Love Saves the Day 2017 Review

The ever popular Bristol festival kicked off with its huge 20,000 people capacity. Thrown by the Team Love Gang who have built themselves up as a Bristolian Party makers, this city festival has the recipe for a fun May bank holiday with its strong line up and good lay out without all the crammed conditions many inner city festivals usually provide.

 

After the slow but steady wait with the sea of glitter faced, unitards- wearing hipsters first up to mention was the up and coming DJ, Fatmina Yamaha. Set on main stage, the Netherland DJ pulled in an impressive crowd of eager dancers. Although still early and the sound still rather low when ‘What’s a Girl to do’ came on it was clear the party had truly started.

 

Up next was Bristol based ‘Crazy P’ who never fails to get the crowd going. It is hard not love the underground disco group who have been apart of Bristol’s party scene for the past 15 years. Always one to work the crowd, front woman- Danielle Moore had the crowd dancing and smiling away.

 

After what seemed a long and anticipated wait as the sun got lower and the crowd filled up Mura Masa entered with his awesome track ‘Love$ick’ featuring A$ap Rocky. As the beat dropped the crowd exploded into a sea of roaring and dancing fans. From first song to last Mura Masa had the crowd glued.

 

Up next in Paradiso tent was electronic DJ’s ‘Bicep’. These house hero’s are known for throwing the ultimate sets and clearly from the sardined tent it was one everyone was eager to party to. Escaping the crammed atmosphere of Paradiso, the finale of Main stage was the Swedish electronic band, Little Dragon. In comparison to the quiet set of Fatima Yamaha, the sound quality was at its best. With the crowd engaged, Little Dragon delighted everyone with the new gems from their new album.

 

Sunday brought in a slightly bigger crowd, with queues of festival goers snaking around Eastville park in anticipation of getting in.

First to see main stage was grime artist ‘Nadia Rose’ who this year had been upgraded to a bigger stage and longer set after her hugely successful year in music. Spitting her lyrics as well as ever and engaging with the crowd it was easy to see why this 23 year old UK rapper is breaking through the grime scene as confidently as ever.

 

Next to lead was the hugely popular Shy FX. With the best stage presence that I had seen all weekend their was not one track which had the crowd at stand still. With hints of the popular ‘feelings’ track coming on festival goers were bouncing and screaming higher than ever.

Escaping the heat of the popular main stage was the fun of Shambarber tent which had drag queens and gorillas dancing on the stage while partygoers boogied to disco music. A hugely fun and warming crowd this hidden gem was heaven to the partiers who were looking for an escape from the heavy jungle and grime beats of the other other stages.

 

To close the night was the legendary Kano. Pleasing the lively crowd, the beats for P’S and Q’s came on the crowd exploded. Mega fans near the front went wild and the night ended with thousands of pumped partygoers making their way into the town.

 

Yet again another fun fuelled party hosted by the Team Love Gang. Despite its ever growing size, this huge 48 party located at the side of the M32 still has the magic of bringing people together in a true Bristolian friendly fashion. The atmosphere for me still remains as fun and strong as ever.

Love Saves the Day announce Party on the Moon stage lineup

The announcement lights have gone from red to green as Shy FX brings his 'Party On The Moon' event concept to Love Saves The Day for a second year, with full stage line-up now ready to announce. 
 
As well as a headline set from the main man himself, the line-up for Shy's Love Saves The Day stage will be blessed with big names including Katy B, who will be performing new material from her forthcoming album Honey, London grime star Giggs, and UK production duo Snakehips
 
 
Arriving at Bristol's Love Saves The Day festival on Sunday 29th May, Party On The Moon, a culmination of a lifelong obsession from Shy FX with extensive styles of music, will be sending the Love Saves The Day crowd into orbit.
 
Other artists set to grace the stage include American hip hop producer Just Blaze, London Grime MC CASisDEAD, BBC Radio 1 DJ Benji B, General Levy, Kiko Bun, Nadia Rose, Masterstepz, Shingai and Hutch
 

Love Saves the Day 2016 Arcadia Afterburner Stage Lineup

Love Saves the Day are excited to reveal their line-up for the Arcadia Afterburner stage, what will be the only appearance of the Arcadia Afterburner in the UK this year. The original Arcadia installation, the Afterburner is a 360 degree stage built around a central flaming spire with dance platforms radiating out to a ring of exploding lamp posts. Having appeared at festivals as far afield as New Zealand, Croatia and the United States, and a staple at Glastonbury, the Afterburner is returning home to Bristol to bring the fire to Eastville Park.
 

