From little acorns ............... great and mighty festivals grow. Since opening its gates six years ago to the inaugural event, Lounge On The Farm has grown bigger and better each year.
As the oldest and largest festival of its kind in the world, Glastonbury has rightfully earned its place as the Mecca of all music events. It must also go down as the muddiest festival in the world.
The idyllic setting of Barcelona played its part in selling Primavera as one of this summer's most viable options, as did an altogether stellar line-up that meant it nigh on impossible to have any spare time between the hours of 6pm and 6am the following morning.
Once again, Glastonbury was one of the wettest festivals of the year, but that didn't stop the fun. This years headliners were: Beyonce, U2 and Coldplay who debuted some of the tracks from their new album Mylo Xyloto.
Since its inception in 2004, Rob Da Bank's Bestival held on the Isle of Wight has become one of the UK's premier festivals. This year's line-up boasted a wealth of talent including Bjork, Brian Wilson, The Cure, Primal Scream, two time Mercury winner PJ Harvey and many more.
Leeds & Reading Festival always features an eclectic mix of band as well as established names, fans of new and upcoming bands, always find plenty of undiscovered gems on the smaller stages. 2011 saw Muse, My Chemical Romance and Pulp headline.
Nevertheless, for a £40 ticket the line-up was nothing short of incredible, even if the scheduling could have been a little more user friendly (The Horrors, Wild Beasts and Factory Floor all clashing just one of many timetable annoyances).
The Sunday line-up is the strongest of the two full-days, and the most diverse by some distance. Those who tread furthest from the typical path taken by the majority of the weekend's artists are also the highlights.
With mouth-watering daytime schedules equally as busy as those in the evening, there's always a healthy selection of matinee showcases to whet the appetite.
The future of Southport Weekender seems bright. What's certain is that the international DJ's continue to come back. Every year I don't know how the promoters manage to top the previous line up.
The weekend Au Bord De L'eau celebrated its fifth year in existence on July 1st/2nd/ 3rd July 2011. This is a great achievement considering this underground and progressive festival is competing with big budget festivals. The fact that they are attracting pioneering acts from all over the world to a remote and traditional part of Switzerland is to be noted.
While Latitude 2011 will be largely remembered for bestowing some of the worst weather on a festival crowd since Glastonbury 2007, this year's event can also hold its head up high as a musical smorgasbord of the highest order.
Now in its tenth year having first opened its doors in 1995, which saw twenty bands spread across five venues for the best part of a day. This year's event included a staggering two-hundred-and-fifty plus acts scattered across forty-four venues.
It was hard to know what to expect from this years Dot-To-Dot. Pre-festival chat suggested attendance would be down on previous years, with a selection of bands that ensured there would be something for everyone but left the days events without any sense of identity.
Make no mistake, Pully For Noise is far from ideal for those looking at a European festival as a cheaper alternative, but for those wanting smaller, more refined pleasures, and an opportunity to explore one of the most naturally beautiful places on the continent it is hard to beat.