Knockengorroch 2026 heralded the end of an era, dedicated as it was to co-organiser Simon Holmes, who sadly died in December last year. Known fondly as ‘Papa Knock’ by regular festival goers, Simon along with his wife Liz held the first Knockengorroch in 1998. It remains Scotland’s longest running greenfield festival, and comes with a fierce fanbase who valiantly helped fundraise this year’s event during a troubled time for all small independent festivals.
Simon championed the idea that the land is a common treasury for all, and this community spirit resonates throughout the festival. Friday sees the politically charged folk of 3 Daft Monkeys on the main stage nicely set up headliners TC and the Groove Family, cementing Knock as the place where different genres and cultures come together in one delicious melting pot.
In the Langwhan (a lovingly restored Celtic longhouse), Edinburgh indie-pop outfit The Micro Band played a stirring acoustic set to a family-friendly crowd literally filled to its beautiful wooden rafters; undoubtedly one of the highlights of the weekend.
The late-night entertainment at Knock on a Friday will always keep you dancing (and running between acts). Glasgow-based DJ legend Optimo and Edinburgh-club favourites Samedia Shebeen in the Giddy Up tent faced off until 5am against the Celtic dance solo project Harpmonix and the rap-trombone combo of Kadesh Flow at the Fraoch bar stage.
Saturday involved an early start for anyone unable to withstand the pulsating sun during one of the hottest May weeks in 80 years. Luckily, cleansing oneself in the free sauna ‘Betty Swollox’ (entirely donations-run) followed by a refreshing dip in the river is an option at Knock. Stumbling across Yiddish folk punk act Och Vey was a pleasant surprise, as they brought energetic klezmer to the fore. Meanwhile, Knock’s first ever dog show was a tail-wagging success (as expected at one of Scotland’s most dog-friendly festivals), as categories from small and sassy to best outfit were trotted out at hippy Crufts.
Over at the main stage, Elias Alexander, the Instagram/TikTok star of trad-dance tune ‘Fiddle Disco’, mosh-jigged into the crowd with electric bagpipes. While he acknowledged he may be missing the oomph of a full folk ensemble (“Let’s give it up for the hardest working member of my band, the mini keyboard!” he shouts at one point), such solo work is becoming more common when touring remains unaffordable for many musicians.
Though you could not mistake 7-member Saturday headliner BCUC for anything other than a full-on musical reverberation through all the senses. Their spectacularly showy africangungungu rhythms saw the crowd never wanting ‘Yinde’ to end, as the encore continued to ramp up in intensity. A slightly more mellow John Langan followed in the Langwhan, playing The Langan Band originals such as ‘Auld Jimmy’, until late-night silliness arrived with a jokingly extended version of traditional Irish folk song, ‘the Rattlin’ Bog’. The pleasant folk jam session that followed (running every night until 4am) provided a welcome respite for footsore revellers.
There’s a long-running joke among some Knock regulars that taking part in the 2pm Sunday ceilidh (hosted by Awry) signals you were not having enough fun the two nights before. This was certainly disproven by all lovers of traditional dance as even the scorching sun could not prevent ‘the spiral’ taking place; a 15 to 20 minute dance where everyone followed the lead singer in a spirally, palm-grasping figure of eight around not just the main stage, but a large chunk of the festival site.
Swimming in the river was a popular occupation after such a sweaty event, while the perfect Sunday evening energiser was the big band hip hop stylings of Makongo. With 7 nationalities represented on stage, from Scotland to Angola, chants of “power to the people” reminded everyone of Knock’s ethics, as did the tributes to Simon across the weekend.
Simon’s fire show eulogy, and a service around a newly collected standing stone from the nearby Cairnsmore of Carsphairn, touched upon his belief that the uplands should be repopulated, as well as the many human rights causes he has championed over the years. With some of Glasgow’s finest closing out the Sunday, including trad dub pioneers An Dannsa Dub and reggae dancehall icons Mungo’s Hi Fi, the sense of Knock being a very special Scottish and world music festival hung heavy in the air. Long may it continue.