On Saturday the 28th May, the Arcadia Afterburner stage will undergo a Full Cycle Takeover, headed up by the Full Cycle Records crew, compiled of Bristol's very own Roni Size, DJ Krust and Dynamite MC. Legendary drum 'n' bass DJ and Producer High Contrast will also take to the Afterburner stage, alongside the extremely popular Dimension, and London based drum 'n' bass trio Ivy Lab. Other artists to grace the 360 degree stage on Saturday 28th May include Bryan Gee b2b Jumpin Jack FrostSam BingaD-ProductSam Supplier and The Blast DJs. 

 
On day two of the Festival on Sunday 29th May, the Afterburner Stage welcomes a whole host of household names, including a DJ set from the highly sought after Chase and Status, Lobster Boy boss Redlight, and Goldie, who'll be presenting his 20 Years of Timeless classics. Who??Carestake over the stage on Sunday for an impressive showdown of Girls vs. Boys b2b sets. My Nu Lengplay b2b with Flava DBarely Legal b2b DismantleNYTA b2b Madam XGotsome will go b2b with a very special guest, plus Jamz Supernova b2b Jus NowKahn b2b Amy Becker andSafesoul b2b Komon.
 

Love Saves the Day 2016 FULL lineup announced

Saturday 28th May…

Love Saves The Day are delighted to announce their line-up for 2016. Taking centre stage as Saturday's headliner will be the acclaimed London-based electronic pop group Hot Chip. Everything, Everything, the genre-defying indie rock outfit based in Manchester will also be present, alongside BBC Music's 'Sound Of 2016' hot pick Mura Masa, electronic music duo Maribou State, and Shura, who will bring her hugely impressive catalogue of songs to the Love Saves The Day Main stage.

Other names on the bill for Saturday include American duo The Martinez Brothers who will be leading the proceedings on the Cloud Nine stage, alongside the hugely popular Skream, contemporary London-based trio Disciples, and Phonox Club resident and man of the moment Jasper James.

Bristol based club night Just Jack will also be hosting their very own stage on Saturday, showcasing Berghain resident Ben Klock, Robert Johnson family member Roman Flügel, the highly regarded Joy Orbison and the legendary Paranoid London

Elsewhere, The Dance Off stage will be headlined by the long standing house and garage duo DJ Luck and MC Neat, garage legend Artful Dodger and grime act Bonkaz an artist who has been hailed as one of the key players in the recent grime revival – plus some very special guest to be unveiled.

Other names on Saturday's bill include: Apex Collective,  Banoffee Pies, Christophe, Clean Cut Kid, Colours, Dan Wild, Dave Harvey, Dirty Talk, Feel The Real, Get Born, MNEK, Musu, Pardon My French, SG Lewis, Slix Disco, Studio 89, Teak and Tom Rio

Sunday 29th May…

Day two of the festival welcomes Dizzee Rascal, an artist who's music spans grime, UK garage, bassline, British hip hop and R&B, known for his high energy hits including 'Fix Up Look Sharp' and 'Dance With Me'. Winner of 2014's Best Grime Act at the MOBO awards Stormzy will also be joining on the Sunday, along with Soundclash champion David Rodigan and the hypnotising Warp Record's artist Nightmares On Wax.

From LuckyMe and Warp to TNGHT and Kanye West collaborations, Love Saves The Day also welcomes the highly successful Hudson Mohawke, who will headline The CRACK Stage along with a host of impressive music heavyweights, including the US based African cassette collector, blogger and DJ Awesome Tapes From Africa and Glasweigan producer Rustie. Bristish rapper Loyle Carner will also take to the CRACK stage along with London-based rap outfit Section Boyz.

Chinese Man, carried by the French Chinese Man Records label will bring the sound of hip-hop, funk, dub, reggae and jazz to Love Saves The Day Sunday, in addition to the renowned remixer Mad Professor, and bass player and producer specialising in digital reggae Manu Digital. After curating his own stage in 2015, Shy FX will be back to host the Cloud 9 stage, with very special guests still to be announced. Elsewhere, Sip The Juice take over The Dance Off stage on the Sunday, with Afrika Bambaataa leading the proceedings. 

