Looking for the latest lineup, date, ticket information or latest news about your favourite festivals, look no further. Summer Festival Guide’s Festival News section covers all your needs!
Dimension, Funtcase, Voltage, My Nu Leng, SASASAS, Kanine, Holy Goof + more already announced
The biggest drum & bass party in the world is coming to Amsterdam for the first time ever on Novermber 4th and 5th 2022. Rampage will line up at the exclusive Afas venue with all its famous mind-blowing production and headline sets from the likes of Dimension, Funtcase, Voltage b2b My Nu Leng, Used b2b Andromedik, Royal Ruth, MC champions SASASAS and Problem Central, Kanine, Holy Goof, Grafix, Murdock and a second room of Europe’s dubstep finest plus many more to be announced. For UK travellers and anyone else coming from abroad, full packages will be available including a tour of Amsterdam with a red light district visit, coffee shop visit, boat rides and plenty more. For tickets head to linktr.ee/WeAreRampage.
Located near Amsterdam’s Johan Cruyff Arena, Afas is the first venue ever to be constructed specifically to host electronic music. It has perfect acoustics and a carefully designed overall lay-out that will provide a perfect setting for this historic Rampage event. You can expect out of this world production, lighting, lasers and sounds systems that will make for an utterly thrilling experience across two rooms with a strong female contingent including drum & bass queen Ruth Royall and dubstep doyenne Elle Riche.
The big hall, named “Black Box”, has a capacity of 6,000 and is a 3000 m² wonderland that will see superstar Dimension leading the way with more to come, so the top of the bill couldn’t be stronger. Add budding superstars Used and Andromedik, an exclusive d&b set from Funtcase, SASASAS and Problem Central, as well as the likes of Kanine, Holy Goof, Grafix, Voltage b2b My Nu Leng, and head honcho Murdock himself, and it’s a line-up that dreams are made of with all points on the drum & bass spectrum covered in style.
The second smaller hall for after parties has a capacity of 700, making for a more intimate vibe. It will host the very best of Europe’s dubstep scene, with artists travelling from all over the continent and beyond to represent the finest dirty bass.
Rampage Amsterdam is set to be a historic drum & bass event so make sure you are part of this world exclusive event, which still has many more names to come.
ARTBAT’s growing UPPERGROUND imprint reaches its fifth release, this time with the Ukrainian duo collaborating with renowned Argentinean artist Shall Ocin, and the Italian-Canadian multi instrumentalist and vocalist braev, together all combining to create the incredibly emotive new single ‘Origin’.
It’s been nearly a year since the launch of ARTBATs UPPERGROUND imprint and the previous four releases have been very well received throughout the scene, and the label has just recently hosted its second UPPERGROUND event, this time at Sonar, where Shall Ocin performed alongside ARTBAT at the sell out event in Barcelona, having previously hosted the first event at New Year in Zamma at Tulum where braev performed alongside ARTBAT.
Between them, they have all created a dramatic track, full of emotion with hypnotic atmospherics drifting through the track and a rolling energy emanating from the bass line. braev’s poignant vocals give this an emotionally charged feel, that will conjure up thoughts about love, personal direction and the meaning of life, and when the breakdown hits the powerfully evocative lyrics, based around the introspective hook of ‘Where Do We Belong’ combine with the thought provoking piano, and the climatic synths creating a record that is both touching and powerful at the same time and will have fans closing their eyes and savouring the moment.
Artist(s): ARTBAT, Shall Ocin, braev Title: Origin Record Label: UPPERGROUND Cat.Number: UPND005 Release Date: 22nd July 2022 Tracklist: 1) Origin
Electronic crossover production duo Giolì and Assia have announced the release of their third and long-awaited studio album, ‘Fire, Hell and Holy Water’ on Ultra Records.
Hailing from Palermo, Italy, Giolì and Assia are instrumentalists, singer/songwriters, DJs and label owners, who create genreless sonics that are entirely their own. Following the release of recent singles “Fire Hell and Holy Water” and “Silence”, the pair shared a new single, “I’ll Be Fine”. The third single serves as a taste of what’s to come from the LP – sublime and emotive soundscapes that have captured the hearts of their legions of fans worldwide. Giolì & Assia will continue touring around the world into the Summer & Fall returning to North America in September with their biggest headline shows to date at LA’s The Novo and Brooklyn Steel. The duo also have festival slots at Czech festival Colours of Ostrava, Montreal’s Osheaga, Austria’s FM4 Frequency Festival, Chicago’s ARC Music Festival, Las Vegas’s Life is Beautiful, San Francisco’s Portola, and more.
