Sonisphere Festival 2011

ANOTHER 28 acts have been confirmed for this summer’s 2011 Sonisphere Festival at Knebworth House.

Hayseed Dixie

The three-day rock event returns to the grounds of the Hertfordshire stately home from Friday, July 8 to Sunday, July 10.

And organisers confirmed another batch of groups playing the UK leg of the international touring behemoth today (Monday), along with the stages they will play on.

Punk rock revivalists Bad Religion, metal band Cavalera Conspiracy, as tipped by the Welwyn Hatfield Times yesterday, and Reading thrashers Sylosis will all line-up on the Apollo stage at Knebworth in July.

Meanwhile, America’s loudest lounge singer Richard Cheese has been confirmed for the Saturn arena on the Saturday.

Over on the Bohemia stage, another eight acts will join the already impressive line-up.

Leading the charge will be Northern Irish rockers The Answer and Canadian hardcore heroes Cancer Bats.

Also confirmed for the tent are York metal-mob Glamour of the Kill, bluegrass covers band Hayseed Dixie, as predicted last night (Sunday) by the Welwyn Hatfield Times, sludge metallers Kylesa, Hertfordshire’s very own dance-punk rockers My Passion, alt-rockers Pulled Apart by Horses and gloomy goth-metallers Paradise Lost.

My Passion vocalist Laurence René said: “Sonisphere is a festival made for My Passion to perform.

“Not only is it on our doorstep being Hertfordshire men but we are also ready to follow the footsteps of our new label mates Rammstein, who played one of the most phenomenal shows my senses have ever witnessed in 2010.

“This one will be a huge homecoming for us with our new line-up, and we are ready to entertain and exhilarate Sonisphere and then join the party for the rest of the weekend.

“Slipknot and Biffy are hugely influential and just a taste of the diversity!”

Confirmed for the Red Bull Bedroom Jam stage are Arcane Roots, Me Vs Hero, Rolo Tomassi, Tesseract, Title Fight and Tek-One.

Playing the Jagermeister stage are Amplifier, Anterior, The Crave, Hounds, Demonic Resurrection, Jettblack, Orange Goblin, Fletcher, Saint Jude and The Virgin Marys.

As previously reported, thrash metal’s Big 4 of Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax top the bill on the opening Friday night.

Scottish rockers Biffy Clyro are elevated to headline status on the Saturday, with Weezer and The Mars Volta also playing the main stages.

Masked American metallers Slipknot, fronted by Corey Taylor, will close the festival on the Apollo stage on the Sunday.

Comedian Bill Bailey will headline the Saturn stage before Slipknot perform.

Other bands playing over the weekend include Limp Bizkit, The Sisters of Mercy and Motorhead.

For ticket details go to the Sonisphere Festival website at www.sonispherefestivals.com