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!
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.
The second remix of this Avicii classic is ready to drop as part of the 30 Yearsof Vicious celebrations with Toolroom Records head honcho Mark Knight on remix duty.
A unique pairing of Mark Knight remixing Avicii & Sebastien Drums is due 15th July on Australia’s leading electronic label Vicious Recordings. This was originally Avicii’s first #1 on Beatport and is already hallmarked as an essential summer anthem with Mark’s latest interpretation. The hit song was Tim Bergling’s biggest release with Vicious alongside another 10 singles that were signed to the label who first discovered the talented producer.
Following on from the Don Diablo Remix that achieved #1 on Beatports Mainstage Chart and accrued over 1 million streams in its first week of release, now hitting 5.2+ Million streams it leans into Mark Knight’s latest remix to further ignite clubland.
This ongoing success of this song, further proves the legacy and impact that Avicii holds in today’s industry. With this iconic song engaging a new audience, Mark Knight further adds his own footprint with great effect. Mark’s signature house music sound has remained a staple of Beatport and Traxsource charts. Recognised as one of the world’s most well known DJs and producers, Mark adds his own unique flavour to the almighty Avicii & Sebastien Drums hit.
A powerful and funk fuelled house vibe is the recipe for this mix, with original hooks blended seamlessly with Mark’s own trademark groove. The full vocal (attributed to the Gwen McCrae classic) teases with an energy that will lift any crowd. Adding a well timed Pete Tong sample that pays homage to Avicii’s long standing legacy Mark adds a sustained emotion to the track. Mark’s remix works on a myriad of levels and is already gaining favour with the world’s top DJ’s. This incredible new version is destined to fire up dancefloors across the world and respectfully give justice to the original club anthem created by one of the worlds most prominent electronic music superstars.
The second much anticipated edition of Epizode Albania is just fast approaching and today it announces its final line up. Playing the escapist 24-hour music experience on the blissful beach of Shengjin in Albania from the 15th till 19th of September 2022 will be Dixon, Stephan Bodzin Live, Airrica, Cap, David Gtronic, Maher Daniel, Mahony, Matias Aguayo, Peter Invasion, Trikk, TYOMA, Yaya, Yulia Niko and many more on top of the already announced likes of Apollonia, Loco Dice, Move D, Enzo Siragusa, Djebali and others. Multi Passes are on sale at the international price of €129, the Group Multi Passes cost €339, while the Balkan countries will have a special price of €69. Tickets can be purchased online via Epizode website: www.epizode.eu
This will be the sixth global edition and second Albanian edition of the world’s most underground and artful dance music festival. It is renowned by those who know as a gathering of real music and adventure lovers with carefully curated line-ups playing fantastically designed stages with world class production. This year both stages are brand new with fantastic designs by the СЕТАП team and Freak Fabrique.
The location is also one of the stars as the gorgeous north western Albanian landscapes are detailed with lush pine forests and the warm emerald sea. The festival plays out amongst rich Mediterranean culture, with warm local hospitality and mouth-watering local delicacies making this all the more unforgettable.
This year once again there will be four nights and five days of non stop music, with 96 hours of beats ready and waiting to see you dancing. Amongst the final wave of names are Innervisions founder and emotional deep house master Dixon, the world renowned Stephan Bodzin and his most famous techno live show, cult minimalists like Cap and the vibrant vortexes of Airrica, South American innovator Matias Aguayo, pillars of the global house and techno underground such as David Gtronic, dub Maher Daniel, Mahony, Matias Aguayo, Peter Invasion, Trikk, TYOMA, Yaya, Yulia Niko and many more. As well as all this, the local scene will be represented by the internationally acclaimed ALBAN HI-DINI, RRRRON and SECRET 47.
Born in 2016 in Vietnam’s Phu Quoc island, Epizode has, in only four years, made an impressive mark internationally, becoming an unmissable NYE getaway for music and art lovers, global adventurers and professionals from the music industry. Previous EPIZODE editions set the standard by curating some of the most respected artists on the global dance scene, as well as internationally recognised club brands.
● NFT music marketplace, TokenTraxx is collaborating with music and art platform OpenLab
● OpenLab will drop their first NFTs to their loyal community through TokenTraxx
● OpenLab is offering an ‘OpenLab Future Pass’ NFT which acts as a digital membership
program, existing fully on the blockchain
● OpenLab is curating an exciting series of audio-visual NFT’s to be released later in the year
London, United Kingdom; 13 July 2022:
OpenLab, an innovative music and arts platform based in Ibiza famed for discovering new artists, has announced their first initiative with TokenTraxx as part of an ambitious cross platform creative collaboration.
