Every year since 1999, All Tomorrow's Parties throws multiple great festivals, both at their resort home in Minehead, Alexandra Palace in London, and around the world - curated by some of the best, most interesting artists out there.  2012 has already had Jeff Mangum's (QRO live review) event in Minehead (delayed from December 2011) and Jim O'Rourke's in Japan, and later in the year Minehead holds one curated by The National (QRO spotlight on) - plus another in New Jersey.

On May 19th & 20th, Park Slope will get infused with food, drink, and music as The Great Googa Mooga takes place in Prospect Park (QRO venue review).  There are stages of music from neo-soul to today's Brooklyn indie, as well as food from celebrity chefs like Anthony Bourdain (No Reservations) and Tom Colicchio (Top Chef - and that's host/judge, not contestant...), and drinks from Garrett Oliver (Brooklyn Brewery) and more:

It's not new news that each year the number of European festivals have increased and existing festivals have grown larger due to a growing industry, and the changing nature of the music industry, whose focus has evolved around touring rather than record sales.  Aside from sales, numbers, figures and profits, there is a reason why bands do what they do, why fans commit the way they do, subject themselves to sleeping in grotty tents and without running water for days, and Belgium's Groezrock, which has grown from 400 attendees to over 32,000 in it's 21-year-old history is a particularly prime example of the love that bonds music, fans and bands together in Meerhout, April 28th & 29th.

Houston is the fourth-largest city in the U.S., but rarely gets the respect that it is due - it went for years without an NFL franchise, and for even longer without a major summer music festival, but the music drought ended in 2009 with Free Press Summer Fest.  The local independent paper, Free Press Houston, puts on a great - and cheap - festival just before the heat gets unbearable.

Like the river that gave it its name, Wakarusa Music and Camping Festival is smack in the middle of the U.S. of A.  Originally in Lawrence, Kansas before moving to the Ozarks in 2009 (QRO photos from last year in Kansas), Wakarusa has only grown, and is now one of the biggest and most important jam festivals in the world.

Dancefestopia hits Kansas City on June 1st & 2nd, and to say that the lineup will inspire a two-day dance, well, fest would be an understatement.  Take a look at some of the bigger acts that'll be gracing the stage in KC this June:

While it warms up in the northern hemisphere during May, it cools down in Down Under - but don't tell that to Groovin' the Moo!  The traveling festival crosses Australia May 5th to 19th, eschewing the usual city suspects for smaller ‘burbs, hitting up Bendigo (VIC), Townsville (QLD), Maitland (NSW), Canberra (ACT), and Bunbury (WA).  Here's the low-down on who to see when you're groovin' the moo for three weekends in Oz:

London Calling is, of course, the third record by The Clash, but also an Amsterdam-based festival that started in 1992 focusing in the latest trends of British music, although lately it has broadened its range of bands, not limiting itself to combos coming from the U.K.  Held twice a year at the mythical Paradiso venue - one of those places a serious band must play in at least once in their career - the festival has become the main access door to continental Europe used by many bands.

It is always a great opportunity to meet a well-known musician.  As a writer, sometimes you get lucky and bump into the singer of this or the bassist from that.  Other times, you've bagged a great interview with a musician on hiatus or touring in the area. 

And then you meet a legend.

The May Day Holiday is a big one throughout Great Britain, but it was especially big in Leeds in 2007, as it was also the city's 800th birthday.  So the heart of West Yorkshire put together Live at Leeds, a music festival at venues throughout the city - and have kept it Live every May Day since.

Even as we await the Mayan Apocalypse, South-by-Southwest goes on.  The 2012 edition of the music industry festival in Austin was an expanded one, taking in both previously unofficial parties such as FADER Fort, as well as growing to an extra day in Tuesday.  Though Syria burned and the interminable Republican Presidential Primary contest went on, it all became background noise to the sweet sounds of SXSW, March 13th to 18th.

Spring forward to new music:

Groezrock is arguably one of the most noteworthy festivals in Europe for its spectacular array of some of the most landmark bands in punk rock history.  Wonder why you haven't heard of it?  It's the very same question we asked ourselves when QRO's attention was bought to this insane line-up of bands - an international collective of the finest in hardcore, punk and rock, coming to Meerhout, Belgium on April 28th & 29th.