Connect: Mogwai, Massive Attack, Chemical Brothers and The National confirmed for festival’s revival in Edinburgh

The revival of the Connect music festival at Edinburgh's Royal Highland Centre this year will be headlined by electronica giants Massive Attack and The Chemical Brothers and indie-rock favourites The National, organisers have revealed.

John Grant, Little Simz, Self Esteem, Jon Hopkins, Low, Bombay Bicycle Club and Black Coffee will all perform when the festival returns after a 14-year hiatus in August.

Mogwai, The Twilight Sad, Idlewild, Admiral Fallow and Optimo are among the big names drawn from the Scottish music industry appearing at the Ingliston arena.

The three-day event, which will have a daily capacity of around 15,000 people, will also feature Charlotte Adigéry and Bolis Pupul, Moses Boyd, Bonobo, Erol Alkan, Caribou, Chloe Moriondo, Sudan Archives and Black Country New Road.

It emerged earliest this week that Connect, which staged at Inveraray Castle in Argyll in 2007 and 2008, would be going ahead at the home of the Royal Highland Show at the end of August, on the final weekend of 75th-anniversary season of Edinburgh's festivals.

Mogwai, Idlewild, The Twilight Sad and Admiral Fallow all played at the festival at its previous home.

Other up-and-coming Scottish acts appearing in this year’s Connect include Scottish Album of the Year nominee Lizzie Reid, Lvra, who won the Sound of Young Scotland honour at the awards ceremony in Edinburgh in October, Hamish Hawk, Cloth, Nightwave and Swim School.

An official announcement on the line-up stated: “Uniting some of the most influential and truly pioneering names in music from across the world with the very best of home-grown heroes, Connect is a festival for music lovers and the first edition at the Royal Highland Centre in August promises to be one to remember.”

John Grant is playing at the Connect festival this year.

Connect's line-up has been announced by promoters DF Concerts after it confirmed it would be staging a series of 8,000-capacity “big top” concerts at Ingliston in June, with shows by Biffy Clyro, Snow Patrol, Madness, James, 50 Cent and Fatboy Slim so far.

DF Concerts chief executive Geoff Ellis said: “For some time now we’ve been working tirelessly and carefully to curate a captivating line-up for the first edition of our new iteration of Connect and we have been really excited to share it.

"While Connect is a brand new festival proposition, it will still retain many qualities from – and the ethos of – its namesake from 2007 and 2008, especially regarding the music, entertainment, food and drink programmes.

"We’re thrilled to be welcoming the very best in left-field talent from grassroots through to award-winning headliners to perform this year and we cannot wait to welcome fans to the Royal Highland Showground this August.”

Connect will be staged at the Royal Highland Centre in Edinburgh at the end of August.

Idlewild singer Roddy Woomble said: “Idlewild played the inaugural Connect festival in 2007.

“It was a unique Scottish festival in a wonderful location, so we’re delighted to hear it’s returning, and even more delighted to be playing at it in its new location.”

Admiral Fallow said: “We were lucky enough to perform both years at Connect first time round, back when we were just starting to make music together.

“As a young band, it felt really exciting to share a bill with such incredible artists, so it feels great to be asked to play at this year’s festival. We’re looking forward to getting back out in front of crowds of music fans again.”

Brit Award-winning rapper Little Simz in this year's Connect line-up. Picture: Nick Dale

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