On 29 July, a highly limited number of OpenLab Future Passes will be made available through TokenTraxx. The OpenLab Future Pass will offer holders a series of exciting benefits including VIP access to events and exclusive online content.
As the first of TokenTraxx’s curator partners, OpenLab will also be delivering regular drops of highly curated audio-visual collectibles created through collaborations with some of the most exciting audio and visual artists in the world.
OpenLab Future Pass NFT
The OpenLab Future Pass NFT enables exclusive early access to the audio-visual NFT collectibles which will be released later in the year.
Limited to 300 (with 50 retained to support artists) and at a cost of 0.3 ETH – benefits for holders of the OpenLab Future Pass include:
● VIP entrance to OpenLab and partner music and art events in Ibiza (including OpenLab’s intimate Hangar 8289 sessions), London and other destinationspage1image28539712
● Exclusive access to Future Pass-only content including music mixes, live streams, video and editorial content
● Early access to OpenLab’s cutting edge and highly limited music and art audio-visual NFT collections, which are dropping quarterly
● Quarterly 1/300 editions of music and art collectibles which will build to form an OpenLab Future collection
“As a platform focussed on curating the very best emerging artists, we are incredibly excited to build out opportunities for our creative community in the creation and distribution of next generation collectibles,” said OpenLab CEO, Quentin Chambers.
OpenLab has a reputation for working with artists at the forefront of the contemporary art scene. Limited edition prints by Brazil based, French photographer Elsa Leydier (winner Prix Ruinart Paris Photo 2019 and the Dior Prize for Photography for Young Talents 2019), New York photographer Charlie Rubin and Japanese artist Hanae Utamura are amongst the stellar names who have brought their award winning art to the OpenLab community.
OpenLab has been holding events in Ibiza since 2016, with residencies and regulars at Heart (now Club Chinoise), Elements, Sankeys (now Octan), Destino, and Space (now HI).
Starting in summer 2022, OpenLab will be hosting nights and rooms at NUI Ibiza, Pacha for Saga, and Akasha, as well as curating a number of beach-side hangouts at Ibiza’s coolest locations. OpenLab are also hosting small and intimate live streamed sets from their Hangar 8289 base where Future Pass holders can see some of the world’s most exciting artists perform close up.
From fall 2022, OpenLab will expand its in-person music and art events to London, with a series of intimate parties at one of London’s most exclusive venues. These will coincide with the launch of OpenLab’s ‘New Mycelium Network’ NFT Collection at Koko London and Hangar 8289 Ibiza.
TokenTraxx has a mission to be at the centre of a new independent music and arts creator economy by providing a platform driven by NFTs which supports and financially benefits the whole arts community. Launched this year, musicians Max Rad, Jay10 and digital artist volstrate have already dropped NFTs on TokenTraxx. More recently, cult multimedia artist and award winning musician, Rat Boy released his original creation, DYSTOPIA WORLD where eerie, yet captivating characters, items and emblems are paired with brand new tracks and packaged as NFTs.
With a month to go, BLOODSTOCK’s taking a breather from bands this week to showcase the diverse range of traders, food stalls, drinks, on-site entertainment and other facilities at next month’s heavy metal weekender, plus a handy reminder to get your questions ready for the one and only Nergal, frontman and creative visionary of Friday’s headliner BEHEMOTH for this coming Friday’s Facebook Live chat!
First up, BLOODSTOCK is very aware of the cost of living squeeze we’re all going through right now, so is extra pleased to announce that food prices at 2022’s event are frozen at 2021 prices. Not only that, BLOODSTOCK can confirm you’ll be able to buy a pint of beer at the bars on site for £5, paying by cash or card.
Speaking of beer… BLOODSTOCK is excited to announce their first year teaming up with MOTÖRHEAD BEER to bring both their cask and keg Road Crew – a session 4.5% easy-drinking, refreshing beer – to #BOA22 pouring across all bars (including Lemmy’s Bar, of course)! Grab a pint of your choice of cask condition ale, draught keg beer, or the Overkill pilsner.