Other names on Sunday's bill include: Aba Shanti Soundsystem, Alternate DJ's, Billy Disney, Blazey, Blazey, Bodywork, Curtis Lynch ft. Nanci, Dubkasm, DJ Dazee, Durkle Disco, Egoless, Faze Miyake, Hannah Mulvanny, Hot 8 Brass Band, Jethro Binns, Lionpulse, L-Vis 1990 b2b Bok Bok, Mistafire, OBF ft. Shanti D, Sly One, Sprung, RSD ft. Joe Peng and Trevor Sax

Love Saves the Day will also feature the only appearance of the Arcadia Afterburner in the UK this year. The original Arcadia installation, the Afterburner is a 360 degree stage built around a central flaming spire with dance platforms radiating out to a ring of exploding lamp posts. Having appeared at festivals as far afield as New Zealand, Croatia and the United States, and a staple at Glastonbury, the Afterburner is returning home to Bristol to bring the fire to Eastville Park.

Love Saves the Day Review 2015

The Bristolian two day event kicked off to a sunny start, bringing in flocks of hipsters from far and wide to Eastville Park. Saturday was a sell-out with queues of up to two hours to get into the festival site and huge lines for both the bar and toilets too. Despite the lack of amenities the curation of the festival was really well done, with all tents hosting an array of sounds for all tastes. With lots of Bristol performers, caterers and exhibitors, Love Saves the day 2015 definitely seemed a joyous celebration of the cool and diverse city.

Established as one of the best and biggest selling electronic acts, Groove Armada was one of the most legendary names to perform at Love Saves the Day this year. The relaxed and chilled vibes of daytime main stage instantly filled into a crowd of avid fans eagerly awaiting the electronic music duo. At the first kick drum the crowd went wild, kicking off the party atmosphere at main stage. Playing samples of 'I see you baby' the duo quickly move on delivering to a sea of raised arms and shoulder riders. Towards the end, the crowds attention began to slant just before teasing us with the legendary party anthem 'Superstylin' then kicking into it in full at the end just in time for sunset.

Cloud 9 presented by Apex proved to be tent for the party atmosphere hosting the likes of Tourist and Gorgon City. Tourist- a Grammy winning artist is certainly grabbing the musics lovers attention and 2015 has been a good year for him. As well as an excellent musician, he proved himself as a phenomenal DJ for Saturday Love Saves the Day. At no point did the crowds attention seem to stray. Gorgon City also provided a high finish to a night for the house/ garage fans.

The London singer/songwriter Jessie Ware, turned out to be a wonderful wind down a predominantly DJ and dance night. With some technical difficulties at the beginning Jessie Ware smoothly brushes it over by greeting the crowd. Her soulful and flawless voice eased us into sways of utter blissful happiness. Right before the end of the set Ware announces to 'slow dance with person you are standing next to' to which we complied singing the heart stopping 'Wildest Moments'. With the stage lights now turned off and heading back through the cold, the atmosphere of sheer satisfaction was upon the crowds face as you could hear passers-by singing Jessie Ware lyrics.

Saturday’s sunshine and atmosphere was the perfect way to really kick off the festival season and although the prior weather reports suggested otherwise, Sunday’s proceedings started in much the same way. Again, queues for the bars and toilets were a slight annoyance, even though tickets were still available on the door but it was nowhere near as bad as the first day. Perhaps the fewer people seeing the entire festival through were really making the most of the penultimate bank holiday before Christmas!

Giant illuminated signs outside the festival gates informed Sunday’s crowd that it was ‘party time’, and if any of the stages at Love Saves the Day lived up to this promise, it was the ‘Shambarber’ stage. Tucked away in the corner of the site, sheltered from the wind by the Paradiso tent and a slightly quieter bar ;) – this place was alive with festival spirit. It was a suntrap, with Dirtytalk and Jethro Binns providing the perfect accompaniment of feel-good house tunes making it really difficult to leave.

After a day outside, it was time to get some shade inside the paradise stage – one of the festival’s two larger tents. Floating Points’ stepped out, accompanied by a familiar face in Kieran Hebden (Four Tet), who must have been getting into the zone for his set later in the night. Floating Points’ impressed with yet another feel-good festival set – something he can be relied on. Whilst scatterings of electro-funk and disco took the premise, it was his own record ‘Nuits Sonores’ which really stood out as being something special.

