Grooves on the Green takes place on 11 and 12 July and will feature live music on two stages, as well as its own local food and beer festival, a dedicated kids’ zone, literary interventions from the Freeway Poets and a mini film festival. The two-day family-friendly festival at Ashley Cross, Parkstone will once again raise money for Diverse Abilities Plus, which helps children and adults in Dorset who live with profound disability. In the last two years alone it has raised more than £9,000 for the charity.
Saturday’s Main Stage bill is headlined by Bournemouth groove machine The Baker Brothers with slinky jazz/d&b fusionists G13, Afro-Cubano-reggae mixers Afro Tallawah, jazz-soul-blues chanteuse Kaia, the laidback sunshine vibe of All About Tobe and local busking favourites Krista Green and the Bees also appearing.
On Sunday bill topper Mutant Vinyl is playing his only local show of the year at Grooves as he readies his Paul McCartney/Tricky-endorsed sound for the summer festivals. He’ll be appearing with indie pop classicists Duveaux, Southampton math-pop quartet Signals, Afrobeat indie pop merchants Not Made In China, long standing Bournemouth outfit Fearne and performance folkorists Wikkaman.
Meanwhile, hosted by Si Genaro from BBC’s The Voice, the Calling Stage will showcase the very best of Dorset’s unsigned talent with weekend highlights including the irrepressible Mother Ukers, Lithuanian-born indie-dance queen Klaudia, the robust garage beat of The Power Thief, hotly tipped singer songwrtter Lee Rasdall-Dove and chart topping Ivor Novello-nominated songwriter Ian Brown.
Grooves on the Green: 12 noon until 7pm. Day tickets £5 adults (£3 youths 12-16, under 12 free). £1 from every ticket goes to DAP. No glass on site.
