We are a respected independent website that features festival news & festival reviews. We also cover the bands that make festivals great.
Our team have been attending festivals across the UK and elsewhere for the last 25 years. We haven’t just stood in the crowd. We’ve run our own events, and booked bands, managed stages, and provided online web presence. This has been for festivals including Glastonbury, Leeds, Beautiful Days, Download, and more.
This is a non-commercial website with no affiliations to particular events beyond the fact that we know many of the people behind them. We are always amazed by the hard work and passion that goes into putting them on.
Note – no advertising!
Festival reviews
We try to write honest and sometimes challenging reviews. If things are perfect, we’ll celebrate that. If things could be done better we’ll make suggestions in a positive spirit.
Do you feel you have a similar perspective and would like to share your own impressions of events you attend? If you do, please do get in touch as we’d love to carry more content than we can produce ourselves on zero income…but 100% love for the spirit of festivals.
We also host and run our own micro-listing and reviews hyper-local music website for Hastings: www.hastingsflyer.com. This model could easily be applied to any other town in the UK… so if you fancy running something similar please get in touch.
- Hastings Fat Tuesday 2023: five recommended bands to watch out for in 2023
It’s no news at all that there has just been a festival in Hastings – after all, the town and surrounding area has over fifty festivals of one sort or another this year alone. Trust us – we’ve counted them. But this one is a bit special. Hastings Fat Tuesday It’s Hastings Fat Tuesday, and it’s probably the best Mardi Gras event in the UK. For five days every February the town gets a shot of musical adrenaline that keeps the party going from Friday night’s grand ball, through the Saturday unplugged marathon, and Sunday’s huge parade and afternoon party,…
Read more - Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 – Bringing great new young bands to old fans…Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 –This is our first Rockaway Beach, although we have been to other Butlins-based festivals over the years, so we had a good idea of what to expect in terms of organization and production. Rockaway’s model is a simple but effective one – nail down a handful of old-school headliners and then fill the rest of the bill with some of the hottest new young bands on the scene. This is a great opportunity for those acts to gain exposure with older audiences (the ones with money to buy records) because the programming means that during the day there is hardly…
Read more - Festival news: Peter Hook and The Light headline Rockaway Beach Festival 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Peter Hook and The Light headline Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Oh lord… there’s nobody on the planet more entitled to the God-given right to push out Joy Division songs than Peter Hook… but despite having seen and loved this show a dozen times in the past (or maybe it’s for that very reason), tonight’s Rockaway Beach Festival Butlins gig seems to not quite nail it. It’s really hard to pin down the issue, but it may quite simply be that the PA in the main room is a clean machine and the heart of Joy…
Read more - Festival news: Self Esteem busts some big moves at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Self Esteem busts some big moves at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Now we are moving into big-hitter territory and watching Rockaway Beach Festival punch above its weight with a multi-million-listen contemporary act who is poised to be one of the biggest things on the clever pop circuit. Rebecca Taylor simply owns the audience at Rockaway Beach Festival as she dominates the main stage and shows how it’s possible to subvert current underground trends by taking them into the mainstream. There’s no point in harking on about ‘she played this song and then she played that…
Read more - Festival news: Life breathe life into Rockaway Beach on a blustery January day Hull-based Life are already three al…Latest update from Festival Flyer Life breathe life into Rockaway Beach on a blustery January day Hull-based Life are already three albums into their career and have garnered critical acclaim along the way. That said, their brand of punk is very much of the the melodic nature. There are even vocal harmonies lurking in the mix if you take the time to listen. The band really caught our attention at Rockaway Beach and we’ve regularly heard them on BBC 6 Music with songs like ‘Big Moon Lake’ ‘I think I’m spending far too much on fairly average takeaways’ This track…
Read more - Festival news: Low Hummer lay down a great set at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Low Hummer are yet to release their …Latest update from Festival Flyer Low Hummer lay down a great set at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Low Hummer are yet to release their first album, but they are already clocking up 15,000 listeners a month on Spotify … so that might pay for a round of drinks once a year at the office Christmas party. They secured a Manic Street Preachers support slot very early in their existence, and we’d love to see if they can capitalise on that experience to build a wider fan base. As it is, early doors festival slots such as this one at Rockaway…