For those camping, you can even pre-order your campsite beers & they’ll keep them on ice for you to collect during festival weekend! While you need to order in full cases, you can collect in part each day so no need for warm beer! To celebrate this perfect partnership, with every pre-order for BLOODSTOCK placed here, you will be automatically entered to win a Motörhead beer package every week between now and BLOODSTOCK! (please note, all entrants must be 18+ & will be notified personally via email if they’ve won.)
Not much of a beer fan? BLOODSTOCKers can also head to a special JACK DANIELS bar (in the main arena, near the New Blood stage) for all manner of delicious rock ‘n’ roll cocktail libations, as well as the RED BULL bar (located near the Sophie stage). And if vodka’s more to your taste, make sure you check out Ukrainian vodka brand NEMIROFF, also available at the bars this year.
There will also be non-alcoholic beer for those after a sober option. Whether you’re vegan, veggie, meat-eating, or seeking something gluten-free, BLOODSTOCK has a wide range of food available on site. Here’s just a few options… burgers, pizza, tacos, burritos, meat-free nuggets, waffles, crepes, croissant, toasties, smoked meats, chicken of all types, noodles, pies, giant Yorkshire puds, baguettes, fish & chips, curly and sweet potato fries (or wedges), kebabs, donuts/churros, chickpea curry, mac n’ cheese, wraps, cakes, nachos, hot dogs, paella, and the return of Bunnychow.
For those who need a caffeine-blast of proper coffee, BLOODSTOCK’s got you covered (and there’s tea, hot chocolate, and all manner of other soft drinks available). There’s also free drinking water at designated water points in the campsites and main arena, so remember to bring a refillable non-glass bottle with you.
For any essentials you’ve forgotten, there’s a supermarket in the Midgard campsite plus Fat Frank’s Camping Store, where you can even get your air bed inflated for a comfier night’s sleep. For those looking to do a little heavy metal shopping, browse BLOODSTOCK’s market traders; you’ll be able to pick up everything from unique candles, prints, patches and badges, CDs/vinyl, or official merch and alt clothing (leggings, tshirts, denim jackets, leather waistcoats, army surplus, hats… you name it) to rock n roll home accessories, wiccan wares, all types of jewellery (visit the Guitarwristfor items benefiting charity made with used guitar strings), ponchos and sunglasses – and if you don’t have one already, surely a Viking drinking horn is an essential addition (other Viking crafts also available).
Plus, don’t forget BLOODSTOCK’s own merch stall! When you’re not watching bands, how about a spot of axe-throwing with your mates or visit Firehound Forge, the local blacksmith stall? There’s also the Nordic Spirit Gaming Arena with modern and retro video games to play (by yourself or challenge others!), the Rock And Metal Gallery (including an extensive Iron Maiden exhibition amongst other wondrous displays), the Planet Rock Signing Tent, and a new, white knuckle, adrenaline fairground ride, the AIRMAXX! The only one in the UK, this visually spectacular ride is not for the faint-hearted, reaching a height of 50m and speeds of 4.5G’s! Do you dare?!
When the bands are done, it doesn’t mean BLOODSTOCK is! Late night ents kick off with DJs on both the New Blood and Sophie stages til the early hours.
Over in the Sophie tent, you’ll find Bearpit & Adam Onslaught with classics & headbangin’ anthems on Thursday, Friday welcomes not-so-guilty pleasures from DJ Lloyd with everything from 80s to alternative, DJ Soundwave brings Saturday night bangers of ABBA to Anthrax and disco to deathcore, and then wind down Sunday with DJs Lloyd & Harris for some AOR anthems and classic rock earworms.
The New Blood tent sees the return of the very popular silent disco on Thursday and Saturday nights – take your pick from three channels of rock & metal, pop & party cheese, or full-on dance, or why not mix it up with all three?!
At the other end of the scale, New Blood’s Friday night sees DJ Darren Smith offering up a fine selection of the blackest, darkest, and heaviest music around. You can find this year’s map of BLOODSTOCK here.
BLOODSTOCK also wants to take a moment across festival weekend to celebrate and elevate the work of an amazing woman. 2022 saw the very tragic loss of Sylvia Lancaster OBE, the pioneering fundraiser & educator who established The Sophie Lancaster Foundation, as well as of course being Sophie’s mum and a dear friend of everyone at BLOODSTOCK HQ.
