End Of The Road Festival opens for the 2025 edition
End Of The Road Festival
28th – 31st August Larmer Tree Garden
Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory headline the opening night
Youth Lagoon, Westside Cowboy, Getdown Services, La Sécurité and more open festival
“Women can headline festivals” said Sharon Van Etten during her set in which she also noted this was her first ever festival headline and that everyone she had met involved In a career spanning set, the singer showed an impressive command of her songs with a stage presence that hints it won’t be her last time at the top of the bill. Her set started with material off her new album with The Attachment Theory before playing hits like ‘Seventeen’ and ‘Every Time the Sun Comes Up’ during a set in which she also noted how everyone she had met at the festival was full of lovely people. She returned back on stage armed with just a guitar for a short solo encore before welcoming Australian singer Angie McMahon on for the final song alongside the full band to cap off a night full of gothic elegance and rich arrangements.
End of the Road festival is open with a record number of guests on the opening day of their SOLD OUT 2025 edition. Kicking things off over at The Folly stage were Coventry punk-rap group shortstraw. who won the Next Wave competition and lit up the folly with their high energy. Montreal art-punkers La Sécurité played a blistering set before Rogê brought some Latin flair to proceedings. Anna Erhard held a packed tent captive before Getdown Servicesclosed the stage with their anarchic live show laced with comedy and grooves in equal measure.
Earlier on over at the Woods Stage, Next Wave winners Daraa Tribes took the audience on a hypnotic journey through Morocco’s Daraa Valley before Manchester newcomers Westside Cowboys tore up the stage with their grungy romanticism. Performing as a trio to a huge crowd as the sun came down, Youth Lagoon, fronted by Trevor Powers’ fragile falsetto, returned to the festival to perform their cinematic Americana.
With the full site opening up today, revellers can head to the Garden Stage, The Boat, Talking Heads or simply go for a wander and explore the magical pleasure gardens between the bands. Fans can look forward to sets from Caribou, Matt Berninger, These New Puritansand Joy Orbison as well as three secret sets at the Folly Stage on Friday night with so much more to come over the weekend. There is also a stacked schedule of literary talks, comedy, cinema and all sorts of other activities.
About End Of The Road Festival
Founded in 2006, the 2025 edition of End Of The Road is its 19th festival. Taking place from 28 to 31 August at the Larmer Tree Gardens site on the border of Dorset and Wiltshire, the festival welcomes 13,500 attendees across the weekend. End Of The Road has five music stages and will feature over 100 live music performances and also boasts a thrilling comedy and literature programme as well as an eclectic array of the best independent food and drink stalls.
End Of The Road is committed to being a safe and inclusive space for all its attendees, workers and performers. For more information on their Safer Spaces initiatives and procedures, please click here.
End Of The Road takes pride in being an Eco-Friendly Festival. They have initiatives in place that actively reduce plastic waste, provide clean drinking water, and invest in rewilding and reforesting projects amongst many others. For more information on the festival’s environmental impact, please click here.
Early bird tickets for the 20th Anniversary go on-sale on Tuesday, 2 September at 11am.