Read more - Festival news: Yard Act kick off the 2023 festival season as we hope they will continue at Rockaway Beach…Latest update from Festival Flyer Yard Act kick off the 2023 festival season as we hope they will continue at Rockaway Beach A few hours before their set Yard Act take to the interview stools for a Q&A session hosted by everyone’s favourite steel-eyed and pin-sharp rock-pundit, John Robb. Although we only caught a few minutes of the session, the theme seemed to be largely a focus on how a band who had a vision for a unique sound stuck to their guns, put in a lot of hard work, did all the right things – and then got lucky…
Read more - Festival news: OMD show the kids how it’s done at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Andy McCluskey may have broken a rib…Latest update from Festival Flyer OMD show the kids how it’s done at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Andy McCluskey may have broken a rib on Boxing Day, but it didn’t stop him putting in his usual energetic performance as the band headlined the Skyline Stage at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023. With over 40 million record sales under their belts, OMD have a popularity that far outstrips the critics who have sometimes tried to write them off for any one of many different reasons. The fact of the matter is that the band are responsible for a significant number of songs…
Read more - Festival news: Scalping keep it dark at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Scalping keep it dark at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Arguably Scalping ought to have been the last band on stage at Rockaway Beach Festival this bleak and cold Saturday night at the end of the first weekend in January. Their sound is dominated by a techno-rave energy that may have metal running through its veins, but it definitely works best for our money when midnight has passed by unnoticed and those with the energy to keep partying until dawn are bugged out and tuned into the sorts of crashing, but carefully crafted and calculated noise…
Read more - Festival news: The Anchoress, live at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 With cinematic swagger, The Anchoress takes over…Latest update from Festival Flyer The Anchoress, live at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 With cinematic swagger, The Anchoress takes over the Rockaway Beach Festival main stage… and the lighting mirrors the music, with all the focus on Catherine Anne Davies. It’s a pleasurable audio mix, with Catherine’s powerful vocals loud and proud in the speakers, and the drums tucked away snuggly behind a thumping but not overwhelming bass line. And visually this is audio delight is echoed by spotlights holding all the attention on the singer behind her bank of keyboards, whilst the rest of the band hang back in…
Read more - Festival news: Big Joannie put in a big show at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Big Joannie put in a big show at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Musically, Big Joannie are a bit of a tough act to pigeonhole. There’s a punk feminist ethic that they wear in their sleeve, but songs veer from blues to grunge and simple garage as the set progresses. Somehow Butlins just doesn’t feel like their natural stomping ground. But Rockaway Beach Festival is infamous for making incongruous artists work in this otherwise family-friendly environment. There’s lots of patter between songs… including an explanation about why ‘It’s You’ is quite simply about men being sh*t…
Read more - Festival news: The Futureheads battle 300 miles through ‘a typhoon’ to make their Rockaway Beach Festival set…Latest update from Festival Flyer The Futureheads battle 300 miles through ‘a typhoon’ to make their Rockaway Beach Festival set A 300-mile drive through a typhoon and a bad case of lost voice don’t dampen the spirits of The Futureheads and the launch into their Rockaway Beach Festival set with a rousing rendition of The Beginning of the Twist. That was followed with the band giving five-star food review for ‘Butlins Beef Corner’ and their one-and-a-half minute chargrilled steak… Sadly due to one of the few gig-clashes of the day that was all we got the chance to hear as…
Read more - Festival news: Melt Yourself Down turn up the heat at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Melt Yourself Down turn up the heat at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 This funky indie-band’s got soul… and the Rockaway Beach Festival crowd must have gulped down their food super fast to have got back in time to see Melt Yourself Down hit the stage bang in time for their 6.15pm slot. A solid horn section and some thumping additional percussion really fill out the sound, and we could imagine some big dance tents erupting if this exciting band were given the chance to let the DJs and MCs take a breather. They sold out…
Read more - Festival news: The Goa Express freshen up the Red stage at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer The Goa Express freshen up the Red stage at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Over at the jangly-indie end of the Brit Pop spectrum we find The Goa Express…five guys who scatter a little psych onto the well-worn path of garage guitar rock. It’s a refreshing change of musical direction mid-way through a long day of artists and shows sensitive programming skills on the part of the Rockaway Beach bookers. At times the band veer perhaps a little too far into Oasis territory, but as it’s clearly their own take on the genre and not a…
