VV Brown will play thelondonpaper's HEADLINERS

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Forget traipsing to a field after a gruelling four-hour drive. The best new music festival – thelondonpaper HEADLINERS – is happening right on your doorstep.

You can take off your tie, step out of work and head straight to a music venue – up to 20 of them actually, slap bang in the centre of town.

Perhaps more importantly – since we’re a free newspaper and we don’t want to rip you off – we will bring you more than 50 acts, over the course of two nights in September, at just £15.00 per night. That’s less than it normally costs to see just one of the great bands lined up.

Here at thelondonpaper, we tell you about all the best stuff going on in our capital, so we thought we might as well take the next step and host some of the entertainment ourselves.

With so many readers, it would be foolish to limit our genres, so we are bringing you amazing new artists as well as a bunch of the best music­ you already love – from pop acts to indie and folk, through to dance and UK hip hop.

Londoners work hard and party hard, which is why thelondonpaper HEADLINERS takes place in the middle of the week, on Wednesday 16 September­ and Thursday 17 September. Why should all your extra-curricular fun be crammed into a weekend?

So who are the bands? We’re keeping some very ­exciting big names under wraps for now, but we can reveal the list below.

// The line-up so far //

The Magic Numbers

Despite hailing from Ealing, the sibling folkies summon breezy sounds of the US West Coast with swoonsome harmonies­ and melodies.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor

The poshest lady in pop is at No 13 in the single charts with the Freemasons song Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer). Expect more murder on the dancefloor come September.

Gabriella Cilmi

Gabs is the Aussie teen who sang there’s “nothing sweet about me”. She was lying, as she is the loveliest 17-year-old thelondonpaper has met. Ballsy voice and brilliant pop songs.

Frankmusik

Electro pop’s latest Chosen One has been working with Stuart Price, the producer behind Madge’s Confessions on a Dance Floor, and he supported Pet Shop Boys at The O2. Find out why Frankmusik is one to watch.

Just Jack

North London wordsmith Jack Allsopp – or Jack “All-over-the-shop” – has turned his mic to trip hop, hip hop, house, pop, and disco, all with effortless flows and catchy beats.

Animal Kingdom

Drawing comparisons to Radiohead and Flaming Lips, it’s only a matter of time before the dreamy London indie act working with Fleet Foxes producer Phil Ek make it big.

VV Brown

Northampton girl VV Brown cuts a distinct dash from the electro­ and retro girls of 2009 with a pop take on rockabilly

Dot Allison

The ex-One Dove singer has used moody electro, whispery folk ballads and Pete Doherty – to very good effect.

Also playing are Ou Est Le Swimming Pool, the Camden trio who give Fischerspooner a run for their electro dollar, and the quiffy Esser, who sings about bad luck with women in a loose indie drawl. Then there are award-winners Tommy Reilly, who bagged Channel 4’s Orange Unsigned Act gong, and Ben Howard, the Cornish folk singer with the Red Stripe Music Award. For the epic sound of early U2 as heard through shoe-gazing fog, see The Boxer Rebellion, while Fink offers moody, minimal blues in the style of a sturdier Antony Hegarty, and Flood of Red provide melodic Glasgow emo with a dash of screamo.

// How the festival works //

Ticket-holders will be issued with a wristband which will get you into all the gigs – subject to capacity – some of which take place at the same time. All you have to do is choose which gig you want to see. Don’t worry if your two favourite acts are playing at the same time, as some of them will be playing more than once.

// Unusual spaces //

As well as taking in a host of West End venues, thelondonpaper HEADLINERS will take over the rest of Soho with a series of guerilla gigs. These shows will be announced on the night.

//How to buy tickets //

thelondonpaper readers can buy tickets before anyone else at a discounted price from our HEADLINERS microsite or by taking their copy of thelondonpaper into HMV to buy tickets

1 night ticket £17.50 (usually £20)

2 night ticket £30 (usually £40)