Les Eurockéennes 2012

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As the well trodden, often soggy, UK festival circuit bulges at the seams with incredible line-ups, it is sometimes easy to overlook our European counterparts in favour of familiar territory but as the summer months fail to deliver what they promise (namely some sunshine) international soil becomes instantly more appealing. None more so that Belfort’s – the idyllic setting for the world renowned, 3-day Les Eurockéennes. Surrounded by water, boasting its own beach and located right on the France/Switzerland Border, more specifically in the Malsaucy nature reserve, the 23-year old veteran festival giant boast a crowd of more than 100,000 and has played host to the likes of Arcade Fire, the xx, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Cat Power, Daft Punk and Sonic Youth over the years.

This years’ bill, from French artists to international stars, feels a little more electronically inclined than previous years but is equally dazzling and Sunday’s rock-heavy day is sure to balance things out. So without further ado here are a couple of acts we reckon you’d be a fool to miss.

Thee Oh Sees

Born from the mind of the effortlessly charismatic John Dwyer, a Thee Oh Sees live show promises one part propulsive garage rock, one part cacophonous howling and two parts feral punk anarchy.

Francis & The Atlas Mountains

Affected nasal vocals, jangling guitars and rhythms just jubilant enough to conjure up fantastical flights of fancy. We can’t quite imagine a band more conducive to proactive nostalgia if we tried.

The Mars Volta

Omar Rodríguez-López, the driving force behind The Mars Volta, dragged his band back into the limelight this year with their sixth full length album Noctourniquet which offered up what was possibly their most cohesive prog-rock vision to date and will undoubtedly feature heavily in their mid-night straddling set.

Poliça

Sultry vocals, heartbreak and a delicate defiance twist themselves into the ex-Gayngs member’s intoxicating beats.

Kavinsky

Vincent Belorgey, yep him of “that-track-from-the-Drive-soundtrack” fame, will be bringing his rich creations to the beach stage on Saturday night.

Sebastian

Commonly known as the more twisted half of Ed Banger records Sebastian is at the heart of the endlessly exciting French electronic music scene right now.

Django Django

The Edinburgh based art-pop four-piece have that most prized of festival band-traits, the ability to make everyone dance: whether you’re familiar with their Beta Band infused, beguiling psychedelica or not.

Jack White

If you’ve not managed to catch the Blunderbuss touring Jack White yet this may well be your greatest chance. A headline set promises new favourites and the occasional White Stripes hit.

Refused

Recently reformed post-hardcore Swedes propagating The Shape of Punk To Come, which they never felt they did justice the first time around due to internal squabbles.

The Cure

If Robert Smith and co play for just half the amount of time they spent on stage at Primavera a couple of weekends back this will be an unforgettable performance.