny and Treetop Flyers, with organisers promising to unveil further performers very soon. www.deerhshedfestival.com

LAST JUBILEE FESTIVAL, Bath Race Course, Bath, Somerset, 2-4 Jun: Held as the punk antithesis to the Queen’s forthcoming Diamond Jubilee, this anarchic celebration of the 1977 Silver soiree has on its existing bill Buzzcocks, The Damned, Eddie And The Hot Rods, The Stranglers’ Hugh Cornwell, and ex Sex Pistol Glen Matlock. The Selecter, Anti-Nowhere League, The Vibrators, Bad Manners and The Lurkers are also amongst those announced. www.lastjubilee.co.uk

NOVA FESTIVAL, Bignor Park, Pulborough, West Sussex, 5-8 Jul: Ghostpoet, Tune-Yards, Crazy P, Norman Jay and Jono McCleery are amongst the artists so far confirmed for the musical portion of this multi-arts fest, which has been created by some of the original Big Chill founders, including Katrina Larkin. Nova’s inaugural programme will also feature lots of creative goings-on thanks to partnerships with The Roundhouse, Battersea Arts Centre and photographer Rankin’s collective The Hunger. www.novafestival.co.uk

THE APPLE CART, Victoria Park, London, 3 Jun: Field Day’s sister event invites Adam Ant, Josh T Pearson, Gilles Peterson, Scritti Politti and Beth Jeans Houghton to join an array of already announced acts including Billy Bragg, Marcus Fosters, Noah And The Whale and Marques Toliver on its rather rosy overall bill. www.theapplecartfestival.com

BESTIVAL, Robin Hill Country Park, Isle of Wight, 6-9 Sep: Team Bestival ram their roster with such new bookings as Sigur Rós, Justice, Gary Numan, The xx, Little Dragon, Soulwax, Azealia Banks, Rizzle Kicks and Gallows. This lot, plus additional acts including Lianne La Havas, Adam Ant, TEED, Friends, Frankie Rose and King Krule accompany subjects of prior announcements Orbital and First Aid Kit at this year’s wildlife-themed Bestival bash. www.beardedtheory.co.uk

BOOMTOWN FAIR, Matterly Estate, Winchester, 9-12 Aug: Ska-punk sorts Reel Big Fish are joined by Alborosie, Asian Dub Foundationn and Jamaican reggae artiste Tanya Stephens on an eclectic batch of initial bookings for this Winchester weekender. www.boomtownfair.co.uk

NORFOLK SPECTACULAR, Norfolk Showground, Costessey, Norwich, 1-2 Sep: Omnipresent on many festival line-ups this summer, rapper Dizzee Rascal is set to grace the main stage at this modestly-titled county fete, as are Ms Dynamite, Dot Rotten, and circuit regulars Chase & Status and Jessie J. www.norfolkspectacular.co.uk

PARKLIFE WEEKENDER, Platt Fields Park, Manchester, 9-10 Jun: With The Flaming Lips and Dizzee Rascal just confirmed as dual headliners, this fast-expanding Manchester music happening will also welcome Nero, Justice, Crystal Castles, Ghostpoet and Azealia Banks. www.parklife.uk.com

SECRET GARDEN PARTY, secret location, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, 19-22 Jul: Taking place this year under the banner ‘Standing On Ceremony’, this most civilised of secret horticultural soirees celebrates its tenth birthday with news that it’ll this year host Orbital, Little Roy, KT Tunstall, The Duke Spirit, Soko, Zulu Winter and Vintage Trouble, with many more performers to be named in due course. www.secretgardenparty.com

SONAR, Barcelona, Spain, 14-16 Jun: With similar events also taking place in Sao Paulo, Tokyo and Capetown this year, Sonar’s Spanish edition provides the setting for a selection of sets from Hot Chip, Mount Kimbie, Friendly Fires, Nicolas Jaar, Azari & III, Deadmau5 and Fatboy Slim. www.sonar.es/en/2012/

Metallica are launching their own festival, which will take place in Atlantic City from 23-24 Jun, and will be known as Orion Music + More.

