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FESTIVALS OF THE SUMMERCULTUREMANCHESTER INTERNATIONAL FESTIVALJoe HenthornCarolynne EditorJack SmithAssistant EditorLATITUDEJOE HENTHORNCAROLYNNE EditorKENDAL CALLINGManchester International Festival returns thisyear between the 4th and the 21st of July. Inprevious years the festival has turned heads forthe ridiculously big musical names it has somehowmanaged to pull in; Kraftwerk played atthe city’s iconic Velodrome back in 2009, and in2011 premiered her Biophilia project. This year,however, the musical highlights are more varied- Mogwai, the xx and Massive Attack are themain attractions – and don’t threaten to steal thelimelight from everything else that’s going on.‘It has the advantage of being aproper two-week arts festival,as opposed to the expensiveweekenders on this list’Performing arts in particular lovers will haveplenty to gawp over. Kenneth Branagh returnsto his Shakespearean roots in a new productionof Macbeth, and Maxine Peake will perform aversion of Shelley’s epic about the Peterloo Massacre,The Masque of Anarchy, just metres fromwhere that massacre took place. And for cashstrappedarts-lovers, free art exhibition do it 2013, curated by Hans-Ulrich Obrist, promises to‘turns the notion of viewing into an active andperformative encounter between artist and visitor’,and runs for the entire festival.It has the advantage of being a proper twoweekarts festival, as opposed to the expensiveweekenders on this list, making it ideal for boredLancastrians looking to stuff their emptySummer Terms with culture. Ticket23 prices vary between events, but studentsget £5 off.Latitude has managed to sneak under most people’sradar over the last few years while becomingone of Britain’s most critically acclaimed festivals.While it may be run by Festival Republic,that behemoth of the festival circuit that is alsoresponsible for inflicting Reading & Leeds on us,it manages to foster that boutique, high-browatmosphere that readers of The Guardian love.The line-up is something to behold. Kraftwerk(KRAFTWERK!) bring their 3D show to Suffolk;fans will receive 3D glasses through which toview the performance, which will most probablybe one of several aids that the crowd use to enhancetheir experience. Foals also make the stepup to a headline slot, which you could prettymuch tell was their next intended career moveby listening to their latest effort, Holy Fire. Alittle harder to explain is the presence of BlocParty as the opening headliner. The highlightsare lower down the bill. Hot Chip and ModestMouse could (and perhaps should) be higher upthe bill and are well worth a view. Similarly,Everything Everything, alt-J, Yeah Yeah Yeahsand Beach House help create an eclectic lineupthat will please a wide variety of tastes.‘It manages to foster thatboutique, high-brow atmosphereTHAT GUARDIAN READERS LOVE.’Also, don’t forget the comedy - an area Latitudeconsistently does well. Sean Lock! DylanMoran! Mark Watson! Marcus Brigstocke! FestivalRepublic could happily pass Latitude off asa comedy festival and you would probably stillfeel like you got your money’s worth.Oh, Lancaster. So isolated, so cold, so grey.It may well have escaped your attention, butall of the festivals on the list are a little... outof the way. What is it with the people whoorganise these things, setting up all thebest festivals in farty little bits of southern,middle-class countryside? It’s as if they thinkLondon is where all the money is...Fortunately, us Northerners, and usLancastrains especially, are now well coveredby the consistently excellent KendalCalling festival. Set deep in the heart of thebeautiful lake district, it boasts an incredibleline-up for a festival of its size; headliners includethe Charlatans, Primal Scream and - ina surreal yet incredible coup for the festival –Public Enemy.‘us Lancastrains are now wellcovered by the consistentlyexcellent Kendal Calling festival’There are some real treats further down theline-up too, with Dutch Uncles, Wave Machinesand Theme Park all making appearances. Thenthere’s the usual assortment of food, beer andarty-farty-ness that you would expect from afestival like this – organic poets, vegan chickens,and 19.8% alcohol cider made with locallysourced apples and cow piss are all to be expected.Getting there takes half an hour and willcost you a mere £5.30 with a railcard, and ticketsare well priced at around £120. And thereprobably won’t be many people from Londonthere, as if you needed another excuse to go...