Five Bands We Can't Wait To See At Outbreak London
Thursday, 05 June 2025
Written by Sophie Pengelly
Photo: Alexis Gross
Breathe it in: an olfactory symphony of food trucks, beer burps and eau de chemical loo signalling that we are truly in the thick of festival szn. And what’s more exciting than a brand new event to add to your diary? Nothing, that’s what.
Fresh out the box for summer 2025, LIDO is a multi-day happening packed full of single-day festivals across a huge spectrum of genres. One particularly exciting entry is the London debut of hardcore institution Outbreak, which is sandwiched on the schedule between Jamie xx the previous weekend, and Charli XCX the following day. Hey, we told you the bill was varied.
Featuring a slightly smaller line-up extracted from the main fest in Manchester (which takes place later that same weekend), a carefully-curated selection of acts are set to tear up Victoria Park for a one-day blowout of stage dives, shoutalongs and sad songs on June 13, with the addition of headlienrs Turnstile, who are stopping off in London for what will be a UK exclusive appearance around the release of their new record ‘Never Enough’.
Despite the condensed line-up, there are still enough cracking bands on the bill that it may all feel a bit overwhelming, so luckily for you, we’ve compiled five unmissable acts on Outbreak’s offering that you’ll need to make sure you aren’t stuck in the merch queue for.
Turnstile
Turnstile really are that band right now. Having established themselves as chameleonic experimenters who are just as at home in the mile-long vape cloud of Coachella as they are amid a hardcore crowd, their live set sees them seamlessly shapeshift between the celestial, shoegaze-laced sound of 2021’s ‘Glow On’ and the breakneck intensity of their earlier years. Genre? Never heard of her, babe.
We hope we hear: Mystery
Before you go, learn the words to: Never Enough
Sunny Day Real Estate
Getting to see THE Sunny Day Real Estate in 2025 feels a bit like time-travelling into the heart of your teenage existential crisis, whenever that may have been. Having reunited in 2022 after an 11-year hiatus, their Outbreak appearances mark the band’s first time touching down in the UK since 2010, and while our knees may be that bit crunchier and our dancing shoes that bit dustier since then, the timeless melancholy of 1994 emo gospel ‘Diary’ is still guaranteed to hit just as hard in the present day. An act that carved out the emotional blueprint for all your favourite sad bands of today, Sunny Day Real Estate are not only masters of their craft, but they pretty much engineered its DNA.
We hope we hear: How It Feels To Be Something On
Before you go, learn the words to: In Circles
Momma
LA-born and NYC-based, indie band Momma are on an enviable trajectory right now. Taking notes from the introspective ‘90s alt-rock playbook but intertwined with refreshing little glimpses of optimism, they’ve cracked their own Gen-Z clientele while still managing to steer clear of made-for-internet-virality cliches. Fusing the grungy guitars of Pixies, the driving-top-down, sun-soaked pop hooks of Best Coast and the scuzzy grit of Hole, it’s their own emotional clarity and wisdom beyond their years that sets them apart in a genre that’s bursting at the seams. Dare we say, they could be the most exciting thing to come out of Southern California since the Sausage & Egg McMuffin.
We hope we hear: Stay All Summer
Before you go, learn the words to: Speeding ’72
Superheaven
Whether you’re getting kicked in the face by a rogue crowdsurfer or disassociating to the reverb in the back of the room, bands like Pennsylvania’s Superheaven remind us why we drag our overworked bodies to these stinky fields for even a crumb of the collective catharsis that they bring. While TikTok may have got its mitts on Youngest Daughter, it’s just evidence that their grunge-drenched gloom has the power to transcend generational barriers, with lyrical prowess that resonates as much with achy-breaky back 40-somethings as it does misfit teens trying to find their place.
We hope we hear: Gushin’ Blood
Before you go, learn the words to: In On It
Drug Church
No one can work a crowd like Drug Church. Dishing out angry rants with a wink and a nudge that stops things from ever feeling preachy, a live set from our favourite alt-punks is a scrappy, sarcastic sermon that could incite a riot about soggy paper straws when it’s delivered with enough conviction. Perpetually pissed and on the cusp of becoming a true legacy band, Drug Church are one of very few outfits that can bring existential dread to the party while simultaneously doing a keg stand.
We hope we hear: Unlicensed Hall Monitor
Before you go, learn the words to: Weed Pin
Outbreak Fest Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Fri June 13 2025 - LONDON Victoria Park
Sat June 14 2025 - MANCHESTER BEC ARENA
Sun June 15 2025 - MANCHESTER BEC ARENA
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