The metallers will headline both dates, which is modest, playing ‘The Black Album’ in full on day one and all of ‘Ride The Lightning’ on day two. Also booked to play are Arctic Monkeys, Avenged Sevenfold, Modest Mouse, Fucked Up and A Place To Bury Strangers, all favourites of the Metallica men it seems. Fun and games are also planned, apparently.

Look, here’s Lars Ulrich talking: “We’ve had the idea of doing our own lifestyle festival with lots of diverse music and fun and games for years. Finally this year all the practical ducks lined up in a row, and we are beyond psyched to bring Orion to our fans, friends and the curious.

Tickets will go on sale to fan club members today, and to the public on Saturday. More info here.

BILBAO BBK LIVE, Kobetamendi, Bilbao, Spain, 12-14 Jul: Fresh additions Warpaint, Glasvegas and The Kooks more than make up for a recent cancellation by Klaxons, confirmed as they are to join Radiohead, The Cure, Noah And The Whale, Snow Patrol, Band of Skulls and Tribes at this sun-drenched Spanish fiesta. www.bilbaobbklive.com

END OF THE ROAD, Larmer Tree Gardens, Salisbury, 31 Aug – 2 Sep: Bella Union presents the best of its label roster, hosting a fifteenth anniversary showcase starring the likes of Midlake, The Low Anthem and Veronica Falls. Other recent arrivals Dirty Three, Lanterns Of The Lake and Alessi’s Ark take up prime position alongside prior announcees Beach House, The Antlers, Delicate Steve, Doug Paisley, Driver Drive Faster and First Aid Kit. www.endoftheroadfestival.com

GARDEN FESTIVAL, Petrica Glava, Tisno, Croatia, 4-11 Jul: Billed with the tagline ‘A New Beginning’, this year’s relocated Garden Festival aims at reinvention with the news that Nicolas Jaar, Tiger And Woods and Kenny Dope will all appear alongside Metro Area, Ben UFO, Tim Sweeney, Applebim and Crazy P. www.thegardenfestival.eu

LONG DIVISION FESTIVAL, various venues, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, 1-3 Jun: The guitar-toting likes of The Vaccines, Art Brut, Aiden Moffat & Bill Wells, Let’s Wrestle, Crushed Beaks and Zoey Van Goey are amongst the first acts unveiled for this sprawling Northern fest, which takes place across nine of Wakefield’s best-loved venues. www.longdivisionfestival.co.uk

SENSORIA, various venues, Sheffield, 21-29 Apr: Film, music and digital festival Sensoria returns for its fifth year in April, and as its first line-up announcement has revealed that Laurie Anderson will give the UK premiere of her new work ‘Another Day In America’, as well as a discussion and Q&A session. www.sensoria.org.uk

SNOWBOMBING, Mayrhofen, Austria, 9-14 Apr: German house pairing Booka Shade, Major Lazer producer Switch and alt-disco maestro Fake Blood form the latest spate of acts announced to attend this year’s Snowbombing. With ice prince Dizzee Rascal booked as overall headliner, the existing roster also features Fatboy Slim, Example, The Vaccines, Labrinth, Jack Beats and the always cool DJ Shadow. www.snowbombing.com

ISLE OF WIGHT FESTIVAL, Seaclose Park, Newport, Isle of Wight, 22-24 Jun: Enter Shikari, Ash, Katy B, Pulled Apart By Horses and Christina Perri are the latest acts to supplement IOW’s ever-expanding line-up. This lot accompany co-headliners Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Pearl Jam and Bruce Springsteen on an overall bill also featuring Elbow, Example, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Professor Green, Miles Kane, Crystal Castles and Tinie Tempah. www.isleofwightfestival.com

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SKA FESTIVAL, Islington Academy, London, 3-6 May: Organisers of the resurgent ska shebang announce an array of acts from the genre’s many sub-shades, with island icons Dandy Livingstone, Dawn Penn and Rico Rodriquez sharing the roster with 2 Tone type Neol Davis, guest star DJs Don Letts, Andy Smith and Gaz Mayall, and perennial favourites The Dualers, Ska Cubano, and Fishbone. www.londoninternationalskafestival.co.uk

