Hidden in the depths of a 500 year old mansion, Cocoon in the Park is a complete techno playground which draws in thousands of house-hungry revellers year after year. With an intense lineup dripping with talent, the festival is a small yet uniquely incredible, never failing to entice a crowd. 6 DJs, one stage, and a whole lot of music fans – this is the beauty of Cocoon in the Park. And we could barely wait for it to begin.
The faint sound of heavy house beats could be heard from miles away as we walked with a parade of techno-ready souls in procession to the event. Upon arrival, Enzo Siragusa and Seb Zito were nicely warming up the crowd, with powerhouse Dixon following shortly after. All three were lively, exciting and intense, and the atmosphere of the crowd was well and truly ready for the day ahead.
‘Carl Cox’, a name recognised by music fanatics, and simply any DJ with high aspirations. Cox’s hardcore and rave roots provided the basis for his own musical evolution, never losing his unique style and etiquette that has made him a living legend today, and why so many still swarm to see him at every possibility. He has undoubtedly honed his natural talent over his years in the industry – and that is building pure, dance-inducing parties. The drizzling rain began to fall on King Cox’s set; but that didn’t stop anyone. Rain macs at the ready, we partied on, following his every move, every beat, with every reveller so lost in the music that the consideration of a bit of rain was almost refreshing. Cox is renowned for filling the place up with his residency at Space in Ibiza, so to see him in full-force in an outdoor venue such as this is something I’d never witnessed before, and something that made a superb change. With an array of scantily clad women holding up the letters to spell out ‘Cocoon’, we were well and truly in the full swing of the festival.
It’s always been known that Ricardo Villalobos is somewhat of an acquired taste, but his time at Cocoon has seen what can only be described as a mass backlash from fans claiming it was a ‘car crash’ of a set. The comparison between the lively, fun and exhilarating set just witnessed by King Cox is definitely almost the polar opposite of what we saw with Villalobos – it was dark, minimalist, at times quite weird, and seem to feel quite slow. It would almost definitely been better had he been scheduled earlier in the day, but the vibe from major highs to deep, dark lows just didn’t connect with the crowd, and we welcomed the entrance of Sven Väth with open arms.
Until Cocoon, I’d never had the opportunity to experience a Sven Väth set live; I’d heard nothing but good things about the German legend from friends who’ve seen him previously, but this was truly something else. Many refer to him as ‘Papa Sven’, a man who guides his children into a euphoric trance with just two decks and a mixer at his forefront. The crowd were literally pulsating as soon as he entered the stage, a man in front of me fist-pumping his beer in the air with an almighty roar of excitement; Papa Sven had certainly arrived, and his children were ready for a night of blazing techno to begin.
The almighty Sven layed down nothing but pure, solid techno beats to a perfectly filled field, with revellers making the most of having so much space to fist pump, twirl and do whatever the hell you like at such an event. The expert veteran continued to blend between intense melodies to the clearly impressed crowd, with confetti guns and a Sven impersonator blasting us with a smoke gun on stage only adding to the euphoria. This guy is literally an enigma, knowing precisely what to play at every turn, much to the ostensible ecstasy of the crowd. Villalobos’ minimalism long forgotten, we see what we came to see; a world class DJ play a world class set. Unforgettable.
As the night drew to an end, many chose to go on and see the likes of Richie Hawtin play at the afterparty nearby – with a line-up just as fantastic as the main event, Cocoon in the Park never fails for those who never want the euphoria to end. But for us, for once, we found we’d been defeated – but with a festival as phenomenal as this, we know it won’t be the last time we grace the land of Temple Newsam. Bravo, Cocoon.
If I was going to tell you that I knew anything about the 2000Trees festival as I was stuck on a hellish drive down from London on Thursday, it would be an outright lie- the small festival on the outskirts of Chelt enham has managed to evade my personal radar for 8 years since it’s inception and having learnt about it last year, I can count myself lucky enough to have attended this year. Still, besides all of the hype from previous years’ attendants, I had not entirely decided on what I should expect.
The modest capacity festival is hidden deep in the Gloucestershire countryside, complete with rolling hills, bleating flocks of sheep, and and an idyllic river running around the edge of the site, and even though we were lucky with the weather (A welcome change from the usual rain of the UK festival scene) the scenery would have stood up and still looked beautiful regardless.
