THE Carling Weekend: Leeds Festival grows bigger by the year. No wonder weekend tickets for next week's three-day event at Bramham Park sold out in record time.

The festival will run from August 27 to 29 with headline performances from Green Day next Friday, The Darkness next Saturday and The White Stripes next Sunday, backed up by Morrissey, The Offspring, The Streets, The Libertines and Franz Ferdinand.

Over the three days, on six stages, the festival will see 150 bands and comedy and cabaret acts play to more than 60,000 people in the event's sixth year and its second at Bramham Park, near Wetherby.

At the last count, a very small number of day tickets were still available at £45 plus booking fee on 08457 500044 or via the website, www.leedsfestival.com

Here Rory Menage profiles the three headline bands...

Green Day

Green Day are a fitting headliner for the opening day at Leeds. One of the most respected and successful alternative bands in the USA, they have been a key band for alternative music fans for 15 years, and are arguably the most influential post-Nirvana American alternative group to break into the pop mainstream.

Originally part of the northern California underground punk scene, childhood friends Billie Joe Armstrong (guitar, vocals) and Mike Dirnt (bass) found Tre Cool as their permanent drummer, and in they released Dookie, their 1994 major label debut which sold over eight million copies in America alone, with hits such as Longview and Basket Case to their credit.

Following the cancellation of a European tour, the band spent the whole of 1995/6 writing new material, issuing Nimrod in late 1997 and Warning in 2000. This year's festival will be Green Day's perfect chance to strut their stuff for the long-awaited American Idiot, which will be released next month.

The Darkness

Headlining Saturday night at the Leeds Festival are The Darkness. The four flamboyant East Anglian rockers (Justin, Dan, Ed and Frankie) with their wit, charisma and brilliant showmanship have conquered the UK with their now quadruple platinum debut album, Permission To Land. The Leeds and Reading festivals are the only chance to see them in England and Wales this year.

Best known for having a fetish for spandex jump-suits, pyrotechnic guitar solos and a general over-the-top persona, the band's reputation has created a huge fan-base which adores their unique method of performing music.

Featuring the singles I Believe In A Thing Called Love, Growing On Me and Get Your Hands Off My Woman, Permission To Land moved Kerrang! Magazine to dub them "the greatest rock'n'roll band of the last 20 years". Each of their three UK tours in 2003 was an all-date sell out and the awards have been piling up.

The White Stripes

Sunday night concludes with the most incendiary rock act of 2004. The highly respected Jack and Meg White, from Detroit, USA, have seen their first major label release, 2003's Elephant, gain world-wide acclaim and massive sales (12 million internationally), and singles such as Seven Nation Army and Fell In Love With A Girl reached number one on MTV.

The video for Fell In Love With A Girl was nominated for four MTV Video Awards including Best Video of the Year (alongside Eminem and *NSYNC), Breakthrough Video, Best Special Effects in a Video and Best Editing in a Video.

The White Stripes last year sadly had to drop out from both the Leeds and Reading Festivals due to Jack breaking his finge. This year their act should be even more of a spectacle to make up for last summer's absence.

The line-up

Main Stage

Friday, August 27

Green Day, 50 Cent, Placebo, Lostprophets, The Streets, Dropkick Murphys, The Rasmus, New Found Glory, Thrice, Minus.

Saturday August 28

The Darkness, The Offspring, Ash, The Hives, The Distillers, Jurassic 5, Hundred Reasons, Reel Big Fish, Taking Back Sunday, Goldie Lookin' Chain.

Sunday August 29

The White Stripes, Morrissey, The Libertines, Franz Ferdinand, The Roots, New York Dolls, Razorlight, Thursday, Young Heart Attack, The 5.6.7.8's.

Second Stage

Friday August 27

Supergrass, The Von Bondies, Auf Der Maur, British Sea Power, Deus, 22-20s, The Stills, Dogs Die In Hot Cars, Fiery Furnaces, The Futureheads, Eastern Lane.

Saturday August 28

Graham Coxon, Super Furry Animals, Soulwax, Peaches, The Donnas, The Wildhearts, Modest Mouse, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, Ikara Colt, The Open, Mad Action.

Sunday August 29

Funeral For A Friend, Dizzee Rascal, Dkt/MC5, Stereolab, 80's Matchbox B-Line Disaster, The Ordinary Boys, Har Mar Superstar, The Icarus Line, The Bronx, Bloc Party.

The Concrete Jungle Stage

Sunday August 29

A, Sick Of It All, Goldfinger, Dillinger Escape Plan, Bouncing Souls, The Starting Line, Coheed and Cambria, Avenged Sevenfold, Flogging Molly, Allister, Alexisonfire, The Holiday Plan.

Dance Arena

Friday August 27

Squarepusher, Mike Patton & Rahzel, TY, DJ Krush (Live), Radio 4, Fingathing, Buck 65, Client, Loose Cannons, Ivory, Chromeo, Roger, DJs: Urban Gorilla DJs, Di Void.

Saturday August 28

Roots Manuva, special guests: 2 Manydjs, 111, LCD Soundsystem, Shystie, Zoot Woman, Black Strobe, DJ Format & MC Abdominal, Blue States, Boom Boom Satellites, Bravecaptain. DJ Nu-Mark (15), Urban Gorilla DJ's.

The Carling Stage

Acts will include The Kills, The Soundtrack Of Our Lives, Kasabian, The Shins, Mark Lanegan, Mondo Generator, Blanche, Devendra Banhart, The Duke Spirit, McLusky, Sons And Daughters

Comedy Stage

Acts will include Phil Kay, Tommy Tiernan, Sean Lock, Marcus Brigstoke, Mike Wilmot, Hugh Lennon, Adam Crow.

Updated: 15:20 Thursday, August 19, 2004