There is one thing that is guaranteed every August bank holiday weekend in London, if you want to hear good electronic music, you go to South West Four which takes place in Clapham Common. Now in its 11th year, the SW4 brand has skyrocketed and sells out year after year bringing to London the best electronic music acts the world has to offer.
This year was no exception with Faithless, Eric Prydz, Fatboy Slim, Pete Tong, Gorgon City and more taking over Saturday. On Sunday the likes of Skrillex, Armin Van Buuren's Gaia, Carl Cox, Loco Dice, Martin Garrix, Sigma and more had the crowds stomping like never before.
The other thing you can pretty much guarantee on in a August Bank Holiday is the rain! Foutunately for us on Sunday, it stayed overcast most of the day and the rain held off.
This year SW4 had grown with a new arena and immediately you could feel that the grounds were a bit busier with the extra capacity than previous years. Sunday headliner Skrillex took to the main stage just after 9pm with a massive LED screen setup that was displaying images from camera's pointed at his equipment and of the crowd in front of him. A ever popular drawcard, Skrillex kicked off with his remix of Red Lips whilst managing to scale the setup to stand upon a platform and address the crowd to go crazy! Tracks like the commercially popular 'Where r u now' have the crowd singing and bouncing to the drum and bass sound that Skrillex has mastered over the years. With the day turning into night, pyrotechnics going off above the stage, and a massive crowd adorning the main stage Skrillex brought to a close another successful weekend in SW4's history.
Earlier on in the day the crowd was treated to some high energy performances on the main stage by Basement Jaxx, Martin Garrix, Sigma & Gaia. Basement Jaxx's full band and ensemble was a pleasure to watch as they belted out hits like 'Romeo', 'Do your thing' and crowd pleaser 'Where's your head at'. Martin Garrix treated the crowd with a typical arms in the air performance playing out hits like 'Latch', 'Cant Feel My Face', 'How Deep is Your Love', 'Animals' and more. Sigma brought their full setup to the SW4 main stage and did not disappoint. Their performance was a highlight of the day and with a raft of hits well known to the audience, Sigma was the perfect mid afternoon act to set the tone for the rest of the evening. Tunes like 'Higher', 'Show Me Love', 'Glitterball' & 'Nobody to Love' kept the crowd bouncing through the performance.
Armin Van Burren brought the debut of his Gaia show to SW4 and it was quite different to Armin's previous performances. Resembling what can only be described as as a Star Wars Jedi in a hooded robe, both Armin and Benno De Goeji step up to the raised stage creating quite the mysterious atmosphere. This is not an extravagant performance but musically its trance at its finest and the crowd reciprocates by dancing and applauding tunes like 'Tuvan', '4 elements' and more. Its quite refreshing to see a performance that is purely about the music with some decent visuals to match. There is no hands in the air or jumping on decks to get the crowd going, its two guys playing great tunes!
Elsewhere at SW4 Carl Cox and Loco Dice went back to back in the DJ Mag arena which was full from start to end. It's always a given that if Carl Cox is playing you know what to expect from the big man. His bouncing behind the decks and his driving bass heavy tune selection always whip the crowds into a frenzy.
Example took to a smaller stage in the Together arena and with the crowd up against all walls of the tent, it was easy to see that he has a massive following at SW4 having performed multiple times over the previous years. You could feel the heat pouring out the gaps in the tent as Example treated the crowd to 'Watch the sun come up', 'Kickstarts' & 'Changed the way you kiss me'.
So another bank holiday weekend over and yet again another brilliant time at SW4. If you need an electronic music fix next year in the August Bank holiday weekend then I suggest you get your tickets as soon as they are released for this ever popular festival.
Just So is an award winning family-festival set in the beautiful surrounds of Rode Hall Estate, near Congelton in Cheshire. Now in its sixth year the festival is run by Wild Rumpus team Rowan and Sarah, who are well known for creating imaginative large-scale outdoor experiences.
Unlike some of the bigger family festivals Just So is unique in that the whole weekends entertainment is solely dedicated to children, young people and their families. Even the bands are chosen for their family-friendly sounds.
Set across ten main areas there’s a wonderful array of engaging outdoor activities from music, immersive theatre, literature, arts, film, and most importantly adventure of every kind. Families have the freedom to explore, dance, chat and play in an uninhibited way that nurtures all round memory making.
There’s a variety of activities to capture the imagination of any child and adult from woodland walks, tribal tournaments, circus skills workshops, pillow fighting, lantern making, paper plane creating, campfire songs and storytelling, giant battleships, pirate training, dancing workshops, fairyland house and wand making and intrepid explorer training.
Peekaboo is designated area for the youngest of festivalgoers with baby yoga, sensory workshops, baby massages, bathtime and lullabies to sooth them to sleep.
There are no shortage of toilets on site, a mix of portaloos and flushing toilet blocks. Everything was super clean as one would hope at a family festival. The site facilities were exceptional from baby-changing tents, hot showers (rarely any queues), trolley hire and a buggy park.
Most things wound down by 10.30pm and it was lights out by midnight…. this was the quietest campsite I have ever had the pleasure of staying on ‘shhhhh’. It made a refreshing change not to be kept awake by the rumbling sounds of some distant dance tent.
Eating out at a festival can get prohibitively expensive, so many brought picnics & snacks to keep the costs down. For those who indulged there was a great selection of gastronomic delights from street food vendors selling falafels, wood-fired pizzas, pulled pork, fish & chips, paella, hot dogs, pasta, corn on the cob and frozen yoghurts. Hoban & Son’s travelling bars in converted ambulances provided a superb range of handpicked beers, ciders and ales.
A torrential storm brought Saturdays festivities to an early close, which meant the eagerly awaited lantern parade was called off. Luckily they got the power back up in time Electro Swing Circus who brought the festival alive again with the mix of sassy swing and stomping electro beats.
A highlight for me over the weekend was meeting the Gruffalo in the Spellbound forest. It’s amazing how quickly you can feel like a child again. That’s the thing I finally figured out…for adults Just So is all about getting in touch with your inner child, relinquishing the shackles of rat race and having heaps of unbridled FUN!
