Crowds descended on Upcote Farm for the 17th edition of 2000 Trees and this year it wasn’t just the lineup that was smoking hot!
The forecast was hotter than hell, tipping the mercury to 32 degrees at one point, and so the wellies, ponchos and fleeces were discarded during packing in favour of sunscreen, caps and fans.
WEDNESDAY
The festival site is on a working farm approximately 20 minutes (when there are no queues!) drive from the centre of nearby Cheltenham Spa, where you can also make use of the shuttle bus services from the train station provided by Big Green Coach which runs on Wednesday and Thursday and then back on Sunday for £15 in advance or £18 on the day.
They’re only small roads on the run up to the site, so be prepared to have to wait for a while before entering, but on balance you’re so close to the site entrance once into the parking area that it evens out.
Once through the parking/drop off area it’s down a steep hill, across a narrow bridge, and then uphill again through a rugged pathway before some more wobbly terrain past the campervans.
This year I took a sack truck and it was a big help, even if the wheels weren’t as ‘All Terrain’ as I hoped and my failure to use enough bungee cords led to a couple of profanity laden spills enroute. Many others had trolleys which doubled up as modes of transport for the kiddos, doggos and beer(os) across the weekend.
Setting up my tent was one of the hottest (in the non-sexy way) activities I’ve ever engaged in, trumping even a sauna session. A thermometer I came to obsess over showed 45 degrees in there at one point, eliciting a Ralph Wiggum-esque chuckle of “I’m in danger”.
Festival organisers had been proactive in their advice to attendees to stay safe and make sure they were hydrated included Frank Water who offered unlimited cold, filtered water refills on site for £7.50 or a little more for an addition of cordial. In the run up they were short a few volunteers which caused some logistical problems and long queues initially, but was soon resolved and grateful punters got their fill of ice-cold water.
After an unexpected fly-by from the Red Arrows (in your FACE Glastonbury) it was time to get amongst it! As with previous years, all of the performances on day one were split between The Word stage and The Forest with the main stage area cordoned off until the next day while The Axiom and Cave tents provided some much-needed respite from the sun.
This made it easy to quickly slip from set to set and not miss too much of anyone – a theme for the weekend in all honesty, as the modestly sized site allows you to move quickly between performances – especially from Main Stage to Neu, and Axiom to Cave where you’re basically a minute between them.
Haggard Cat wasted no time in getting the first circle pit of the festival going over in The Forest, kicking off the weekend with a rowdy set, but the need for food was dragging me away from the music and so I hit up Kofu Korean for two of their tasty Bao Buns with extra kimchi (£13).
Then it was over to the merch tent to secure a clashfinder (£8)and pick up t-shirts I had reserved via the website prior to the festival (a really useful function!). There was a broad selection of gear there, including festival exclusives a 2000Trees x Head Above the Waves away football shirt (£45), Lou’s Brews’ 2000Degrees MKII hot sauce (£8), limited edition prints (£20) and even a Tragic: The Gathering playing card!
Festival t-shirts were available in black, white and yellow designs (Adults £30, kids £20) and a sweet glow in the dark long-sleeved number with skeletons on was £35, as was the three-headed dog Cerberus tee.
Back into the shaded Forest and Vower were starting their first of two sets of the weekend. Formed out of the ashes of Black Peaks, Palm Reader, and Toska the five-piece delivered a melodic metal set that filled the forest with big choruses and heavy riffs. Frontman Josh McKeown has an absolutely killer voice and thankfully held enough back for their Saturday afternoon slot.
Unpeople. had received a fair amount of hype ahead of trees and were a “must see” for many. Their Forest set was covers heavy (Beastie Boys, Weezer, Reuben and System of a Down) which is unsurprising given they’ve a handful of songs at their disposal and wanted to keep their powder dry for Thursday’s set– not an issue in this weather. The set was disrupted by two different ends of the spectrum, as one person broke an ankle while a couple became engaged, but the band duly delivered and whet appetites for tomorrow’s Main Stage set.
The shade was my friend at this point, so I stood firm in the Forest and waited for one of the bands I missed out on last year, Blood Command. The Norwegian/Australian collective out of Bergen rock Adidas trackies and in the case of the front row terrorising frontwoman Nikki Brumen a red sequinned tennis dress.