BLOODSTOCK, Catton Hall, Derby, 9-12 Aug: Recent add-ons Sepultura and US metallers Iced Earth serve to further swell this year’s sizeable Bloodstock roster, which thus far consists of acts including Behemoth, Alice Cooper, Hatebreed, Mayhem, The Black Dahlia Murder, Warain and Anvil. www.bloodstock.uk.com

CAMP BESTIVAL, Lulworth Castle, Dorset, 26-29 Jul: Rolf Harris, Lianne Le Havas, Ren Harvieu and King Creosote & John Hopkins make for a varied array of acts just added to the Camp Bestival line-up, joining Hot Chip, Kool & The Gang and Chic feat Nile Rodgers on the familial festival’s ever-expanding musical billing. Freshly crowned as Bestival’s comedy headliner, Jimmy Carr will also appear at the ‘Silly Olympic’-themed fest. www.campbestival.net

DOUNE THE RABBIT HOLE, Duncarron Fort, Scotland, 24-26 Aug: Organisers of this medieval-themed happening confirm The Phantom Band, Aiden Moffat & Bill Wells, Sparrow And The Workshop and Three Blind Wolves amongst a barrage of initial bookings, with many more yet to be unveiled. www.dounetherabbithole.co.uk

FUTURE MUSIC FESTIVAL, various venues, Australia, 3-12 Mar: A horde of British types have been quick to crowd the Future Music roster, with Tinie Tempah, New Order, Fatboy Slim, The Wombats, Jessie J and Chase & Status all featuring amongst recent line-up additions. The festival itself is stationed in one-day stints across venues in Brisbane, Perth, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, with the international likes of Frank Ocean, Skrillex, Gym Class Heroes and Die Antwoord also primed to perform at each of the five dates. www.futureentertainment.com.au

RADIO 1′S HACKNEY WEEKEND, Hackney Marshes, East London, 23-24 Jun: Acts including Jack White, Lana Del Rey, The Maccabees, Ed Sheeran, Jessie J and Bombay Bicycle Club are confirmed as company for Leona Lewis and Plan B on the bill of this rather unnecessary Radio 1-hosted Olympics bash, free tickets for which are available through a lottery. www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/events/hackneyweekend2012/

Organisers of the Dorset-based music festival End Of The Road have denied any involvement with the always fun Church Of Scientology in response to allegations to that effect.

The rumours originate with a message posted on the forum at eFestivals.co.uk by a member of that site’s staff, who writes that s/he received an anonymous letter, complete with “prints and photocopies of stuff”, linking End Of The Road to the CoS. Specific claims include that financial losses incurred by the festival during its early years were covered by individuals affiliated to the church, and that the festival always includes a secret roster of Scientologist performers on its bill, who are either announced at the very last minute, or not at all.

Responding to all this, a statement from End Of The Road HQ acknowledges that two of its board directors are Scientologists, which is presumably how these rumours began, but adds: “End Of The Road has no connection with the Church Of Scientology, financial or otherwise. None. In any case, philosophical inclinations are personal and have nothing to do with a music festival. Anyone who has been to an End Of The Road Festival will already know that”.

It continues: “For the record, EOTR did make big losses in the first two years. They were all financed by the owners and those friends who could be persuaded to lend us money. The festival is now in good financial shape, the loans are repaid and the profit made in 2011 is being invested in a new festival. The anonymous correspondent ought to get out more”.

If getting out more doesn’t sound like fun, you might want to instead spend a rather strange and spooky half hour sifting through the Scientology message thread on the eFestivals message board from start to finish. Those doing so can anticipate wild speculation, the compulsory jokes about Tom Cruise, and anxiety over subliminal transmitter antennae which, apparently, can be “disguised to look like something as ordinary as rotary washing lines”.

Amongst a further host of alien overlords, this year’s End Of The Road line-up so far includes the musically tip-top likes of First Aid Kit, Beach House, Mountain Man, Grizzly Bear, Robyn Hitchcock and The Strange Boys. I can’t imagine a less suspicious bunch.