Many of our friends have dropped off the festival scene since entering parenthood, fearing festivals are too dirty or too stressful to cope with kids – I beg to differ. I have found the answer. Just So Festival has an array of offerings to suit everyone’s taste and in comfortable and stunning surroundings. I can’t think of a better way to spend some quality family time. There’s absolutely no way your children can get bored at Just So, and neither will you.
Camp Bestival, the spin-off to the Isle of Wight legend, Bestival, is nothing short of a festival treasure. Lovingly curated by DJ Rob da Bank and his wife Josie, this is a festival exclusively for families and offers one of the most varied musical line-ups alongside children’s attractions and huge television stars.
From the moment you pull up in the car park, you know this is a festival that is going to work out those leg muscles, with everything built on steep hills covering an area the size of a small town!
Arriving on the Thursday, before the festival really starts, you could be forgiven for thinking that this was going to be a small and unassuming event, with only a few stalls (thankfully including Nandos!) and one arena open, it was easy to believe that this was going to be a weekend that dragged. However, this initial belief was proved wrong from first thing Friday morning with an amazing opening set by the Rajasthan Heritage Brass Band to warm the crowds.
With the Blue Coats keeping the crowds happy it was not long before everyone was on their feet and laughing along to Dick and Dom’s performance of ‘Dick v Dom Go Wild!’ – an act full of audience participation and lots of water guns and a foam fight, the adults were laughing along with the kids at all the obvious innuendos and humorous use of Richard’s nickname.
The first day flew by quickly with plenty to see and do such as the Insect Circus, the multiple fairground rides and interactive experiments at the Science Museum tent. Before you knew it you were pitched up back at the main stage watching the sun set to the pounding beat of Professor Green and Clean Bandit before a slow crawl back up the hill to the camping site and a steaming cup of tea brewed over the gas stove.
After a long night anyone would expect it to be a rather quiet and slow morning… But at a festival full of little ones, and Mr Tumble opening the main stage it was a rather early, and very excitable morning! After a set of ‘Hello Hello’, the ‘Hokey Cokey’ and ‘Old MacDonald’s Farm’, the parents were screaming for a break while the kids were ready for some more! My day was spent lazily roaming the huge site, visiting the wall of death, riding the carousel and enjoying more of the fantastic food on offer (as well as trying out the ‘Solar Power Shower Tower’), winding down to Level 42 with a box, yes a box, of Rosé was just what was needed!
With Kaiser Chiefs rocking the stage until late into the night, it was yet another late night, with everyone sadly trailing back to the tent after an explosive set fuelled by classics such as ‘Riot’ and ‘Ruby’, more tea, but yet another early morning!
Sunday’s stage times left a trail of confused festival go-er’s with Ella Henderson and Bob Geldof swapping stage times. While there was an notice on the website, and also on the screens to the side of the main stage, there was still a lot of confusion which left many fans unable to watch their favourite act. One lady said that her young daughter was watching another act over at the Big Top and ended up missing Ella Henderson, who was her main motive for booking the ticket.
The disappointment was short-lived however as Ella Henderson smashed her set and paved the way for the amazing Kent duo, Slaves, who powered through their set with just two drums, symbols, and a pleasing lack of shirts, with a guest appearance from a friendly manta-ray. Soul II Soul graced the stage next with a set of classics, such as ‘Back to Life’ which gracefully slipped into a blazing set by Ella Eyre which got everyone smiling as we waited patiently for the night’s headlines, Underworld, to take the stage.
As Underworld’s set slowly came to a close, the crowd all turned around to watch the spectacular fireworks which closed the entire festival.
The final trek back to the tents was slow and with everyone slowly coming down from the amazing high of the weekend at the realisation that it was all over, the air was thick with mixed feelings.
Monday morning was another early rise but everyone was moving slowly. The tents slowly disappeared in a slow trail of little truck’s being pulled up another hill to the car park, it was clear that this amazing festival was one that would be missed by all those in attendance, until next year at least.
“Listen to your mother, kids. Aim low. Aim so low no one will even care if you succeed.” Marge Simpson was just down on her pretzels, but I was more or less headed to Helsinki expecting nothing and open to the very real possibility of having an above-average weekend.
As good an excuse as any to visit a summery Lapland, Flow Festival boasts a smattering of the hottest international acts performing at a disused power station dipping toes in the Baltic Sea. CHIC featuring Nile Rodgers is a highlight. The denizens of disco have mastered the art of the organised hand clap; it’s good, clean fun for legitimately old-school hits ‘Everybody Dance’ & 'I want your love'. Nile intros Daft Punk track ‘Get Lucky’ with a few words about his own cancer, explaining how he threw himself into making more new music because “If I die, I wanna die living!” Cue bass. This reviewer finds herself ushered on stage with a clutch of other revellers to finish the set grooving to ‘Good Times’. It’s a gimmick the band is known for but hey, for fifteen seconds of fame I play along.
There’s a no-drinks policy at the front of the main stage & it’s a winning strategy to eliminate a heap of tension. Still, the dancing is thirsty work & the Bulleit cocktail bar has its work cut out come nightfall. We quickly decide this is the best drink option going but at €12 a pop, it’s a one-time treat. Happy Joe's is Helsinki’s cider of choice, in abundance at Flow. Add cans of Lapin Kulta beer & the very retro Hartwall Original Long Drink & you’ve got yourselves a proper Scandi party.
Flow puts on a mean spread – when stomachs rumble, it’s real corn soft tacos, bright beef phở & Pok Pok Farang, crispy palm sugar caramel pork on limey green mango salad. It’s so good we go back for seconds. There’s more veggie & vegan options than meats, too. Did I mention you’ll be broke after this weekend? Major Lazer shuts down the Friday main stage sampling Yeah Yeah Yeahs along with everything else. It’s flippant & exciting, though I’m put off when the ladies in the crowd are counselled to take their shirts off & throw them in the air. New single ‘Powerful’ is just that; everyone leaves on a high.