Read more - Festival news: Pozi at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Pozi have been on the circuit for around three years now, and t…Latest update from Festival Flyer Pozi at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Pozi have been on the circuit for around three years now, and the Doutn London trio have drawn critical praise in a slew of publications to date. Their choice of primary weapon is a fiddle, although it seemed a little lost in the mix for most of today’s mid-afternoon set. 📸Sara Bowrey Photos Festival Flyer Source
- Festival news: Vlure totally nail their set at Rockaway Beach 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Vlure totally nail their set at Rockaway Beach 2023 Vlure deliver industrial beats that echo Nitzer Ebb or Senser at their very finest, with powerful vocals that echo on into next month with no sign of stopping. The phrase’ prowling the stage’ was coined for these guys. VLURE Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Festival Flyer Source
- Festival news: Panic Shack play second set at Rockaway Beach2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Panic Shack play second set at Rockaway Beach2023 Playing their second set of the festival here at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023, it’s Panic Shack…all sporting mild to heinous hangovers from last nights party antics. A younger audience would have been headbanging and moshing like their lives depended on it, but Rockaway Beach pulls in punters who are generally more content to simply lap up the music of a fresh generation of rising stars. Catch these hot-100 darlings of the NME at a flurry of festivals this year, or try to bag tickets at one of…
Read more - Festival news: Personal Trainer knock it out of the park at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Personal Trainer knock it out of the park at Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Personal Trainer play foot-stomping and mature indie anthems that are totally on-point in the current rise of the New No-Wave phenomenon exemplified by the likes of Squid, Dry Cleaning and Bodega. It’s a style of music we really love, and the near-capacity early afternoon crowd here at Butlins for Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 seemed to agree. This Dutch band are definitely ones to check out any chance you get! 📸Sara Festival Flyer Source
- Festival news: Winter Gardens open day two of Rockaway Beach Festival 2023…Latest update from Festival Flyer Winter Gardens open day two of Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 Day two of Rockaway Beach Festival 2023 and the opening act are Winter Gardens – a popular choice if the long queue running way back into the main arena was anything to go by as the clock ticked away the minutes until the early noon start. This is solid indie fare, with a healthy dose of keyboards and some fine samples to complement quality vocals and some energetic guitar and bass work. We love finding fresh music at festivals and have made a note to…
Read more - 10 great music venues in Montreal – a taster of what music means to this mighty Canadian cityBy: Sara-Louise Bowrey / John Bownas Leonard Cohen, Arcade Fire, Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Just three of the many musical exports that Montreal is perhaps best known for. Our pilgrimage to this lovely city wasn’t, however, to pay homage to the greats. Rather it was to unearth some of the best new and emerging (or sometimes established, but hidden) bands and singers the city and the country have to offer. For our band reviews from M for Montreal 2022 click HERE…we found some corkers! And along the way we were given the chance over a long and snowy weekend in…
Read more - Bands at M for Montreal 2022 and amazing UK festival predictions for 2023M for Montreal 2022 Words: John Bownas … Pictures: Sara-Louise Bowrey M for Montreal How do you choose your favourite bands from such a strong list of performers playing across four days in the heart of this amazing musical city at ‘M for Montreal’? Well, it’s not easy, but if someone held a really sharp and rusty knife to our thoats and demanded to know who the top acts were, we’d have to say: THE BURNING HELL LUMIERE KAMIKAZE NURSE DIAPHENIE LAURA NIQUAY BARRY PAGUIN ROBARGE BALAKLAVA BLUES MOBINA GALORE C’EST KARMA Otherwise…well, we managed to see about 35-or-so other…
Read more - Hastings Bonfire 2022 – photo galleryHastings Bonfire is one of the largest events in the localevents calendar – and that’s say A LOT given the number of festivals the town hosts every year! 2022 was a windy affair that had sparks flying…and sadly for spectators and organisers alike meant the traditional firework finale had to be curtailed. But the parade through the town was as colourful and raucous as ever, and the bonfire itself, fanned by a strong south-westerly wind, was a spectacular blaze in its own right. This year’s effigy turned out to be Southern Water… who haven’t been makling friends with coastal towns…
Read more - End of the Road Festival 2022 – full review and photo galleryEnd of the Road Festival 2022 – a music-lovers paradise End of the Road is definitely a music lovers festival – with a heavy emphasis on the musical road less traveled. Even seasoned festival-goers will find themselves turning to the programme descriptions of bands they have only half heard of previously to inform their decisions about which of the stages to head to next. Having said that its also a festival for food lovers, shoppers, and parents with young kids…or adults who just never grew up. Although the food circle at the top of the Woods stage isn’t huge there’s…