ATP CURATED BY JEFF MANGUM, Butlins Holiday Centre, Minehead, 9-11 Mar: Sun Ra Arkestra, Feathers and Oneohtrix Point Never mean three more names confirmed for for Jeff Mangum’s ATP selection, which so far co-stars Joanna Newsom, The Magnetic Fields, Sebadoh, Low, Yann Tiersen, The Fall, Thurston Moore, and many more besides. www.atpfestival.com

BEARDED THEORY, Kedleston Hall Park, Derbyshire, 18-20 May: ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ hitmakers Wheatus take this year’s special guest slot, one occupied in previous years by The Cheeky Girls and Wagner off of ‘X-Factor’. Wheatus take prime position on an eclectic bill that also boasts Levellers, Terrorvision, The Travelling Band, Dreadzone and Hobo Jones & The Junkyard Dogs. www.beardedtheory.co.uk

BESTIVAL, Robin Hill Country Park, Isle Of Wight, 6-9 Sep: Chiming sweetly with Bestival’s ‘wildlife’ theme this year are Swedish ‘The Lion’s Roar’ folk pairing First Aid Kit, who accompany sole Sunday headliners Orbital on what, at this initial stage, is a fairly select bill. www.beardedtheory.co.uk

CROOKED WAYS, Pontefract, West Yorkshire, 26 May: Main stage headliners Razorlight are primed to make this 14,000 capacity event’s inaugural year one to remember, with many more names to be revealed throughout the coming months. www.crookedways.co.uk

HAMPTON COURT PALACE FESTIVAL, Hampton Court Palace, Surrey, 13-24 Jun: Headed straight for this most family-suitable of music festival seasons are the esteemed likes of Liza Minelli, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and pop troubadour James Morrison, joining already announced acts Katie Melua, Franki Valli & The Four Seasons, Caro Emerald and Jools Holland & His Rhythm And Blues Orchestra, who will each play palatial soirees during June. www.hamptoncourtpalacefestival.com

HONEYFEST, secret location, Wiltshire, 14 Apr: Clasping tightly to its title as the year’s very first outdoor festival, Honeyfest scored a further bookings coup as Damon Albarn is confirmed to play a set comprising songs from his self-penned musical Dr Dee. An existing line-up for the mysteriously-situated fest features Dry The River, Raghu Dixit, Cut A Shine and Nick Harper. www.honeyfestuk.com

NO DIRECTION HOME, Welbeck, Worksop, North Nottinghamshire, 8-10 Jun: Headliner-to-be Richard Hawley fronts fresh announcements at the first ever edition of music-come-comedy event No Direction Home, with Austra, Cold Specks, Other Lives and Wet Nuns joining existing co-headliners The Low Anthem, Dirty Three and Andrew Bird. Django Django, Slow Club, Spectrals, Liz Green, Diagrams and Beth Jeans Houghton are also booked to play throughout the festival’s three-day span. nodirectionhomefestival.com

Liverpool-based festival and music business convention Liverpool Sound City will return in May, with Professor Green confirmed as a headliner on the festival side, and Death In Vegas, Cloud Nothings, Yukon Blonde, Charli XCX and Fixers also on the bill.

Organisers have also confirmed that an annual student music awards event staged by music education body Access To Music will take place as part of this year’s LSC, while a Sound City Expo will “provide access for both consumers and music/digital professionals to the people, tools and services they will need as we move ever onwards in the digital age”.

Commenting on this year’s initial line-up announcements, Sound City boss Dave Pichilingi told CMU: “We’re thrilled to announce the first wave of bands that’ll make up the line-up for Liverpool Sound City 2012 – an eclectic mix of genres that makes our festival such an interesting, innovative, must-see event. We’re taking Sound City to whole new level this year by bringing in Access To Music and co-hosting the UK Music Student Awards, which shows our commitment to the new breed of musicians and those who work in the music industry, as well as being a great excuse for a party”.

This year’s Sound City runs from 17-19 May. More at www.liverpoolsoundcity.co.uk. As previously reported, the team behind Sound City are also staging an event in New York in March, more information about which is given here.