Brumen is a genuine star. Surfing the crowd, laying prone on the stage and doing her bit for the wellbeing of the crowd by spitting water into the crowd (hydration is key folks!). She dedicates a song to her sister, who won’t crowd surf due to having too much jewellery on her and promptly throws herself out there instead – continuing to give her all.
I next caught Welsh punk rock five-piece Panic Shack in the Forest. Their fun-filled, acerbic set was one of the weekend’s highlights. They’re clearly having the time of their lives but also using their platform to provide social commentary.
Adding their voice to support for Kneecap and Bob Vylan, addressing body shaming, during 2022’s ‘I Don’t Really Like It’, a song about the male gaze, they blend into Ting Tings’ anthem ‘That’s Not My Name’. It’s a seething rendition with more bite than the original, and it rocks.
With their self-titled debut released the week after Trees and a UK tour starting in October, Panic Shack are coming for you and we should all be here for it.
I made my way back through to the main site and on the way saw a crowd gathered around Camp Kev’s stage and saw a young lad, called Finnley, probably around four years old, rocking out with his ukelele with the audience cheering and clapping along.
This show will definitely be a core memory to this little Trees-er, and who knows maybe one day he’ll be crushing it on the main stage himself?
Heading to Jerk Yard I grabbed a portion of boneless jerk chicken with rice and peas (£15) which was genuinely belting and set me up for the rest of the evening.
By the time Kid Kapichi walked out in the Forest the humidity levels were well up as bodies filled the space for a glimpse of the first of the band’s two shows.
They announced two of the founding members of the group were standing down, making these their last gigs as a fourpiece and grateful for the crowd turning out. Using their slot to play some of their older material, frontman Jack Wilson admitted they felt a bit rusty playing some of them but the crowd loved it no matter what.
Mancunian rockers Hot Milk were the final act of the night. The band released its latest album Corporation P.O.P. earlier this year and have been touring relentlessly all year with more dates to come, but there were no signs of fatigue on show.
At one point frontwoman Han Mee made reference to some other band from Manchester being on tour “But they’re not ‘ere are they?” and I don’t think anyone in the Forest minded one bit. The emo-pop anthem BLOODSTREAM would absolutely CRUSH IT at EuroVision and I mean that with the utmost praise and sincerity. It’s fucking rad!
With great charisma, a genre hopping sound and the vocals of Mee and Jim Shaw interlinking perfectly, there is definitely scope for Hot Milk to deliver a mega set on the Main Stage at some point – although a rammed Neu or The Axiom may suit them too.
I called it at this point, knowing there were still three full days to go and anticipating a fairly feral night’s sleep with the temperature still being in the high teens at this hour.
THURSDAY
Waking up to absolute furnace levels of heat at only 7am required an immediate exit from the tent and finding solace in the arms of a bacon roll with extra pork patty (£9.50) from Halls Dorset Smokery.
With the main arena area now fully opened, I took a tour of the various merchants offering their wares and including charities Safe Gigs for Women who work with venues, promoters, artists and gig-goers to fight sexual assault and harassment at live music events and Metal For Good who use the positive values of rock, metal and other alternative subcultures to make a positive difference in communities.
Seeing so many charities at the festival, with people donating and buying their merch, added even more to the feel-good factor on site. That being said, it was a shame the device charging function provided by a charity last year had been taken over by a company selling camping gear and some decidedly overpriced supplies (£4 for a loaf of bread…) and hopefully something the organisers reconsider next year.
Unbeknownst to me I’d set my tent up alongside a group of friends from Cambridge who turned out to be Grieving – a post hardcore quartet who only found out a few weeks prior to Trees they were playing.
On getting into The Forest for their mid-morning set there was a large gap in the middle/front of the stage which I thought was the start of a frankly terrifying looking “Wall of Death” but it was actually to avoid being stood in the intense sun which was shining down through the canopy like a sunbeam through a magnifying glass.
Frontman James Parrish, guitarist Ned Wilson Eames, bassist Jack Hurst and drummer Matt Simper hadn’t played a gig in six years prior to this slot, but the release of their debut album ‘Everything Goes Right, All At Once’ last Spring caught the bookers’ attention and they were invited along. Their half hour slot of post hardcore and emo sounds channelled the likes of American Football and Fugazi and was a perfect start to the day.
Midday on the main stage brought out Karen Dió, who proclaims herself to be ‘your favourite Brazilian punk rocker’ on her Instagram, for a set nearly as fierce as the baking sun!