After this a set by Daniel Avery which was again a lot of fun (although a little tamer than the last time I saw him at Manchester’s Soup Kitchen) it was the turn of Four Tet to take to the stage once again. Four Tet is an artist in the true sense of the word and once again he sculpted the perfect set to close the festival for the Paridiso tent’s crowd. He threw out tunes from every corner of the world, with samplings of African music seamlessly transitioned into deep electronic soundscapes. He treated our ears to some of his own tracks, with the reaction of the crowd to the haunting ‘Angel Echoes’ standing out as a highlight to the whole festival.

The time had come to get ready to round off a really memorable weekend and it was down to Harlem’s own Azealia Banks to close it out in style. Whilst Miss Bank$ has been known for a number of high profile arguments with other certain celebrities in the past, at love saves the day she let her music (and dancing) do the talking. Donning her sparkly purple jacket and white high tops and joined by her backing dancers, she covered and owned every inch of the stage. Singing and rapping along to songs which ducked and dived between hip-hop and popular dance in style, she brought her A-game from in the opening song of ‘Idle Delilah’, continuing to impress through to her arguably most famous track in ‘212’. There was no grand exit from Azealia – a simple ‘Thank you Bristol’ and she was gone.  

Love Saves The Day Announcements & After Parties

Love Saves The Day are pleased to announce three new additions to their already staggering line up for 2015. Blonde, Jazzie B and Break will be joining Jessie Ware, Azealia Banks, Groove Armada, Roni Size, Leon Vynehall and Grandmaster Flash to name a few at Bristol’s Eastville Park over the bank holiday weekend of the 23rd & 24th May. 

Following the success of last years after parties, the Love Saves The Day team have put together another set of post festival soirees, allowing the Love Saves The Day family to continue the party once the festival gates close. Doors will open at Motion, Lakota, Marble Factory, Coroners Court, Blue Mountain and the Big Chill with well loved names including Gorgon City, Julio Bashmore, David Rodigan and B Traits.

On Saturday 23rd May, electronic music duo who are taking the world by storm Gorgon City, will take over the main room at Bristol super club Motion. Joining Gorgon City will be Shadow Child and My Nu Leng, whilst Motion’s Tunnel welcomes Mihalis Safras, Banjax residents, Craig Brown, Dean Bray, JBSquared, Robert Van Ryn, Jack Cook and  Ollie Higgs with Billy Disney, Hank Champagne (Bodywork), Hall of Fame and Fred Holt in Motion’s cave. 

Over at Lakota, Wide Eyes presents the likes of Julio Bashmore, Hyetal, Velour and Shanti Celeste. Also providing the soundtrack to the evening will be Studio 94 vs Foundations, People Like Us, Get Born, Half Naked and Piff.

Coroners Court welcomes Radio 1′s B Traits, Waifs & Strays, Sly-One, Troy Gunner, Artwork, Origins Sound, Cubana Residents and a very special guest which is still to be announced. Watch this space…

Blue Mountain will provide revellers with their post festival Drum n Bass fix, the line up boasts Danny Byrd, Doc Scott and Cedric Maison who will be performing a Jungle set. In addition to Tayo, TS2W and A.Quake plus more very special guests.

Shambarber takes over the Big Chill with Shambarber Sessions, with very special guests still to be announced.

On Sunday 24th May, soundclash champion David Rodigan will headline a special Motion show, joined by a number of house and bass music heavy weights including Dismantle, GotSome, Jus Now and NYTA.

Elsewhere, party goers will be able to catch Four Tet playing back to back with the highly sought after Floating Points in the Marble Factory. Four Tet and Floating Points will also be joined by Solar and Shapes Residents on the evening, a perfect way to round off the Love Saves The Day weekend.

There are still a couple of very special guests to be announced for Saturday’s night, all will be revealed soon.

Love Saves The Day After Party tickets can now be purchased online here: www.residentadvisor.net

 

After Party Line-Ups & Details:

 

Saturday 23rd May

Motion

+++

Main room – Gorgon City Curates

Gorgon City, Shadow Child, My Nu Leng + support

Tunnel – Banjax

Mihalis Safras, Banjax residents, Craig Brown, Dean Bray, JBSquared, Robert Van Ryn

Jack Cook, Ollie Higgs

Cave – Playback

Billy Disney, Hank Champagne (Bodywork), Hall of Fame, Fred Holt

_______________________

Lakota

+++

Wide Eyes

Julio Bashmore, Hyetal, Velour, Shanti Celeste + support, Studio 94 vs Foundations, People Like Us, Get Born vs Halfnaked vs Piff

________________________

Coroners Court

+++

B.Traits, Special Guest TBC, Waifs & Strays, Sly-One, Troy Gunner

Artwork, Origins Sound, Cubana Residents

________________________

Blue Mountain

+++

Distinguished Gentlemen of Drum & Bass

Present: “And DJ…You Gwan Like Mr. Kipling…Exceedingly Good Me Bredrin.”

