Party at The Palace 2017 Lineup

It goes without saying that having to get out of bed at 4am on a cold winters morning to start work absolutely sucks. But yesterday, as I attempted to kick-start myself with a strong coffee and a quick scan through Facebook, things took on a far sunnier vibe as I came across the lineup announcement for McEwan’s Party at The Palace 2017.

If you’ve followed decibelROGUE’s coverage of the previous PATP’s, you’ll know that I always seem to walk out of the arena at the end of the festival asking myself the same damned question: How on earth are John Richardson and his team gonna top what I’ve just witnessed the following year? Last year, which saw PATP crowned best Outdoor Festival 2016 at The Scottish Outdoor & Leisure Awards, was no exception. And as usual I found myself pondering THAT question at the end of it all.

Well, now we have our answer. And I’ll bet that everyone who took advantage of the early bird ticketing opportunity for this year’s event are feeling rather pleased with themselves right now, because this is without a doubt the strongest PATP lineup yet. Headlined by the Kaiser Chiefs on the Saturday evening and with Amy Macdonald closing out the festival on the Sunday night, PATP organisers have once again brought together a brilliantly diverse range of artists which will appeal to a really wide audience.

Although attention will mainly fall on the brilliant headliners, it’s important to remember that Party at The Palace is first and foremost just that – a party. And any good party needs a great soundtrack. So when you look through the lineup at bands like Ash, Razorlight, and the Lightning Seeds, then think about the fantastic songs that they have in their armoury, you can begin to see why this year promises so much. And I don’t care what anybody says, you can’t have a decent party with out a bit of Abba. You just can’t! So it’s brilliant to see Bjorn Again in there too.

Every year, somewhere in the lineup there’s a band which jumps out at you. This year, for me that band is Hipsway. After releasing their brilliant self-titled debut album back in ’86, the band were never able to build on that success, and subsequently split after releasing their second album. This was a real shame because songs like The Honeythief, Ask the Lord, The Broken Years and Tinder have gone on to be regarded in almost iconic terms. There is clearly still much love for Hipsway, since when they announced  a comeback show at Glasgow’s O2 ABC in November last year, it promptly sold out. So they announced a second date at the same venue the following night. And it sold out too. If you’re a fan of new wave music, you’ll love Hipsway. Potentially the music highlight of the weekend right here.

Over the years, Party at The Palace has been a brilliant supporter of local and emerging artists. This commitment was cemented last year with the addition of a second stage where the emerging bands could showcase their talent. Very often it is the first opportunity that these guys have to play on the big stage and it’s really cool to watch as they take their initial steps into a career in music. There will be a second stage again this year, with it’s lineup announced nearer the time. We’ll bring you that news as soon as it is announced.

There you have it then. Party at The Palace 2017 promises to be the best one yet. Having compared this year’s lineup to the inaugural event in 2014, it’s astonishing to see how far it’s come. But I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised, because the organisers strive year after year to improve and move forward. And the end product? The best party of the summer. If you’ve never been to one of these festivals, get yourself sorted with a ticket and we’ll hopefully see you down the front!

Links

You can follow Party at The Palace on Facebook HERE
Get your tickets from the official PATP website HERE