Entering to the theme from Rocky, Dió overcame some technical difficulties with the click track to deliver a charismatic, energetic and downright fantastic set filled with punk rock riffs and plenty of fun. Her cover of Chappel Roan’s ‘Casual’ is better than the original and I will not be taking any questions on the matter.
Having toured with Limp Bizkit in the UK and Europe in the Spring, Dió is definitely in the ascendency and James Scarlett has tipped her to headline Trees in the future. On the evidence of this set it’ll be sooner rather than later!
Capping off the set with the certified pop-rock banger ‘Sick Ride’ the band then brought out a birthday cake for guitarist and Karen’s husband, former Dinosaur Pile-up frontman Matt Bigland, serenading him with a chorus of Happy Birthday – Parabéns from all at Summer Festival Guide!
The price of beers is always one of those hot topics at festivals, and it’s something that Trees organisers are very aware of. While they do encourage folks to buy beers where they can, they’re also okay with folks bringing their own drinks from the campsite which helps reduce costs.
What I will say though is the quality of the beers and ciders on offer is a level up from other festivals. There’s none of the “Big Beer” here – it’s independent, delicious and well worth the outlay. So, if you’re at Trees, follow the unofficial mantra “Heroes buy Beeros!” and enjoy a cold one rather than a lukewarm can of cider from your tent – you won’t regret it.
Trees also always has heaps of great food available, catering to all comers – from your omnivores, to carnivores, vegetarians, vegans and coeliacs. I visited the excellently named Beetbox for a beetroot falafel wrap (£12) which was equally excellent and enjoyed with a pint from the Arbor bar – sampling the Tree’s collaboration “Holding Out For A Beero” (£7) – a super drinkable IPA which was very popular and soon sold out.
Unpeople.’s second coming occurred on the Main Stage and there were a lot of VERY up for it fans down front and centre but as soon as the menacing riff of ‘Waste’ kicks things off that has soon spread beyond the pit and engulfed all in attendance. The lyrics “Give the people what they want, no question” seems to be something Unpeople. take very much to heart.
Crowd surfers were flung gleefully into the air and over the barrier as the rockers delivered a half hour set filled with heavy numbers with hook riddled choruses. This included the monumental sing-along set closer ‘The Garden’ which the crowd chanted along to with fervour – possibly worried the heat would render them incapacitated for the rest of the day and wanting to give it their all.
The heat by this point was kicking the ever-loving heck out of me, so I had a lie down besides a big old tree to listen to Snayx during their slot. Having been forced to cancel their show last year, it was a strong return for the band and their riotous set complete with huge cover of The Prodigy’s ‘Breathe’ was worth the wait alone.
Dragging myself to my feet via a strategically positioned I rose to my feet for The Hunna’s set. Frontman Ryan Potter has mighty lungs on him, both in terms of his vocal range and the energetic performance levels. They debuted new single ‘Hide & Seek’ along with some more familiar tracks including the radio-friendly singalong ‘Bonfire’ and it was
Flagging like an overenthusiastic Sea Scout I headed into the welcoming, shaded embrace of the Forest for one of the unexpected highlights of the weekend.
Battlesnake walked out to monastic chanting wearing white bedazzled robes and with singer Sam Frank bedecked in a hood with golden horns. While I may have been hallucinating, something seemed different about this Aussie troupe, and when Frank began his satanic spoken-word intro and one of the THREE guitarists lifted their Flying-V, I knew it was about to get heavy as fuck!
Their most recent album’s name is ‘Dawn of the Exultants and the Hunt for the Shepherd’ and the theatricality doesn’t stop with their naming of records. Ending each song with “Thank you we are Battlesnake!” the Sydney rockers led a crowd frothing at the gills in cult-like chants of “Murder, Murder” during ‘Murder Machine’ and giving us all the pageantry you’d expect from a 70’s metal band.
During the monstrous ‘Sanctum Robotos’ it is possible Frank was briefly possessed by the gods of rock, a suspicion confirmed once he stuck his tongue out and started shaking his golden horns at the front row before he and the rest of the band flung themselves into the crowd for a mass crowd surfing.
The set finished with the guitarist clambering onto the bassist’s shoulders to be carried aloft around the Forest while Frank stripped to his budgy smugglers and writhed around on the floor.
For the whole 45 minutes I didn’t stop smiling, laughing and making devil horns with my hand and I wasn’t the only one! They dragged a group of sun-scorched souls from the pits of heat induced despair before condemning us en masse to the depths of a heavy metal hell, one mega-riff after another and I’ll be honest – I’m ready to join this cult.