Unfortunately arriving later than anticipated, and due to the lack of advertising for Thursday’s acts, we missed some of the earlier performances. However, Thursday night saw the Indie rock and rollers, THE SUBWAYS draw close to the day’s music with their explosively energetic performance at ‘The Cave’ while ANDREW O’NEIL headed up ‘The Croft’ with his Schadenfreude style of comedy, somewhat appropriately referencing to the late Bill Hicks in his set, to warm reception.
FRIDAY
I kicked off Friday’s music with a punt on a completely new band to me – BITE THE BUFFALO, and how glad I was that I did. Comparing the 2 piece from Bath, England; to Royal Blood would be short sighted, as the Blues outfit brought filthy riffs, bluesy overdrive, and confident ballsy attitude and stagemanship, yet an honest humility that cemented them as my favourite act of the weekend. ALLUSONDRUGS treated a modest crowd to their blend of Indie rock and acid infused prog, switching seamlessly from one to the other. Heading up to ‘The Croft’ I had planned to catch some of SAM RUSSO’s set whilst escaping the peaking sun- the Singer-songwriter providing a nice contrast from Allusondrugs, allowing those who chose to get respite from the sweltering sun with a calm background of songs about love, friendship and moving on. Having only intended to catch a bit of his set, I ended up staying for the whole thing. Back on the main stage, TAX ON HEAT continued the stage’s bluesfest with sweaty and groovy 70’s era licks, with a stage presence that wouldn’t be out of place on a bigger stage, with a bigger crowd. Catching a bit of DEAD HARTS set over lunch at the Cave Stage, a welcomed heavy and tight performance was only dampened by the Sheffield rockers insistence on perpetually insulting the crowd, and trying to goad them into movement. NOTHING BUT THIEVES brought a massive crowd to ‘The Axiom’, the first act of the day to pack out the tent, fans sprawling around outside singing along to their set.
The main convenience of 2000trees scheduling is that most of the line up is staggered over the stages, meaning you only ever have to choose between 2 acts to see or easily catch half of both sets enabling whole days of tent hopping and the potential to (talking in extremes here) see every act (or if you realise that you are in the wrong place entirely, to avoid every act.) I spent a bit of time in the hidden ‘Room No.7’ to sit down and chill out on a sofa, with the sounds of ACOLLECTIVE bouncing across the site.
Back to the Main Stage, and YOUNG GUNS had already seized control of their crowd, with frontman Gustav Wood commanding their crowd with professional bravado that one would expect of a band of this caliber, while the band behind ran a tight ship, as the stadium filling hits kept coming. Headliners DEAF HAVANA, making a welcome return after a self realised absence kicked off their set with ‘The Past 6 Years’, before packing out their set with most of their more recent hits, with the whole crowd throwing back the lyrics right back at them. Humbled by the crowd’s staggering response, an emotional James Veck-Gilodi apologised for their recent absence and with the promise of a new album, a headline tour and new drive and enthusiasm for Deaf Havana, before closing off their night with nostalgic anthem, Hunstanton Pier.
The night didn’t end there for the people of 2000Trees, however. Silent discos then kicked off across the site at the Main Stage and The Cave, whilst The Axiom provided silent cinema until 3am, and acoustic sets around the site on the various busk stops and down at The Forest kept those who missed out on headphones for the silent activities entertained until around 1am, or until they staggered off into the night.
SATURDAY
Saturday’s music kicked off with an unusual act on the Main Stage, HUMAN PYRAMIDS. Described as Neo-Classical meets Post-Punk, Axe’s Paul Russell’s brainchild soothingly eased everyone into the day’s music, starting with a melodic introduction from their String quartet and horns section, before gradually coming to a crescendo with roaring guitars and heavy bass. Opening up ‘The Cave’ at 12:25 were Blackpool’s BOSTON MANOR (check out the interview HERE), who didn’t see fit to spare audiences hangovers, and bust straight into a flurry of fast paced punk hits from the go, not relenting until their time was up, having been a fan of BOSTON MANOR for a while, I am glad to have caught their set, before interviewing them later in the day.
