The Edge Festival

The Edge Festival was an annual music festival held in Edinburgh, Scotland, during August of each year. Formerly known as T on the Fringe, The Edge was part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest arts fringe festival (to the larger Edinburgh Festival).^[2] Unlike other music festivals, The Edge did not take place at one location, with performers instead playing numerous venues across the city during the month.^[3] The festival was founded under the T on the Fringe name by DF Concerts and Tennent's Lager, with DF continuing to promote the festival after the departure of Tennent's from 2008 until 2012.^[4]

The Edge Festival
The Edge Festival in 2009
Dates	varies; normally August of each year
Location(s)	various venues, Edinburgh, Scotland
Years active	2000 (2000)–2012 (2012)^[1]
Founded by	DF Concerts, Tennent's Lager
Website	http://www.theedgefestival.com

The festival began in 2000, with fifteen concerts in its first year. It was founded by Dave Corbett, after realising the lack of contemporary music taking place at the Edinburgh Festival.^[5] Since 2000, T on the Fringe has played host to some of the most commercially successful artists as well as the best in alternative and emerging talent. Over the years the event has seen performances by the likes of Pixies, Muse, Morrissey, Nancy Sinatra, Franz Ferdinand and Arcade Fire.^[6] The 2007 festival featured three concerts taking place at the 25,000 capacity Meadowbank Stadium, a record for the festival at the time.

History

2004 festival

Date Artist(s) Venue 10 August The 5.6.7.8's Liquid Room 13 August Zero 7 Corn Exchange Dido Aqualung Usher Hall 15 August Best of T Break Liquid Room John Power The Venue 16 August Laura Veirs 19 August Massive Attack Corn Exchange Ed Harcourt Liquid Room James Yorkston The Venue 20 August Mull Historical Society Liquid Room Josh Ritter A Girl Called Eddy The Venue

Date Artist(s) Venue 23 August The Charlatans Corn Exchange Hope of the States Liquid Room Kinky The Venue 24 August The Zutons Liquid Room Sons and Daughters The Fiery Furnaces The Venue 25 August 2manydjs Black Rebel Motorcycle Club Soulwax LCD Soundsystem Twitch Corn Exchange Kelis Liquid Room Yourcodenameis:milo The Venue

Date Artist(s) Venue 26 August Radio 4 The Futureheads The Venue 27 August Dashboard Confessional Liquid Room 28 August The Streets Corn Exchange Deus Liquid Room 29 August The Hives Corn Exchange Goldie Lookin' Chain Liquid Room 30 August Embrace TV on the Radio The Venue 31 August Morrissey Corn Exchange 1 September Jurassic 5 Corn Exchange Edwyn Collins The Venue

^[7] Embrace's performance at the Liquid Room was named "Best Gig of T on the Fringe 2004" by a judging panel consisting of the Sunday Mail, DF Concerts and Tennent's.^[8]

2005 festival

The 2005 festival took place between 5–31 August, with more than forty acts performing across five venues.^[9] The festival's main highlight was a performance by Pixies on 28 August 2005, playing as part of their reunion tour following a 12-year hiatus.^[10] The band performed at the city's Meadowbank Stadium, the first outdoor performance for the T on the Fringe festival, with support from Idlewild and Teenage Fanclub.^[9] The festival's other main draw was two homecoming performances by Franz Ferdinand in Princes Street Gardens on 30–31 August 2005, supported by Arcade Fire. The dates were the band's first performances in the country since December the previous year.^[11] Other headline T on the Fringe shows included The Prodigy, Alabama 3, The Zutons, Weezer, Basement Jaxx and Razorlight. During August, Edinburgh's Cabaret Voltaire venue hosted a number of free concerts, featuring former Squeeze lead vocalist Glenn Tilbrook, Michael Franti, Saul Williams, Trashcan Sinatras and Rachel Fuller performing acoustic sets between the 15—26 August.^[12] Idlewild would also play acoustically at the venue, appearing on 27 August prior to supporting Pixies. Idlewild's concert was later steamed online for three months following the festival, under the moniker of "T on the Fringe Radio". The broadcast also included a feature on the Best of T Break.^[13]

The festival was deemed a success by critics, with Lynsey Hanley of The Observer stating that "..[the festival's line-up] encompassed the past, present and future of alternative rock".^[10]

2006 festival

2006 saw 100,000 tickets sold for almost 60 gigs featuring 134 artists. Snow Patrol rocked the 22,000 Meadowbank Stadium crowd in what was their biggest headline gig yet, while at the same time breaking a record already held by T on the Fringe for the biggest show at the Edinburgh Fringe. Radiohead performed at the same venue supported by Beck and Muse played the following night supported by My Chemical Romance.