Hoisting the bar to monumental heights, Battlesnake were going to be a tough act to follow in my eyes – and so it was on to PVRIS.
Now, it was clear there were a lot of people in the crowd who were incredibly stoked for the co-headliner’s sundown slot but there was also a sense that a lot were getting themselves positioned for Kneecap.
Frontwoman Lynn Gunn has an absolutely incredible voice, and genuine star quality, and songs like ‘Smoke’, ‘Fire’ and closers ‘My House’ and ‘GODDESS’ are cool as hell but during a sprawling set I have to be brutally honest I lost interest.
Too many of the songs felt they had another couple of gears to go through, but never really hit full speed. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, and whether it was the ‘Battlesnake effect’ I drifted toward the bar to get a drink and bag a Buffalo Chicken Burger from Chicken Shack before wandering to The Axiom for Scottish indie-rockers Twin Atlantic.
To borrow some Scots patter, the tent was absolutely hoatching with people ready to fill their boots with something of a slightly different persuasion to a lot of the guitar-based bands of the weekend.
They know how to work a room full of fans ready to get in amongst it, and their anthemic sound filled out The Axiom and beyond – which is handy considering how full the tent was.
I have a huge fondness for singers staying authentic to their geographical roots rather than wandering into a trans-Atlantic drawl – so it’s a pleasure to hear Sam McTrusty’s Glaswegian twang laced throughout their songs, whether that’s on earnest acoustic tracks like ‘Crash Land’ or the stank face conjuring ‘No Sleep’.
Closing out with ‘Heart and Soul’, an iconic track with almost 28million streams on that streaming platform, the tent empties rapidly as many head down to the main stage for Thursday’s finale with Kneecap.
It would take a frankly spectacular ability to avoid the news for you to be unaware of the three-piece from West Belfast and Derry. Before the festival there was a LOT of noise around the group, with Sharon Osborne’s comments after the band’s Coachella set putting wheels in motion for a campaign calling for festivals including Trees to remove them from the billing.
There was never any doubt Kneecap would be making their third appearance at Upcote, even if it took until just over a month prior for Trees to issue a statement confirming. This made it one of the most anticipated sets of the weekend, especially after cancellations of their scheduled performances at Radar and TRNSMT festivals.
Emerging to a sea of Ireland and Palestine flags, Celtic shirts, GAA jerseys and balaclava wearing kids, the group were ready to give the crowd what they wanted as ‘It’s Been Ages’ started a riotous set punctuated by equal parts standup comedy and political discourse from Mo Chara (Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh) and Móglaí Bap (Naoise Ó Cairealláin).
For ‘Better Way to Live’, Fontaines DC frontman Grian Chatten pops up on a video from DJ Próvaí’s (JJ Ó Dochartaigh) deck and ahead of ‘Guilty Conscience’ Mo Chara references the court case regarding alleged terror offences which takes place towards the end of August – promising a gig outside the court “It’s going to be like a criminal Live Aid!”.
The band regularly praise the festival and the audience during their performance, but I can’t help but feel there is a lot of filler in their set. That’s hardly surprising with one LP behind them and a lot of EPs, and there’s no denying the singles are massive – especially ‘H.O.O.D’ – but you have to hope there’s something in the pipeline to move them from comedy collective into mainstays on the rap scene.
New single ‘THE RECAP’ is hopefully a nod to that, and an absolutely incendiary version to (knee)cap off the night has the scorched ground shaking. It’s an exhilarating performance and the toll of “keeping her lit” sends me off to bed in the hope of a cooler night’s sleep!
FRIDAY
Temperatures did indeed drop overnight, but were soon up again and the 8am alarm of a USAF U-2 “Dragon Lady” bomber taking off from nearby RAF Fairford had cricked necks craning to the sky for a peek.
A slow start to day two began with some tasty veggie samosas from Curry Bae and built up to Aussie punk rockers Press Club on the main stage. The Melbourne natives played their first show in the UK at Cheltenham’s legendary Frog & Fiddle pub, so in some ways this felt like a bit of a home from homecoming.
Frontwoman Natalie Foster’s main character energy filled every corner of the main stage as she sprinted around, clambering down to the barrier and getting into the crowd. Their half hour set flew by as they rattled through songs from May’s ‘To All the Ones That I Love’ album and 2019’s ‘Late Teens’.