Saturday brings even bigger, brighter skies. Anyone doing this city festival thing right is busy picnicking, lazing at the beach or otherwise celebrating Helsinki’s historic sights & the fact it’s again cracked 20 degrees. Belle + Sebastian give new track ‘Perfect Couples’ a run, joking over a false start: "It's because we're near the magnetic pole." I’m convinced most of Flow is Finnish, young & attractive. "Is anybody old enough to remember that one?" Singer Stuart Murdoch has also noticed the teens.
O Samuli A is making the titular ‘other sound’ over on that stage & it's impossible to get within 70 foot of Reino Nordin lighting up the fantastical Bright Balloon. Marsen Jules sounds a little churchy, dark too. Like, literally. I'm not wholly sure there's even anyone on the decks.
I'll jinx it now, but everyone at Flow is out for a good time. People are calm, casual. Years & Years pack out the Blue Tent. I’m not expecting Olly Alexander’s dungaree & Harley Davidson tee combo, or his cover of Blu Cantrell’s ‘Breathe’, but the whole vibe is perfectly chill & the set is one of Flow’s best. Catchy ‘King’ comes last, Alexander dancing as he sings with a rainbow flag borrowed from the crowd.
I’m star struck by Baltimore’s Future Islands, or really lead singer Samuel T. Herring. His vocals are reminisce of Pantera at moments but interpret that as feeling & any apprehension melts away. There’s a glittery drum kit & all the guys are in patterned shirts. Herring booty-shakes like Beyoncé, beats his chest like Tarzan & sweats like, well, like a man. In front of a slower song Herring explains, "We're not s'posed to do this at a festival but we don't give a fuck." You can imagine the cheers. When finally ‘Seasons’ plays to hard applause, his roar is returned. He skips across the stage, invisible bowling ball in hand. "Thank you so much Flow, you guys are fuckin' beautiful.” We must be.
We’re in denial about Sunday. Unlike camping festivals where you're itching for a shower, actual sleep & a decent pour of coffee to head the day, it's hard to tire of sleeping late, brunching out & a spot of vintage shopping or water sports before rolling along to spot some of the world's best musical talent. We've hit peak Helsinki when Todd Terje & The Olsens grace the Black Tent with their easy 70s spy-theme dulcets. There are shirts off everywhere for their efforts, people dancing hard in the evening heat. Delorean Dynamite is unmissable, then it's like their just jamming along with a wailing sax & big samba sounds.
The most impressive kind of mass-clap is one that starts itself, uninitiated by the band; a pure & unadulterated response of sound to sound. These guys get it, a second time when the crowd tries for an encore after Inspector Norse & a final bow. Beck draws one of Flow’s biggest crowds. "Somebody threw a banana peel on stage!" Indeed. I’m not a fan but it’s hard to fault the classics and ‘Where It's At’ is one of the 90s’ better earworms. Florence + the Machine’s namesake is a fan, a vision in white peasant blouse & heavy cream flares. She’s barefoot too, throwing loose locks here and there while beating her drum (tambourine) in Ship to Wreck. She twirls everywhere & I'm sure she's going to fall, but her balance is the greater force & somehow she avoids disaster.
I haven't seen Florence since 2010 after she missed Benicàssim with vocal strain. She gives it absolutely everything at all times. For ‘Raise It Up’ she shouts, "Put your girlfriend on your shoulders, put your boyfriend on your shoulders. We want everybody to get as high as they can!" ‘Shake It Out’ gives me goosebumps & I have them again when Alt-J close the weekend. Marmite of the music world, I never got the appeal before seeing these guys live. There’s huge love for the boys from Leeds, even if nobody understands what they’re singing.
Blissing out to the country/rock/folk/blues/jazz/grime/electro weirdness of it all, it’s clear people are enjoying in very different ways. There's a real range of reactions but everyone joins to applaud what is undeniably interesting music made with heart. The Finns aren't too cool to care about their hearing either. We saw earplugs on sale from day one & should really have sprung for a couple.
Flow is undoubtedly the blondest, tallest, tastiest festival yet in a seriously fun setting. Start saving now for the next one.
Widely known as one of the wildest and most immersive experiences around, BoomTown Fair is one of the UK’s fastest growing music festivals. This year marked BoomTown’s seventh year in Winchester, selling out with a huge 38,000 people ready and rearing to explore the pop-up wonderland.
Having not seen many familiar names on the line-up and with this being my first BoomTown, I went into this experience pretty blind.I travelled to the site using public transport and ended up having one of my most valuable experiences of the whole weekend on the shuttle bus there. The atmosphere was intense, people were anxious to see the site appear over the hill, and talk was all about the weekend ahead. Every single person on the bus announced they had barely looked at the line-up, they couldn’t tell me who the ‘headliners’ were and they couldn’t tell me who to look out for. Instead they gave me the best advice I could have asked for: “BoomTown isn’t about the line-up, it isn’t about the headliners. Go in there and immerse yourself in the whole experience, think of the music as the soundtrack to your weekend and go wherever it takes you”. Most of them even favoured the smaller, quirkier areas over the main attractions and insisted I spend some time walking around. Taking my fellow BoomTown citizen’s advice, I did exactly this.
This pop-up city nestled in the rolling hills of Winchester is split into nine districts across three areas of the festival (HillTop, DownTown & Temple Valley). From Wild West to DSTRKT 5, China Town to Mayfair Avenue, everywhere boasts impressive set designs and strong narratives dating back to the festival’s origins in 2009. You find yourself being ushered along by “policemen” in OldTown, only to then stumble into Grandma’s Living Room and play bingo with other festival goers. Needless to say the weekend was laden with these surreal experiences in every district, leaving you feeling a little lost when all is said and done.
Somewhat hidden within these city walls are the stages. Like every district, each stage is themed depending on where it stands; each one an incredible set up. Some particularly impressive stages are the Lion’s Den; a huge temple themed stage that shoots fire when night descends, Bang Hai Palace; what can only be described as an oriental super palace lit from top to bottom with red and yellow neon lights, and Boombox; quite literally a giant boombox that glows as it pumps DNB through monstrous surround sound.