2007 festival

The 2007 festival took place on 4—28 August across four venues,^[14] with more than 60 events taking place.^[15] The festival was marked by the announcement of three large outdoor concerts taking place at Meadowbank Stadium, which had increased in capacity to 25,000 for the event. Two of the headlining acts were announced as Foo Fighters and Kaiser Chiefs,^[6] with Razorlight later confirmed to play the stadium. The three concerts marked the biggest performances in the festival's history.^[15] Support acts for Foo Fighters and Razorlight were later confirmed as Nine Inch Nails and Silversun Pickups, and Editors, respectively.^[16] As well as this, independent record label Chemikal Underground announced a showcase at the Liquid Room featuring Mother and the Addicts, Aidan Moffat and De Rosa, in honor of the record label's 100th release.^[17] The festival's full line-up, announced on 7 June 2007, was as follows:

Date Artist(s) Venue 4 August Tom Baxter Stephen Dosen Cabaret Voltaire 5 August The Law Luva Anna 6 August Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan Liquid Rooms 8 August Angus & Julia Stone Cabaret Voltaire 9 August The Magic Numbers Liquid Rooms Candie Payne Cabaret Voltaire 10 August Emma Pollock James My Federation Corn Exchange 11 August Silverchair Forever Like Red 12 August Calvin Harris Liquid Rooms 13 August Duke Special The Ghost Frequency Pete & the Pirates The Dials Cabaret Voltaire 14 August Seasick Steve Dave Arcari Liquid Rooms 15 August Amy Macdonald Cabaret Voltaire 16 August Kanye West Corn Exchange

Date Artist(s) Venue 16 August Kharma 45 Penny Blacks Cabaret Voltaire 17 August Paul Steel Stephen Fretwell Evan Crichton Liquid Rooms 18 August Broken Records Union of Knives Cabaret Voltaire 19 August Crash My Model Car The Orange Lights Jamie T Liquid Rooms 20 August Guillemots The City Cafe Liquid Rooms Figure 5 Sergeant Cabaret Voltaire 21 August Foo Fighters Nine Inch Nails Silversun Pickups Meadowbank Stadium Willy Mason Liquid Rooms 22 August Mother and the Addicts Aidan Moffat De Rosa Interpol The Maccabees Corn Exchange

Date Artist(s) Venue 22 August Scouting for Girls The Hussy's Cabaret Voltaire 23 August Hot Club de Paris Kate Nash Liquid Rooms The Shins Eugene McGuinness Corn Exchange 24 August Happy Mondays Castaway Kaiser Chiefs The View The Pigeon Detectives Meadowbank Stadium Soma Records showcase Cabaret Voltaire 25 August Turbonegro Liquid Rooms 26 August Razorlight Editors The Dykeenies Meadowbank Stadium The Sounds Liquid Rooms 27 August Dinosaur Jr. The Teenagers Wild Beasts Dan Deacon Cabaret Voltaire 28 August Jack Peñate Eagles of Death Metal Liquid Rooms

^[18] Guillemots were originally scheduled to perform at the Corn Exchange, but chose instead to play two separate smaller performances, at the City Cafe and later in the Liquid Rooms.^[19] Greg Forbes of festival website eFestivals said that Editors' supporting concert at Meadowbank Stadium "blew them away", outperforming headliners Razorlight.^[20] In 2008, The Independent reported the 2007 event had sold 130,000 tickets, highlighting that the total number of events taking place had now quadrupled from the festival's inaugural year.^[5]

2008 festival

In 2008, it was announced that T on the Fringe would be rebranded as The Edge Festival, following the end of DF Concerts' partnership with Tennent's.^[21]

2009 festival

The 2009 event took place between 1–31 August, with more than fifty artists performing across seven venues.^[22] Organisers secured a number of high-profile revival acts, including David Byrne, Magazine and Faith No More, the band's first Scottish performance in over a decade. As well as this, performers included ex-Lightning Seeds frontman Ian Broudie, The Bluetones, Mumford & Sons,^[23] Biffy Clyro, Frightened Rabbit, Andrew Bird, Unicorn Kid and Young Fathers, The Streets, Amanda Palmer, múm, Broken Records and Calvin Harris.^[24] The List named Unicorn Kid and Young Fathers in their Top 20 Festival Shows list for 2009, the only appearance by an Edge Festival performance.^[25]

