English rap star Maxi Jazz, best know as lead vocalist in the ever–popular group Faithless, has revealed the bitter-sweet memories he still holds from his first visit to Hampshire.

Maxi will make a welcome return to the south coast area when he breaks new ground by appearing in two separate bands on successive nights at this year’s Isle of Wight Festival.

He will head his new band, The E–Type Boys in the Festival’s Big Top on the opening night, Thursday 8 June, and the following night will be on the Main Stage with Faithless, widely regarded as one of the best electronic dance music acts of the last 20 years, with such hits as ‘Insomnia’ and ‘God is a DJ’.

Maxi’s worldwide acclaim, first with Faithless and more recently with The E–Type Boys, is a world away from his camping trip to the New Forest when he was on a scouting adventure from his home in the London borough of Brixton.

He recalls: “I was in the Air Scouts as a young boy and we did a camp in the New Forest. My lasting memory of that trip was having our tent trampled to the ground by some wayward cattle. That was not a good experience, but while we were down in the New Forest we also visited the Beaulieu Motor Museum, which I absolutely loved.

“I am a huge fan of performance cars, the noisier and smellier the better, and there was something for everyone at Beaulieu. That visit was one of the reasons why I decided to name my new band The E–Type Boys, after of course the iconic E–Type Jaguar.”

Maxi is relishing his double appearance at the IW Festival, saying: “I really like festivals, because you know only a small percentage of the people have come just to see you. So if you have tens of thousands standing in front of you, and you rock that crowd from front to back, you know you have made new friends.

“You can’t imagine how excited I am. When you have been singing the same stuff for 20 years, and suddenly you have a brand new set of songs with a set of new people who are so enthusiastic and talented it’s fantastic. This is the first time I have been seriously nervous before gigs in a long while.”

Hundreds of Hampshire revellers will be among thousands making their way across the Solent for the annal four-day Festival, which this year also features such acts as Queen with Adam Lambert, The Who, Stereophonics, Status Quo and scores more, spread over the vast site at Seaclose, Newport.

Maxi added: “I’m looking forward to seeing everyone turning up. My message is bring your wellies just in case, and I promise we will all have fun, and show the rest of the world how it should be done. We as performers enjoy it just as much as the audience, who will be not just from the Isle of Wight and Hampshire, but from all parts of the world. So make friends and have a famous time!”