Danny Byrd, Doc Scott (History lesson)

Cedric Maison (Jungle set), Tayo, TS2W & A.Quake (The Blast)

+ very special guests

Hosted by: Jakes, Remidy

& More TBA

_______________________

Big Chill

+++

Shambarber

Shambarber Sessions + Very Special Guests

_______________________

Sunday 24th May

Motion

+++

Main room – Trap vs Who Cares?

David Rodigan, Dismantle, GotSome, Jus Now, NYTA

Tunnel – Durkle Disco Takeover

__________

Marble Factory

+++

Four Tet b2b Floating Points, Solar, Shapes Residents

 
______________
 

 

LINKS & INFO

Love Saves the Day add Groove Armada, Jackmaster and more

With just over seven weeks to go until Love Saves The Day sets up in it's new home at Eastville Park, more big names have bene added – including chart-topping dance duo Groove Armada – to a stellar music line-up, which already includes headliners Jessie Ware and Azealia Banks

Love Saves The Day will see over 300 acts perform across six stages to 30,000 people. Weekend tickets are already sold out, and day tickets, which are still available for Saturday and Sunday are expected to sell-out in a matter of weeks.

As the festival moves to a bigger, better site in Eastville Park this May (Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th), Love Saves The Day is pulling out all the stops with a line-up that will put it firmly on the map as one of the UK's most exciting music festivals. 

ARTISTS ADDED

Joining Groove Armada – as new additions to Saturday's line-up – are DJ and co-founder of the 'Numbers' record label, Jackmaster and Bristol born and bred RnB singer, Raleigh Ritchie, whose star has risen rapidly since the launch of his debut album in 2013. 

There's also plenty of good news for dub, reggae and roots fans who can look forward to a heavyweight line-up of living legends over the weekend including David Rodigan MBE, Horace Andy and Jah Shaka with a special all-day session from the epic Channel One Sound System.

STAGES

With six stages to choose from, Love Saves The Day fans will be spoilt for choice in Eastville Park this May. 

On the Main Stage, huge international artists like Groove ArmadaJessie Ware and Azealia Banks will play alongside up and coming local acts like singer-songwriter Rae Morris and the hyperkinetic Trinidad/Bristol collaboration, Jus Now

The Paradiso Stage – with its 'cosmic, exotic Arabian Nights vibe' – will be dedicated to house and techno with an epic big-room line-up on the Saturday featuring Tale of UsJackmaster andGeorge Fitzgerald. On Sunday, the stage will feature cutting edge sets from the likes of Four Tet, Errol Alkan and Daniel Avery

The 'tribal, tropical, carnival' themed Apocalypso Stage will have more of an underground slant featuring the skills of Âme, Craig Richards and Leon Vynehall on Saturday. Sunday will be hosted by prolific producer Shy FX with a massive line-up of dub, drum 'n' bass, grime and garage legends including Wiley, Skepta and David Rodigan

Over on Cloud Nine, nu-house and bass will be order of the day with big chart names like Gorgon City and Hannah Wants alongside rising stars of the West, like Gotsome, on Saturday and bass heavy grime, garage and dubstep on Sunday featuring Redlight, DJ EZ and Newham Generals.

On Saturday, the Just Jack extended family will take over the 'love shack' themed Brouhaha Stagewith house and techno selectors Soundstream and Dyed Soundorom on the bill. Sunday will see the legendary Channel One Sound System take up residence, hosted by Bristol institution,Teachings in Dub

House, techno and disco will be in abundance over at the Cocktails & Dreams 'beach hut' with an all-star selection of Bristol's most prolific party starters including Icarus, Apex Collective, Stamp The Wax and Dutty Girl

Jessie Ware & Azealia Banks headline Love Saves the Day 2015

Saturday 23rd May

Love Saves The Day are delighted to announce their line-up for 2015. Taking center stage as Saturday's headliner will be the soulful South Londoner and 'Wildest Moments' singer-songwriter Jessie Ware. Tale Of Us, the Berlin-based musical duo who are currently re-writing the rule-book for deeply moving, emotional electronic music will also be present, whilst Fabric resident Craig Richards takes over the Futureboogie stage, alongside Brighton deep house producer Leon Vynehall, the exceptional German duo Âme, and Maxxi Soundsytem, known for his classic house vocals and catchy grooves. 