During the total bop ‘Headwreck’ Foster informs us she’ll “bring her A-game” and I can confirm she and the band duly delivered. A* from me!
In an interview ahead of Trees James Scarlett had shouted out Julia Wolf, saying: “Every so often, I book an act in a small slot, and they suddenly get much, much bigger” and that definitely seemed the case here as the Forest was absolutely rammed on arrival.
Wolf stood in a fetching yellow 2000Trees football shirt and it felt like she was drinking in this intimate stage setting, knowing in her heart that she’s going to be playing much bigger venues from here on in.
Recent single ‘Jennifer’s Body’ is dedicated to Megan Fox, star of the film of the same name, and tackles body imagery, before TikTok hit ‘My Room’ closes out a dreamy set which could have carried on for another hour as far as I was concerned.
MAJOR GRIPE ALERT! A load of people had created circles of camping chairs, taking up heaps of space. Those groups combined with a load of hammocks creating a limbo situation when trying to navigate the sloped hill to find a spot made what is ordinarily my favourite corner of the festival an absolute waking nightmare.
I get that it was hot and that area was shady but come on people!? Hopefully something is done to negate that at future Trees, because it stopped people getting in and out which isn’t particularly safe for one and is bloody irritating for another!
A late recommendation from a friend sent me across to the main stage for The Dangerous Summer, not for a talk about the merits of sunscreen and shade, but for a set filled with soaring guitars and frontman AJ Perdomo’s yearning voice.
They’ve been around for almost 20 years as a band and the nostalgic tone of ‘Where I Want To Be’ and ‘Coming Home’ evoke all those feels from a more innocent time, while ‘Fuck Them All’ triggers many clenched fists being raised to the sky. During ‘The Permanent Rain’ Perdomo hands his bass over to Ben Landford-Biss from As It Is and gets himself into the crowd to drink in some of what he has created.
As the curtain falls, AJ Perdomo shouts “We are The Motherfucking Dangerous Summer” drops his mic and leaves, job well done.
On a wander between stages I hear a bit of Delta Sleep and Trash Boat, both of which draw good crowds, but the shade is calling so it’s back under that trusty tree with a couple of pints from Arbor.
My friends are absolutely STOKED to see these cult heroes FIDLAR in their backyard and a chaotic and deeply enjoyable performance makes it easy to see why! The sunshine, surfer rock of ‘No Waves’, playschool protest of ‘Sober’ and infectious teen rebellion hooks of ‘West Coast’ bring the vibes while covers of ‘Wonderwall’ and ‘Feel Good Hit of The Summer’ bring a little bit of familiarity to those not in the know.
It’s a fun-filled set and they leave telling everyone they’d been ‘Taking Back Sunday’ but they’re fooling nobody – they’re FIDLAR and they’re awesome.
Before mainstays of the scene Coheed and Cambria I get myself a portion of the frankly world beating Birria Tacos from Bristol’s Gourmet Warriors. There was a bit of a wait for them to arrive, but DAMN were they worth it…I could gleefully have eaten about twenty of them, but it was back to the main stage for Coheed’s set.
With the sun dipping down and bathing the stage in gold, Coheed and Cambria were up for this co-headliner slot.
Having already played an acoustic set during a Forest Q&A session you could be forgiven for thinking they’d be a little fatigued, but the New Yorkers absolutely work their socks off to deliver a set laced with songs from 2025 album ‘The Father of Make Believe’ but still bringing out the classics including ‘A Favor House Atlantic’,
Claudio Sanchez hasn’t lost a bit of his impressive near falsetto and as he leads the band into an encore of ‘Blood Red Summer’ the crowd tries to keep pace, straining already well used vocal cords to their limit and probably compromising a few in the process!
Then it’s time for them to leave, but not before a set and potentially world ending rendition of ‘Welcome Home’. There are certain bits of kit that a guitarist pulls out that immediately signify something awesome is about to happen (see earlier reference to Flying V’s) and a white, double-necked Gibson SG is one of them.
Wheeling the 12 stringer we’ve been left in no doubt as to Coheed’s penchant for the epic. It’s a huge set and they’ve given their all, throwing down the gauntlet to all comers. Awesome.
Frank Turner is no stranger to 2000Trees (indeed he played ‘Love, Ire & Song’ in the Forest earlier) but Million Dead broke up before the festival was born in 2005 – so when James Scarlett heard whisper that they were getting the band back together he wasted zero time in telling Frank he’d book them for the festival, forcing his hand a little in the process.