Out today on Ultra Records, “I’ll Be Fine” opens with Giolì’s captivating piano chords and blends ethereal soundscapes with Assia’s smooth and luxuriating vocals. Speaking about the track the duo said, “We wrote “I’ll Be Fine” as a mantra during lockdown, almost like a call to arms for survival when so much was going wrong around us. We started playing it on our tour last year, and already our fans sing it back to us. Whenever we play this track live it seems to connect so strongly with our fans”. Giolì, a masterful pianist who has been honing her craft since the age of 8, plays the piano cello, drums, guitar, and handpan, with Assia commanding lead vocals and guitar.
Alongside the single release today, Giolì & Assia have unveiled the live performance video of “I’ll be fine” taken from their boundary-pushing video series “#DiesisLive”. The videos have been a cornerstone of development and creative expression for Giolì & Assia as artists, carving out their own aesthetic niche and garnering the band millions of views for each production from across the globe. Started in April 2019, the high-octane productions invite viewers to watch intimate Giolì & Assia live performances filmed in remote and jaw dropping locations. These have included a volcano in the Aeolian Islands, the Andromeda Theater in the Province of Agrigento, Isola Delle Femmine in the duo’s hometown of Palermo and the breathtaking Fjallsarlon Glacier Lagoon in Iceland, and most recently the Krysviksberg Cliffs in Iceland.
Set for release 9th September on Ultra Records, ‘Fire, Hell and Holy Water’ is the band’s biggest body of work to date, a 16 track labour of love. Named after a well known local Sicilian saying, the record documents the girls’ turbulent and intense highs and lows as a couple, and the health problems and untimely losses of relatives during the pandemic. Referencing a plethora of major sonic influences the pair cite London Grammar, Coldplay, Depeche Mode, Labyrinth’s Euphoria score, U2 and Ludovico Eunaudi as just a few of the many formative inspirations on their landmark forthcoming album.
Fire, Hell and Holy Water – Tracklist
Intro
Meaning Of Life
Fire Hell and Holy Water
Silence
Extasy
Juala
Shooting In My Chest
My Tears
Playing Chess (Prelude)
Playing Chess
Eurydice
I’ll Be Fine
Bittersweet Love (Hey Oh)
Even If The Time Will Pass By (I)
Even If The Time Will Pass By (II)
The Outro
Upcoming Tour Dates
7/13 – Çeşme/Izmir, TR – Sommer Klein
7/14 – Ostrava, CZ – Colours of Ostrava Festival
7/17 – Cluj, RO – Electric Castle Festival
7/20 – Ibiza, ES – Cova Santa
7/22 – Rochefort, FR – Stereoparc Festival
7/31 – Montreal, CAN – Osheaga Festival
8/11 – Copenhagen, DK – O / Day Fest
8/13 – Chorzów, PL – FEST Festival
8/20 – St. Poelten, AT – FM4 Frequency Festival
8/24 – Ibiza, ES – Cova Santa
8/26 – Budapest, HU – Buda Castle
8/27 – Mykonos, GR – Cavo Paradiso
9/3 – Austin, TX – iLLfest
9/4 – Chicago, IL – ARC Music Festival
9/9 – Los Angeles, CA – The Novo
9/11 – Sedalia, CO – High Ground Music & Arts Festival
Sonus is Croatia’s most revered underground festival and today it reveals the day-by-day breakdown of its carefully curated and world class programme. All boat party tickets sold out within just 90 minutes. Now only the last few festival tickets remain in the lead up to the much anticipated event from 21st to 25th of August on the gorgeous Pag Island. Get yours at sonus-festival.com.
Sonus Festival is known around the world for mixing fan favourites with underground prodigies across five days of partying under open skies and next to the clear blue waters of the Adriatic Sea. It plays out in four majestic clubs, all with cutting edge light and sound, sun kissed dance floors and plenty of pools and palm trees.