The weekend boasted some impressive musical names such as gypsy swing cyberpunks Caravan Palace who had the crowd jiving and jumping from start to finish. The global musical mastery that is Gogol Bordello tore up the Town Centre on Sunday night giving the BoomTown citizens something to remember. A particularly impressive set was Shy FX feat. Stamina MC at the Lion’s Den. Having seen this innovator of dance music before at a much smaller venue, it was incredible to see the transition from a sweaty tent to one of the main stages at BoomTown. Stood at the top of the hill where the Lion’s Den is situated, you could admire a sea of people bouncing, skanking and having the time of their lives. The atmosphere was electric as Shy continued to hit the crowd with classic after classic, Shake Ur Body being a particular highlight; smoke spilled from the mammoth stage and worked hand in hand with the strobes to create the ultimate raving experience. Other amazing acts across the weekend included: reggae master Stephen Marley, Ska-Dub-Punk group Dub Pistols (whom have actually won awards for their exceptional live performances), experimental Drum ‘n’ Bass multi-instrumentalist Squarepusher, with strobe lights to match his obscurity.Soulful blues and roots gang John Butler Trio provided a much needed break from the manichappenings elsewhere, while Mali’s Songhoy Blues stole my heart with their lively desert blues performed with upmost sincerity. More notable names were: The Carny Villains,Rubber Duck Orchestra, Born on Road Showcase and Noisia.
Some of my fondest memories of the weekend were visiting all of the side attractions that make their way to the festival. Long pathways lined with gypsy caravans and tipis, inside people were receiving palm readings, massages, yoga classes, wood crafting and wicker basket making lessons; the list was endless. Policemen can be seen taking part, staring at a black and white spiral wheel experiencing what can only be described from his facial expression as a sober acid trip. These side attractions keep the drunken masses smiling and add a little something special to the festival; there are vibes of a buzzing community and a sense that most of the vendors know each other from elsewhere. Its places like this that for me, make a real festival.
An entire weekend of sunshine is an absolute rarity during British summertime, but a weekend at Bloodstock Open Air where you’re not at risk of trench-foot even more so. This year’s BOA, hidden in the depths of Derbyshire at Catton Hall is awash with lobster-faced metalheads having a ruddy good time, and the kind of lineup that is set to shake your bones.
Taking a little tour of the arena shops and eateries you can get your hands on pretty much anything your little black heart desires, from limited edition vinyl to second hand band tees to support The Teenage Cancer Trust or a huge portion of brisket-inna-bun from The Texas Smokery. People are whizzing around on fairground dodgems or being shot up into the air in a bungee cage with unrivalled glee, it’s just a shame for Sophie Stage Bands that have to compete with the blaring music coming from the rides. One such band is German power metallers Messiah’s Kiss who’s tight-pants, crimped-hair and solid rocking set is unfortunately overshadowed by the twister ride’s expulsion of Welcome to the Jungle.
Donning the traditional black metal corpse paint the indiscernible growling of Belphegor is pretty one-dimensional overall, though die-hard fans crowd the front, the main contingent of the arena is set on lounging around with ice-creams, hitting each other with blow up guitars or having a good old nap. Enslaved come with a rockier shred-heavy edge yelling to the sunbaked crowd “We are Enslaved from Norway, Hello Bloodstock England!” before Ihsahn (of Emperor fame) takes to the main stage with his own brand of black metal prog. For such an unassuming quiet sort, he certainly knows how to captivate a crowd, but unfortunate technical difficulties (or is it perfectionism?) seem to put him on the back foot from the off, it’s clear he’s not happy with the sound.
Hyperactive Jersey boys Overkill were a huge hit last time they graced BOA and this year is no different, coming in loud and confident they proceed to blast through their brilliant screechy eighties thrash set yelling “We are your cousins from Jersey, whether you like it or not!” and doling out some serious face-melting guitar solos. I am I with former Dragonforce vocalist ZP Theart gather a decent crowd on the Sophie Stage, but it’s Swedish extroverts Sabaton who take the prize for best of the day on the main stage, with their huge stage set. What’s not to love about a band who sets their drummer atop a tank which actually fires pink pyro? With matching camo-trousers, black ops vests and mirrored aviators they could have walked right out of a 90’s Smash Hits boyband centerfold but luckily for all involved they sound considerably better and it’s a wave of flame cannons, ticker tape explosions and full throttle heavy metal. Joking around the crowd chant of ‘Ikea’ is quickly picked up as frontman Joakim Brodén tries to sell his bandmate “If you want this guy, you can find him in the Ikea catalogue. He comes this big… and you fold him out. He comes under number 666 I guess…” before dropping into fan favourite ‘Swedish Pagans’. Following Sabaton’s explosive finale, as has become BOA festival tradition, the first band of the 2016 line-up is announced to be homegrown heroes Venom, to a massive roar from the crowd.
As hot day turns into chilly night, Trivium hit the stage to an intro of Maiden’s iconic Run to the Hills, giving everyone a chance to air guitar it out and warm up a bit. With twin creepy skull things hovering above the stage (they sort of look like Frank the dead bunny from Donnie Darko…) and blasting smoke cannons, the sound is the clearest it has been all day, and Trivium give a good solid, if not exactly awe inspiring mix of old hits and new material. Technical difficulties cause havoc for guitarist Corey Beaulieu who misses playing the first two songs due to “getting electrocuted by [his] microphone” and soon after throws the mic stand claiming “my face is getting shocked to shit!”. Despite the setback ‘Becoming the Dragon’ and ‘Strife’ get a small circle pit going and they finish strong on ‘Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr’ to cheers, despite the fairly thin crowd in front of them.
Saturday sees another corpse-painted posse 1349 bring some doom and gloom to an otherwise sunny day, everyone seems to be loving ‘Atomic Chapel’ but it’s all a bit hard to take seriously in the nice weather and I kind of want someone to tell them it looks like they haven’t rubbed their suncream in properly. Plenty of panda-faced people with yesterday’s sunburn and hangover-applied mascara actually look sort of similar. Finnish folk-metallers and lords of the extraordinarily tight-pants, Korpiklaani are unashamedly fun and upbeat. You can’t beat a good silly jig around in a field with your mates, toasting with ales from hollowed out horns, and Korpiklaani bring exactly that to the party. With a giant inflatable football making its way across the crowd and super catchy ‘Vodka’ (or Wodka as they seem to say it) they just put the life back into the arena after a sleepy afternoon.
