The Crystal Palace Festival has revealed that its headline acts next month will be Andrew Ashong and his band and John.
This year’s Crystal Palace Festival is being staged virtually because of coronavirus, live-streaming from a temporary television studio in the Upper Norwood Library over the weekend of August 15 and 16.
Ashong is a British-Ghanaian soul singer-songwriter, DJ and producer from Forest Hill, described by Paul Lester of The Guardian as “a hazy, jazzy dreamer of a young soul rebel who in his music references Roy Ayers and Shuggie Otis, Bill Withers and Marvin Gaye”. His single with Detroit tech/house master Theo Parrish, Flowers, was Gilles’ Peterson’s single of the year in 2013.
Playing on the Sunday night will be John, which the Festival organisers say “is a real coup”.
“Having proudly stated Crystal Palace on their biography for many years, John’s recent album “Out Here On The Fringes” was included in Rough Trade’s Top of 100 of 2019, with all three singles and a live BBC Maida Vale session finding regular rotation on the airwaves.”
Star turn: Andrew Ashong
The cover of their 2017 debut album “God Speed In The National Limit” features the dilapidated stage of the Crystal Palace Bowl as its somewhat dystopian muse.
John offer a deadpan approach that has become the recognisable trait of their live performance. Alongside the tight rhythmic synchronisation of guitar and drums, introspective lyrics suggest that literature and spoken word are just as important influences as the punk, noise and rock genres they might comfortably fit into.
The duo are also a favourite of Star Trek and Mission Impossible actor Simon Pegg, whi has described them as “Irresistibly catchy… big and loud and angry and great!”
The Festival organisers promise to make further line-up announcements soon.
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