THE mighty Dub Pistols can’t get enough of Ribble Valley’s Beat-Herder festival.

Chewing up hip-hop, dub, techno, ska and punk, the festival party starters will be spitting out their renegade sound when they return to Sawley’s green fields next month.

“We’ve played festivals all over the world, but Beat-Herder is in my top three,” said Pistols front man Barry Ashworth.

“I love the boys who run it. They put everything on the line every year and they have never compromised their musical policy.

“They do what they believe in – they have never sold out. They have the right spirit and the vibe is like Glastonbury used to be in its hey-day.”

From their early singles for Concrete Records to their genre defying album Six Million Ways To Live, the Dub Pistols have always added a much needed rock and roll swagger to the UK’s dance scene.

“Last year’s Beat-Herder was off the scale – plenty of sunshine, a beautiful vibe and an incredible line-up. The addition of the Fortress stage was just unbelievable.”

The masters of dub are ready to kick up a storm at Glastonbury next week with Ashworth, who began his musical journey as a club promoter, having just put the finishing touches to their latest album.

“Glastonbury is still special but it is much more corporate now, which is a bit of a shame.

“I think it has lost the ethos of what Glastonbury was in the past.”

Their genre-mashing abilities have led to remix work for Moby, Crystal Method, Limp Bizkit, Bono, Korn and Ian Brown, and seen them work with hip-hop legend Busta Rhymes on One.

“It was unreal working with those guys – and Moby was one of the quietest and modest blokes I’ve ever met. But the energy Moby had in the studio was incredible and the ideas just poured out of him.

“You could see why he is such a prolific musician and it was fascinating to see him in action. He also had a really dry sense of humour and was great company.”

In recent years the band has mutated from a studio duo into a fully fledged live act often featuring the talents of guest vocalists Specials front man Terry Hall, Suggardaddy horn-blower Tim Hutton and scratch maestro DJ Stix.

Front man Ashworth is also known for his full-throttle peak-time DJ sets across the world.

“When you’re in a band and you work with the same four or five guys all the time, you’re going to get tired very quickly,” says Ashworth.

“Working with other musicians has opened new doors, but when you combine what they’re doing with our music, something new and different comes out of the process.”

n Dub Pistols, Beat-Herder, July 18 to 20. Tickets, 0844 888 9991. See page ?? for line-up latest.