Read more - End of the Road 2022 – two days in 12 minutesA quick-fire video journey through End of the Road 2022 From spoon-carving and wild-stick hunting through to some amazing musical finds, End of the Road 2022 was a brilliant end to the peak festival season in what has been a vintage year as we’ve all got used to being out having fun in the fields all over again. This truly is a festival to reaffirm your love of new music and a place to make new friends. We have a tonne of photos to sift through, edit, and categorize – but in the meantime enjoy this little trip down memory…
Read more - Beautiful Days Festival 2022 – in perfect focus…Back with a bang – Beautiful Days 2022 met every expectation We’ve been at every edition of Beautiful Days since the festival started – almost 20 ears ago – and this was a vintage year if ever we saw one. From the quietly raucous Thursday-night 100% acoustic shenanigans at the back of Dirty Davey’s bar tent to the festival’s first official wedding (that took place to the distant soundtrack of the Leveller’s opening set), and the usual great array of food traders, through to outstanding sets from the likes of Funke and the Two Tone Baby, The Sweetchunks Band, Samantics,…
Read more - All Points East 2022 (FRIDAY) – our favourite bands in photosPhotos by: Sara-Louise Bowrey All the best photos of All Points East Festival 2022 – in sharp focus… The National – Fleet Foxes – Dreamz – Mogwai – Perfume Genius – Phoebe Hall – Kurt Vile – Jana – Lucy Dacus – Honey Mooncie – Villagers – DEHD – Valerie June – The Deep Blue – Tune Yards – Bess Atwell – Rae Morris We do the pictures – others do the words… Check out these reviews from the festival. The National The National – Fleet Foxes – Dreamz – Mogwai – Perfume Genius – Phoebe Hall – Kurt Vile…
Read more - All Points East 2022 (SUNDAY) – our favourite bands in photosPhotos by: Sara-Louise Bowrey All the best photos of All Points East Festival 2022 – in sharp focus… Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds – Sleaford Mods – The Smile – Spiritualised – Aldous Harding – Anna Calvi – Jehnny Beth – Tinariwen – Lucy Tunn – Kae Tempest – Starcrawler – Joan as Policewoman – Party Dozen – Chilli Jesson We do the pictures – others do the words… Check out these reviews from the festival. Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds – Sleaford Mods – The Smile – Spiritualised – Aldous Harding…
Read more - Truck Festival 2022 – full weekend photo galleriesDozens of bands, hundreds of fans – we always bring you the largest and best galleries from the front row of festivals
- Womad 2022 – in photosPhotos by Simon Partington All the best photos of Womad 2022 in sharp focus… Madame Electrifie – The Future Shape of Sound – ADG7 – Nubian Twist – B.Dance – Angelique Kidjo – Kae Tempest – Barmer Boys – The Selector – Fatoumata Diarwarra Madame Electrifie at Womad 2022 Madame Electrifie – The Future Shape of Sound – ADG7 – Nubian Twist – B.Dance – Angelique Kidjo – Kae Tempest – Barmer Boys – The Selector – Fatoumata Diarwarra The Future Shape of Sound at Womad 2022 Madame Electrifie – The Future Shape of Sound – ADG7 – Nubian Twist…
Read more - Sunday at Camp Bestival 2022 in high-quality picturesWow – what a scorcher Camp Bestival 2022 turned out to be at Lulworth Castle in 2022! Even with Sunday starting out pretty breezy and overcast the temperature soon soared again and the crowds basked in yet another perfect day of festival weather. And of course alongside the regular festival shenanigans there was a small matter of those Lionesses taking on the German machine and striking that second goal for gold. Our hearts went out for Too Many Ts though. They had been due to hit the Big Top stage around the time the final whistle blew, but extra time…
Read more - Camp Bestival 2022 – huge gallery of photos from Saturday, as the festival set a new Disco Dance World RecordDid we snap you in the crowd on Saturday at Camp Bestival 2022? Photos by Sara-Louise Bowrey / Festival Flyer Check out these cool photos from around the site and out in the crowds plus sets from some of the great bands and artists who played on Saturday at Camp Bestival 2022. Snapped Ankles – Oh My God It’s The Church – The Earth, Wind, and Fire Experience – Proghorn – Sophie Ellis Bextor – The Proclaimers – The Showhawk Duo – Rhoda Dakar – Dick and Dom Camp Bestival Dorset,the UK’s favourite family festival, has officially broken the GUINNESS…
Read more - Camp Bestival 2022 – huge gallery of photos from Friday’s funDid we snap you in the crowd at Camp Bestival 2022? Photos by Sara-Louise Bowrey / Festival Flyer Check out these cool photos from around the site and out in the crowds plus sets from some of the great bands and artists who played on Friday. Rag’n’Bone Man – Razorlight – Jo Whiley – Cuban Brothers – Orla Gartland – Elvana – Lola Young – Gok One thing is for sure, after the last hastily convened episode of this annual family-friendly event, the team have really pulled out the stops to bring all the old Camp Bestival magic back to…
Read more - Truck Festival 2022 – Tremendous Sunday photo galleriesTruck Festival 2022 – Band photos (Sunday) Here’s a great selection of shots from a load of the great acts we caught at the Sunday of Truck Festival 2022: Pixey – Enola Gay – The Hara – Grandma’s House – Bleach Lab – Alfie Templeton – Magic Gang – Kid Brunswick – Crawlers – Orla Gatland – Inhaler – Sam Ryder – Easy Life – Sorry – Kid Kim And of course we’d have been missing a trick if we didn’t capture a tonne of friendly festival faces and scenes from around the site… Truck Festival 2022 – Sunday Crowds…