At Sylvia’s funeral earlier this year, she had requested that everyone attending wear something pink, as this was her favourite colour. So in honour of Sylvia, at this year’s festival on the Sunday, we’re mirroring the sentiment and asking BLOODSTOCKers to please wear an item of pink in acknowledgement of her truly phenomenal work, which has been life changing for many in alternative subcultures. Perhaps you’d like to don a pink shirt or hat, or maybe plump for a full pink outfit! Let’s see a sea of pink for Sylvia on Sunday, and don’t forget to drop by The Sophie Lancaster Foundation stand in the arena and make a donation if you can.
Don’t own anything pink? A limited The Sophie Lancaster Foundation pink BLOODSTOCK t-shirt will go on sale here tomorrow morning, priced £25 with all proceeds going to The Sophie Lancaster Foundation. If there is any stock remaining, it will be available at the festival too. Also keep an eye out for other new merch additions: key rings, badge sets, koozies, and grey/black hoodies.
Besides The Sophie Lancaster Foundation stall, where Sophie’s brother Adam will also be giving talks over the weekend (stop by to find out more details and times each day), there will be stalls for Derbyshire Bloodbikes and a team from Derbyshire LGBTQ+ (to the left of the main stage as you look at it). Well worth your time, wander over and learn more about the incredible work these charity organisations do.
If you find yourself in need of some extra support/assistance while at BLOODSTOCK, head to the MEDICAL / WELFARE TENT in the main arena (near the Sophie stage). You can also visit THE SAMARITANS marquee located in the Midgard campsite for a non-judgemental, confidential chat at any time over the festival event.
Don’t miss BLOODSTOCK’s next Facebook Live at 7pm BST this FRIDAY 15th July with festival management in conversation with 2022 headliner Nergal from BEHEMOTH! Put your questions to Nergal or BLOODSTOCK and pay attention for spot prizes too! With more special guests from 2022’s line-up to come on future Facebook Lives with BLOODSTOCK, pose your best questions in real time at the additional following guest chats:
7pm BST – Wednesday 20th July – The Berserker Blothar from GWAR 7pm BST – Thursday 28th July – Alex & Kon from MALEVOLENCE
Brazilian underground mainstay Victor Ruiz is back on Drumcode for the first time in two years with his new Beirut EP. Victor will be celebrating the release of the EP by showcasing his all new live set during an exclusive stream with Beatport directly from Beirut on 14th July.
This much anticipated new live-stream will be the first time ever Victor’s live show will have been streamed online. It will feature all the tracks from this new Beirut EP alongside all new and on-the-fly versions of tracks from his enviable back catalogue. During the stream, exclusive Victor Ruiz x Drumcode x Customized Culture merchandise will be released and will be available for 72 hours only, with 20% of the sales donated to a charity in Beirut. Drumcode have never done a merchandise collaboration with any other artist before so this is a world first and real honour for Victor.
The EP is his first on the label in nearly two years following ‘Freedom’ and the collaborative ‘Consciousness’ with Pig&Dan, plus a standout single ‘Love Story’ on A-Sides Vol.10, which made him the imprint’s most prolific contributor in 2020. Since then, highlights for Victor include playing a Drumcode takeover at Warehouse Project, collaborating with Hannes Bieger on his acclaimed ‘Balance Presents’ album, and lining-up for the epic TimeWarp festival in Brazil.
His four-tracker ‘Beirut’ signalises another pivotal step forward for the São Paulo-born artist. Ruiz has always operated at the more emotive end of the techno spectrum and this opus exemplifies his ability to craft dramatic tension and beauty in equal doses. The title track is dedicated to one of his favourite cities. “’Beirut’ is a very emotional song and at the same time, very powerful. Just like the city. I wanted to make a track that would be beautiful and a kicker at the same time,” he says of the sublime nine-minute anthem-in-the-making.
‘Confession’ shows another side of his production palette; eerie and intense, it’s led by a searing synth lead and smoky vox. ‘Jurema’ takes inspiration from the famous Brazilian spiritual tree and features vocals in Portuguese talking about mysticism, all the while crafting a belter with organic drums and sounds of nature to transmit the feeling of being in the jungle. The EP rounds out with ‘Omen’, a peak-time piston with a huge melodic lead designed for big festival moments.
This is another big step up for the ever essential Victor Ruiz.
Sam Paganini kicks off a new series of remixes of his recent album “Light + Shadow” tracks with a first Volume featuring music from Marco Faraone, DEAS and Boston 168. Due for release on July 8th, first Sam debuts his long awaited new LIVE show in Madrid at Fabrik on June 25th. It features plenty of upgrades and new tracks from his last album Light+ Shadow with dedicated visuals all in sync to make it a hugely immersive audio-visual experience like none other, with further venues to follow in autumn and winter.
