The 8 Best Acts To Have Ever Played At Longitude
Another year, another festival season, and Longitude has fast become one of our favourites. It's the fifth year of the Marlay Park musical festival, and with acts like The Weeknd, Mumford & Sons, Skepta, Leon Bridges and many more taking to the stage, this year looks set to be just as memorable.
This summer, there's also going to be a new dimension added to the experience at Longitude, with the Desperados Inner Tequila Studios. Providing the tunes across the weekend will be some of the best DJs around, including Cáit from DIP (Friday), Tara Stewart from 2FM (Saturday) and Louis Scully from Telephones (Sunday).
Festival-goers will also be able to control the set list with Desperados Tune Request Cards. All you have to do is write down the next banger that you want to hear, and it gets sent straight to the booth.
As we wait for next weekend to roll around, we couldn't help but look back over the last few years of the festival, and think about some of the great performances the festival has already seen.
Here are eight of the best acts to have played Longitude in the last four years of the festival:
Alt - J
Year: 2015
The band is known for their unique style, but the staging and lighting of their Longitude show made it one of the most memorable performances in Ireland in 2015. The sing along to 'Matilda' was one our favourite moments of the entire 2015 Alt-J set.
Years & Years
Year: 2015
Although 'Desire' had the crowd going wild, the set's ending - top ten hit 'Kings' - had everyone excited to see what the band will do next. We loved their version of Blu Cantrelle's 'Breathe' so much that we decided you need to watch frontman Olly cover Britney Spears 'Toxic':
Kendrick Lamar
Year: 2016
When we were all still just three studio albums deep into his career, Lamar stole the show during last year's Friday night slot. The back wall of the main stage had the words "Look Both Ways Before You Cross My Mind" a nod to his song 'Wesley's Theory,' but our favourite moment was his performance of 'Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe' when the entire crowd went wild.
Hozier
Year: 2015
The Irish singer/songwriter's debut album Hozier was a phenomenal success worldwide, and his performance in 2015 was a homecoming of sorts, after winning a Grammy in America and having a spread in Vogue.
The singer told the audience "It's great to see such a big crowd! It's even better to be home!". The crowd didn't stop chanting and singing throughout his set, and his cover of Ariana Grande's 'Problem' proved to be a massive hit.
Roisin Murphy
Year: 2016
Originally hearing Murphy sing songs as part of the duo Moloko, I walked away from the gig a true fan of her solo songs, as her energy ripped through the tent on the night. The costume changes mid-performance, lighting, oversized balls thrown into the crowd and Murphy's inimitable voice made the performance one to remember.
Foals
Year: 2013
Fans were initially worried that the band couldn't make the leap from small venue to the main stage, but they proved everyone wrong with their Longitude performance. Foals finished their set with the song 'Two Steps, Twice' but the reaction to 'My Number' was incredible. Who can forget the streaker escorted off stage?
Christine and the Queens
Year: 2016
The world stopped for 45 minutes when Christine and the Queens played Longitude in 2016. The quirky dance moves, along with the Prince and Chaka Khan covers, not to mention Héloïse's incredible personality, gave Longitude a night to remember. We're living for the release of her soon-to-be-announced second album.
Vampire Weekend
Year: 2013
If you didn't make it to the first year of Longitude, then you missed one of the best acts to ever appear at the festival - Vampire Weekend. The giant mirror and floral wallpaper that cloaked the stage wall became a stunning visual in between each song, while there was some fist-pumping madness that ensued during one of the band's most memorable songs, 'A-Punk'.
The Desperados Inner Tequila Studios is a space where music, art, fashion and Desperados collide!
Aside from the tunes and DJs, you won't want to miss the chance to add special ingredients to create your own hyper-personalised serve at a bespoke Desperados bar, or make custom tees and totes in association with Damn Fine Print.
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