The Hanging Gardens of Brighton

The Hanging Gardens of Brighton is a modern wonder of the festival season

The Hanging Gardens of Brighton promises a decadent weekend on the Old Steine Gardens at the end of May. The three-day Fringe finale party boasts an exotic line-up of 50 plus acts encompassing dance, electro-swing, gypsy jazz, hip hop, latin beats, folk, ska, reggae, rock, balkan rave, dubstep, and a stunning mix of cabaret and circus, all hosted in The Garden and The Temple – two beautifully-decorated, wooden-floored marquees.
Londoners Alabama 3 top the bill for the opening night. Best known for penning the hit TV theme tune to The Sopranos, they will be preaching their special blend of electro pop, punk rock & country blues gospel to the Babylon faithful. The high-energy cranks up a notch with Saturday night headliner The Go! Team (pictured above). Twelve-piece Latin rock steady legends Ska Cubano take centre stage on Sunday, cooking up a huge sound to whip us all into skanking pilgrims.

Former Crash Test Dummy, Son of Dave guests on Friday. The Dub Pistols will get the Saturday party going in earnest with their genre-mashing big beats, and Jamie Catto, formerly of super-group Faithless, also drops by. White Mink and Molotov Jukebox, led by Natalia Tena (of Harry Potter fame), provide the dirty electro-swing gypstep to close the proceedings on Sunday.
Brighton’s Carnivalesque are charged with leading the Babylon congregation astray throughout, joined by the Ramshackle Circus, La Bordello Boheme and Shambolic Circus. Expect funtastic antics. Fancy dress optional.

The Hanging Gardens Of Brighton, Old Steine Gardens, 25–27 May 2012
£30/£25, 01273 917272, www.babylonfestivals.com