Rockaway Beach is an annual music festival in England, held at the Butlin's holiday resort in Bognor Regis. It was founded by Ian Crowther in 2015,[1] devised as a live mixtape that would differ from other festivals by having as few stage time clashes as possible, compared to other festivals. The festival has previously seen appearances from some of the world's biggest touring live acts including Gary Numan, Echo and the Bunnymen, Killing Joke, and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark.
The festival is uniquely held in an English seaside town in the middle of winter, being the first weekend of each January. It is noted as the only major music festival that was able to take place in 2020 due to following events being cancelled during the covid pandemic, and also for being the first music festival headlined by both Fontaines DC and Porridge Radio.
The first Rockaway Beach event was in October 2015,[2] moving to the January of each year from 2018 onwards. The 2020 edition of the event went ahead a few months before the Covid pandemic forced numerous events to be cancelled across the country, making it one of the only live music events which happened that year. It then took 2021 off as many other UK and international live shows did, returning in 2022.[3]
Artwork for the festival is inspired by the New York subway iconography. The event itself taking its name from the Rockaway Beach area of New York, which is also a song by New York punk band The Ramones. Due to its timing in January, it is regarded as an early tastemaker event in the live music calendar, being regularly covered by national and music press including The Times, The Guardian, and NME.
Format
The festival happens at the Butlin's resort in Bognor Regis. It is a non greenfield festival, meaning there is no camping at the event. Instead guests stay in accommodation such as hotels and chalets which are incorporated into the festival's perimeter. This also includes a swimming pool complex, arcades, and various bars and restaurants on the festival site.[4]
Live artists perform across two live stages, which are run in tandem. The festival hosts around 35 live performances at each edition across three days and nights, which span the first Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in January.
Over the years the festival has added fringe programming outside of live music performances, which include pool parties, Q&As with artists, pub quizzes, film and documentary screenings, themed silent discos, and artist bingo. Some of the notable artists that have participated in Q&As with a live audience have included Killing Joke, Gary Numan, Yard Act, Leftfield, The Cribs, and The Jesus and Marychain.
Best-selling author John Robb (musician) has conducted many of the live conversations during the event, alongside author John Duran, Radio X DJ Sunta Templeton, and Chris Hawkins.
The festival is primarily post-punk, punk, alternative, alt-pop, new wave, and electronic orientated and is attended by an audience of over 18-year-olds. Due to musical genres the festival caters for, alongside being held at a family holiday resort (despite being an adults-only weekend), Rockaway Beach has been compared to All Tomorrow's Parties (festival) which ran from 1999 to 2016.[5][6]
The year was notable for having the first festival headline performance by Fontaines DC, who were announced to headline before their debut album was released.[8]
2022
Due to Covid, there was no event in 2021. Following a spike in the Omicron variant of Covid, much of the line-up was changed in the weeks heading into the festival though, to account for artists that were no longer able to travel or perform. The event went ahead with a revised line-up to the one originally announced.
Jarvis Cocker, Porridge Radio, and Tricky headlined the festival, with performances also from A Certain Ratio, Buzzcocks, The House of Love, and Do Nothing.
2023
It was announced by NME[9] that Self Esteem would headline the festival, alongside Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, and Peter Hook & The Light. Other performers included from Yard Act, Anna Meredith, and Billy Nomates.[10]
Self Esteem had previously played at the festival in 2020, returning in 2023 as a headliner. The year also saw the first UK performance of Sonic Boom and Panda Bear (musician)'s collaborat "Reset" project.
2023 saw new collaborator Chris Hawkins (BBC Radio 6 Music) join the festival, hosting artist conversations in front of an audience.
In March 2023, God Is in the TV championed the diversity and gender balance of the festival,[11] drawing attention to its regular booking of an equal amount of both male and female artists, including multiple female headliners as well as artists of colour.
2024
In May 2023, it was announced by NME[12] that Sleaford Mods, The Cribs, and The Selecter would headline the festival, with performances also from Bob Vylan, The Vaselines, Big Special, Hinds, and Skids.
2024 saw a collaboration with Fierce Panda Records over the weekend, with label founder Simon Williams delivering a keynote conversation about the label alongside author, musician and broadcaster John Robb (musician).
2025
In May 2024, it was announced[13] that the next edition of the festival was set to take place on 3–5 January 2025 with headliners Spiritualized, who played at the first edition of Rockaway Beach, as well as Leftfield and RIDE. Arab Strap, Georgia, SPRINTS, The Itch, The None, Hamish Hawk, and Bodega were also confirmed.[14]
During this edition, the festival used a new stage on the Butlin's site called Studio 36, that had been newly built.
The Times were among those to review the festival. Focusing on Spiritualized's performance, the publication noted "the band gave 2025 a grandiose launch",[15] while Dork magazine stated "Rockaway Beach is still the best way to blow out the cobwebs and start the year strong".[16]
Response
The festival has received praise from national newspapers as well as music industry press over the years. The Quietus called the festival "Truly enjoyable,"[17]The Guardian saying it's "a weekend of diverse indie rock that's often as bracing as the wind whipping off the Channel,"[18] and Dork (magazine) has said "There's no better way to start the year than Rockaway Beach."[19]The Times has called the festival "a riot"[20]
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