I don’t know what you say about Desertfest London beyond I wish I was going. That’s all I’ve got. It’s a beautiful thing the Desertscene crew put together for 2025. A thing to admire. Whether you look at it with Elder‘s ascent to headliner status alongside Zeal & Ardor and Earth, all representing an expanded-style mindset, or are stoked for the likes of Stoned Jesus, Lowrider, Maha Sohona (who told me on Facebook they have a new album completely done; sadly there was no follow-up with “…and here it is so you can hear it”), Josiah, Dopelord, Bobbie Dazzle and Slift, or if you’re just happy Elephant Tree are getting back out, or that 10,000 Years are getting a look, or Black Willows who are so fucking heavy, or maybe you’re me and you’re just happy for a couple killer American bands set to make the trip: Kind, Hippie Death Cult, Worshipper, Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol, Castle Rat. I could go on here, but the point is there’s a lot to like. I won’t be there to see it, but knowing it’s a thing that’s happening on the same planet where I live is some comfort.

Oh, and yeah, like the headline says, day splits happened and Lowrider, Dopelord, Khan and a slew of others have joined the bill, which I guess is done now? We’ll see. Here’s what came down the PR wire:

DESERTFEST LONDON ANNOUNCES DAY SPLITS, DAY TICKETS & 15 NEW ARTISTS FOR 2025

Friday 16th May – Sunday 18th May 2025

Weekend And Day Tickets on sale now via www.desertfest.co.uk

Desertfest London have announced day-splits along with 15 more bands for 2025 in a line-up that promises to take its audience on a cosmic trip across the heavy realms this Spring in the heart of Camden Town.

The latest artists to join the 2025 fold include French celestial psych-metal trio Slift, seminal Swedish stoner rock trailblazers Lowrider, and Polish doom smokers Dopelord, making a long-awaited return to the Desertfest stage since their last appearance in 2018.

Elsewhere, Melbourne, Australia’s Khan will bring their hazy psychedelia back to the UK, while Norwegian quintet Dunbarrow have been summoned to bring their brand of proto-doom, played the old way, in a new age.

Desertfest 2025 welcomes its newest additions:
↠SLIFT
↠LOWRIDER
↠DOPELORD
↠KHAN
↠DUNBARROW
↠MAHA SOHONA
↠TORUS
↠WORSHIPPER
↠LONGHEADS
↠FROGLORD
↠DEVILLE
↠BLACK ELEPHANT
↠VERMINTHRONE
↠YETII
↠FREE RIDE

These latest additions join festival headliners Zeal & Ardor, returning to London to headline the Roundhouse after a triumphant sell-out of Shepherd’s Bush Empire on the heels of their critically acclaimed 2024 release ‘GREIF’.

Sunday sees Seattle drone legends Earth make their Desertfest debut, headlining the Electric Ballroom. This show marks their first appearance on UK soil in 6 years. Meanwhile, Friday headliners Elder will usher in the festival’s 13th edition with their progressive psychedelic sounds as they celebrate 10 years of ‘Lore’ at its rightful home on the Desertfest stage.

Desertfest 2025 Day Splits
FRIDAY 16TH MAY 2025
ELDER
STONED JESUS | LOWRIDER
THE DEVIL & THE ALMIGHTY BLUES | ELEPHANT TREE | HIPPIE DEATH CULT
SERVO | KIND | 10,000 YEARS | BLACK ELEPHANT | DEVILLE
VOLCANOVA | YETTI | ERRONAUT | FREE RIDE | DRESDEN WOLVES

SATURDAY 17TH MAY 2025
ZEAL & ARDOR
AMENRA | PALLBEARER | CONAN
PLANET OF ZEUS | AVON | SONS OF ALPHA CENTAURI
MAHA SOHONA | SCOTT HEPPLE & THE SUN BAND | TORUS
GREEN MILK FROM THE PLANET ORANGE | JOSIAH
EL MOONO | FROGLORD | WORSHIPPER | LONGHEADS
BARBARIAN HERMIT | LUST RITUAL | WITCHORIOUS | VERMINTHRONE

SUNDAY 18TH MAY 2025
EARTH
SLIFT | CHÖD | DOPELORD
CASTLE RAT | KHAN | RICKSHAW BILLIE’S BURGER PATROL | DUNBARROW
MR BISON | THE HAZYTONES | BOBBIE DAZZLE | BLACK WILLOWS
KING BOTFLY | SLUMP | THIS SUMMIT FEVER

Weekend and Day Tickets can be found at: www.desertfest.co.uk

Desertfest London ↠ 16th -18th May 2025
Camden Town, London

http://www.desertscene.co.uk/support
https://www.facebook.com/DesertfestLondon
https://www.instagram.com/desertfest_london/
https://www.desertfest.co.uk/

Kind, Close Encounters (2023)

The UK being the hotbed that it has been for heavy acts over the last, say, 50 years, I guess you can do this kind of two-day festival there comprised mostly if not entirely of homegrown outfits and still have it be both a show well worth seeing — think the borders will be open by September? — and the kind of thing where you could easily add another day of bands. I don’t know what social-distancing regulations will be in place in Manchester come end of summer, and to be perfectly honest with you, I don’t care. Elephant Tree and Conan headlining a two-dayer after live music has been on pause for a year and a half? That’s a gig worth watching if the floor’s made of lava, never mind whether or not you’ve been vaccinated.

People gonna be d-r-u-n-k.

I probably don’t need to tell you how refreshing I find it to see a list of logos and band names on a poster, even one with a cartoon butt. Again, I don’t care. I’ll take what I can get at this point.

Friggin’ Sigiriya? Chubby Thunderous? It’d be like five years’ worth of the UK-based bands I’d love to see all piled onto one bill.

Alas:

Finally the day has come to release the line-up we’ve been so eager to share with you all.

We know it was a great disappointment not to be able to host shows in 2020, but this is set to be such a monster of a weekend to make up for it.

Special thanks to the support from our partners in Lizard King Promotions / Stonebaked Promotions / The Sophie Festival

Event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/192423792629484/

Tickets and other goodies can be found here: https://riffolutionpromotions.bigcartel.com/

Here’s our line-up:
Conan / Elephant Tree / Telepathy / OHHMS / Ten Foot Wizard / Desert Storm / Witchrider / Pijn / Tuskar / Under / Ritual King / Cybernetic Witch Cult / Chubby Thunderous Bad Kush Masters / Sigiriya / Lacertilia / Morass Of Molasses / Everest Queen / Duskwood / Deltanaut / Orbital Junction / Mother Vulture / Trevor’s Head / SODEN / Son Of Boar / Pelugion / Torus

https://www.facebook.com/events/192423792629484/
https://www.facebook.com/Riffolution/
https://riffolutionpromotions.bigcartel.com/

Elephant Tree, Live at Buffalo Studio & The Preservation Room