Through other people’s suggestion, I headed over to check out MILK TEETH (on ‘The Axiom’), but was unable to get closer than the side of the tent, due to their massive pull for their time slot. The Stroud based group cranked out grungy punk, often showing their very heavy Nirvana influence, but unfortunately failed to capture my attention for all that long, as their (maybe purposefully, and fitting with the grunge genre) set sounded unpolished and loose. I caught a bit of BOY JUMPS SHIP’s set back on ‘The Axiom’, which keeping in the ‘Pop-Punk’ theme of the stage going, managed to play their faster, more intricate set than the preceding band with a lot more technical proficiency and enthusiasm, creating a more enjoyable experience for the casual music fans loitered in between stages for their lunch.
On the subject of lunch, 2000trees has a modest selection of food vendors dotted around the site, by each of the 3 main stages. Festival food for me seems like it has a bad rep, but the team at 2000trees only seem to have booked vendors who would offer a fair service for non-extortionate prices. Grilled Halloumi burgers and sweet potato fries kept me sustained throughout Friday, while a chunky bacon butty and fresh scotch eggs kept me alive Saturday. Monmouth Coffee being served as well was a really big surprise, and you’d get change from a tenner for a meal, which when coming from London is a rarity.
After lunch, songstress ALICE PHEOBE LOU dazzled the crowd with her beautiful voice, serenading the crowd with angelic highs with a bit of Sia-esque grit hidden behind. Forgetting lyrics aside, as she bonded with the crowd over the weather, and treated us all to a chilled, eerie set. As the day edged to an end, and after an outstanding genre spanning set from THE SKINTS, I found myself back up at ‘The Croft’ for THE BIG SIXES, only due to the fact they had spent the day attaching terrible posters to everything across the site advertising their set, and not knowing what to expect initially, my doubts were swept away by a tide of harmonies, expertly crafted songwriting, and top notch inter-song conversation, before their encore consisting of a couple of songs in the crowd, surrounded by a mass of singing fans. THE BIG SIXES managed to work up a predominantly neutral audience into a hyped crowd, a feat that would be natural for an established fast paced Pop-Punk band, but not for a slow and groovy act such as The Big Sixes.
Saturday’s headliners ALKALINE TRIO took to the stage at 21:45 just as the clouds began to burst, having held out -threatening rain- for the latter half of the day. The initial swell of excitement quickly died out, as those who were not diehard fans were let down by what was a lethargic performance, frontman Matt Skiba giving an uncomfortable appearance, whilst he murmured out lyrics to songs with little emotion. Bassist Dan Andriano however was giving a lot more to the crowd, interacting well with drummer Derek Grant and moving around the stage between swapping vocal priorities with Matt. Unfortunately for ALKALINE TRIO, and what may have be exacerbated by a disappointing lack of crowd compared to their stateside presence, or what Matt Skiba may now be used to playing for Blink 182, a more instant degree of stagemanship is necessary to win over a crowd that may not only be there to see you, as not to fade into the background.
So what would I say about my first experience at 2000Trees?
I’m going to be bold with this statement, the attitude at 2000Trees reminds me of that at Glastonbury, albeit on a tiny scale. You get the real feeling that the people around you haven’t just come to see their favourite band, and will spend the rest of their time getting into as much trouble as possible, but more that it’s an annual tradition for them. The nine year old festival caters for everyone, and whilst running about the site this weekend, the amount of friendly faces I would bump into at each act astounded me, only to bump into them 20 minutes later at a different tent.
The site itself is relatively tiny, but not cramped. Even those arriving half way through Friday were finding spots to camp up with ease, with enough room for stoves, barbecues or extra gazebos to sleep under when their tents got too hot.
I’m not sure what my favourite part of this weekend has been- whether it’s the terrific atmosphere from the punters in the know and relish the intimacy of this little festival, the picturesque surroundings that the festival is lucky enough to have, the fantastically located Forest stage or what has been a fantastic line up, bringing some names such as Deaf Havana, We Are The Ocean, MClusky* and Alkaline Trio, and providing emerging and underground UK music a proving ground on the UK festival scene. This weekend at 2000Trees has been one that shall be remembered, relished, and hopefully repeated in the coming years.
Tickets for 2000Trees 10th year are now on Sale, and can be picked up on their site.
