Sideways is the latest addition to the Helsinki Festival scene, a two day celebration of Music and art, also with talks and discussions, held this year in Teurastamo, the much renovated old abattoir area in Kalasatama. It will be held for the first time on June 12^th and 13^th, and in addition to a feast of music and art there will also be a large variety of street food and beverages on offer.

The festivals musical line-up boasts almost 50 artists from the US, UK, Sweden, and of course lots of home-grown talents. These range from cult favourites to newcomers, with a flavour of everything from post-punk and indie Rock to electro and hip-hop.

Sideways’ largest art event is the legendary rock photographer Bob Gruen’s first ever exhibition in the Nordics called ROCKERS, which opened in Pannuhalli, in the Cable Factory on May 29^th, and closes on June 17th. Part of the exhibition will be on display at the festival. Also on display will be a Ville Vuorenmaa art exhibition, and works by the acclaimed graffiti artist EGS.

Both festival days will be kicked off with talks program, topics varying from occultism to punk and embarrassing old diary excerpts and more! The side program includes activities such as an 80s arcade hall and group ping pong matches. To feed their appetite, festival-goers can choose from multiple local restaurants and food trucks and enjoy cocktails, craft beers and wines.

The headline act on Friday are post-punk and early industrial legends Killing Joke. With 14 studio albums under their belts, Killing Joke today are every bit as uncompromising today as they were 35 years ago when they released their first album. Over the years their sound has constantly evolved and changed, from the pounding industrial sounds of their early albums, through a heavier kind of pop of the mid to late 80s, through a techno-tinged experimentation, to the more metal-inflected anger of their more recent output. One thing the audience can be sure of: Killing Joke will deliver a set that will have bodies moving, and Jaz Coleman will be every bit as frightening/fascinating as he leads from the front.

Friday’s highlights include The Jesus & Mary Chain playing their debut “Psychocandy” live in its entirety. Released in 1985, Psychocandy was utterly unlike anything that had been heard before, a landmark and seminal work that took traditional pop song structures and drenched them in a wall of feedback. At once both abrasive and entrancing, it is clearly the forerunner of the later Shoegaze scene, and a hugely influential work for indie rock in general.

Also on Friday, US rapper Freddie Gibbs will be performing. His 3^rd album, Lifestyles of the Insane, is due for release later this year, so fans will likely get hear some of his newest material alongside songs from his previous albums and EPs. Freddie will be familiar to gamers as his work has featured on the the Max Payne 3 official soundtrack, the NBA 2K12 official soundtrack, and on the Grand Theft Auto V soundtrack.

Ariel Pink is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, known for his extremely eclectic approach to recording. Although this makes him a difficult artist to pigeonhole, his music to date can be best described as a mix of psychedelia and indie rock. He first began recording 13 years ago, and has managed to release over a dozen albums to date, so he’s quite prolific too.

Matthew E. White is the next American on the bill, and an artist certainly riding a wave of critical acclaim. His debut effort, Big Inner, released in 2012, was heralded by the hugely influential Uncut magazine as being “one of the great albums of modern Americana”, receiving 5 stars in The Guardian.

Mike Hadreas performs under the name of Perfume Genius, and his inimitable take on low-fi, indie pop is bound to charm the audience this summer. The Guardian wrote that he “sings with patient, melancholy sweetness over stately piano notes and a sepia wash of strings”; his sound is hypnotic, and his last album “Too Bright” was released to near universal acclaim.

Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde is the second act on Friday where a Band is performing their Debut Album in its entirety, this time an influential American hip-hop act who eschewed the predominant gangsta-rap of the West Coast for a more jazzy, playful sound full of humorous lyrics and lighthearted rhymes.

The Soft Moon is a mostly solo project by American producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist Luis Vasquez. The Soft Moon‘s music is primarily electronic-based, and covers a wide range of genres not limited to Krautrock, psychedelia, synthpunk, darkwave, and EBM. To date, The Soft Moon have released 3 albums, an EP, and 4 singles.

Beatrice Eli is an upcoming Swedish singer, songwriter and musician who first gained attention with her 2012 single “The Conqueror”. Her debut album, Die Another Day, was released last October, and its 12 tracks of bittersweet pop are further evidence that when it comes to song writing, Swedish girls are among the best. Her soulful vocal style ranges from soaring clarity to mumbled darker depths on heartbreak anthems like I’ll Be Fine, but with Beatrice Eli the talking points are always those lyrics.

