The lineup for London’s Polyfest 2018 has been revealed.
The festival will take place at Dublin Castle in the city on November 3 and 4 and has been organised to recognise the life and career of late X-Ray Spex vocalist Poly Styrene.
The two-day event will also celebrate women in music and coincides with the 40th anniversary of the release of X-Ray Spex’s classic debut album Germfree Adolescents album.
Fuzzbox will headline the event, with Vickie Perks and Maggie Dunne from the band saying they are both excited about being part of the festival.
Perks says: “When you hear the first We’ve Got A Fuzzbox And We’re Gonna Use It!' album, Bostin’ Steve Austin, our love of X-Ray Spex is evident. We would sometimes jam X-Ray Spex songs and play around with the idea of covering one of the songs, but we sounded too similar to do them justice!
“We felt that we had a lot in common: pushing boundaries for women in music, non-conformist image, mixing alternative, edgy music with pop-centric lyrics and concepts, using irony and satire – and I definitely love a good ol’ whoop!”
Dunne adds: “It’s hard to imagine the influence of Poly on working class girls from Birmingham. She wasn’t the pretty girl pop-star we were used to either in looks, vocals or lyrics.
“Instead of singing about being in love and how heartbroken we should all be, she challenged us to think about our Identity, to turn the world day-glo and reminded us we were Germfree Adolescents.
“It’s more than obvious that Fuzzbox were influenced by her work lyrically and musically. We made valiant attempts at playing saxophone and our lyrics weren’t concerned with lovelorn teenage girls.
“We didn’t try to look ‘pretty’ either. Poly liberated a whole generation of post punk women. Thank you!”
Other artists confirmed for Polyfest 2018 include Doctor And The Medics, The Vapors, Modern Romance, Toto Coelo and Sub Sub’s Melanie Williams. Find a full lineup poster below.