Taking place over five days in the quintessential Oxfordshire town of Henley On Thames, Henley Festival is an event like no other. With a focus on fine dining, high end art and a carefully selected line-up of musical acts it offers a very unique experience to a certain audience who otherwise might not attend your typical ‘music festival’. With a strictly black tie dress code the event oozed sophistication with absolutely no wellies in sight- in fact, people may complain about rain at glasto but if it rained here it wouldn’t just be spirits that are dampened but some serious designer clobber.
With the sophistication of the BBC Proms and the boozy clientele of any festival there was a real party atmosphere from the off set, the only difference being, instead of swigging from cans of warm strongbow, attendees quaff from champagne flutes and pints of Pimms. The sophisticated nature of the festival was probably best represented in its art agenda. Although nearly all UK festivals promote themselves as offering a certain degree of ‘art’ at their events, the Henley Festival really steps this up a gear. There are numerous temporary art galleries set up throughout the site all offering pieces for sale with a pretty hefty price tag.
Although there was other musical performances put on during the night, the main focus was quite clearly Jessie J’s headline set on the iconic floating stage- literally a stage that sits floating on the water of the Thames. From the offset Jessie faced a challenge playing to a completely seated crowd- that was of course until she bounded on stage and threw herself straight into an explosive set that gradually had everyone up on their feet dancing by winning over the crowd with her cockney charm and relentless enthusiasm.
Photo courtesy of Henley Festival
Throughout her set she played all her biggest hits, with short interludes where she would engage with the crowd, at some points even offering motivational tips on how best to pursue their life. Although this might have been partially lost on some of the older members of the crowd, as she pointed out even if she positively affects one person with her set she would be happy. This was a fun addition to this headline set instead of simply walking on stage, belting out the hits and scurrying off.
An obvious highlight for the crowd and also for Jessie was her first ever hit Do It Like a Dude, which pleased and confused the masses in equal measures at its time of release. No matter how people felt about the song in the past however, it went down a storm with the Henley crowd who embraced the dancing encouraged by Jessie and got even the most stand offish audience member swinging their hips from side to side.
Jessie J is clearly a well practiced performer who knew exactly how to win the crowd over to her way of thinking, including adapting the lyrics of her hit song Bang Bang (which she ended on) to “You need a girl from Henley to blow you mind”. Jessie was certainly a great choice to kick off this years festival.
Rural Hampshire is an unlikely location for a lively, music filled party, yet Blissfields Festival proved once again that it’s the perfect setting for this festival for all ages. With over 4000 attendees, Blissfields manages to retain the charm of a small festival, yet provides musical acts that rival much larger and longer running events. Friday 3rd was packed full of musical highlights, including Dub Pistols who have become a resident act since playing in 2013. Drawing in a huge crowd, their upbeat fusion of sounds was a perfect accompaniment to the summer sun. Other stand out acts included Ghostpoet who’s spoken word-esque tracks provided something extremely unique. Rhodes, due to release his highly anticipated album in September, also received a great reception, with powerful tracks such as ‘Breathe’ providing the crowd with an excuse to sing along. The main stage closed with The Horrors, which was a thoroughly enjoyable way to end the night. The Den, a smaller stage, hosted an array of emerging artists, with my firm favourite being Leader whose charisma and catchy songs were contagious.
Saturday was equally as fun filled, with Karen Harding lighting up the stage with her chart topper ‘Say Something’. Grandmaster Flash was as amazing as expected, being a strong contender for the biggest crowd. Simian Mobile Disco closed the final day on a high, with their electronic beats gathering the crowds for one last time.
Blissfields is the epitome of a broad appeal festival. For the young ones, a hungry hippo popping out tennis balls kept many entertained for hours! When the sun became too much, many resided to the indoor cinema, showing classics such as Wall-E. There is also areas to try out hula hoops, bubbles and diablos. Teens are also well catered for as it’s the perfect first festival, with plenty going on late in to the night yet. Adults of all ages were well catered for, with a stag and hen party being put to the test in the main arena in a battle involving lots of water and flour! The Blisscotheque proved popular with all, providing a non stop torrent of DJ’s blasting out hits, supplying the revellers with plenty of dancing material. The Hidden Hedge was also popular with those staying out after dark, featuring obscure art installations, light shows and dj’s – what more could you want! Families were made welcome with separate camping areas away from the noise which proved very popular. Blissfields offers much more than just music, with stalls such as Far Out Studios selling beautifully hand screen printed posters created commissioned by a selection of musicians. A ‘give it a go’ tent allowed you to try out circus acts too. When the sun became too much, lounging in the hammocks was an extremely popular choice. Plenty of trees also provided some much needed shade whilst still being in earshot of the main stage.
