Five Oxegen '09 acts announced

The first acts for Oxegen have been announced, with Kings of Leon set to make their only Irish appearance of 2009 at the summer…

The first acts for Oxegen have been announced, with Kings of Leon set to make their only Irish appearance of 2009 at the summer music festival. Joining the Tennessee rockers will be Bloc Party, Snow Patrol and The Script, along with pop starlet Katy Perry.

The three-day festival will take place at Punchestown Racecourse on July 10th, 11th and 12th. Promoters MCD rolled out the event across three days for the first time in 2008.

There was speculation this week that they would add yet another day to the festival. This was due to a “test site” appearing online during the week, indicating that the music would start at 6pm on Thursday 9th and finish at 6pm on Sunday 12th. MCD insist the event will remain a three-day one.

Although Kings of Leon were selected by fans on a www.oxegen.ie poll as the act they most wanted to see return to Punchestown, the announcement has also instigated a wave of discontent online from a section of festival-goers, who contend that the band are a predictable choice.

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More acts will be announced over the coming days. Tickets go on general sale on Friday, March 6th, although fans registered at the official website can avail of a pre-sale from February 25th onwards.

Lauren Murphy

Lauren Murphy

Lauren Murphy is a freelance journalist and broadcaster. She writes about music and the arts for The Irish Times