This year’s famous boat parties are all sold out, but the opening party will feature sets from Marko Mastic, Innellea, and KAS: ST at Noa Club on Saturday August 20th. After that, the festival gets underway in fine style on Sunday 21st across four of DJ Mag’s Top 100 Clubs – Aquarius, Kalypso, Papaya and Noa – with the likes of Trikk, KiNK live, Stephan Bodzin live, Dixon, Rødhåd, Chris Liebing, Boris Brejcha, Petar Dundov live, Monika Kruse, Carl Cox and Chris Liebing amongst those playing.
On Monday 22nd, Sven Väth, Reinier Zonneveld live, Adriatique, Hot Since 82, Jamie Jones b2b The Martinez Brothers, PAN-POT, ANNA, Enrico Sangiuliano, Kölsch, Giorgia Angiuli live, Bronski, Vintage Culture and more all line up.
Tuesday 23rd sees sets from PAN-POT, Richy Ahmed, Patrick Topping, William Djoko, Michael Bibi, Loco Dice, IMOGEN, VTSS, Dax J and Richie Hawtin and Wednesday 24th is 999999999, Paula Temple, I Hate Models, FJAAK DJ, Âme, Denis Sultaldia, Black Coffee, Seth Troxler, Deborah de Luca and Maceo Plex.
The final day on Thursday 25th is Luigi Madonna, Anfisa Letyago, Ben Klock, Joseph Capriati, Sonja Moonear, Ricardo Villalobos b2b Zip, Amelie Lens, Kobosil, andhim, Fisher and plenty of others.
The scene is now set for Sonus’s highly anticipated return.
After a sold out maiden event that saw 2,000 dancing souls surrounded by the vibrant colours and rich cultures of Oaxaca, SET Underground bring their seasoned production and curation team to one of the most beautiful cities in Mexico once more during its most important holiday of the year. Dia de los Muertos is rich in tradition, and SET Underground’s 4-day TIERRA DE LOS MUERTOS FESTIVAL EXPERIENCE adds a cutting edge musical element to the celebrations.
Dia de los Muertos is known for its colourful festivities where family and friends gather together to joyfully celebrate loved ones that have passed away. It is Mexico’s most famous celebration, and Oaxaca City is the epicentre of it all. This already big holiday gets a whole lot bigger with the addition of this festival.
SET Underground came onto the worldwide stage as one of the first organisers to creatively and safely host events after the pandemic as restrictions became a moving target. Chances are if you (or any of your friends) traveled to attend events in USA or Mexico during 2021, you probably attended a SET Underground event.
The Tierra de los Muertos Festival Experience will be headlined by the likes of house and tech stars from all over the world including Adam Ten, Damon Jee, Denis Horvat, Dramian, Frankey and Sandrino, Gab Rhome, Glowal, Jan Blomqvist, Kawas, Laolu, Mita Gami, Paulor, Rafael Cerato, Rebolledo, Sabo & Goldcap, Santiago Garcia, The Organism, Unders and Verlk.
Early planning is essential to attend DIA DE LOS MUERTOS. Flights and accommodations need to be booked ASAP because, although the event has secured partnerships with a few hotels, the success of the 2021 edition and with travel restrictions now being lifted, places will be hugely in demand and very limited.
Event: Tierra de los Muertos Festival Experience Organizer: SET Underground Location: Oaxaca City, Mexico Date: Friday, October 28th – Tuesday, November 1st Event Link: www.tierradelosmuertos.com/ Lineup: Adam Ten, Damon Jee, Denis Horvat, Dramian, Frankey and Sandrino, Gab Rhome, Glowal, Jan Blomqvist, Kawas, Laolu, Mita Gami, Paulor, Rafael Cerato, Rebolledo, Sabo & Goldcap, Santiago Garcia, The Organism, Unders, Verlk Social (for tagging):Instagram @Set.Underground // Facebook @SetUnderground
Afterlife Recordings has announced a new compilation entitled ‘Unity Pt. 3’.
The release features thirty-nine tracks by a wide range of artists signed to Afterlife, as well as two Ukrainian acts; 8Kays, who signed her first track to the label, and longtime affiliates Woo York.
