Hastings Fat Tuesday Music Festival. Credit Mark Richards.

Hastings Fat Tuesday unveils new acts for 2022 festival

The organiser has announced further details for the 2022 Hastings Fat Tuesday Music Festival, the UK’s largest Mardi Gras and the ultimate mid-winter carnival, taking place between 25 February and 1 March. The five-day, town-wide celebration will present over 350 free gigs, gatherings, parties and parades, alongside ticketed events, with internationally acclaimed artists from across the globe appearing alongside a wealth of local bands.

Tickets are already on sale for Le Grand Mardi Gras Ball (25 Feb) at the White Rock Theatre; a full-on night of fancy dress, fabulous feathers, beads, masks and fantastic revelry embracing the spirit of New Orleans. Dance the night away with the revolutionary genre-bashing Mr Wilson’s Second Liners, the Rock’n’Roll Crime-Gospel outfit The Future Shape Of Sound and festival favourites and global disco ambassadors, the DJ collective Horse Meat Disco.

The first acts of the popular Saturday Unplugged tour (26 Feb) are announced, with Danny George Wilson and the Savage 2nd Line joining the 60 local and national bands touring 30 pubs and bars throughout Hastings and St Leonards, with five Hastings New Town venues joining the tour. The day culminates with indie rock band The Magic Numbers headlining at the Brass. The band have just celebrated their 15th anniversary with an extensive autumn tour across the UK.

Umbrellas, Hastings Fat Tuesday music festival. Credit Mark Richards.

Details will soon be announced for events across the middle of the festival: the Unconvention music conference, aimed at music students and emerging musicians; the family favourite Umbrella Parade, an explosion of colour, music and fun as decorated umbrellas parade all along the seafront; Preservation Sunday, where festival-goers gather together and the rivalry of the second line brass bands comes to a head in a dramatic play-off at St Mary in the Castle; and the experimental, audio-visual and electronic mash-up of local underground and experimental creativity across art, film and music at Sunday Sonics at the Crypt (all 27 Feb).

The five days of festival revelry culminate in Fat Tuesday itself (1 March), a night of music across 12 venues with 24 bands playing 20-minute sets. Already announced are Will Varley, Ese & the Vooduu People and Miss Melody. Plus Fat Tuesday’s very own reggae event, Reggae Room Party, at The East Hastings Sea Angling Association featuring a host of guest selectors on the decks and singers on the boards until 1am. And to ensure the festival goes out on a high, the infamous After Party at The Brass featuring high-calibre live music from locally renowned Buddah Triangle, a DJ set from Kid Kapichi and more very special guests to be announced.

In the 12 years since its conception, Hastings five-day Fat Tuesday Music Festival has rapidly become one of the most eagerly anticipated events in the South East and further afield in the nation’s music calendar. Named the most musically sophisticated town or city in the UK, Hastings boasts a local music scene to rival many bigger places across the country.

The whole area gets behind the madness, colour and eclectic musical diversity of the festival, whether part of the programme or not with venues, restaurants and bars across the town wildly decorated and bursting full of eccentric, costumed party-goers for the full five days. All of this has earnt Hastings Fat Tuesday a reputation as one of ‘12 best places to party in the World’ (The Telegraph).

2018 umbrella parade Hastings Fat Tuesday music festival. Credit Mark Richards.

The full line-up of bands announced includes: Horse Meat Disco; The Magic Numbers Will Varle; Mr Wilson’s Second Liners; The Future Shape of Sound; Danny George Wilson; Buddha Triangle; Blabbermouth; Breezer; BUNCH; Creature Creature; Don’t Look; Dubinski; Elisha Edwards; Ese & The Vooduu People; Haystingers; Hornman; Hot Wax; Illinois Verses; Irish Passport Band; Jason Stirling; Kim Cosmik; King Size Slim; Kinsella; Large 90s; Lavz; Martin Ledner; Matt James; Message from the Ravens; Michele Stodart; Mighty Sounds; Miss Melody; Montague Armstrong; Mr Thing; Murderers are Optimists; Office for Personal Development; Pepe Belmonte; Plunk; Port & Starboard; Sabrina; Savage 2nd Line ; Simon&thePope with Zuzushii Monkey; Sister Suzie; Someone Anyone; Somnians; Sonics DJs; The Albion Skiffle Co; The Great Malarkey; Tullis Rennie; Anna Page; Atli Dagur Stefánsson; Bellza; Caboose; Daniel Jacklin; Dendê; Entertaining Mr Stone; Fat Tuesday Club; Frank from Blue Velvet; Hastings CCE; Izzy Withers; Kay Iris; Kev Minney; Le Skiv; Lil’ Nate; Lily Ramona; Luna Barge; Mark J Lee; Milton Hide; Now & Then; Paul and Joe Stephen Band; Redcatz; Rosalind; Sambalanco; Scott Chisholm; Silent Natives; Some Rabbits; Stella West; Stormy T and the Bluesman’s Lane; Sugar Loaf Band; The Captain’s Beard; The Joe Clements Band; The Kukes; The Oakland Brothers; The Shady Pines; The Wots Duo; Tom Cole; Tom Fryer; Umbrella Birds; United Stoats of America; Victoria McDonnell and Voiceworks.

Listings and tickets will be found on the Hastings Fat Tuesday website.

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