Other names on the bill for Saturday include London duo Gorgon City, fresh off the back of recent hits 'Ready For Your Love' and 'Here For You', plus Hannah Wants, a lady who has taken to the forefront of the hard-hitting bass house scene, with recent hit 'Rhymes' alongside Chris Lorenzo. Also joining the Wide Eyes stage will be Tourist, the producer who made waves with his remake of HAIM's 'The Wire' and Bristol based house and bass production duo GotSome

Love Saves The Day also welcomes ManMakeMusic label owner George Fitzgerald to the  Second Stage, alongside the hugely popular Newcastle-based Patrick Topping. Elsewhere festival goers will be able to catch Bristol's very own Julio Bashmore, 'Heart On Fire' singer Indiana and Crazy P, an electronic group renowned for using slinky underground disco, deep electronic throbs, shimmering pop moments. Bristol based club night-turned-label Just Jack will also be hosting their very own stage on Saturday, showcasing Dyed Soundroom, Soundstream, K15 and recent signings Will Martin and John Barera

Other names on Saturday's bill include: Artwork, Bodhi, Christophe, Disciples, Felix Dickinson, Kidnap Kid, Lapsley, Matt 'Jam' Lamont, Rae Morris, Session Victim, Shanti Celeste, Sly One, Tayo, TCTS, Vaults, Waifs & Strays, Work It and Woz.

Sunday 24th May…

Day two of the Festival welcomes New York rapper, singer and songwriter Azealia Banks, who catapulted to fame following her universally popular 2012 hit '212'. Also gracing Sunday's main stage will be American recording artist and one of the pioneers of hip-hop DJing, cutting, and mixing Grandmaster Flash, as well as the gorgeous R&B vocals and chilly, metallic production of Kelela

The CRACK Stage will host an impressive array of dance music heavyweights including the diversely eclectic Four Tet, Phantasy label owner and BBC's Radio 6 Mix Resident Erol Alkanand renowned vinyl specialist Floating PointsDaniel Avery will also bring his mind-bending, psychedelic sounds to the stage, alongside the extremely talented Ghost Culture

Rapper and grime artist Skepta will be present on day two of the festival, alongside drum & bass and jungle legend Shy FX. Bristolian Redlight will bring his mixture of house, breakbeats and dubstep to the Trap stage, also joined by the multi-award winning garage DJ EZ and the Black Butter crew's My Nu Leng

Other names on Sunday's bill include: Babyhead, Barely Legal, Champion, Dark Sky, Dazee, Dismantle, Dr. Meaker, Hodge, Joker, Jus Now, Kiko Bun, Klose One, Loyle Carner, New York Transit Authority, Newham Generals, Pinch, Rat King, Stormzy, Typesun and Wiley.

 

Love Saves the Day 2014

It might still be a baby on the festival circuit, but Bristol’s Love Save The Day has no trouble drawing the hordes. Students, ravers, and the trendy youth of the West Country are all out to play for the festival’s third birthday.

Thick, grey clouds loom on Saturday, with a washout predicted for the day’s entirety, but spirits are high, and these wellie-clad punters ain’t afraid of no mud. Located in the heart of Bristol’s centre, attractive little Castle Park seems an odd choice of location to hold a dance festival, but a convenient one nonetheless.

With a generous helping of DJs on the line up, we are launched headfirst into the housey beats that usually form the late night proceedings. The likes of Crazy P and Kove get the party started on the Futureboogie and BB Records stages, while the main stage presents a more eclectic mix of genres.

Kiesza proves a highlight, largely due to her impressive ability to carry out intricate dance routines while simultaneously projecting note perfect vocals. The crowd seems entertained when she beckons a chorus of “oohs” and “ahhs” during her most famous track, ‘Hideaway’; it’s an impressive turn out for the soon-to-be star.

Trudging through the already muddy grounds, we find a collection of smaller venues sheltered within the trees, including a ‘Cocktails and Dreams’ stage complete with a campervan selling exotic cocktails, and the ‘Dance Off’, an area for the hardcore ravers where a boxing ring has been erected in front the stage – presumably intended for busting moves rather than for competitive fighting.

