Imagine a unique music and art festival which includes Brooklyn’s finest in TV on the Radio and Telepathe alongside London’s Gavin Turk and Julie Verhoeven. An event whose art centrepiece is a site-specific, 25 artist installation in Shoreditch Town Hall (entitled Heart Of Glass and judged by Alison Goldfrapp) and whose leftfield musical soul is provided by over 100 of the world’s most exciting bands and DJs. Imagine all of this taking place over 48 hours in the more salacious corners of east London – 30 alternative-site exhibitions and 18 music venues, from the vast outdoor warehouse rave-up space Hearn Street Car Park to everyone’s favourite dive bar pub, The Griffin.

On Thursday 2nd October and Friday 3rd October this will be Concrete and Glass, a truly stunning new festival, the music directed by Tom Baker from Eat Your Own Ears fame, the art by celebrated independent curator Flora Fairbairn and Paul Hitchman from Playlouder. “I have always put on art exhibitions in unusual non-gallery venues, ranging from a disused gin distillery, an abattoir to the top of Arno Goldfinger’s Trellick Tower,” says Fairbairn, of her respected past. “This part of London is full of creativity. We’re using a range of disused spaces for art installations and venues for music all within a stones throw of each other. It’s a way of celebrating all that’s good and exciting amongst a huge range of artists and musicians in London.”

“The music is a real mix of new and established artists,” explains Baker. And that’s a bit of an understatement. Let’s just say, from the surreal... “There’s the ambient, meditative and often introspective classical music of Ludovico Einaudi (he scored This Is England). On the same bill is Kimmo Pohjonen, the Finnish musical adventurist who presents his earth machine music project with special guest farmers and agricultural machines, live chain saws…” To the substance end of underground indie pop… “TV On The Radio play their first show in London for over a year and Lykke Li plays, who combines insanely catchy, sultry indie-pop with hip hop beats. Other venue hosts include Steve Lamacq, John Kennedy and Bloggers Delight, amongst others.”