Rage Against The Machine to open new home for Connect music festival in Edinburgh

Edinburgh's bumper summer of music has been given a huge boost after promoters revealed that the home of the Connect festival will be opening two days early for an extra open-air event headlined by American rock icons Rage Against The Machine.

The band, who are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the launch of their multi-million selling debut album, will be staging their first Scottish show for 14 years before a 25,000 capacity audience at the Royal Highland Centre at Ingliston.

The event, during the last week of Edinburgh's 75th anniversary summer festivals season, will also feature Run The Jewels, Nova Twins and The Last Internationale.

Massive Attack, Idlewild, Little Simz, The Chemical Brothers, Mogwai and The National are already lined up to play at the Connect festival, which is being staged over the last weekend in August.

The Ingliston site will also be hosting a series of new "big top" gigs in June, featuring the likes of Fatboy Slim, Biffy Clyro, James, 50 Cent, Madness and Richard Ashcroft.

Rage Against The Machine headlined the first T in the Park festival at Strathclyde Country Park in Lanarkshire and also topped the bill at the event at Balado 14 years later.

An official announcement from promoters DF Concerts on the band’s Ingliston show on Wednesday 24 August states: “Since forming in the early 1990s, Rage Against the Machine have educated masses of heavy music fans by injecting their cocktail of rap, hardcore punk, funk, and metal with a sobering dose of fiercely polemical, politically charged urgency throughout the years.

"Now the band make their long-awaited return to Scotland to play at Edinburgh’s Royal Highland Centre.”

Rage Against The Machine will be playing at the Royal Highland Centre in Edinburgh in August. Picture: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

A spokeswoman for DF Concerts said: “We’re very excited to bring Rage Against the Machine to Scotland for the first time in 14 years, especially as it will get everyone ready for the launch of Connect at the Royal Highland Centre on the Friday.

"The band are such stalwarts of the music industry and we’re expecting this to be a very in-demand show.”

Royal Highland Centre chief executive Alan Laidlaw said: “This is the latest of an exciting programme of music events taking place at our incredible venue over the coming months.

"Our heritage of staging festivals and concerts goes back decades and the return to a busy schedule of artists will establish the Royal Highland Centre once again as one of Scotland’s best large-scale music venues.”

Singer Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against The Machine. Picture: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Other new additions in Edinburgh this summer include the reopening of the old Royal High School on Calton Hill for the Hidden Door festival, featuring Saint Etienne and This is the Kit, and Over the Bridge, a new festival in Stockbridge with Twin Atlantic, Razorlight, Feeder and James Arthur in the line-up.

Concerts are due to return to Princes Street Gardens for shows by Simple Minds, Travis, Simply Red, Tom Jones and Michael Kiwanuka.

Edinburgh Castle esplanade play host to Deacon Blue, Texas, Elbow and The Script.

Leith Theatre will reopen in August for Edinburgh International Festival shows with Arab Strap, Princess Nokia, Niteworks and Jeff Mills.

However Snow Patrol have apologised to their fans after pulling the plug on their planned gig at Ingliston site in June, with “unforeseen recording commitments” blamed for the decision.

Olly Murs was forced to cancel a planned concert at Edinburgh Castle in July after undergoing “unavoidable” knee surgery.