Food stalls were not in short supply, with delicious dishes on offer ranging from packed chicken burritos, to vegetarian sushi rolls. Dessert came in all shapes and sizes, with my favourite being the a huge nutella pancake, a steal at £4. No summer day is complete without a glass of Pimms which was readily available from the main bar.
Overall, this really was a great weekend for numerous reasons. It's rare to find a festival this small that still packs a punch. I will definitely be returning next year, and as early bird tickets are currently on sale, so can you!
Thousands flocked to Finsbury Park this weekend for popular festival – Wireless. Each year the festivals line up is spectacular, Summer Festival Guide headed over to check things out. With over 40 acts on both Saturday and Sunday; including Ciara, Jessie J, David Guetta, Nicki Minaj, Avicci and Kendrick Lamar, Wireless was sure to be a festival not to be forgotten.
With the sun beating down on Finsbury Park Saturday's sold-out show, started to fill out almost immediately. As the crowd flooded through the gates of Finsbury Park, they were greeted by a high-spirited Conor Maynard who kicked started Saturday on the main stage, whilst KStewart and Ady Sulieman took to the other two stages.
Raleigh Ritchie and Tinashe later took to the main stage and both performed equally good sets. Raleigh got the crowd jumping around and seemed to genuinely enjoy it just as much as they were enjoying him. Tinashe performed a great up beat set from her latest album Aquarius. Summer Festival Guide caught up with Raleigh Ritchie back stage where he told us about his love for performing, festivals and Game of Thrones.
Indiana took to the Pepsi Max Arena where she slowed things down a bit and performed a very mellow set. Fans swayed as the singer performed tracks from her latest album – ‘No Romeo’ and she drew in the crowd however the singer sped things up a bit towards the end of her set and the crowd loved it.
Whilst waiting for Mary J Blige crowds flocked to numerous food vans to refuel. Ranging from Chinese to Mexican, Vegan to Steak Grills and Lebanese to Caribbean food the crowd were definitely spoilt for choice. Mary J Blige dived straight in to her set list starting with her hit song ‘Just Fine’. The crowd immediately jumped to their feet and started dancing. Mary J had the crowd dancing for the whole 45 minutes of her set. With a great set list and her high-spirit Mary J had the crowd eating out of the palm of her hands.
Gorgon City and Childish Gambino later took to the main stage. Whilst Stormzy took to the RE: WIRED stage. Gorgon City's up beat set had the crowd dancing with range of hits including 'Stronger', 'Rather Be' & 'Real Love'.
The mult-talented Childish Gambino ran out onto the main stage next and it wasn't long before he was shirtless and belting out 'Crawl', 'Worldstar' and more from his back cataloge of albums.
Stormzy had a huge crowd for his highly anticipated set performing his latest tracks to a very appreciative crowd who sung their hearts out word for word.
As the crowd waited for Kendrick Lamar yet again they headed for the food vans and the bars to refuel and rehydrate. Kendrick took to the stage performing many tracks both old and new including 'Backstreet Freestyle', 'Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe' and 'Swimming Pools (Drank). The crowd loved Kendrick and Kendrick loved the crowd. Avicii wowed crowds when he later took to the stage and saw what had been an amazing day off with an equally amazing set and a spectacular light and firework display.
Sunday afternoon saw Wretch 32 kick start the day off on the main stage with an impressive performance. Also kicking off the day around the park was Samm Henshaw on the Re: WIRED stage and Kiko Bun in the Pepsi Max Arena. Summer Festival Guide caught up with Samm Henshaw backstage and he was just as happy and full of energy off stage as he was on.
Charlie XCX, August Alsina and Clean Bandit were the main stage line up for the afternoon. Whilst Arrested Development, Ciara, Pusha T and Rae Sremmurd took to the Pepsi Max Arena. Leaving Damage, Jacob Plant, Tove Stryke, Jaden & Willow Smith, Elliphant and Shakka to entertain those at the RE: WIRED stage.
