Kiss, Queen, & Faith No More for Sonisphere

first acts announced including Tim Minchin, Within Temptation, Cypress Hill

By Scott Williams | Published: Mon 20th Feb 2012

Kiss (1)

Friday 6th to Sunday 8th July 2012
Knebworth House, Hertfordshire, SG1 2AX, England MAP
£170 with camping, £145 without camping
Daily capacity: 60,000
Last updated: Thu 29th Mar 2012

Kiss (European Exclusive), Queen with Adam Lambert (World Exclusive), and Faith No More (UK Exclusive) have been confirmed as headlining this summer's Sonisphere.

Kiss (1)
Two of the surviving members of Queen will headline Sonisphere 2012 this summer with lead singer Freddie Mercury's place taken by American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert. Original members Brian May and Roger Taylor last reformed Queen for an album and tour with Free singer Paul Rodgers in 2005. Original bass player John Deacon no longer plays with the band.

Sonisphere's UK home, Knebworth House, was where Queen played their final gig with Freddie on the 'A Kind Of Magic' tour in 1986.

Queen's Roger Taylor said, "I remember Knebworth as being the most incredible gig, with the most amazing audience and the sound on stage was utterly perfect. It was a fitting last stand before a live audience for Freddie. It will be a real challenge to complete the circle by returning with Adam."

Kiss will headline the opening night. Queen with Adam Lambert will headline the second day, and Faith No More will close the festival.

Also confirmed are Within Temptation only UK show of 2012, Evanescence only UK show of 2012,Incubus only UK show of 2012, Marilyn Manson only UK show of 2012, Andrew WK, Refused's first UK show of 2012, and Mastodon playing their new album in it's entirety exclusively at Sonisphere.

Musician/comedian Tim Minchin will headline the Saturday night on Saturn.

Also confirmed are The Blackout, The Darkness, Cypress Hill, Fields of the Nephilim, Flogging Molly, Ghost, Gojira, I Killed The Prom Queen, Katatonia, Lacuna Coil, Switchfoot, and Wolfmother.

The line-up which will also include an array of other late night entertainment, attractions and on-site events alongside the fairground rides, stalls, DJs, Discos and cinema. There are still more acts to be announced for Sonisphere which returns for its fourth year at Knebworth House, Hertfordshire from Friday 6th to Sunday 8th July 2012 with three days of heavy rock and entertainment.

The event has one main arena with a stage at either end of the site, as well as a few smaller stages. The two main outdoor stages, will have around a dozen acts alternating between one stage and another to keep the music continuous, whilst not having two acts playing at the same time.

Ticket will be priced at £145 for a weekend ticket (£180 with 4-day camping, £170 with 3-day camping), with a very limited number of day tickets available for £75. Rock Royalty and Day VIP packages will also be available. Tickets will go on sale at 9am on Thursday 23rd February, and eFestivals will have links for you to buy them then.

Organisers are offering a limited number of tickets to Sonisphere Madrid (which takes place 25th and 26th May) when a weekend ticket for Sonisphere Knebworth is bought. Headliners Metallica - who play their Black album in its entirety - are joined by an impressive cast featuring the likes of Soundgarden, Slayer, Children Of Bodom, Kyuss Lives and many more - that's two Sonisphere festivals for the price of one!


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