Little Simz is an English rapper, musician, actress and singer. With her recently released her debut EP “E.D.G.E” she has brought a new level of intelligence, creativity and musicality to the global Hip Hop arena. At just 21 years of age, her meteoric rise over the past year has been both extraordinary and deserved. Little Simz is a charismatic, yet fierce performer, and so lyrically mature that she has grabbed the attention of Jay Z’s Life + Times platform, which premiered her 4th mixtape “Blank Canvas”. She has been widely tipped to become raps next big thing by Complex, High Snobiety, XXL, Variety, The Independent and The Guardian, to name a few.

The Finnish acts performing on Friday are: Asa & Band, Teksti-TV 666, Pimeys, Grave Pleasures, Aivovuoto, Khid & Tuuttimörkö, Aino Venna, Suad, Faarao & Kakspäinen narttu, Lasten hautausmaa, Dj Ibusal & Lobo, and The Hearing.

The headline act for Saturday night is Dizzee Rascal, an English grime MC, songwriter and record producer. His music is a blend of grime, UK garage, bassline, hip hop, and R&B. He is best known for his #1 hits “Dance wiv Me”, “Bonkers”, “Holiday”, “Dirtee Disco” and “Shout”, while his debut album “Boy in da Corner” won him the 2003 Mercury Prize. His follow-up albums “Showtime”, “Maths + English” and “Tongue n’ Cheek” have all been critically acclaimed. Since he began Dizzee Rascal has created music that explores new soundscapes with new technologies, with lyrics expressing anger at Britain’s “racialized” subordination of minority groups.

Earl Sweatshirt is an American rapper-producer and former member of the Los Angeles-based hip hop collective Odd Future. gained recognition and critical praise for his debut mixtape, Earl. He became rather famous for his lengthy hiatus, but since his return in 2012 has proven to be one of the most talented and promising rappers in the game.

José González is a Swedish indie folk singer-songwriter and guitarist who became most famous for his cover version of The Knife’s “Heartbeats”, which has been used in numerous TV shows as well as for the acclaimed Sony Brava ad. He was discovered in 2003 by Imperial Records, becoming their first official artist. His debut album “Veneer” was released in 2005 to critical acclaim. His trademark sound features classical guitar overlaid with soft vocal melodies.

Silvana Imam is a Swedish rapper, known for her uncompromising lyrics which underpin her stance as a feminist, lesbian, and anti-racist. Her most recent EP, “När Du Ser Mig – Se Dig” quotes Judith Butler’s gender theory; calls out racial discrimination in the labor market; and more or less calls for a feminist revolution.

…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead are an American alternative rock band from Austin, Texas, that have released 9 albums since their highly rated self-titled debut in 1998. The band has built a core following over the years, and is known for their wild, energetic concerts. Since emerging their sound has evolved from their raw take on post-hardcore, through progressive rock, to something akin to art-rock today. Their ninth studio album, IX, was released in November 2014.

Jack Garratt is a multi-instrumentalist from London, occasionally described as an “electro-troubadour”. A one-man band, Jack blends blues, soul and folk with slightly disorderly electro beats. He has been favourably compared to Ed Sheeran, and described as being James Blake and Jeff Buckley rolled into one. He is definitely one to watch out for, and is destined for greatness.

Shura is a singer, producer, remixer and video editor from London. The first taste of music from Shura was her single “Touch”, a post-break-up anthem which hit the internet in February 2014 to wide acclaim and quickly gathered 10 million YouTube views. Having emerged as the darling newcomer of sad face pop, Shura made her UK live debut in November of last year and is still something of a beginner when it comes to performing live.

English 5-piece, Fickle Friends first caught people’s attention in 2014 when their debut single ‘SWIM’ amassed over 750,000 plays on Soundcloud. Soon after the band became HypeMachine’s 25th most blogged artist of 2014, and have gone on to garner acclaim from Billboard and the BBC. Fickle Friends’ upbeat summertime synth-pop is sure to make them a firm festival favourite.

Also on Saturday’s packed bill you can catch the following Finnish bands: Uusi Fantasia, Paperi T, Lapko, Jaakko Eino Kalevi, K-X-P, Hisser, Pharaoh Overlord, Mirel Wagner, Tähtiportti, Ville Leinonen & Enkelit, Black Lizard, Pekko Käppi & K.H.H.L, Mikko Joensuu, Sur-rur, Gim Kordon, Kesä, O Samuli A, Tryer, and Fate vs. Free Willy.

Sideways tickets are available at Tiketti and Lippupiste; day tickets are priced from 58€ and 2 day tickets from 78€. The event is 18+.

The festival site address is Työpajankatu 2 and there are metro, tram and bus stops in close proximity. You can plan your public transport journey using Journey Planner.