Okay, so their names are on the festival poster in much smaller print than Arcade Fire and Jay-Z, but these acts are well worth catching – and you can say you were there before they became huge, writes Tony Clayton-Lea
PROFESSOR GREEN
VODAFONE STAGE, SUNDAY
Now that Drake has pulled out of Oxegen (for family reasons – his mother is ill), Hackney’s Stephen Manderson (along with Example, see right) is flying the flag for low-on-the-bill-but-not-for-long hip-hop. Formerly signed to Mike Skinner’s record label (now to Virgin), Professor Green has just released his major-label debut album, Alive Till I’m Dead , and you can be thankful that it’s good enough to offset any old “English Eminem” comparisons. Expect a Plan B-like surge of popularity for this guy’s self-deprecating and lyrical rhymes. professorgreen.co.uk
Not a lot of people know that: Manderson is from a part of Hackney known colloquially as Murder Mile.
GENERAL FIASCO
HEINEKEN GREEN SPHERES, SUNDAY
This Belfast band – up for a Kerrang! best British newcomer award this year – have been around for a few years, biding their time and honing their craft while simultaneously picking up friends such as Snow Patrol (who they have supported on several occasions), Zane Lowe, Jenny Huston, and tastemakers at events such as SXSW. Attention-grabbing, often anthemic punk pop is their trademark, and if you happen to cop an earful of their recently released debut album, Buildings, you’ll hear clear echoes of The Enemy and The View. generalfiasco.co.uk
Not a lot of people know that: You can buy a General Fiasco tote bag for £10 via their website.
EXAMPLE
HOT PRESS ACADEMY TENT, SUNDAY
Elliot Gleave (28) got into hip-hop by listening to albums by the likes of Wu Tang Clan and Snoop Dogg, but he has long since forged his own singular style, which takes in elements of blues and what he terms “dysfunctional electro-pop”. Best known, perhaps, for Vile, his response to Lily Allen’s Smile, Gleave has since branched out into film-making and stand-up comedy, leaving him with plenty of career options should his music ambitions go belly-up. trythisforexample.com
Not a lot of people know that: In 1992, while at school, Gleave was bestowed the honour of Royal Mail Poet of the Year, winning his class a new computer.
CÉCILE
RED BULL MUSIC ACADEMY, SUNDAY
Stepping boldly into infinity and beyond, 21-year-old Italian DJ, producer and musician Cécile (aka Carlo Alberto) may have a background in classical music – he studied piano at Portogruaro’s Santa Cecilia Music School – but that hasn’t stopped him from creating bangers such as There’s No Justice , or getting jiggy with electro-punk. Expect space-synth tunes ( Andromeda ) and mellower tracks ( Una Domenica Italiana ).
Not a lot of people know that: When he was a child, Carlo broke his grandfather’s violin when he tried to play it as a guitar. Oops.