This is unbridled nostalgia and The Axiom audience is 100% here for it!
While Frank’s voice doesn’t quite hit the high notes of yore he’s not the only one – as neither does drummer Ben Dawson’s which Turner describes as “like a gerbil being murdered”. Something about “those in glass houses” springs to mind but it doesn’t take anything away from what feels like a reunion of best mates for all in a sweaty Axiom.
A frenetic ‘Smiling at Strangers on Trains’ brings things to an end, sating those in the crowd who doubted they’d ever see Million Dead back on a stage – if only due to the relentless schedule of Frank who passed the 3,000 show mark in February – and then it was time for another shot of nostalgia delivered by Taking Back Sunday.
This is the band’s only UK show of 2025 so there’s plenty of elder emos ready to let loose and when the opening to ‘A Decade Under the Influence’ kicked off the years rolled back, arms were raised and lungs started emptying into the night’s sky.
There’s been quite a few reports of poor-quality shows in recent years and frontman Adam Lazzara’s voice isn’t the finely tuned tool it once was – but having played a few festival slots in the US already earlier in the year, there was hope for a return to form.
Unfortunately, despite a set packed out with genuine emo anthems including Liar (It Takes One to Know One)’ and ‘You’re So Last Summer’ it seemed like there was some ring rustiness among the band and it felt like much of the crowd were counting down to the “big two” which, unsurprisingly came at the end of the night.
When the iconic intro to ‘Cute Without The ‘E’ (Cut From The Team)’ started the audience, including the casuals Lazzara had called out earlier, were back in the fight and by the time ‘MakeDamnSure’ came round it was like it was 2006 all over again. It was good to live out the emo dream again, and I can’t say I’d have gone to see them on tour, but the perpetual teething problems made for a bit of a disappointing headline slot.
To the uninitiated you may not know that one of the staples of Trees is the Silent Disco which is spread over multiple channels and stages and even involves live sets from bands. You can pre-order the headsets for £26 (£20 of which is refunded after the event) and then collect using a barcode or rent them on site for £28.
It’s honestly one of the best bits of the festival, and having been unable to sleep due to the sound of revellers last night I thought it was time to join in!
Tonight, Thrill Collins is playing a set in the Forest and it goes OFF! A setlist packed with pop and rock hits, as well as a UK Garage medley interspersed by the brand’s trademark witticisms got a crowd going – to the point of unexpected crowd surfing which the security guards expecting a quiet night were soon called into action!
After a couple of hours of hopping between channels and tents to find the best vibes, slinging back White Russians and having a thoroughly excellent time – I picked up a tasty mushroom and spinach pizza from Slice One for supper and finally got to bed as the temperature dropped and meant I could actually justify having brought my sleeping bag with me!
SATURDAY
A few hours later and it was back to phenomenally spicy temperatures in the tent so I covered the outside of it with emergency foil blankets in the vain hope of surviving another night.
I was definitely feeling the accumulative effects of the heat, the lack of sleep and probably some of the White Russians, so I tackled the day with a frankly glacial pace.
Philadelphia natives Catbite are the main stage’s first offering to the sun gods and it couldn’t have been a better start to the day. I genuinely believe there are few better things than ska tinged punk at a festival in the sun – it just fits!
Brittany Luna is a phenomenon of a front woman, engaging the crowd with her patter, getting them to air scratch during ‘Scratch Me Up’ and delivering a wild performance during ‘Call Your Bluff’ – but the whole band is giving it FULL BEANS up there, this despite having to fly back to the US in a couple of days and having two sets booked for the after hours sets in the campsite.
They’ll be back in the UK in the Autumn on the Common Thread tour and if they’re in your postcode you need to get some of their live performance in your life!
DaytimeTV make their Trees debut in the Neu tent and bring their own Royal Bloodiness of chonky riffs and stadium filling noise to a small space in a field in Gloucestershire. There’s definitely a radio friendly element to their sound and I would be shocked if they’re not occupying much larger stages in the future.
The only downside of being in the covered stages for these performances was the humidity in there, rivalled only by the portaloos which made a fella very pleased to have brought Immodium, despite the regular cleaning.