Proceeds from the release will go to two concerns close to the label’s heart. UNICEF Ukraine, which is working to reach vulnerable children and families with essential services – including health, education, protection, water and sanitation – as well as life-saving supplies in Ukraine. Donations are also going to Planned Parenthood, the nonprofit organization that provides sexual health care in the United States and globally, who continue to do everything they can to protect the fundamental right for people to decide over their own bodies – in what are some of the toughest times to health care delivery.
Artist: VA Title: Unity Pt. 3 Record Label: Afterlife Cat.Number: AL067 Release Date: 20th July 2022
Tracklisting: 1) ANNA – Cosmovision ft. Ravid 2) Cassian – Landa 3) Woo York – Brutalism 4) Colyn – Unstable Gravity Alert 5) Recondite – Runner 6) 8Kays – Morning After The Rave 7) Ubbah – System Failure 8) Marino Canal – Inertia 9) Kevin De Vries – Biohazard 10) Massano – Signs of Saturn 11) Innellea – Targo 12) Aera – Golden Means 13) Yubik – The Runner 14) Agents Of Time, Fideles – Drain 15) Citizen Kain – Drag 16) Binary Finary – 1998 (Whitesquare Remix) 17) Dyzen – Tesseract 18) Jan Blomqvist – Deeper Grounds ft. Mahri 19) Konstantin Sibold – Shake This World 20) Mark Reeve – New Age 21) The Element & Lyke – Fugitive 22) Øostil & Juan Hansen -My World 23) Angelov – Edges 24) Argy – Mental Powers 25) ANII – Isolate 26) Binaryh – Seyfert 27) Alfa Romero – Andante n.64 28) Mark Hoffen – Life 29) Beswerda -Tundra 30) Armonica – U Can’t Ctrl Me 31) David Lindmer – We Need To Talk 32) Dino Lenny – Breathe 33) Echonomist – Spirit Receivers 34) Glowal – Crave 35) Hunter/Game, Drown – Eagle In The Sky 36) Josh Gigante & Mooglie – Voicemail 37) Nandu – Always 38) Olympe – In The Darkness 39) Coeus – Her Eyes
Tickets Date: September 4th, 2022 Location: Amnesia, Ibiza
Their performance at Amnesia is set to be Bicep’s first ever live performance on the White Isle
Amnesia Live shows are one of the most essential experiences of any trip to Ibiza. This year will be an historic one as Bicep play an exclusive one-off show on September 4th as part of the Pyramid season. It will be their first ever live show on the island and they are joined by Special Request, KiNK Live and Logic 1000. This is a strictly limited capacity ticketed event that will sell out well in advance so move fast or miss out.
It seems that everything Northern Irish duo Bicep do turns to gold. They are fresh off the back of a sold out and game changing live world tour that has seen them take their sounds to new levels. That came off the back of the huge last album Isles which found them mix up their famously euphoric and polished melodies with meticulous beats. Tracks like Atlas and Apricots helped the pair amass millions of streams and plenty of top chart positions, but in the live area they are truly in a class of their own.
There are many live shows in electronic music but none as epic and adventurous as Bicep’s. It sees the pair play on an array of music making machines, on the fly, tweaking their own classic tracks as well as offering plenty of new sounds that add up to a real emotional roller coaster. To hear it in the epic Amnesia., on such a grand scale and with all its world beating production will be out of this world.
Add in the thrilling Special Request who mixes up bass, jungle, rave and techno with relentless energy, Bulgarian live wizard KiNK’s techno sounds and a set from Logic 1000 and you have one of this summer’s most standout events.
Get tickets now: https://www.festicket.com/eventgenius/amnesia-pyramid-2022/shop/31982/
Last year’s debut Summer Love Festival drew over 1000 attendees. People’s minds were blown by the best quality underground dance music spanning 4 decades of goodness, with many saying this was not only the best boutique festival of the year, but seasoned festival goers were saying it’s one of the best they’ve been to in their lives. The vibe was electric. Summer Love festival 2021’s main tent featured the OGs of first wave House, Acid & Techno music in the UK including Mr.C, Adamski, Robert Owens, Eddie Richards, Jazzy M, Kid Batchelor, Terry Farley & more. Tent two was hosted by Mr.C’s Superfreq brand & featured legends Darren Emerson, Terry Francis & Murf as well as Saytek live & Superfreq resident DJs & artists. The third tent was the Graffiti Kings Radio crew with Trevor Fung headlining a cast of Graffiti Kings Radio DJs. The festival was rounded off with the Woodland Culture 76 stage highlighting a mix of Reggae, Dub, Funk, Disco, Balearic & more.