Local lads Napalm Death always bring the noise, frontman Mark "Barney" Greenway looks like a toddler having a rage tantrum but the sentiment is as usual anti-establishment for ‘When All is Said and Done’ and ‘Scum’ and it is pure gritty energy. 25 years after their last time in the UK, thrashers Dark Angel lead some sweaty circle pits with doom riffs and serious shredding a pretty big crowd has turned out to hear them play and give some crowd-surfing a go.
Last time Opeth played BOA, there was a definite lack of spark and a pretty sparse turnout, but today, this is the aligning of the powers that be and they are joined on stage by the perfect sunset for their eerie but beautiful music. Opeth greet the mesmerised crowd “Good evening… er where are we… Derby. Good evening England. We came all the way from Stockholm Sweden to play for you… which takes a long time if you’re walking like we do.” and joke about a night out after mixing their record here some time ago, and getting fish, chips and a glass of milk. Countering, the crowd keep up the earlier joke of chanting ‘Ikea’ only to hear back “Are you saying Ikea? It’s Swedish… is that what they’re saying? Why not, I have a shitload of Ikea furniture at home. You know Volvo too? Also Swedish…” and they finish up with epic ‘Deliverance’.
Back in the olden days (ten long years ago) when Bloodstock was a little metal fest held in the Derby Assembly Rooms, tonight’s headliner Within Temptation blew our metaphorical socks off. Back tonight with an epic stage set and a number of costume changes the symphonic melodic metallers soar to new heights. Dressed in a white PVC bustier, black pleated skirt and some sort of binbag-esque cape, Sharon headbangs her way through the set with so much energy it’s amazing that she never breaks song once, the vocals are immaculate and when she stops to mention that guitarist Stefan “…had an accident last week, he has a bruised rib. He’s trying his best, he’s here for you tonight” a roar of approval is elicited from the now densely packed crowd. ‘Our Solemn Hour’ and the refrain “Sanctus Espiritus” have even the clueless chanting along and the energy the band exudes is infectious. With the full force of ‘Stand My Ground’ ringing through the arena, bursts from flame cannons and an elevated platform for lead vocalist Sharon to run around on top of, it’s clear this band mean business. With the addition of some fringed arm gauntlets, a cellist and the help of some smoke cannons the band sail through their jam packed set, with Sharon pausing to ask “This is a male dominated festival… where the girls at?”. Whilst she could of course be talking about the sea of people in front of her, it is a good question raised at the overwhelmingly male dominated main stage acts this year.
Unfortunately a massive sound blunder befalls the unlucky band as they try and fail to start ‘Ice Queen’ once, twice and then “You wanna try for a third time? You sure? Okay, third time it goes otherwise I’m going to skip it… maybe this song is cursed!” yes, you guessed it – on the drop for the third time the PA completely loses its shit again. Of all the places for this to happen though, Britain absolutely love an underdog. The crowd cheers on through a massive drum solo and stick it out for massive finale with ‘Covered by Roses’ and the incredible ‘Mother Earth’. Floating above the stage in a billowy white cape Sharon calls out “We waited ten years to come back here, thank you so much for having us”, and we hope it won’t be another ten years before we see them here again.
You could definitely do worse for your hangover than starting Sunday off with a big old heap of Orange Goblin, who rock the cobwebs right out of your dusty ear-holes, but its Pro-Pain’s chuggy steam roller metal that instantly blows a speaker with their heavy riffs. It’s a pretty good sized crowd in the arena but the effects of possible liver damage and sunstroke seem to be weighing heavy today. Luckily Sepultura are on hand to deliver a downright dirty and dark set, with rolling drum and a celebration of their thirty year anniversary.
Finnish fury Ensiferum take to the stage with a melodic Viking style intro and proceed to windmill their hair in dangerous ways, but the ever creepy Cannibal Corpse really dig deep into the weirdness, singing songs about “shooting blood from your cock” and growling at the crowd “Don’t sit around rubbing your girlfriend’s tits and ass, she’s not here to look at you… she’s here for ME!”.
With all the dark and heavy stuff that’s graced the stage this weekend, it’s a nice change of pace to have Black Label Society providing the rockier edge, and Zakk Wylde sporting a signature flamboyant guitar is as ever shred-heavy and brilliant. Following BLS Bloodstock’s second band announcement for 2016 is revealed to be epic 2012 headliner, Behemoth.
As the skies darken on the final night of Bloodstock 2015 and the painted up zombies come out to play, the stage comes alive with the monstrous legends of film on huge backdrops for headliner Rob Zombie. Whilst this isn’t the stage sets we’ve become accustomed to seeing at bigger festivals, it allows Rob to really showcase himself as the attraction. With some serious dance moves, a good bit of lunge-work and some fairly seductive gyrating, he’s a force to be reckoned with. The rowdy frontman rocks hobo-chic in a way that makes you think vomiting in your own dreadlocks and sleeping in a bog look like it might actually be a good fashion choice, but the music is what’s really pulling us in tonight. No-nonsense gut busting drums, huge riffs and dirrrrty lyrics is what takes Rob Zombie from comedy metal to genius, and absolutely everyone is going full throttle mental for ‘Living Dead Girl’. Especially the female zombies in the audience who actually are living dead girls tonight. A little bit of James Brown funk thrown into the mix does no harm “You can’t listen to metal all day right?” says Rob (and really, who doesn’t want to see Rob Zombie studio-54 it up whilst singing about being a Sex Machine?). Rob is also suitably impressed at the calibre of crowd surfing in the UK “That’s some crazy fucking crowd surfing using a couch… I remember when it was a chair, now it’s a sofa?!”.
Mass crowd pogo-ing, chants of “We wanna fuckin party” and LED lit guitars all add to the spectacle, but it’s being told that “The past few years doing shows in the UK have been some of the most fun we’ve had in twenty fucking years” that really gets us to put our hearts on our sleeves for Rob Zombie, we know Rob, we know we’re awesome at metal. You’re welcome.
