Evolution Festival was a music festival held annually across Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead, England, from 2002 until 2013. The festival attracted tens of thousands of attendees every year and usually took place on the Quayside. Evolution Festival was briefly titled Orange Evolution due to a sponsorship deal with the mobile phone company Orange. It has been described as "the biggest festival Tyneside has ever staged".
Headline performers at Evolution Festival included Dizzee Rascal, The Wombats, Paolo Nutini and Maxïmo Park. Florence + The Machine, Amy Winehouse and Ellie Goulding all appeared at Evolution before the height of their fame.
In 2014 Evolution Festival did not take place, and although the organisers claimed it was only a "pause" the event has not been held since. A smaller event featuring local bands, Evolution Emerging, was held up until 2019, when it rebranded into Tipping Point live.
History Evolution Festival started in 2002. In 2003 the event took place on the Quayside for the first time, with performances from Moloko, Biffy Clyro and Inspiral Carpets. In 2004, due to funding restrictions, Evolution returned to its multi-venue format including a Shindig event headlined by Eric Morillo and Deep Dish. Evolution returned to the Quayside in 2005, sponsored by the mobile phone network Orange and featuring a three-stage event headlined by Dizzee Rascal and The Futureheads. Major Tyneside export Maxïmo Park headlined the 2007 event. In 2008, the festival ended its sponsorship with Orange and became known as Evolution Festival, and introduced an entry charge - of £3 - for the first time.
In 2009 the festival became a two-day event with performances from The Wombats, White Lies and Florence + The Machine. A folk stage was added in 2010. In 2012 the organisers of Evolution held a one-off edition of the festival at Avenham Park, Preston as part of the Preston Guild celebrations. The one-day event, titled GFest, featured performances from Maverick Sabre, Labrinth and Stooshe and attracted thousands of festival-goers. The 2013 edition of the main Newcastle event featured The Vaccines, Ellie Goulding, Paloma Faith and Jake Bugg.
In 2014 Evolution Festival did not take place, although promoters Jim Mawdsley and Dave Stone said that it was not the end of Evolution Festival. The festival has, however, not been held since 2013 and no news of a relaunch has been announced. The Evolution brand continues through Evolution Emerging, a multiple venue event that showcases new bands from the local region.
Line-ups
Orange Evolution 05
Spiller's Wharf Baltic Square Quayside EastThe Ordinary Boys Mylo Dogs Die In Hot Cars The Rakes El Presidente Dizzee Rascal Super Furry AnimalsThe Colour Carbon Silicon Fightstar Hard-Fi Vatican DC Kubichek The Futureheads Boy Kill Boy The OthersVic Goddard Charles Walker Candi Staton Misty in Roots Mark Eitzel American Music Club 50 Foot Wave Martin Stephenson & The Daintees
Orange Evolution 06
Spiller's Wharf Baltic Square Quayside EastHard-Fi The On Offs Graham Coxon Freestylers The Proclaimers Boy Kill Boy Sway Orson (band)The Go! Team Richard Hawley Jim Noir Field Music Liam Frost The Sunshine Underground Lorraine The Bulletproof Stonelove Soundsystem Indigo ColonyRichie Havens Hayseed Dixie Legendary Shack Shakers The Handsome Family Holly Gollightly Morfo The Eighteenth Day Of May
Orange Evolution 07
Spiller's Wharf Baltic Square Maxïmo Park Echo and the Bunnymen Joe Jackson The Enemy Kano Hot Club de Paris The Motorettes Hope MacDonaldSoulwax Nite Versions Calvin Harris Chromeo Simian Mobile Disco Datarock Shy Child Bonde do Role To My Boy
Evolution Festival 08