Saturday is traditionally fancy dress day at Trees, with the best outfits receiving a ticket to next year’s festival and this year’s theme was heroes! Despite the heat, hundreds and hundreds of attendees joined in and some of the highlights were assorted WWE legends, Postman Pat, a can of Arbor’s 2000Trees beer collab, Cadbury’s chocolates and my personal favourite Chad Kroeger and Josey Scott from the Spiderman soundtrack – complete with mini Spiderman and New York skyline.
I went back to The Forest for the first time and the shade greeted me like an old friend, as did Kevin Devine’s performance. I first heard Kevin’s music at University in 2005 when an ex introduced me to ‘Circle Gets the Square’ but had never seen him live, so this was one of the sets I most looked forward to over the weekend.
A folky set filled with the heartfelt lyrics and Kevin’s vocal range of soft and gentle to lung busting screams was just what I needed – you could say it was, devine…(sorry).
Fans sang gently along to ‘Just Stay’ with it’s “I’m okay, okay. I’m okay, okay” outro, and ‘Cotton Crush’, while Devine dedicated ‘Another Bag of Bones’ to a Free Palestine before performing an Elliot Smith cover (‘Between the Bars’) and teasing the crowd with a few intros including Mr. Jones, Enter Sandman and Smells Like Teen Spirit before announcing “Anyway, here’s Wonderwall!” and closing out his first set at Trees since 2017.
The much needed, calmer set in the shaded sanctuary of the Forest, brought me back to life and I was ready for the rest of the day via a trip to Bunnyman’s for their legendary chilli in a hollowed out bread stick. Last year I made the chronically poor decision to take on their ‘Hot As Hell’ flavour and nearly combusted – so this time I opted for 50/50 while liberally applying the free Factor 50 the stall owners kindly provided.
It was amazing and complimented a restorative cider in the sun perfectly.
Next were Vukovi but I took the opportunity to pack up my tent ahead of exiting site in the morning. I could hear them from the campsite, and they sounded brilliant from afar. I definitely regret not being in the crowd to see the iconic Mr Fridge meet his final end after years of Trees domination (RIP), but it sounds like Vukovi owned their slot and I will 100% be making an effort to see them next time around.
I dipped in to catch some of La Dispute in The Axiom and Lowlives playing Neu on the way back to the main stage for letlive.
The former had filled the tent to the rafters, with the overspill of shade seekers enjoying the show and singer Jordan Dreyer’s emotionally strained vocals, while Lowlives delivered a proper rocking set as Snatch villain Brick Top’s grimace watched over them from the kick drum.
Letlive. split in 2017 and in 2024 announced a remaster of ‘The Blackest Beautiful’ as well as details of their farewell tour – including a stop at 2000Trees – which was music to the ears of many who thought that was that.
While this performance may be goodbye, there’s nothing Irish about – they are going HARD AS up there! Frontman Jason Aalon Butler’s voice is monumental and the band are rocking out to the fullest as the crowd bays for more.
He uses his platform to talk about the band, to thank the crowd and touches on his own challenges with his mental health and anger which he’s worked on with therapy (it’s cool to talk about how you feel, folks).
That anger is put to good use during ‘Good Mourning, America’ which feels as relevant now as it ever has against the political backdrop in the USA and beyond as does the fury laden ‘The Sick, Sick, 6.8 Billion’.
It’s both a vitriolic and reflective performance and he dedicates ‘Muther’ to the women in the crowd proclaiming to the men in the audience “Women don’t need your help, they need your respect and the courtesy they deserve!” while also informing them he’ll gladly mete out a beating if they don’t heed his call. But he’s also in a playful mood, gently chiding a fan Charlotte who saw him and said she’d had a dream he gave her a shoutout only for her to not be there (she was, she was just away from her friends) before getting her on stage – along with the Marshall amp mascot who dutifully kneels down to take their space on the stage as Butler warns him: “Remember how I used to break amps on stage? Your times up motherfuckah!”
On that, Butler is proving an absolute nightmare for the stage crew with his running around, throwing mics, dragging the drum kit along the stage, jumping down to the barrier and dragging leads across monitors – and that’s the tip of the iceberg!
During ‘27 Club’ he’s down to his underwear and scaling the stage up to the light scaffolding, causing more than a few sharp intakes of breath and worry we’re about to see a major spill – but thankfully he makes it back down safely, albeit leaving his microphone dangling (not a euphemism).
It was one of the sets of the weekend and cued the hunger pangs, so Pad Thai and Spring Rolls from…well, Pad Thai…were on the menu before the final headliners of the weekend, Alexisonfire.
