Pearl Jam to headline UK festival

Pearl Jam, Franz Ferdinand and Muse have been tapped to headline this summer's massive Reading and Leeds Festivals in the U.K. The annual three-day event will take place on August 25th, 26th and 27th, with the bands taking turns closing the show on all three nights in both locations. According to NME, other acts set to appear include Audioslave, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, My Chemical Romance, the Raconteurs, Arctic Monkeys, the Kaiser Chiefs, Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco.

While U.S. festivals like Lollapalooza and Coachella are relatively recent events, Franz Ferdinand bassist Bob Hardy told us why Europe's longtime summer festival circuit is so important: "Because there's so many bands in Europe that tour there, you know, American bands and European bands, you don't get the chance to go to a lot of countries. For example, like, Portugal. Bands don't generally tour in Portugal, so people in Portugal won't get to see band X in the standard tour. But there will be a festival that everyone will go to. Every country has its kind of, like, festival where it's just a chance to see a dozen bands in one day, really."

This will be Pearl Jam's first festival appearance since nine fans were killed during the group's show at Denmark's Roskilde Festival on June 30th, 2000.

Pearl Jam's new self-titled album is out on May 2nd. The band is scheduled to perform on NBC's Saturday Night Live on April 15th.

Muse will issue its yet-to-be-titled fourth effort on July 3rd in the U.K., with an American release date still to be determined.

Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab For Cutie are currently on a co-headlining North American tour. Their next stop is Durham, North Carolina on Friday (April 7th).
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