Kicking out big blow up balloons into the crowd and dropping a cheeky Ramones cover (Hey Ho, Let’s Go – Blitzkrieg Bop obviously) is great but still doesn’t hold sway against classic (and Guitar Hero favourite) White Zombie song ‘Thunder Kiss ‘65’ as the call goes out for “All the young people, put your hands in the air. Now turn around and wave at all the old people in the back. Remember when you used to stand in front?”. A little snippet of fellow gore loving metal icon Alice Cooper’s ‘School’s Out’ is snuck in alongside a huge guitar solo, played on the tiniest guitar ever and after a short encore Rob Zombie return for an encore in matching Union Jack trench coats to a massive roar of appreciation from the crowd. We might not be the most outwardly patriotic of countries, but damn do we love it when those treasonous scallywag Americans decide to rock our flag.
Closing out the night with firm favourite ‘Dragula’ is the perfect note to end on, and happy little rotten-to-the-core metalheads go forth into the night satiated after rounds of raucous applause and chants of ‘Zombie’. It’s been an incredible set, night and weekend for Bloodstock-goers and with next year’s tantalising announcements, there are sure to be immediate ticket sales during tomorrow’s early bird release. So it’s with a heavy but happy heart that we doff our caps/bandanas/horned helmets and Stetsons to the BOA organisers and look forward to more exciting announcements about next year’s lineup.
It's my favourite time of year again, Standon Calling is back and better than ever. I was lucky enough to attend last year’s festival, and after having an incredible time, I knew it would be hard to top it this year. However, it did not disappoint, with a bustling atmosphere rivalling much larger events. Kicking off on the Friday, despite having its largest number of attendees ever, it still managed to retain its charm and original ethos of championing emerging artists. Standon Calling had an excellent set list this year, with Little Dragon, Dandy Warhols and Basement Jaxx headlining the festival. Basement Jaxx was my personal favourite, drawing the largest crowd on Sunday night with all ages singing along. Other musical highlights came from Prides, Saint Raymond and the incredible Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, who came all the way from Chicago to blow the audience away with their musical talent spanning all genres from hip-hop to jazz and rock. Ella Eyre was incredible, her vocals and perfromace really brought the whole of Standon together. The Cuban Brothers returned for another year, with hilariously crude jokes kicking off their energy filled performance, proving a crowd favourite. The BBC Introducing staged also hosted lots of musical talent, my particular favourite being Amber Run, who closed the show on Saturday night. They proved extremely popular, after their highly anticipated album '5am' released earlier this year.
However, Standon Calling offered up much more than just music, making this a festival that really does provide for all. Kids and adults alike participated in the annual dog show, with the usual humorous classes including 'waggy-est tail' and 'owner most like it's dog'. With over 30 participants, The Clock Tower became a bustling hive of activity filled with laughter and plenty of barking! The theme this year being 'Day and Night' provided festival goers with the perfect excuse to dress up, finalised by a parade out of which two lucky winners won tickets for next year. As always, the design team had done an amazing job to transform the fields into a set that resonated the theme. The trapeze proved extremely popular with adults and children alike, as did the swimming pool which was a perfect accompaniment to the hot weather. One of my highlights was the petting zoo, you could literally go and pick up a bearded dragon, learn all about them and then pick up a snake. It was fascinating and provided very popular over the weekend! For the revellers who wanted to dance the night away, the Cowshed with its incredible decoration stayed open until the early hours.
Food and drink weren't in short supply, with my personal favourite being the Mac and Cheese stand serving up 'The Kanye Western', their twist on the traditional recipe featuring smoked sausages, BBQ sauce and crispy onions. Barnaby Sykes Pie Maker's returned this year with their incredible goods; the chicken and ham pie with mash and gravy was phenomenal. Sweet treats were readily available at Kitty’s Cake Emporium, from blueberry, lemon and poppyseed cake to the gluten free orange sponge, all equally delicious. Refreshing cold ciders were plentiful at the Old Mout Cider bar, at which you could also sing karaoke and bounce on a trampoline whilst trying different flavours of cider; what a perfect combination! Ice cold cocktails and beers were also available, and with the cash free payment system, it made queuing and buying drinks much easier and faster.
Overall, I had an amazing time and cannot wait to return next year. I have never been to a festival like it, it's atmosphere is truly unique. I will be first in line for the early bird tickets when they become available, it is worth every penny.
Y Not Festival partied with the right people for its tenth birthday, celebrating with the likes of Snoop Dogg, Basement Jaxx, Primal Scream, Jonny Marr and a further eclectic mix of smaller music providing something for everyone.
The festival saw a mixture of people attending, all of different age groups with a designated camping area on site for families, catering for young and old, with an atmosphere of hippy and care-free vibes running throughout the whole weekend. Situated in rural Pikehall, Derbyshire across a vast amount of fields, in comparison to previous years it had definitely expanded. However, it wouldn’t be a challenge to walk from one end of the festival to the other within the space of fifteen minutes, so I’d still class it as a ‘small festival’. There was a dress up theme on the Saturday of ‘What I wanted to be when I grew up’ with plenty of super hero costumes, neon ravers and strangely animals.
FRIDAY
Reverend and the makers were an afternoon treat on the Friday, where they played both a mix of old and new material-which echoed an electronic feel throughout their set featuring some songs which some had been written in Jamaica. They did well interacting with the audience to get the crowd moving, especially to their catchy older tunes Heavyweight Champion of the World and He Said He Loved Me.
After a warm and sunny first day, Friday’s headliner Snoop Dogg closed the day full of live acts, and got the crowd going wild (even to the point where firecrackers were set off) to his set including tunes Gin and Juice, Drop it like it’s hot and Young wild and free. It sounded very surreal when Snoop was bouncing off the audience addressing them “Matlock” as it seemed hard to believe that the rapper was actually there, in this small place in the Peak District performing to a huge crowd.