2010 festival

The 2010 event took place between 5—31 August.^[26] It marked the return of the Cabaret Voltaire venue, which had suffered fire damage the previous year. The first acts were announced in June 2010, with Dizzee Rascal confirmed to play the Corn Exchange.^[27] Further acts announced included Mika, Professor Green, Tinchy Stryder, Eels, Modest Mouse, Beirut, The Coral, The Divine Comedy, Doves, Steve Mason and Colin MacIntyre, The Phantom Band, Pearl and the Puppets, We Were Promised Jetpacks, Kassidy, Broken Records, The Low Anthem, Little Feat, General Fiasco, Gomez, Tom Gray, Phoenix, Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly, Stornoway and dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip. The festival featured a performance by Michael Rother, formerly of Neu!.^[28]

References

1. Ferguson, Brian (1 April 2012), "The Fringe has lost its Edge after promoter DF Concerts shelves gigs", The Scotsman, retrieved 22 July 2012
2. Lee, Veronica (24 November 2009). "A London fringe festival? I don't think so". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
3. "Get Close to the Edge!" (PDF). Edge Festival press release. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
4. Penman, John (13 April 2008). "Tennent's launches music networking website". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
5. Pollock, David (1 August 2009). "Edinburgh Festival: Why the Fringe is rocking". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
6. McCormack, Gillian; Mungall, Jenny; Walker, Claire (2007). "This is a Call to all music fans as Foo Fighters and Kaiser Chiefs are the first to confirm for T on the Fringe 2007!" (PDF). T on the Fringe press release. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
7. . eFestivals. 4 August 2004. Archived from the original on 6 March 2012. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
8. Sloan, Billy (3 October 2004). "Billy Sloan: Stunt Dan wins T-itle". Sunday Mail. Retrieved 11 October 2010.
9. "T on the Fringe '05". eFestivals. Retrieved 22 June 2010. The festival featured performances at Edinburgh's Meadowbank Stadium, Princes Street Gardens, Corn Exchange, Liquid Room, and Cabaret Voltaire.
10. Hanley, Lynsey (4 September 2005). "Edinburgh pop: Pixies | Razorlight | Franz Ferdinand". The Observer. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
11. Nicolson, Barry (19 September 2005). "Franz Ferdinand/Arcade Fire: Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh, Wed Aug 31". NME. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
12. "FREE T on the Fringe afternoon shows!". eFestivals. 17 August 2005. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
13. ""T on the Fringe Radio" - two gigs online from T on the Fringe". eFestivals. 26 October 2005. Retrieved 24 June 2010.
14. "T on the Fringe 2007". eFestivals. 23 August 2007. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
15. McCormack, Gillian; Mungall, Jenny; Walker, Claire (2007). "Razorlight to Rip It Up at T on the Fringe 2007" (PDF). T on the Fringe press release. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
16. McCormack, Gillian; Mungall, Jenny; Walker, Claire (2007). "T on the Fringe announce killlers supports for Foo Fighters" (PDF). T on the Fringe press release. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
17. Pia, Camilla (16 August 2007). "Mother and the Addicts – The family way". The List. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
18. . eFestivals. 23 August 2007. Archived from the original on 14 October 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
19. "Guillemots downsize – two small shows set for T on the Fringe". eFestivals. 14 August 2007. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
20. Forbes, Greg (30 August 2007). "Meadowbank Stadium gigs – T on The Fringe reviews". eFestivals. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
21. "The Edge replaces T on the Fringe – Fringe gigs continue under new name". The List. 14 April 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
22. "Edge Festival 2009". eFestivals. 18 August 2009. Retrieved 22 June 2010. ..venues [..] including the Edinburgh Playhouse, HMV Picture House, Sneaky Pete's and Studio 24, as well as .. Cabaret Voltaire, Queen's Hall and the Corn Exchange.
23. "David Byrne, The Streets and The Stranglers set for Edge Festival 2009". The List. 10 June 2009.
24. Watson, Gillian (15 July 2009). "The Edge Festival @ Various Venues (Edinburgh), 7-31 Aug". The Fly. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
25. "Top 20 Festival Shows". The List. 12 August 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
26. . Virtual Festivals. Archived from the original on 1 May 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
27. "Dizzee tops bill at Festival Fringe". Google Search. Press Association. 10 June 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
28. Andrews, Euan (16 June 2010). "Preview: The Edge Festival". EdinburghGuide.com. Retrieved 23 June 2010.

External links

• The Edge Festival official website