Read more - Truck Festival 2022 – Amazing Saturday photo galleriesTruck Festival 2022 – Band photos (Saturday) Here’s a great selection of shots from a load of the great acts we caught at the saturday of Truck Festival 2022: Sam Fender – Shame – Piney Gir – The Kooks – The Office for Personal Development – Kelis – The Murder Capital – Sports Team – The Goa Express – Gen and The Degenerates – Do Nothing – Baby Queen – Folly Group – Abbie Ozard – Coach Party – Big Reference – Courting – The Shapes – Deep Tan – Lime Garden And of course we’d have been missing a…
Read more - Fabulous photo galleries from Truck Festival 2022 (Friday)Band and Crowd Photos from Truck Festival 2022 We’ve collated hundreds of fabulous photo galleries of bands and crowds from Truck Festival 2022. Browse below for shots of: Chiika – Beach Riot – Yard Act – Lauren Hibberd – DITZ – Only The Poet – Orchards – Spector – Just Mustard – Sea Girls – Cruel Hearts Club – Sigrid – The Subways – Bombay Bicyle Club And if you were out in the crowd there is a good chance we might have snapped you too! A bit about Truck Festival… It’s our first time at Truck – which has…
Read more - 3,000 Amazing 2000Trees Festival Photos plus overview2000Trees gave us almost 3,000 great photos. As well as capturing 2000Trees Festival photos from around the site we snapped around 50 of our favourite acts – although we still managed to miss a few we’d have loved to see as we couldn’t be everywhere at once! Here are some of our favourite 2000Trees Festival photos from the weekend for 2022 Picture credit Sara-Louise Bowrey / Festival Flyer Overview of 2000Trees 2022 This isn’t our first visit to ‘trees (as it is known to fans) – and we hope it won’t be our last. This fiercly independent festival sits at…
Read more - Turnstile at 2000Trees – and about 350 crowdsurfers in picturesIf you were one of the 350+ Turnstile crowdsurfers you may well find yourself here…
- 2000Trees 2022 – Photo and Video Gallery #32000trees 2022 Photo and Video Gallery (three of three) Wow! 2000Trees is back, and with a bang! It’s the hard festival with soft edges – and is that ‘Goldilocks size’ … not too big, not too small. And what great weather the laid on for us too… The weekend (Thursday to Saturday – Trees takes Sunday off for good behaviour) was spent capturing some great images and a few video moments… There are loads more to come, but here is a taster – photos by Sara-Louise Bowrey/Festival Flyer 2000Trees Gallery One – Gallery Two – Gallery Three If you are…
Read more - 2000Trees 2022 – Photo and Video Gallery #22000trees 2022 Photo and Video Gallery (two of three) Wow! 2000Trees is back, and with a bang! It’s the hard festival with soft edges – and is that ‘Goldilocks size’ … not too big, not too small. And what great weather the laid on for us too… The weekend (Thursday to Saturday – Trees takes Sunday off for good behaviour) was spent capturing some great images and a few video moments… There are loads more to come, but here is a taster – photos by Sara-Louise Bowrey/Festival Flyer 2000Trees Gallery One – Gallery Two – Gallery Three If you are…
Read more - 2000Trees 2022 – Photo and Video Gallery2000trees 2022 Photo and Video Gallery (one of three) Wow! 2000Trees is back, and with a bang! It’s the hard festival with soft edges – and is that ‘Goldilocks size’ … not too big, not too small. And what great weather the laid on for us too… The weekend (Thursday to Saturday – Trees takes Sunday off for good behaviour) was spent capturing some great images and a few video moments… There are loads more to come, but here is a taster – photos by Sara-Louise Bowrey/Festival Flyer 2000Trees Gallery One – Gallery Two – Gallery Three If you are…
Read more - Five amazing days, Glastonbury 2022 – words and great picturesLeaving Glastonbury 2022 was hard to do… Leaving the Glastonbury 2022 site is quite literally a challenge if you have to cart everything back to your car up the infamous ‘hill of death’. So hat’s off to those who made this final push to get back to normality even though the pull of the festival site behind them was still strong. Was Glastonbury 2022 the ‘best Glastonbury Festival ever’? Well, given the forced absence it certainly felt that way – and the weather was certainly the best we can remember since we started going back in 1993. We did our…
Read more - Sunday at Glastonbury, and what a festival 2022 has been!What a fantastic festival Glastonbury 2022 has turned out to be! (Photos by Sara-Louise Bowrey / Festival Flyer) – links below to previous days. Let’s get some of the common grumbles out of the way first. Those who did bother to take the time to post on social media from the festival over the weekend typically seemed to do so for the explicit purpose of having a good old British moan. The crowds are too big! Ummm – it’s an enormous festival… so yes, there will be big crowds. Get over it. OK, so they sold more tickets this year,…
Read more - Saturday at Glastonbury Festival 2022As Saturday at Glastonbury 2022 draws to an end could we be seeing a festival weekend that has the most perfect weather ever? We have been at every Glastonbury Festival except one since 1993 and have seen every weather varient that the British Summer can throw at a field full of festival goers. And if we are not mistaken (and if the forecast for tomorrow looks like holding firm) it seems that 2022 might well set a record for being the best weather the festival has ever experienced. It’s shaping up to be a true ‘Goldilocks year’ – not to…