Charli XCX with her trademark Sucker heart prop and full band on stage rocked the crowd with her hits 'Sucker', 'Breaking Up', 'I Love It'. Full of energy and with the sun pelting down on Finsbury Park, Charli had the crowd singing with her throughout her entire set!
Ciara was off to a rocky start with her mic being switched off for the first 15 minutes of her set. However that did not stop the crowd from singing along to the popular singer's songs and enjoying the show Ciara provided. Jaden and Willow left the crowd slightly befuddled with a rather unusual performance. However the crowd soon perked up when willow performed popular hit 'Whip my Hair' and Jaden shared a new track with the Wireless crowd. The sibling duo were full of energy and provided a good performance, aiding each other throughout.
As night began to fall, crowds were left disheartened when the festival organisers shamefully admitted that Nicki Minaj was running late due to travel complications and that they had lost touch with the award winning female rapper. It was later announced that Nicki and David Guetta had mutually agreed to share the set time which crowd's responded to with boos.
When David Guetta took to the stage half an hour after the announcement crowds went wild as he started his set. The light show Guetta provided was spectacular and he managed to win back the crowd with popular tracks, smoke, confetti and fireworks. David Guetta continued for a further 40 minutes before Nicki Minaj finally made her entrance and crowds seemed to have forgiven the female rapper within an instance.
Nicki continued to work the crowd and performed popular songs including 'Truffle Butter', 'Only', 'Moment for Life' and 'Anaconda'. Adoring fans sang and danced the night away enjoying the all-round amazing show Nicki delivered. Nicki Minaj was the perfect act to round off the Wireless weekend she left the crowd on a positive high and closed the show with a tremendously great performance.
French born DJ David Guetta and Trinidadian-American rapper Nicki Minaj took to the stage of Wireless Festival last night and did not disappoint. Due to travel issues Nicki had missed her spot but had mutually agreed with David that they would share the set. David Guetta started on stage with a number of classics including dance and hip hop tubes which got the crowd dancing and singing along. David constantly remind the crowd of his love for for London and wasted no time in letting off the fireworks, smoke and even confetti. Throughout his performance David engaged with the crowd, hyping them up for both his performance and for what was up to come.
About 20 minutes into his set David teased the crowd with a song he and Nicki had recorded together. However it wasn't for a further 20 minutes that Nicki Minaj finally graced the adoring crowd with her presence. Nicki wasted no time in getting started and had the crowd eating out of the palm of her hands. David and Nicki performed one song together and then Nicki was left to take over. Nicki jumped straight into songs off of her latest album The Pink Print. Including only and anaconda. Both of which she performed with backing dancers both male and female which sent the crowd wild. Nicki moved on to older songs from previous albums including Pink Friday.
Nicki continued to engage with the crowd asking her 'fellow West Indians' if they had prepared any Ox tail soup or Curried Goat for her. She continued on to joke with the crowd and fully engage with them throughout her set, whilst continuing with songs both old and new.
All in all it is safe to say that although Nicki had missed her own set, she made up for it with the performance she provided for her fans. She did not fail to deliver an amazing set, with amazing song choices and a positive vibe despite the complications she had finished. It is safe to say that Nicki Minaj was a perfect way to end the weekend and Wireless Festival 2015.
With the former Hard Rock Calling Festival boasting some of the biggest acts in music history, the newly relocated pint-sized Calling Festival brought a seemingly placid crowd to London's Clapham Common on Saturday 4th July.
Oasis icon Noel Gallagher saw to it that the crowd weren't disappointed, bringing forth a selection of tracks from High Flying Birds' latest album and a number of 90's classics including 'Champagne Supernova', 'Fade Away' and 'Whatever'. Happily engaging with his fans in classic Gallagher fashion, the crowd of midsummer anorak-wearing, Paul Weller haircut-donning post-mods showed their gratefulness by launching cups of overpriced festival beer (or similarly coloured liquid) into the air.
Whilst there was no hope of brother Liam surprising fans with an appearance, Noel brought the festival to a close in style with 'Don't Look Back in Anger'.