Although the all the live music had finished by 11pm, there were small tents dotted around the festival grounds where DJs including George Walford performed to party people until the early hours of the morning which deemed very popular as the tents were packed with not much room to move about.
SATURDAY
Saint Raymond, a Nottingham based artist performed late afternoon on the Saturday, giving the audience a full hours-worth of indie pop tunes, which were really catchy numbers. Although the songs were quite samey you would probably dance to them even if you didn’t know them or hadn’t heard of them, especially their newer stuff. Young Blood and Bonfires were two stand out tunes that were enjoyable to listen to.
After a showery afternoon with ponchos galore, it managed to stay dry for one of the bands that were a main reason why Y Not was the place to be; Basment Jaxx. They didn’t fail to pull a great performance of the bag which included some of their absolute classics also mixed with their new songs, getting everyone dancing and singing to Romeo, Raindrops and closing with Where’s Your Head At. The end of their performance finished with a literal bang, full of confetti and fireworks which made the crowd want more.
SUNDAY
Rhodes played on the Sunday at the main stage where the majority of the audience were chilled out on the grass. Coming to see Rhodes was a choice well made. He lulled the audience into a soothing state with his distinct folk sound, which would be much needed for most people on the Sunday, after two or three massive days of music, giving people some ear TLC with his music.
Another artist who was an easy listen was Nick Mulvey who played at the Quarry Stage in the evening. He had crowds swaying during his performance as his guitar playing was pretty impressive, creating sounds that wouldn’t seem possible on the guitar and accompanied by his voice gave a calming act to the audience, a gem for a Sunday evening.
Primal Scream were the closing act on the Sunday where everyone old and young squeezed into the crowd to see the rock band with the all-time classics perform. The highlight was definitely Moving On Up, which got everyone singing. Although they put on an impressive show to close the festival, I would have preferred Basement Jaxx as the final act.
On the Sunday night there was a silent disco, which was a fun way to finish the festival off and is always hilarious when you take off your headphones to see everyone dancing and lip-syncing in silence.
Y Not offered festival-goers big names in music at a small scale venue. Pikehall, Derbyshire is a cosy location which seems to have expanded itself throughout its ten years of existence. It is a place where emerging artists are given the chance to perform alongside many local and up and coming artists who also take slots on the main stage. The atmosphere and set up of the place reminded me of a smaller scale Glastonbury festival with plenty to see and do. Including small tents with things to do before the music started, somewhere to go and get glitter on your face and your hair braided or even pick yourself up some off the hook outfit. Y Not provided an impressive selection of food ranging from noodle bars to beef burgers and also catered for the vegan and vegetarian festival goers. I’m excited to see what next year will bring, as I can only imagine even bigger and better. Y Not get yourself there next year, I definitely will be.
Last night Fierce Panda hosted their Summer Showcase in The Oak Room at Covent Gardens 'The Hospital Club; comprising of two of their signings, 'LONGFELLOW' and new signing, ''MASAKICHI'.
Having heard their new single, 'Spring' on Soundcloud I was eager to see 'Masakichi' live, to see if they were able to recreate the dynamic range from their released tracks, and put simply- I was not disappointed. The five piece from London played a flawless set from start to finish, combining soft droning verses with shatteringly heavy choruses, laced with tonnes of groove and subtle uses of compound time signatures, the harmonies between Hannah Cartwright and Hattie Williams really polishing off what was a tight, and solid performance.
If you are like me, and you can't really listen to vast amounts of Post-Rock instrumental bands without yearning for vocal melodies and harmonies, I would recommend checking out Masakichi. Their instrumental arrangements have all the epicness and dynamism of atmospheric Post-Rock, while filling the void often left by other bands through their use of melodic vocal lines, and harmonies.
Their Album is out September 18th, and can be pre-ordered from Fierce Panda Here.
LONGFELLOW, an established Fierce Panda act took to the stage shortly after, and cracked straight into a set full of incredibly well written, upbeat pop songs from their latest release. Having been blown away by Masakichi's set, I had high expectations for Longfellow. Although I wasn't disappointed by their performance, I felt that there was a lack of emotion and passion during the first half of their set, their cover of 'Elastic Heart' by Sia not managing to capture the raw emotion of the original and falling into the back of the room, Owen Lloyd's vocals unfortunately getting lost in the arrangement.
New single 'Choose' introduced a welcomed melancholy and emotional track into their set which really stood out and addressed my prior issues, the downbeat song really conveying the pain of emotional stalemate and cyclical relationship routines in a raw pop song. Ending their encore with 'Medic', Longfellow managed to prove themselves as a versatile act, thoroughly dismissing my prior reservations, and providing me with songs stuck in my head while on the train home.
Longfellow's New EP is available to pre-order from Fierce Panda Here.
Have you heard of Nozstock before? I wouldn't blame you if you haven't. This modest 5000 capacity festival, aptly sub-headed 'The Hidden Valley' is hidden deep within the Herefordshire countryside- near the Hamlet of Bromyard. Now in it's Seventeenth year, Nozstock has established itself a dedicated fanbase of locals, and those from increasingly further afield. Each year has a theme, and this year's- A Hitch-hikers Guide to the Galaxy, saw the site lovingly decorated in everything space. The theming did stop there though, with space related workshops and activities for the younger members of families and the audience, those tired from listening to music could retreat to any of the activities area to participate in Jetpack making, building spaceships, rockets, blacksmithing, to the vaguely advertised 'Space crafting' (at the Enchanted Glade 17:00 Sunday).
In my now seemingly traditional festival journey, a gruelling 8 hour drive down to Bromyard at lunchtime had me pitching my tent in darkness, in the hammering rain, undeterred from enjoying ourselves, we set off to explore the site and listen to some music.
Nozstock festival has an intriguing demographic, due to it's diverse acts -as you will hopefully read throughout this writeup- and as the night draws on, the crowd grows wilder, heading down to the COPPICE, BULLPEN, and CUBICLES stages, all dedicated to different styles of Dance, Electro, Dub, 2 Step, Hip-Hop, Garage, Basscore and Drum 'n' Bass. Admittedly, upon arrival; and without any prior knowledge of the festival I was worried that my only dance move 'Big fish, Little fish, Cardboard box' wouldn't last me throughout the weekend and I would be ousted as an impostor of dance and electro music. Much to my relief, the friendly crowds didn't catch on.