MOVING FORWARD:
For 2022 there’s going to be many changes. Firstly, the site. We’ve found an even better slocation just 10 minutes’ drive south of Gatwick, so hotels are in abundance. The site consists of 2 stunning fields surrounded by woodlands & a small lake.
The second big change is the date. This year & moving forward, we’re throwing Summer Love Festival two weeks later than last year. This year will be on Saturday 17th September 2022 from 12pm – 11pm. The primary reason for the date change is that the week after August Bank Holiday is the single worst week of the year for events bar none.
We’re going to step things up in every way imaginable this year as we take Summer Love Festival to new heights. We will be greatly improving the overall production, tents, sound systems, lighting, projections & decoration. We’ll have 5 musical stages this year & be adding a sprinkling of legendary international guest DJs, along with live acts to the bill to compliment the very best of underground & cutting-edge British Dance Music talent. Once again Stage 1 will be the Summer Love Old School tent featuring quality underground House, Acid & Techno music circa 1986-1992. Stage 2 will be the Superfreq tent featuring the best in modern Techno, Deep Tech, Acid & Minimal music. Stage 3 will be the Graffiti Kings Radio tent featuring all shades of quality upfront House Music. Stage 4 will be the Woodlands stage featuring the very best of retro Dub, Reggae, Rock Steady, Soul, Funk, Boogie & Disco. For stage 5 we’re adding a VIP area offering table & bottle service. On top of this we’ll be providing fun fair attractions & adding to the food stands from last year giving a broader selection of foods & beverages. We’re adding more traders & merch stalls too. We’ll be leaving no stone unturned to transform what is already a magical festival into an event that our loving community will want to celebrate life at & call “Home” year after year.
Torquay’s majestic Torre Abbey Meadows was the sight of some real music history this past weekend as Electric Bay made its much anticipated debut.
DJs such as Carl Cox, Chase & Status (DJ Set), John Digweed, Alan Fitzpatrick, Alisha, Syreeta, Eric Powell, Wilkinson, Hybrid Minds, Example, Friction, Luude and Girls Don’t Sync all played standout sets on well designed stages through punchy sound systems.
The crowd allied it up as the sun shone down and people were already talking about next year as soon as it ended.
Here are some of the pictures that best capture the magic of the weekend.
It’s a busy London Saturday, the tube is hotter than satan’s armpit, but we’re on our way to Hyde Park for BST today… let’s go.
As we head into the arena via the south entrance, we’re filtered straight into the VIP area which is a tree covered shady sanctuary in the heat, along with a few food carts, a bar and an ice-cream truck. It’s a small area but it’s quite cute and has nice loos.
On the way into the arena we hit up the merchandise stall for t-shirts, and there are some incredible Pearl Jam art prints on sale – specific to this event, a really special and interesting merchandise option. They even helpfully have a heap of tubes so you can transport one home safely/let your child use it as a lightsaber. There’s also a little bandstand stage here called ‘The Birdcage’ and absolutely heaps of food choices and water refill points. So far so good!
On the Great Oak stage, Dublin-based singer-songwriter Imelda May is a vision in flouncy Victorian mourning dress. She has such a dynamic stage presence and a stunning voice, we thoroughly enjoyed the Meatloaf ‘I’d Do Anything For Love’ cover, and hope to see her on many more festival bills in the future.
Punk rock fury from Petrol Girls on the Birdcage feels particularly prominent after the last few weeks in world events, and it’s pretty great to see them pull a decent crowd of young faces – punk has always existed as a call to arms, and we need it back more than ever.
Welsh rockers James & The Cold Gun give us that shoulder-to-shoulder sticky-club-floor teenage rebellion feeling, very fun but ever so slightly strange in the setting of belting summer sun under the light of a dappled tree canopy.
Elsewhere on site the South London Samba Band hit that sunshine beat with utter perfection, they are absolutely full of energy, which spreads into the crowd around them in the form of some very questionable but joyful dancing. After all of that, it’s time for a drink, and wow are you spoilt for choice here at BST. The bars are shipping containers all made up to look like a row of Santa Clara Cuban restaurants, colourful and interesting with enough different serving fronts to ensure there’s never a horrendous queue.