Spiller's Wharf Baltic Square The Streets Kate Nash Reverend and the Makers Duffy Glasvegas Lightspeed Champion The Whip This Ain't VegasCSS (band) New Young Pony Club Crystal Castles Does It Offend You, Yeah? Hercules and Love Affair Whomadewho The Ghost Frequency, Kinevil
Evolution Festival 09
Spiller's Wharf Sunday Spiller's Wharf MondayThe Wombats The Human League White Lies Imelda May Twisted Wheel The Puppini Sisters Detroit Social Club The Big Pink The Chapman FamilyDizzee Rascal The View The Maccabees Little Boots Nouvelle Vague VV Brown Kid British Little Comets Marina and the Diamonds Baltic Square Sunday Baltic Square MondayBoys Noize Chase & Status Kissy Sell Out The Count & Sinden Krafty Kuts and Dynamite MC Rusko Brodinski Japanese Popstars Yuksek James Yuill Doorly People Get Real TC Monckton Oli PMystery Jets Friendly Fires Ladyhawke Esser Ebony Bones Dead Kids Fan Death Viva City
Evolution Festival 2010
Spiller's Wharf Sunday Spiller's Wharf MondayPaolo Nutini Calvin Harris Tinchy Stryder The Futureheads Field Music Frankie & The Heartstrings Twenty Twenty Natalie Findlay Let's Buy HappinessEnter Shikari The Horrors De La Soul Ellie Goulding Dananananaykroyd Everything Everything Egyptian Hip Hop Minnaars Cosmo Jarvis Polarsets Baltic Square Sunday Baltic Square MondayFake Blood Benga Rusko Scratch Perverts Beardyman Filthy Dukes Doorly Jaymo & Andy George Eskimo Twins People Get RealDelphic Hadouken! Example Frankmusik I Blame Coco Ou Est Le Swimming Pool Lonelady Mirrors Retriever Ballast Hills Sunday Ballast Hills SundayThe Unthanks King Creosote Po Girl James Hunter & The Jokers Dawnlandes John Smith JT Nero & FriendsDonovan Baskery Lissie Smoove & Turrell Slow Club Danny & The Champions of the World Ben Howard
Evolution Festival 2011
Spiller's Wharf Saturday Spiller's Wharf SundayIggy & The Stooges Two Door Cinema Club The Kills Brother Hercules & Love Affair Flashguns Bravestation Waiting For Winter Vinyl JacketPlan B Tinie Tempah Example Darwin Deez Detroit Social Club The Cuban Brothers Spark Not Squares Viva City Baltic Square Saturday Baltic Square SundayKaty B Spank Rock Jamie Woon Cocknbullkid Gaggle Django Django Loose Talk Costs Lives Mammal Club ToygerCaribou Annie Mac Sub Focus & MC I.D Mount Kimbie Zinc Breakage live & Jess Mills Doorly Professor Ojo People Get Real Ballast Hills Saturday Ballast Hills SundayBilly Bragg CW Stoneking Smoke Fairies Pete Molinari Karima Francis Good Lovelies Cattle & CaneBellowhead Kathyrn Williams Mama Rosin Ellen & The Escapades Hurray For The Riff Raff Sam Carter Delta Maid
Note: Clare Maguire replaced Fenech Soler who were playing the Baltic Stage due to illness within the band. Note: Toyger replaced Clare Maguire who was playing the Baltic Stage due to a last minute cancellation.
Evolution Festival 2012
Spiller's Wharf Sunday Spiller's Wharf MondayDizzee Rascal Maxïmo Park Miles Kane Devlin Benjamin Francis Leftwich Dog Is Dead Lulu James Theme Park The Lake PoetsDeadmau5 Noah & the Whale Rizzle Kicks Band Of Skulls Where We Go Magic Spector Jessie Ware The Milk Mausi Ballast Hills Sunday Ballast Hills MondayDJ Fresh Jack Beats Shy FX Friction Toddla T Dot Rotten Citizen Codename:TyroneSBTRKT Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (Live) Maya Jane Coles Jackmaster Eats Everything People Get Real Mike Jones
Evolution Festival 2013
Spiller's Wharf Sunday Spiller's Wharf MondayThe Vaccines Ellie Goulding Rudimental The Strypes Arlissa The Lake Poets Rossi NoisePaloma Faith Jake Bugg Bastille AlunaGeorge Lulu James Drenge Eliza and the Bear Ballast Hills Sunday Ballast Hills MondayModestep Lethal Bizzle Loadstar Delta Heavy Dismantle Decibel Gentleman JonnySub Focus MistaJam Zinc Bondax Gorgon City P Money Chroma Dionysus
References
External links
Evolution Festival on Chronicle Live