Mumford & Sons talk bringing Gentlemen of the Road to Latitude 2017 • Festivals • DIY Magazine

Over the past five years, Mumford & Sons have brought their Gentlemen of the Road stopovers to all corners of the globe, headlining one-day festivals filled with their favourite acts. This July, they’re taking it one further. In the middle of a 2017 filled with writing album four and touring with U2 (natch), they’re taking over the Saturday of Latitude with the biggest Gentlemen… event yet.

“Latitude is going to be an all-day party for us, we can’t wait! All four of us have spent so long picking our favourite new acts to come and share the day with us, and it’s so brilliant to be in a position to do this,” the band’s Ben Lovett explains. The takeover is an opportunity for Mumford & Sons to big up bands they’ve taken out as support on tour, and also just some personal new favourites.

Jack Garratt will headline the BBC Music Stage, after supporting the band on their huge 2015 UK tour. This helping hand is something Mumford & Sons received back in 2009. “The Maccabees invited us to support them on their UK tour almost ten years ago, and at that time it was such a big a for us to be able to be exposed to such a bigger audience. For us to be able to give this opportunity to bands now is a brilliant thing.”

Maggie Rogers plays Latitude’s BBC Music stage at 16:10, Saturday 15th July

“For us to be able to give this opportunity to bands now is a brilliant thing.”

For Ben personally, the Gentlemen of the Road takeover at Latitude is particularly special, as it sees acts who have passed through his own venue, Omeara in London, graduating to their biggest stages yet. In the past six months alone, the likes of Jorja Smith, Maggie Rogers, and Declan McKenna (who played our own Class of 2017 launch party at the venue in December) have all played hugely hyped, sold-out shows there, and are now racing on to even bigger things.

For Mumford & Sons themselves, their Latitude headline slot comes in the middle of a year that’s relatively quiet for the band, while they work on new material. “We’ve been writing a whole bunch, and it’ll be nice to get back out there, especially at such a special event.” Latitude comes after a series of gigs supporting U2 on their 30th anniversary tour for ‘The Joshua Tree’, and prior to a series of big sets across mainland Europe.

Declan McKenna plays Latitude’s BBC Music stage at 15:00, Saturday 15th July

“Latitude is going to be an all-day party for us, we can’t wait!"

The day marks the first time Latitude has given a band free reign to pick bands for the line up. Another example of the Suffolk bash giving back to bands who have grown alongside the festival, Mumfords having played huge, year-defining sets at multiple Latitudes on their path to the domination that is now the norm for Ben and co.

Also bringing along collaborators Baaba Maal and The Very Best, the Saturday of Latitude is set to bring together everything that’s soundtracked Mumford & Sons’ lives of late, before the world-beaters finish the night off. “It’s something we’ve been thinking about for so long, and I can’t wait until it’s here,” concludes Ben. “See you at the bar!”

Latitude takes place 13th - 16th July.

Tags: Mumford & Sons, Latitude, Festivals, Features