Berlin Festival 2012 boasts an awesome line-up

Here are two questions that you will, without doubt, answer 'yes' to. 1. Do you like Berlin? 2. Do you like music festivals? See, told you. Double affirmatives all round. Well, combine the two and what have got? A pretty frickin' sweet way to spend a couple of days, that's what.

The Berlin Festival takes place at the historic Tempelhof Airport on September 7th and 8th and there are so many amazing acts to feast your eyes and ears upon. Like (deep breath): Grimes, Django Django, Dada Life, Sigur Rós, Franz Ferdinand, Orbital, Little Dragon, Friendly Fires, The Killers, Metronomy, SBTRKT, Daughter, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Clock Opera, Of Monsters And Men, Friends, Kate Nash, First Aid Kit, Nicolas Jaar, Miike Snow, Crocodiles, When Saints Go Machine ... the list goes on and on.

This years edition will also play host to the world’s biggest Silent Arena Aftershow Party. With 10,000+ headphones, ticket holders will be able continue partying like silent mentalists after the final main stage performance from midnight till 4am. There will also be an Art Village showcasing over 60 national and international artists. Urban art, murals, performances, sculptures and more will all be on show plus an art bazaar, bars, booths, and the Design & Record Label Market as well as the art prize and a costume competition.

A day ticket is stupidly cheap, at EUR 49 + bf, while a two-day ticket is EUR 74 + bf. A Berlin Festival + Club Xberg Kombiticket will set you back EUR 89 + bf. Score your tickets today and we'll see you there kiddos!

Keep an eye on the Facebook page for further announcements, and see the full line-up at www.berlinfestival.de

First Aid Kit - The Lions Roar

First Aid Kit, aka duo Johanna and Klara Söderberg, first got chins wagging when they posted a cover of Fleet Foxes' ballad Tiger Mountain Peasant Song on Youtube. A couple of million hits and an album later, they return with their second long-player, which is their first full-band effort and was recorded in Omaha with producer Mike Mogis, while their dad played bass.

Following on from their debut, and also retaining their love for Fleet Foxes, the Swedish sisters deliver beautiful, swooning and sweeping folk which sounds far more American than it does Swedish. The album's foreboding title track opens things up with a sense of honesty that flows throughout. “I'm a god damn coward/But, then again, so are you,” the siblings sing with conviction before the mood is lightened by the beautiful country of obvious single, Emmylou. “I'll be your Emmylou and I'll be your June, if you'll be my Gram and my Johnny too,” they chirp, in a song that gives a clear nod to the band's influences. The harmonious breakdown of the catchy-yet-gloomy To a Poet illustrates the pair's strong vocals. They sing with a crystal clarity that suits the sound of a record which manages to create a warm, textured atmosphere while remaining clean-sounding and unfussy.

The record ends with joyously ramshackle hoe-down King of the Road. A hand-clappy, upbeat Mariachi romp, it features The Felice Brothers and Conor Oberst – a sign that First Aid Kit are making friends in all the right places. If they keep on putting out such charming and emotionally engaging music, they will surely continue to make a whole lot more friends and fans.

Review by Bobby Townsend. It first appeared in Sydney's Drum Media.