Sam is a global techno innovator who has been at the forefront for years. He has released on key labels from Plus8 to Drumcode and Cocoon and is never far from the top of the Beatport charts. He runs the JAM label and has played every major club and festival in the world. His last album showed off two very different but equally vital sides to his ever evolving sound and now comes the first of a new series of remixes.
First up, Flash (Marco Faraone Remix) is a heavy and edgy techno cut with rock solid drums. The synths are raved and the energy is tough with an unrelenting groove sure to lock in the floor. Galaxy (DEAS Remix) is then a six minute roller with frazzled synths searching across the face of the track, thunderous claps and fat bass all driving forwards. Heaven (Boston 168 Remix) closes with plenty of bright trance synths over hyper-speed drums in a track that will take the club into other dimensions.
NASS is the hottest UK festival of the year…so far!
With an eclectic mix of BMX, street-skaters, grime, rap, hip hop and pop, NASS created the most exciting street culture event in the festival calendar, without question.
Friday highlighted the sheer variety of music on offer. Kurupt FM, fresh from their headline appearance at the Arcadia stage of Glastonbury drew a huge crowd within the Hanger at Shepton Mallet. Originally a comedy act from BBC mock series ‘People Just Do Nothing’, MC Grindah truly is one of the best MC’s on the scene. If the band had been formed in the heyday of garage at the start of the 2000’s, they would surely have been one of the biggest genuine acts.
Over on the main stage Willow Kayne stepped in for a surprise appearance with her FIFA-22 soundtrack hit ‘Two Seater’…later Mabel brought glamour with her pumped up-pop. Her bright and beaming tunes may not have been what the average NASS attendee wanted to hear, but it’s clear after her slot, she’ll be headlining in the future.
Speaking of headliners, this was first time Headie One has topped the bill at a UK festival. Although he played a mix of his own tracks, much of his set was made up of covers of his contemporaries, such as Dave and Notorious B.I.G. It’s a shame he didn’t play more of his own tracks to showcase his writing talents.
On Saturday, the BMX and street skate qualifiers began – simply, wow! The moves pulled off in the men’s and women’s competitions were truly breathtaking and the skills defied gravity. As well as International pro skateboarders, competing athletes included Olympic talent such as gold medallist Charlotte Worthington and Team GB’s Declan Brooks. With a combined prize purse of £60,000 it was impressive and sporting to see each talented participant cheer on their competitors while waiting on the ramps.
Saturday’s line up was arguably stronger than the opening day, with artists getting increasingly impressive as the sun shone down.
Bad Boy Chiller Crew were a second-rate Kurupt FM, with novelty tunes, a bassline, bucket hats and for some reason, sweltering balaclavas. Later, Gentleman’s Dub Club proved they are one of the ultimate festival bands with sharp suits and sharper notes.
Later the glamour truly took to the stage with Raye. She stated in an interview that ‘people know the songs, but they don’t know me’ – surely that’s all going to change. She’s currently not signed to a label and is an independent artist, but after this performance, it won’t be long until she’s signed and has a number one album. Her outfit malfunction was a little cheeky however.
Queen of pop Becky Hill followed, proclaiming that the crowd shouldn’t think they’re too cool for her brand of pop. It’s clear she’s a lover of Drum’n’Bass with chart-topping hits such as ‘Run‘. She’s must have now played every festival in the UK, but is always a crowd pleaser and won over many waiting for Saturday headliner, Loyle Carner.
Arguably the nicest bloke in rap, Loyle made multiple dedications to his mother. Not the coolest thing for the skater audience, but it was well intentioned.
After a hard day in the park, Saturday concluded with the thrilling ring of fire, which skaters fearlessly rode their boards through. Well… while some rode through it, others wiped out and others were less fortunate in catching the ring head-on. All in the aid of some much-needed beer tokens.
As usual at a festival, Sunday was a far more sedate affair. The temperatures soared, so many took shelter from the sun. Ms Banks and Ella Eyre played hot sets before Wilkinson delivered his fiery new album Cognition in full. Like the rest of the festival, the set relished in a mix and myriad of styles and genres across the musical spectrum.
Concluding the festival on a high was AJ Tracey with an impressive headline set. Closing out this year’s event in impressive style, with his legendary ‘Ladbroke Grove’ and ‘Thiago Silva’.
Early bird tickets for next year’s NASS go on sale on Wednesday 13 July.