Now, I have to confess I never had an Alexisonfire phase (I know, I know – it isn’t a phase…) but this was one the elder emos in the crowd were absolutely bouncing in their Posturepedic Vans for.
Entering to the theme tune from The Last of the Mohicans they salute the crowd, thanking them for “sticking with us all these years” and as soon as ‘Accidents’ kicks in there is a massive release of pent-up energy and by the time the singalong “woah, woah, woah” comes in we’re at escape velocity and being carried by the momentum.
You can tell they’ve been touring their arses off this last year, as the band don’t miss a step – a far cry from last night’s headliners! But they’re also clearly having a blast up there.
At one point George Pettitt ends up crowd surfing and sitting on an inflatable armchair as the adoring crowd carry him aloft in between slinging themselves over the barrier.
Before the encore the band leads a singalong to a huge ‘This Could Be Anywhere In The World’ returning for a somehow even louder sounding ‘Young Cardinals’ and shutting it down with ‘Happiness By The Kilowatt’ which bleeds into Neil Young’s ‘Hey Hey, My My’ leaving the last shreds of the chainmail sporting Wade MacNeil’s voice hanging by a thread.
The band leave the stage to rapturous applause with the crowd’s beaming faces slowly moving away from the stage into the night – hearts filled by an astonishing headline set. Alexisonfire wasn’t a band I listened to back in the day, but fair play they absolutely delivered the perfect closer to the main stage action and one of those legendary performances folk will talk about for years to come.
I finally made my way into the campsite for one of the highlights of the weekend, a series of afterhours sets from musicians across several stages set out along the main route through the campsite.
Last year there were a few grumbles about the congestion caused by these shows, with folks crammed between tents, standing on guy ropes and blocking the pathway. This year the set-up crew had created a more formalised space for each of these, Camp Turner in particular, which solved the problem.
Bouncing between stages I managed to catch two sets from Catbite (Camp Turner and UTB Manchester) with an acoustic set including mouth trombone and slick harmonies and cover of Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’ and their own bangers ‘Die in Denver’ and ‘Excuse Me Miss’ among others. I also saw Olivia Rose (Camp Turner) who jumped in to save the day for Catbite with a Capo ahead of her own slot, before moving on to Cheltenham locals Truck (Camp Frabbit) who’s singer Jamie had managed to shred his vocal cords screaming along during the weekend but still delivered a fun set including the excellent single ‘Spit It Out’.
A last flick between Silent Disco channels and a hotdog with fries from Piggie Smalls later and it was time for bed – with the only disappointment from the day being the lack of appearance from last year’s Saturday night headliners…No, not Don Broco…The Cockchafers! I say disappointment, those winged behemoths caused chaos last time round so it was quite nice to wee in peace!
SUNDAY
The usual challenges of 15,000 people leaving site via a tiny B road occurred on exit, compounded somewhat by a local highways operative directing traffic from the junction and the Big Green Bus coaches squeezing their way down the lane – but it wasn’t too long before I was home and checking out the gnarly tanlines from my wristband.
As sunkissed/ravaged revellers made their way from the dustbowl site and back to reality, it’s worth a pause to reflect and thank everyone involved in 2000 Trees. From the organisers to all the staff and volunteers who put this beaut of a festival on for us.
The heat was unrelenting all weekend and they stood firm, smiling and bringing the vibes that help to make this festival what it is.
A word on those vibes too. Many first timers I spoke to commented on this intangible quality, some having abandoned small festivals that grew exponentially and sold out to the corporations years ago – ruining that community feel you get at those festivals and that community is so powerful at Trees.
2000Trees maintains its fierce independence and has done since 2007 and in my opinion is all the better for it. Considering the economic challenges faced by so many and with 204 UK festivals closing altogether since 2019, it is testament to the powers that be at 2000Trees that they’ve resisted the lure of corporate dollar – with only Marshall Amps really having any overt presence there as a partner.
Glastonbury’s fallow year in 2026 provides an opportunity for the mid-sized festivals to hoover up new fans and convert them into lifers. With discounted early bird ticket packages available and instalment plans available for next year, regulars already committing and festival director James Scarlett’s knack for picking a belter of a lineup, I’d wager it won’t be long before the best kept secret on the UK festival scene is anything but secret.
2000Trees 2026 takes place from Thursday 9th to Saturday 11th July, so get it in the diary and I’ll see you at the Silent Disco!
