Alternative Glastonbury 2025 performers you can’t miss

While it’s easy to get swept up in the prestige of the Glastonbury headliners, there are over 3,000 performers actually on stage.

Worthy Farm is so much more than the glitzy Pyramid Stage names, although the likes of Olivia Rodrigo, The 1975, and Neil Young are definitely not ones to miss.

If Pulp — sorry Patchwork! — isn’t your vibe and you don’t feel like being caught in the Charli XCX crush, where on earth can you go?

In every corner of Glastonbury, there are smaller bars and stage, including the elusive underground piano bar, bursting with talent.

While the message from head organiser Emily Eavis was clear — go and explore — it can be easy to get overwhelmed by the options.

These are the top six artists on the alternative side that we recommend you catch at Glastonbury 2025 — before they become the next big thing.

English Teacher

If you haven’t heard of English Teacher in the past year, where have you been?

Last year, they dropped their debut album, This Could Be Texas, with Mercury Prize judges loving its ‘originality and character.’

Hailing from Leeds, this alternative group were the first non-Londoners to win the Mercury Prize Award in over a decade and were nominated for a Brit Award.

English Teacher, consisting of Lily Fontaine, Lewis Whiting, Douglas Frost, and Nicholas Eden, first broke through with their 2021 song R&B.

The band is best known for a post-punk ‘eclectic’ sound with hits like The World’s Biggest Paving Slab featuring spoken word mixed in with rock riffs.

Lewis previously told Metro he sees their sound as ‘alt rock with some extra, sometimes unnecessary steps’ thanks to the group’s varying music taste.

While English Teacher are becoming more well-known, their set is competing with viral Lola Young as well as a TBA on the Pyramid Stage.

We recommend ditching the crowds and heading to The Park Stage at 4.30pm on Friday, you won’t regret it.

Amyl and the Sniffers

If you’ve heard of Amyl and the Sniffers, you’re probably thinking they’re not ‘underrated’ at all but so far they’ve dodged mainstream UK success.

The Australian rock band, fronted by the energetic Amy Taylor, released their debut album in 2019 and have since dropped two more.

2024’s Cartoon Darkness has scored the highest mainstream chart position for the band so far, peaking at number nine on release.

They are huge in Aus but have been growing on the alternative UK radar for a while, getting a nod from the 2025 Brit Awards as a nominee for International Group of the Year.

As for their sound, Amyl and the Sniffers bring that 70s grunge rock band feeling — think Iggy Pop mixed with Garbage.

They’re huge if you’re outside of the main UK music scene but in the mass of Saturday’s busy schedule, it’s possible they may be skipped for other big names.

The set starts at 5pm on The Other Stage, which is right as Kneecap finishes on West Holts (likely to be a big one) so if you’re hoping to miss the crowds this is the place to be.

Royel Otis

Another Aussie import, this time bringing indie pop guitar band vibes to The Park Stage on Sunday afternoon, is Royel Otis.

This duo shot to fame in 2023 with the release of breakthrough track Oysters in My Pocket, which landed them a spot on Spotify’s RADAR program.

That success was followed by Going Kokomo, which featured on the EA Sports FC 24 soundtrack and Nack Nostalgia’s Similish spin on The Sims 4.

By 2024, Royel Otis had released their debut album and been labelled ‘ones to watch’ by the Grammys (no mean feat).

Their most well-known tracks are actually covers, with Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic’s cover reigniting the popularity of The Cranberries’ Linger on TikTok.

However, the band’s rise to the spotlight has not been without trouble as lead single, Moody, off their upcoming second album attracted criticism for being ‘misogynistic’.

With a Lolita-inspired music video, the band’s management gave a statement stating the track was ‘not intended to convey a broader view’.

There’ son doubt the duo are taking some creative risks if that is the case, so maybe best to see them before this spark explodes — or burns out.

Lambrini Girls

If you like your punk music with a healthy dose of feminine rage, the Lambrini Girls are for you.

Phoebe Lunny and Lilly Macieira, based in Brighton, have been incendiary already — and they only have one full studio album out.

In true punk fashion, they don’t mince their words and found themselves front and centre after, in an interview with Kerrang!, they said: ‘I will scrap any Terf, any day, in person.’

Like running at a hornet nest with a sledgehammer, we have to respect their no-punches-pulled approach. With a similar vibe for their songs.

Tracks like Big Dick Energy and No Homo saw the band to number two on the Indie Chart for their debut album but it failed to take the mainstream by storm.

Toxic relationships, toxic masculinity, and even toxic government ministers have all been on the chopping block for the Lambrini Girls.

Anyone who inspires a huge mosh pit, primarily filled of women in their 20s, is on our list to check out.

Oh, also, their drummer is Banksy, yes, that Banksy… if you believe them.

Bob Vylan

No, it’s not the Bob Dylan tribute heavily rumoured to be featuring a special guest in the form of Timothée Chalamet. It’s Bob Vylan.

This grime duo hailing from London are fascinating, with both members going by stage names to hide their identity (Bobby Vylan and Bobbie Vylan, no relation).

Bizarrely, Bob Dylan’s folk guitar sounds are not cited as one of their musical inspirations; instead, the Bobs blend rap and punk in a unique sound.

Tracks like Hunger Games are closer to Johnny Rotten and the Sex Pistols with a healthy dose of Stormzy and Dizzee Rascal.

If you like your music with a political edge, this duo is a must-see for anyone who is a fan of Idles or Turnstile (who are also playing Glastonbury).

Bob Vylan are taking to West Holts stage at 2.30pm on Saturday, just before Kneecap so you can see this excellent duo and get a good spot for the chaos to come. A win-win if you ask us.

Lekiddo Lord of the Lobsters

If political punks and alternative artists aren’t really your thing, then we highly recommend taking a break from it all and watching Lekiddo, Lord of the Lobsters.

Have you really experienced Glastonbury to the fullest if you haven’t gone to Theatre and Circus and seen a grown man leading people in a lobster dance?

Fans go all out for this, with full lobster costumes, claws and hats all brought for this special occasion.

Once called ‘one of the daftest performances’ by The Guardian, there’s something deeply joyful about this dedicated lobster cult.

Lekiddo is performing eight times across the weekend so there is no excuse to miss it but his premium slot is Thursday at 9pm at The Wishing Well.

Metro did ask ‘why’ when we met him last year and he told us the lobsters had simply ‘chosen him as their lord’, because of course, what else could it be.

‘Pinchy pinchy kiss kiss’, as Lekiddo says, and we’ll see you lucky ticket holders at Worthy Farm.

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