As we take a walk around the back of the arena, the presence of advertising partners is pretty overwhelming compared to other festivals. Maybe it’s a London thing, or the fact that it’s a small space, but it’s a bit of a bombardment. Having said that, some of it is quite sympathetically done, like AmEx giving out free water bottles and tote bags (as well as access to cold water filling stations, and the option to go into a private rooftop viewing area) seems quite welcome on such a hot day.
Around the corner there is another bar area which looks like something pulled straight from Snow White, a faux beamed pub called ‘The King’s Head’, then there’s the florally adorned Hard Rock area which directly overlooks the Rainbow stage. The Hard Rock Shop is obviously full of their own merch rather than BST stuff, but next door they’ve brought a sample of café items to an indoor food stall, surrounded by roadie cases of BST-relevant memorabilia, like you would see in the real Hard Rock Café. We took a peek at Eddie Vedder’s signed wetsuit, Elton John’s Union Jack biker jacket, and a choir robe signed by Mick Jagger. Oh and, it’s shady and cool in there. Magic.
Up next on the Giant Oak we see the iconic Johnny Marr (of The Smiths fame) powering through a fabulous set with his vibrant yellow guitar. It’s a mix of works from various eras of Marr’s musical career – ‘Spirit Power and Soul’ is epic, but honestly the thing I’m most excited about – is getting to hear my favourite Smiths songs sans unavoidable Morrissey bullshit. Johnny sings them well, ‘Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want’ and ‘How Soon Is Now’ have the entire arena singing along, and ‘There Is a Light, That Never Goes Out’ is so upliftingly, I suppose canonically bright.
During a small break, Marr notes someone standing in the front section on their phone and snarks “I hope you’re texting ‘Johny Marr is a fucking bad-ass’” we all laugh, as the person in question red-faces it to the cameras. “It feels good to be doing this again after all this time, and to see your lovely faces” he tells us, before dedicating his last song to Pearl Jam for inviting him.
On their very own stage in the corner, the chaos creators themselves, arbiters of festival mischief since the dawn of time, The Cuban Brothers – are pied-pipering the hell out of BST. As their set begins with Kengo on the mix, Juan Erection throwing shapes and as he noted to all the kids ‘Uncle Miguel’ brandishing a hosepipe at the crowd. There’s something very comforting about seeing them back on the festival scene, albeit sans iconic brother Archerio who retired last season.
Yelling “I’m gonna pump some gas into you in the correct fashion” Miguel is as much of a bawdy menace as ever, I love it. He manages to cheekily forget that tonight is Stereophonics not last nights’ The Pixies… “I don’t keep an eye on who’s supporting us!”, sing us a verse of Even Flow and get us all to chant ‘Boris Is a Dickhead’ in the space of about 15 minutes. We’re treated to old school hip-hop, Kengo on rollerskates, Juan doing crazy flips and Miguel yelling “Goodbye Boris you narcissistic fucking clown!” which honestly, is just excellent fun. I’ll never not want to see The Cuban Brothers at a festival.
Up next, Stereophonics on the Great Oak stage. As someone who listened to a lot of Stereophonics as a kid but not much since, I don’t know that I was expecting too much from them. A bit of nostalgia sure, but maybe not greatness? Happily proven wrong, Kelly Jones’ voice is still grittily excellent and they give us the most epic tour of the classics that we want to hear.
“It’s nearly 30 years to the day I first saw Pearl Jam, supporting Neil Young at Finsbury Park…” says Kelly, before joking that they themselves only have an hour to fit in 25 years and 12 studio albums worth of music to fit in.
‘Bartender and the Thief’ is followed by ‘Hanging On Your Hinges’ but it’s the likes of ‘A Thousand Trees’, ‘Have a Nice Day’ and ‘Pick a Part That’s New’ which really hits you in the memories. The wistfulness for the optimism of the early noughties is ripe for twanging that emotion string, things definitely feel heavier this side of a global pandemic.
‘Just Looking’ flows into closing track ‘Dakota’ with the band squinting into the still scorching hot sun to say “Thank you, it’s been amazing… have a brilliant time tonight!” before leaving to rapturous applause.