Photo by Justin Trickett courtesy of Calling Festival
Highlights from the day included Swedish rockers The Hives smashing their performance before handing over the Main Stage's surprisingly small crowd to a lack-lustre Modest Mouse. Luckily New Yorkers Bleachers were able to pick up the pace and entertain with their punk-pop-esque energy and sax solos. Ryan Adams was at hand to cater to his UK fanbase whilst Wolf Alice seized the opportunity to warm up the crowd with an energetic and emotive selection of songs from their small yet undeniably impressive catalogue.
See below for the full setlist for Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds at Calling Festival, Clapham Common on 4th July 2015:
Shoot a Hole Into the Sun Everybody's on the Run Lock All the Doors In the Heat of the Moment Fade Away (Oasis cover) The Death of You and Me Riverman You Know We Can't Go Back Champagne Supernova (Oasis cover) Dream On Whatever (Oasis cover) The Mexican (Stranded On) The Wrong Beach AKA… Broken Arrow Digsy's Dinner (Oasis cover) If I Had a Gun…
Encore: Do the Damage The Masterplan (Oasis cover) AKA… What a Life! Don't Look Back in Anger (Oasis cover)
American rapper Kendrick Lamar took to the stage of wireless festival last night and did not disappoint after a long day of the crowd eagerly awaiting his performance. With the sun shining down on Finsbury Park, Kendrick wasted no time in getting the crowd up on their feet, chanting "Oh Kendrick Lamar" clapping and cheering. Kendrick started out with an old classic of his, Temptation before swiftly moved on to crowd pleasers such as Backstreet Freestyle, I, Money trees and many more from a combination of his albums. Kendrick continued to work the crowd and had them eating out of the palm of his hands. In turn the crowd continued to feed Kendricks set by singing along, dancing and chanting, the crowd and Kendrick struck up an immediate bond. Kendrick constantly reminded the crowd of his love for London leading to an eruption of cheers every time.
Kendrick connected with fans and even suggested bringing one dedicated fan, who knew all the words, up on stage. Before deciding to give her a shout out instead. Kendricks constant interaction with the crowd as well as the set of good songs he chose lead to an amazing atmosphere. Many had waited eagerly all day to see Kendrick and he did not disappoint.
All in all it is safe to say after a long hot day of waiting to see Kendrick Lamar, he did not fail to deliver exactly what the crowd wanted and it was a great way to end the day.
Canadian rapper Drake finally made it back to London's Wireless Festival after a cancellation last year and it was well worth the wait! With the sun shining down on London's Finsbury Park and the crowd at full capacity, Drake wastes no time in getting into his new single Legend off his latest album 'If You're Reading This It's Too Late' and instantly reminded the crowd what they were missing. With vocals in full swing and the crowd bopping up and down, Drake trawls through his massive catalogue of tunes including, Trophies, We Made It, Crew Love, Tuesday, The Motto, Hold On Were Going Home, Started From the Bottom, Take Care, Energy and more!
In full swag mode and working the crowd into the palm of his hand, Drake connects with the fans by constantly reminding them of his love for London, his second home he pronounces. Covering the stage floor and giving the entire crowd love, Drake's showmanship is like no other! There is no ego, and its plain to see that he is as happy to be here as is the adorning crowd. With a set full of pyrotechnics and the stage transforming to a Jungle midway through, Drake is clearly in his element commanding the stage solo for the majority of his 80 minute performance.
All in all, it was quite a fitting end to what was brilliant day at the 10th anniversary of Wireless Festival, with Rita Ora, Katy B, Chance the Rapper & Public Enemy all playing amazing performances.
Photo by Andrew Whitton courtesy of Wireless Festival
This weekend took me to Beekse Bergen, a safari park in Hilvarenbeek in the Netherlands for the third installment of Best Kept Secret Festival. As far as festivals go, it’s still a baby, but with what it has to offer it seems the Dutch have it down. From gourmet food and wooden floors, to wristbands that double as wallets and a keep it green recycling policy, there’s not much more you could want from a three day event. Not to mention its stages hosted acts such as the Libertines, Balthazar, A$AP Rocky, Earl Sweatshirt, Royal Blood, Noel Gallagher and Alt-J, with well thought out schedules which means hardly any clashes.
