Belle & Sebastian Announce Lineup for 2019 Festival Cruise, The Boaty Weekender

Scottish band Belle & Sebastian have announced the initial lineup for their 2019 music festival at sea, The Boaty Weekender, with more additions to come. The festival marks the 20th anniversary of the band’s original DIY festival, The Bowlie Weekender, in 1998.

The curated lineup as it stands now represents an eclectic amalgamation of indie/alternative rock and pop, with groups like Mogwai, Camera Obscura, Hinds, Django Django and Alvvays set to perform. Solo acts such as Kelly Lee Owens and Nilüfer Yanya are also sprinkled into the mix.

The four-day festival, produced in partnership with Sixthman and AEG Presents, is scheduled for Aug. 8-12 of next year and will sail the Mediterranean Sea from Barcelona, Spain to Cagliari, Sardinia. Each band is expected to play multiple sets across the cruise’s five stages in addition to the festival’s advertised “one-of-a-kind artist collaborations, insightful Q&As, storyteller and panel sessions, theme parties, group activities [and] custom event merchandise.” This is all on top of the 11 bars, 15 dining experiences, casino, outdoor pool, hot tubs and spa treatments that are available because, you know, it’s a cruise.

The pre-sale for the festival begins on Sept. 14. Guests are encouraged to register in advance for “the best selection of staterooms,” which, for the first 350 booked, will grant access to a performance of Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant, performed for the first time in its entirety by Belle & Sebastian. Every booked stateroom, however, will include a Boaty Weekender vinyl commemorating the event.

You can find out more about the festival, as well as register for the pre-sale, on its website here. Check out the lineup announcement and poster below, and read our February interview with Belle & Sebastian’s Stuart Murdoch here.