SIZE MATTERS!
Block9 return to Glastonbury Festival with an additional field, a brand-new creation – IICON, and an unrivalled line-up of music legends including LARRY HEARD, TONY HUMPHRIES, JOSH WINK and THE BLACK MADONNA.
New for 2019 the Block9 area now comprises two adjacent fields – Block9 East and Block9 West – creating a space which is three times bigger, badder and chock-full of jaw-dropping artworks, underground music and extremely alternative performance.
Click here for full Block9 line-up and set times.
IICON
Be the first to witness the birth of IICON – a brand new, immersive 3D surround sound arena in Block9 East. Taking the form of a colossal, anonymised head, IICON is a pseudo-religious monument to the terrifying new realities emerging in our digital, post-truth age. This immense sculptural artwork and stage boasts a 6-point ambisonic sound system and is animated by state-of-the-art video mapping.
IICON showcases a vision of future music from the cutting edge of today’s underground, from Glitch-Funk Algorave and Post-Dubstep IDM, to Footwork, Grime, Electro and Cyber-Dub, with talent including OKZHARP & MANTHE RIBANE, MOOR MOTHER, LARRY HEARD LIVE feat FATIMA & PAUL CUT, LAUREL HALO, KODE9 and THE ZENKER BROTHERS.
IICON:AV-3D
Every night at IICON, Block9 presents AV-3D. An audio/visual translation of Olivier Messiaen’s masterpiece “Quartet for The End of Time”. The themes and narratives of the original work, which was created and debuted in a POW camp during WWII provide inspiration for this immersive examination of life lived in the digital panopticon.
BEYOND GLASTONBURY
In autumn 2020, Block9 are taking IICON on a global tour with the addition of an immersive interior show. Part gig, part club, part art installation, part theatre, the next chapter of IICON will be a completely new way to experience music. find out more.
NYC DOWNLOW
Block9 West welcomes you back to its pièce de résistance, the NYC Downlow. A multi-roomed temporary club space housed inside a life size film set replica of a seedy New York bathhouse-cum-meatpacking warehouse circa 1982.
With a motley crew of sexed-up go-go-boy butchers and gender-bending warriors hosting the cream of underground queer music, Resident Advisor calls The NYC Downlow “categorically one of the best clubs in the world”. Expect secret superstar performances, a new moustache entry system (the old hustles won’t work) a fetish party on Thursday night and a multiplicity of Janet Jackson looks.
This year the NYC Downlow has gone all Chicago meets New Jersey Westside, with guests of legendary proportions include TONY HUMPHRIES, MR FINGERS (LIVE), THE BLACK MADONNA b2b GARRETT DAVID, ERICK MORILLO, SWEELY & MIDLAND
50 YEARS OF STONEWALL
JONNY WOO’S resident drag troupe MAUDE ADAMS AND ALL THOSE CHILDREN have their very own line-up in store over the weekend, as they mark the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riot, the most celebrated event in the fight for LGBTQ rights to date.
Not sure what to wear to the NYC Downlow this year? We’ve got your back. Just consult Jonny’s personally curated outfit guide:
Thursday: Fetish night
Friday: Janet Jackson night
Saturday: Biggest Drag Ever / Smallest Drag Ever
Sunday: 50 Years of Stonewall
MEAT RACK
Hidden at the back of the NYC Downlow you will find The Meat Rack. Featuring the ultimate sleazy homo-centric line-up with names like LUKE SOLOMON & ROB MELLO, SMOKIN JO & WES BAGGALEY alongside DEPTFORD NORTHERN SOUL CLUB and Berlin’s STATHIS.
GENOSYS
Expanded to meet demand for 2019, Genosys takes centre stage in Block9 West. Created to explore the birth of analogue electronic music and its lasting legacy, artists this year include ANTHONY PARASOLE, JOSH WINK, HAAi, HONCHO, HANNAH HOLLAND, RANDOMER and LEEON.