But that’s not all, for example, the whole festival is cashless. Some UK and other European festivals have started operating a token system when it comes to drinks, but BKS tooks things even further. On your wristband there’s a little plastic chip, which you top up (up to 150 euros a time) and anything you buy whilst inside is done via the balance on your chip. No more scrambling for change, so more losing tokens or paper tickets, your wallet has relocated to your wrist. Which is an even better thing when you realise that the food lineup is almost as good as the music one. Wood fired pizza, smokers that boast delicious pulled pork, vegan friendly cheesecake and stuffed meatballs, it really doesn’t get much better. There’s also a massive tent run by ethically sound TOMS, where for every cup of coffee sold they donate to wateraid, complete with a lounging area that where you can sit, relax, and look out over the huge lake that sits just right of the main stage.
With such entertainment and tents as this, it’s relatively easy to forget why i’ve made it all the way to Holland in the first place, but remembering the line up quickly bring me back.
MUSIC // FRIDAY
Friday saw the likes of two-piece rockers Drenge and the scouse Circa Waves take to the main stage, entertaining crowds with their own version of indie rock, with Stage Two boasting Earl Sweatshirt, who although rocked his set, would probably have been better suited to a later show, but all in good time, as The Jesus and Mary Chain worked the second stage when it came to their set. The evening brought with it stylised folk in the shape of The Tallest Man on Earth, but The Libertines, the ones it seemed everyone was waiting for eventually took to the stage at 10:30pm.
Pete and Carl rocked up, hats and all, and as per usual they did not disappoint. If anyone was wondering what ever did become of the likely lads, I can tell you that they are back and definitely not going anywhere soon. Though last year saw them play a few shows throughout the UK and Europe, their first show of 2015 has meant that they have firmly rooted themselves as rock gods once again. Even standing in the crowd you could feel the energy radiating. With a set list as strong as it could be, including new track Gunga Gin, it was an exciting time for anyone who dare call themselves a fan of the boys in the band.
MUSIC // SATURDAY
Friday came and went and Saturday rolled on through, and with it a tiny bit of sunshine. Vibing up Stage Five were spanish rock quartet Hinds, not yet well known, but ones to watch who kept the energy high and created plenty of fun for the crowd. Belgian blues rockers Balthazar tore up the main stage, lulling us all with melodic riffs, followed shortly by The Vaccines, who are set to cement themselves in the music hall of fame with the *impending release of English Graffiti, and the legend himself Noel Gallagher and his High Flying Birds ending the day on Stage One with his own brand of British indie charm, not to mention a couple of Oasis tracks thrown in for good measure. But Saturday for me was all about Stage two and A$AP Rocky. Not knowing what to expect, I crammed myself into the packed tent ready and waiting for what he had to offer, and though he seemed to not pay much attention to the scheduled stage time (fifteen minutes late) he definitely put on a show, using the backdrop to play self curated clips and images that was set to the music and the whole performance. Something a little different from a hip hop show that was much appreciated.
SUNDAY // MUSIC
By the time sunday came around, the hope for sunshine had definitely evaporated as we seemed to start the day with a heavy downfall, but a bit of torrential rain never stopped me at a festival before and I wasn’t going to let it this time either. With plenty to see, the day kicked off with Wolf Alice, a london group reeling in the excitement of releasing their debut album My Love Is Cool on that day tore up the stage, swiftly followed by Gengahr and then back to the mainstage for some melodic tunes by First Aid Kit. One of the highlights of the day for me however were Royal Blood, who came on complete with extra speakers and stadium lights, just in case anyone had any doubts about the ability of the two piece to put on a show. After getting the crowd a little riled up (must say there’s been a few mixed reviews on their attitude) they ended up putting on one of the best shows I’ve ever seen, and the moshers in the middle seemed to agree. But coming to a Dutch festival, especially one with the vibe of Best Kept Secret, it’s clear the winners of the weekend were Sunday Headliners Alt-J. Paying back to their Dutch fans – they were bigger in Holland than they were in the UK at the beginning of their indie rock reign – the bond became apparent as they ended the festival on a massive high.
Overall, Best Kept Secret has a lot to offer. I must admit the vibe is incredibly different to anything I’ve ever been to before. A bit politer, and a lot more ‘high-end’ its perfect for anyone who likes to listen to some good bands, eat some yummy food surrounded by scenic views and a stunning lake, and lets face it, who doesn’t?