Later, Hercules and Love Affair provide a rather disappointing set on the main stage, and despite their garish outfits, seem to struggle to really engage with their audience. Annie Mac picks things up again, offering nearly an hour and a half of healthy dance beats as the heavens really open.

Saturday’s final headliner, Eats Everything, is local to Bristol, and his house tracks are successful in carrying the party into the night, gearing up the hardcore ravers for the after party taking place off-site at a nearby nightclub.

A much brighter and sunnier start to Sunday sets spirits high. Kicking things off are Laid Blak, recognised for their reggae infused music and weed-themed lyrics. Joined on stage by their children and revelling in the midday sun, the group seem to be having so much fun that they appear reluctant to leave at the end of their set!

Subsequent act Gentleman’s Dub Club are equally as excitable, and prove to be one of the standout performances of the festival. A parade of suited and booted men make up this ten-man band, complete with trumpeter and saxophonist. Exuding energy, they prance, skank and bounce their way through the set, urging the audience to join them in doing so. As the clouds part, they entice the crowd into a sun dance, which subsequently works its magic for the rest of the festival.

As the day progresses, bar queues begin to snake around the festival, as the crowds line up to wash down the afternoon with a customary Bristolian cider or Pimms for such weather. The lack of bars and food stalls is one of the biggest problems at this festival, which no doubt would benefit financially by making refreshments more readily available.

Quantic and Clean Bandit are both hits over on the main stage, with the former injecting a refreshing dose of salsa and jazz into the mix, and the latter pleasing the audience with their rendition of ‘Rather Be’. Yet perhaps the biggest crowds are drawn at the opposite end of the festival, when Shy FX and then Mike Skinner take to the Soundboy stage. Skinner swops vocals for decks, and surprisingly proves to be quite the DJ.

Bringing proceedings to a close, Jamie XX spins and remixes furiously to produce his trademark electronica sound, warming up the stage for headliner SBTRKT. Joined by regular collaborator Sampha, the set is slick and entrancing, enhanced by a hypnotic light show reserved for only the biggest artists.

Aside from the food and drink niggle, Love Saves the Day is a triumph. Despite covering such a small area of ground, the sound from its six stages never muddles, and it is particularly refreshing to see artists given such long sets. Bring on year four!

 


Created with flickr slideshow.

 

Mike Skinner and Keisza join Love Saves The Day lineup

Bristols finest festival Love Saves the Day has just announced that Mike Skinner and Keisza have joined the bill.

Check the lineup below:

With anticipation building and with just over a month to go until the finest purveyors of electronic music descend on Castle Park in Bristol for Love Saves The DayTeam Love have announced that Keisza has been added to the line -up for Saturday replacing Clean Bandit who will now be performing on the Sunday due to being asked by Radio 1 to perform at One Big Weekend.  Former Streets man Mike Skinner has also been added to the bill for the Sunday of the festival.
 
Saturday 24th May After parties
 
MOTION
 
Love saves The Night Presents: 
 
Warehouse 1 – Hosted By Edible 
Derrick Carter
Eats Everything
Subb-an
Lukas
 
Warehouse 2 – Hosted By Just Jack
Nina Kraviz
Jus Ed
Tom Rio
Dan Wild
 
The Tunnel – Hosted By Halfnaked
Halfnaked Residents
 
The Cave Hosted – By Banoffee Pies
Sam Mole b2b Alex Golesworthy
Bannoffee Pies Residents
 
 
LAKOTA AND CORONERS COURT 
 
Love Saves The Night Presents: Wide Eyes
 
Lakota
Room 1 – Hosted By Black Butter
Kidnap Kid
Woz
My Nu Leng
Gotsome
 
Room 2 – Hosted By Wide Eyes
Kove
Interface
N3gus
Wide Eyes Residents
 
Room 3 – Hosted By Dirty Disco
Dirty Disco Residents
 
Coroners Court
 
Room 1 – Hosted By Wide Eyes
Route 94
Robert James
Waifs & Strays
 
Room 2 – Hosted By Sanctuary 
Sanctuary Residents
 
 
BLUE MOUNTAIN
 
Love Saves the Night presents: Eton Messy
 
Main Room
Cyril Hahn
Blonde
Eton Messy
Waverley
 
Room 2
Sly-One
Bromley
Liable
Edy B2B Leroy
Latmu