A SEA CHANGE FOR MUSIC FESTIVAL AS EVENT HAPPENS ONLINE
A MUSIC and arts festival is going ahead this weekend despite the lockdown, by broadcasting live from its own website.
The Sea Change announced last month that the physical festival, due to take place at Dartington near Totnes, would not happen this year.
But an internet version will happen at seachangefestival.co.uk tomorrow and Sunday.
The independent festival is curated by Rupert Morrison of Drift record shop in Totnes.
Sea Change mixes nationally known artists and performers with those from the South West.
Performers including The Orielles, Ana da Silva from The Raincoats and writers such as Sean O’Hagan will on air as well as Billy Bragg, Tim Burgess, The Breeders, Gwenno, Midlake and Metronomy, from Torquay.
“It’s fun to think about how many people will tune in across the weekend,” said Mr Morrison.
“I hope that everyone that does finds something new and exciting at Sea Change 2020.
“The whole weekend is going to be a real antidote to the rather relentless grey rolling news. Just make sure you are following us online, click on the socials and bookmark the website as there is going to be so much going on.
“We’ll invite online festivalgoers to delight in the cultures that we have spent the last five years celebrating and to experience something of the special atmosphere of Sea Change, We’ll all be together while forced to be apart.”
The plan is for Sea Change to be back in physical form in Dartington in May 2021.
The pandemic has virtually wiped out the spring and summer events calendar in the South West. Among the biggest casualties are the 40th Glastonbury Festival and the Sidmouth Folk Festival. However, the Boardmasters music and surfing festival is still scheduled to go ahead in Cornwall in August despite the current lockdown.
Vision Nine, the company behind the event, said last week that the 53,000-capacity festival is still on for August 5 to 9.
Cornwall’s biggest musical event is due to be headlined by Kings of Leon, Skepta and The 1975 at Watergate Bay near Newquay.
The 2019 event was cancelled because of bad weather.