Read more - Glastonbury 2022 – Friday in photosGlastonbury 2022, Friday: sunshine, showers, crowds and some amazing music From start to finish, the first ‘big band’ day of Glastonbury 2022 brought us truly brilliant sets from bands ranging from the smallest to the biggest on the planet. Over on the Sensation Seekers’ Stage we sat and enjoyed fish and chips in the sun with Bob Slayer (owner, driver and comedy conductor) of the Blundabus whilst watching yet another set from Mik Artistik’s Ego Trip. (Small side-fact: we once owned that very bus… next time you buy a ticket to ride ask Bob for the story!) Bumping into Mik…
Read more - Thursday at Glastonbury Festival 2022 – photos and highlightsGlastonbury Festival 2022, Thursday highlights There’s something really special about Thursdays at Glastonbury. It’s maybe something to do with the fact that main stages don’t fire up for another day. That means it really is the best opportunity for emerging bands to make their mark – so a top tip for agents with new talent on your roster is to push as hard as possible for Thursday slots, because the crowds will be big, keen, eager, and loud. And for audiences the best part of Thursday’s is the fact that the journey around the site is more of a slow…
Read more - Glastonbury 2022 (Wednesday) Photo Gallery and ReviewGlastonbury 2022 – sunshine and smiles all around Photos by Sara Bowrey / Festival Flyer As you can see from our photos, today was probably the perfect festival weather. Sunny and warm, but not so scorching that heat became a problem. And when the sun set it was a picture-postcard moment up at the stone circle (or whichever of the two top fields you decided to aim for this year). Finding the scattered live performances proved harder than expected as the festival removed all the scheduled shows from their programme some time ago…we assume due to licensing conditions. But some…
Read more - Download 2022 Festival is over – here’s to 2023 and the 20th event in the festival’s long historyThis weekend, 85,000 rock fans descended on the hallowed grounds of Donington Park, Leicester, as the world’s premier rock and metal event made its triumphant, sun-filled return. As the rock community reunited at the first full-scale Download Festival in three years, the crowds embraced one another and lost themselves in a celebration of everything which makes the culture so special. Friday bore witness to the phenomenal final UK show of KISS, part of the band’s ‘End of The Road’ tour. The sunshine continued on Saturday, as headliner and heavy metal’s true masters Iron Maiden returned with a spectacular set, while Scottish rock giants Biffy Clyro’s headline show set the…
Read more - Bearded Theory 2022: are festivals back?Our view on Bearded Theory in these post-Covid times is that it’s still a winner We arrived at Bearded Theory 2022 in what looks like being a crunch-year for many festivals as they teeter between enforced Covid absences and a new world which seems dominated by rising event production costs coupled with squeezed household budgets. The big question, it seems, is whether people see festivals as an essential shopping bag item or an expensive luxury they may be forced to do without. We made our regular trip to Bearded Theory to see how an event which is widely regarded as…
Read more - BODEGA launch their new album and 70-day world tour from Brighton’s most intimate venue, The AlbertWatching BODEGA launch their new album (‘Broken Equipment’) was a must-see event. I go to a lot of gigs. Maybe not as many gigs as a few people I know of course, but way more than is probably healthy for a 50+ year-old who really ought to know better. That said, on the age thing, I’m more than a little concerned that I’m finding myself at the younger end of the age scale when I’m out to watch bands that my 16-year-old self would have chewed his own arm off to be at. It really makes me wonder what the…
Read more - Hastings Fat Tuesday: an amazing Mardi Gras-on-sea (best bands)Words: John Bownas, Pictures: Sara Bowrey What else are you doing at the end of February that is more important than a great five-day party by the seaside – at Hastings Fat Tuesday? And Hastings has this covered…because, in preparation for the solemn start of Lent, the town throws caution to the wind in the name of Mardi Gras… or ‘Fat Tuesday’ as it’s better known to non-French speakers. Now we know there are Mardi Gras celebrations all around the world, but Hastings really extends the concept into a Mardi Marathon, because the doors open to the fun factory on…
Read more - Emtombed Festival 2022 – a brutally beautiful earbashingReview and photos by Sara Bowrey ENTOMBED 2022 Entombed was brought to Hastings by Toxit Wotsit (the team behind Wotsit Called Festival) and local live promoters, Infected Umbrella. It was a festival dedicated to all things heavy, and for fans of noise this was the ideal way to blow away the January/COVID blues. Centred mainly around The Crypt and with an aftershow gig for late-night revels on Saturday night over at The Pig, Entombed was a simple mix of back-to-back bands and festival themed cocktails. DAY ONE – Friday at The Crypt London-based Shooting Daggers are Wotsit Called Festival favourites…