We decide to check out the dinner offerings before the main act, and it is absolutely peak London in here. Truffle burger? Bhaat? Steak frites? You got it. Wash it down with some Perrier or a can of Pinot? We chose paneer wraps and churros, both of which were excellent. Festival food has come a loooong way, and I am grateful.
Ⓒ Sandra Sorenson for BST
The heat haze is still shimmering over Hyde Park, the arena is suddenly packed with warm bodies, and every face is turned towards the Giant Oak stage for tonight’s headliner, Pearl Jam.
There mega lighting rig above the stage reconfigures to a honeycomb style backdrop as the band take to the stage to a huge roar from the crowd. Then 10-Club VIP area at the front is definitely the best perk of the upgrade packages, as they get a full close up of Eddie Vedder emerging to The Beatles ‘All You Need is Love’, and images of themselves plastered on the giant wraparound stage screens above.
Without a huge amount of fanfare, the band rolls straight into the first song ‘Corduroy’ and its clear that Eddie’s voice, and the band as whole have lost absolutely none of what made them famous in the first place. It’s as raw and powerful an intro as I’d hoped for. “…hope this night goes nice and slow, we’re so grateful to be here and do it again, we’re gonna try and play everything we didn’t play yesterday” Vedder says, and having looked at yesterday’s set-list already – I know we’re in for a very special and unusual set. ‘Why Go’ is one of my favourite Pearl Jam songs of all time, and it seems I am not in the minority, it absolutely sets the crowd ablaze, with people singing and dancing all around us.
We slip under for ‘Deep’ which is crushingly heavy, another Ten hit, followed by Vedder lamenting on how damn hot it still is this evening, when he notices a situation unfolding in the crowd. It seems like someone needs assistance and Vedder directs medics into the crowd saying “…make a little tributary, everyone clear some space’, making sure the music doesn’t start again until they’re safely out. With the 2021 Travis Scott/Astroworld situation making for very bad headlines last year, I take great comfort that most artists out there do take concert safety seriously, and notice what is happening at their shows.
Not only this, but the well-known and expected outpouring of political and moral opinion by the band is also welcome – we stan a band who use their platform to raise awareness, to comment on what is happening in the world. Eddie talks about gun violence in the US, and about how it affects his family, in relation to track ‘Garden’ which he explains is about tombstones in a cemetery. Following this “…a song [they] wrote and performed with a legend, Neil Young. Tonight we play with another legend, Manchester’s own Johnny Marr” for ‘Throw Your Hatred Down’. It is nothing short of epic to see these legends grace the stage together, this is an unforgettable rock moment.
‘Do The Evolution’ showcases the bands unmistakable delight in playing live, the energy is infectious and seeps into the crowd – contrastingly heavy, under the rainbow pastel summer skies of London. Van Halen tribute cover ‘Eruption’ is fittingly brilliant, and out in the front row the camera pans across a young lad with a “1st Row” sign, dances along as Eddie uses his plaid shirt as a cape for ‘Black’ and manages to snag himself one of Eddie’s tambourines, I am intensely jealous of a child.
A second tributary mention goes to the late great Taylor Hawkins, and is dedicated to his wife and children by the band. ‘River Cross’ is another thoughtful dedication to the people of Ukraine, and as the lighting rig snakes and changes to slither over them, the band drop into arguably their most famous song ‘Alive’. Hearing this live, is a full body experience, the ridiculous bone shaking power that this song has over everyone is absolutely wild. If you didn’t love it, I’m sorry to say, there’s something wrong with you.
Closing out with The Who cover ‘Baba O’Riley’ wouldn’t have been my number one choice to be sure, but adding in a return from Johnny Marr and Andrew Watt, I can’t deny it’s pretty special. It’s been such a different and varied set from last time I saw them, many moons ago at Leeds fest 2006. Grateful doesn’t even cut it – how lucky are we to be back outside after the absolute shitstorm of the last couple of years, witnessing something like this?
Live music isn’t just fun, isn’t just entertainment, or diversion. It’s the lifeblood of what it means to be humans with shared experiences. Pearl Jam tapped into that reservoir tonight, it was clear on so many awed faces leaving the arena. Thank you BST for making sure this happened, despite every setback.