Heading to the Orchard Stage for NEVILLE STAPLE BAND's headline set, we caught a jam packed performance full of crowd skanking in the mud, churning up the sodden floor, kicking the first night of music off with a energetic and tight performance. It has to be noted however- that this festival breaks the tradition of curfew by 11, or half past, with headline sets on the mainstage starting as late as 23:45, with smaller bands playing throughout the site to as late as 2:40, before music stopping around 3:30. The site however is fantastically laid out with sound from each stage not spilling over into over crowds, and bearing in mind that it only takes 10 minutes to complete a circuit of the site, this is a seemingly impossible but well realised feat.
SATURDAY
We kicked off Saturday with HIPICAT, winners of the 'Gigslutz PlayNoz 2015' competition, who brought the new day in with easy to process (for those hungover) Psychedellic rock. Luckily the rain for Saturday had abated, and throughout the day, the churned mess in front of the stage dried out enough to sit down and enjoy the weather. As mentioned earlier, before around 8pm the day had a completely different vibe to the night time, becoming more diverse musically, and more appealing to families with younger children. South African loop pedal artist, JEREMY LOOPS wowed the afternoon crowd with multilayered tunes consisting of massive harmonies, beatboxing, harmonicas and guitar arrangements that have taken him around the world, picking up bits of culturally diverse sounds and mashing them up into a impressive set.
It has to be said about the hospitality of the NozStock press team, which was second to none. Instantly upon arrival, Damo and Nolly were on hand to answer any questions about the site or anything else, and organising a press picnic on Saturday was the icing on the cake. ROZELLE treated an unfortunately modest crowd to an expertly crafted set of Indie Rock tunes, and personally I thought they would have been better suited to a later slot than they were given, or been allocated a place on one of the bigger stages at a similar time. As the evening grew cold, back on the Orchard Stage SKINNY LISTER kept the crowd warm with their pub folk tunes, rallying mass dance offs, swaying, and mass cheers to a highly energetic set.
As are most festivals, NozStock is not just limited to stages for music, with the Wrong Directions Cinema Tent providing short and feature length films throughout the day, the Laughing Stock stage promoting comedy, and Bantam of the Opera & Velveteen Valley offering magic, theatre and late night cabaret to indulge in. Saturday's comedy headline came from Seann Walsh, who through his blend of current topics, anecdotes about living with his girlfriend and stand up comebacks gave the audience 40 minutes of non-stop laughter.
WU-TANG CLAN's set was flawless, apart from the fact that they didn't actually show up. Pulling out of the festival late last week, they had yet to provide a reason for this late and very unprofessional cancellation by Saturday. The disappointment throughout the crowd was noted, with expletives slamming Wu-Tang's to be found scrawled on toilets around the site. Fortunately DE LA SOUL was on hand to provide a heavy and incredibly well received set, expertly encouraging crowd response, easily drawing the biggest crowd of the weekend.
SUNDAY
The clouds burst early Sunday morning, turning the just dried ground back into a sloshy mess. This however didn't dampen spirits, as the crowds were back out in full force come 4pm for TANTZ's high octane Yiddish dance music set. Combining elements of reggae, electro swing, power-klezma, rock, dub and upbeat insanity, Aaran Kent riled the crowd up into a frenzy between -and whilst- on Clarinet duties. TANTZ, despite the miserable weather were able to deliver a hard hitting set that was without fault, and one of my favourite of the day.
The eclectic mixture of artists over the stages was impressive, and NozStock seemingly taking pride in promoting a lot of local and nearby artists, giving the crowds the opportunity to take a punt on many bands that they may not have heard of. This is a great attitude to have when organising a festival, as the promotion of smaller artists is invaluable to those working as musicians.
MR B THE GENTLEMAN RHYMER graced NozStock with two sets on Sunday, one at the Orchard Stage, and a later set on The Bandstand. The well spoken ambassador of rhythmic lyricisms split his catalogue for the event, self notedly playing more of his pop ditties earlier in the day, before giving a more chap-hop set in the evening. MR B's one man quest to 'introduce Hip-hop to the manners of the Queen's English' went down a treat, building a solid rapport with the crowd throughout the duration of his set. We stopped to eat later by the Orchard Stage whilst BROKEN BRASS EMSEMBLE's expertly arranged set of swing tunes drew an active crowd, an act I couldn't have even imagined playing at the same festival as the one I had initially seen upon my arrival on Friday. The brass troupe from Holland would transcend from swing into funk and Hip-hop styling flawlessly, and then come straight back into big band arrangements as though it was nothing, with slick professionalism.
Sunday night drew to a close with Motown legend, MARTHA REEVES AND THE VANDELLAS on the Orchard Stage. Unfortunately getting off to a late and rocky start- Martha Reeves called a abrupt end to her opening number within the first 15 seconds of coming on stage, before complaining to the sound engineers and starting over again. Martha Reeves' voice sounded a bit strained throughout their performance, but held up well regardless. Appealing to an audience of older and younger fans, it's lovely to see that the Motown Veteran's music has crossed the generations and was being sung along to, danced to, and enjoyed by such a diverse audience.
If I had to summarize NozStock 2015 in one word, it would be: Crazy.
Allow me to explain, and since being back for 12 hours (at time of writing) the 2 examples I have used to explain the unprecedented madness of this weekend to friends and family are: Firstly, the penultimate act for me this weekend involved me having to follow a guy dressed as a badger into a small room covered in zigzags where we had to dance to gain access to a secret stage, where I watched a three piece post-rock band who consisted of a Peter Serafinowicz doppelgänger and a mannequin torso on stage. And secondly, whilst out and about I saw a person dressed as a button being chased by a pack of kids with sparkly wooden spoons, attacking him under the command of a woman dressed as what looked like a salt shaker.
This weekend has been fantastic, and I would like to thank the team at NozStock for their hospitality and for such an unexpected experience, which I'd hope to experience again next year!
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