Read more - All Points East 2021 CELEBRATES THE BEST OF UK MUSIC AND BEYONDNED DYLAN reports from the field…with photos by Sara-Louise Bowrey Last weekend All Points East returned to London with a line up that celebrated the best of UK music and beyond. With a capacity of 40,000 All Points East is a well-sized festival in Victoria Park, which makes for a great site. This year the All Points East crowd were friendly and relaxed but also brought a lot of energy to almost every set I watched, helping to create a brilliant atmosphere all weekend. SONS OF KEMET AND LOYLE CARNER STAND OUT On Friday for me there were two main…
Read more - Camp Bestival 2021 – the best bits…We’ve always had a soft spot for Camp Bestival – despite not fitting the target demographic for which the event is most famous. That is to say, we’re not the proud parents of 2.2 five-to-seven year-olds. We are, however, of the right sort of age to appreciate the heavily 90’s-led line-ups. And it’s always great to think that this early exposure to live music might help create new generations of fans – and, of course, new generations of musicians. It’s not been plain sailing over recent years for the good ship Bestival though – with financial woes seeing it change…
Read more - Tramlines Festival 2021 hailed as ‘huge success’ by artists and audiencesEarly bird tickets on sale 6pm, Monday 26th July Tramlines, Sheffield’s biggest festival of music, art and comedy, has come to a close, marking a landmark moment for the city and the UK live events industry. 40,000 revellers attended the sold-out event at Hillsborough Park each day from 23rd to 25th July as Tramlines became the largest festival to return in Western Europe and among the first to join the Government’s Events Research Programme. Highlight performances over the weekend included The Streets, whose frontman Mike Skinner popped a bottle of champagne on Sarah Nulty’s Main Stage in celebration of crowds…
Read more - Latitude 2021 – first photos from Friday – and is there any point in COVID trial events?It’s been a long, long time, but arriving at Latitude Festival 2021 felt like coming home. Despite what is still going on in the outside world some sense of normality appeared to have been achieved. OK, so the event lost a couple of acts due to self-isolation issues (but given that resulted in Sports Team grabbing a main stage set on Saturday that was no bad thing) – and there is a need to submit valid negative COVID tests to be on site – but other than that things feel pretty much as we remembered festivals being like back before…
Read more - Bigfoot Festival review 2021– the bubbles may have burst…After so many months without even a sniff of a festival, Bigfoot was a breath of fresh air. A genuine feeling that normality will soon be resumed…as soon as anyone can work out exactly what ‘normal’ is these days. At only 4,000 capacity it was only four-fifths the audience of a sold-out show at Brixton Academy. But its importance in the current climate of restrictions and uncertainty cannot be understated. LEAVE YOUR OWN REVIEW OF BIGFOOT FESTIVAL HERE Alongside the ‘Download experiment’ it is the first UK festival to take place within COVID restrictions since the pandemic swept the live…
Read more - In Cider 2020 – In PhotosAll photos by Sara-Louise Bowrey Gaz Brookfield and the Company of Thieves – In Cider Festival 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 Surfin’ Turnips – In Cider Festival 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 Samantics – In Cider Festival 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 Dakka Skanks – In Cider Festival 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 Neck – In Cider Festival 2020 by John Bownas February 5, 2020 by John Bownas…
Read more - The Great Escape 2020 – First 50The Great Escape 2020 – First 50 PHOTOS BY WWW.SARABOWREYPHOTOS.COM So November 2019 isn’t even half-way through and already we are enjoying the first swathe of festival sets for 2020… Brighton’s Great Escape Festival jumped the gun and decided to take itself up to London to show the capital how it’s going to be done by the seaside next year – and with fifty acts over two nights their ‘First Fifty’ showcase does exactly what it says on the tin…gets in first with a half-century of could-be big-hitters. It was a tough call as to which venues to go for,…
Read more - Wotsit Called Festival 2019WOTSIT CALLED FESTIVAL 2019 Three days of grass-roots ‘punken’ delights Deep in the darkest depths of East Sussex, Hastings is home to a crazy world of hardcore music fans who thrive on the loudest and most raucous sounds around. Born into a town where deprivation is masked by the relative affluence of the ever more gentrified neighbourhoods that clamour for attention from the lifestyle sections of the Sunday broadsheets, these nu-anarchists are a true throwback to the earliest days of punk. And they don’t just pay lip service to the punk ethic as a fashion statement – they live…
Read more - Boomtown Fair 2019 – windy but wonderful as everWith tickets selling out over the weekend, Boomtown 2019 saw some 66,000 guests, performers and crew descend once more on the hills and forests of the Winchester countryside. Yet again, the immersive storyline rolled on, and for those who love to play out the fabled fiction of the ever-changing chapters there was plenty of opportunity to become a part of the machine that cannot be stopped. Of course alongside the big-name bands this year’s headline had to have been the wind. With Boardmasters cancelled Boomtown’s organisers must have thought long and hard about whether their intricate infrastructure was up to…
Read more - Cornbury 2019 – reviewWith idyllic settings in the Cotswolds and a history of artists any festival would die for, this festival is one that’s been on the hitlist for us for quite a while. Established back in 2004 and originally called ‘Poshstock’ in the press, the festival boasts attendees at 20,000 per cycle. The top echelons of musical talent including Robert Plant, Susanne Vega, Ray Davies, Elvis Costello and Jools Holland have all frequented the festival at one time or another, this year was no exception with headliners catering for all including The Specials, Keane and The Beach Boys. The festival is very…
Read more - CUD – life affirming and 100% genuineIf every gig sounded this good the world would be a joyous place. CUD’s return to the Islington Academy some ten years and a handful of months after their triumphant explosion back onto the live scene was a treat for the ears – as well as the eyes. Flamboyant as ever, and basking in the confidence that having a whole set of ‘no filler’ tracks makes fully justified, the CUD band’s sound engineer dialed in his best stadium sound settings and unleashed a pure pop beast… Blasting through their best songs – many as chosen by ‘tens of thousands’ of…
Read more - Ragged Bear 2018 – in photosWhen your love of festivals is purely about the music look no further than Ragged Bear. No overpriced food – just pop across the road for a Subway. No overpriced beer – it’s all at that under-£4 price point we love, and they have real ale coming out of their ears. No staggering back to try and find your tent – this is a city centre event in the very epicentre of the UK. Nuneaton. And did we mention the music? The line-up never fails to delight… and here’s our gallery of photos to show what a lovely little festival…
Read more - The Funking Barstewards – Hastings Fish and Wine Festival 2018The Funking Barstewards have been putting smiles on the faces of festival crowds since they first graced a big stage at Phoenix Festival back in 1993. Still funking it up after all these years with a greatest hits back catalogue of disco classics, the Barstewards’ most recent foray into festival land was at the annual Hastings Seafood and Wine Festival. Headining the Saturday night they lit up the tent with a set that kept young and old alike dancing from start to finish
- The Sweetchunks Band – your new favourite festival experienceWe pride ourselves in knowing a thing or two about what makes a great festival act. And The Sweetchunks Band tick all our boxes. After 25 years of walking the fields and experiencing all of the highs and lows of festival life there’s no questioning that we’ve seen and heard some truly awful stuff in our day. Inappropriate bookings like Daphne and Celeste at Reading Festival spring to mind. And then there have been moments when global megastars have been caught out doing really bad karaoke…don’t remind us about the Kanye West cover of Bohemian Rhapsody… URGH… So whenever we…
Read more - Boomtown – the machine that won’t be stopped (2018 reviewed)We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, Boomtown – we salute you! [by John Bownas and Ali Ryland] In a day and age where festivals are seemingly popped out of the same-old jelly moulds to a Jamie Oliver 30-minute recipe, Boomtown excels in delivering a dish of unknown pleasures that Heston himself would be proud of and that feels as if has been years in the planning. So what if the weather was unkind for this chapter of the story…we stood in the biblical downpour and revelled in the majesty of Fishbone. We careered and cavorted as our…
Read more - Y-Not 2018 : rocking your socks off…The sun is shining, there’s plenty of glitter, beer and band T-Shirts and everyone seems suitably excited for four days of indie/rock/alt-action at this years Y-Not Festival in Derby. The weekend boasts an impressive bill featuring the likes of Jamiroquia, Catfish And The Bottlemen and Kaiser Chiefs to name but a few of the 100+ bands on the line up. Following a shaky 2017, the pressure is on this year for the festival to deliver and, despite some atrocious weather, suffice to say Y Not 2018 fulfils its promises this time around. Opening up the Giant Squid…
Read more - Grace Petrie at Latitude 2018Fired up with every flame that was ever fanned by the power of folk music… Grace Petrie
- Gaffa Tape Sandy at Latitude 2018Hats off to Gaffa Tape Sandy played Latitude 2018 in every possible way. They fly-posted the site before their Alcove set and it paid off with a packed and energised crowd who crashed the barriers and raised the energy levels as high as they could go on a sweltering weekend of dry dust and sunburn.
- Into the Wild 2018 – a little slice of perfectionIf the big festivals are starting to leave you feeling bloated and overwhelmed it might be time to consider something a little lighter – because a little less is sometimes a whole lot more. And Into the Wild (not to be confused with Into the Wild Gathering) could be just what the doctor ordered…but do watch out for 2019 tickets and grab them quick, because this a strictly limited capacity affair. Set on a large estate just a short drive out of North London, Into the Wild beckoned quietly to us as a warm-up to next weekend’s Latitude extravaganza. With…
Read more - Hastings Fringe Comedy Festival 2018 – retrospectiveIt’s safe to say that this is one fringe with real benefits… principle amongst which are (1) it’s in Hastings (2) it’s 99% free entry and (3) the quality of the acts is top notch. Hastings Fringe Comedy Festival is a real labour of love for it’s organisers. Run on a shoestring, it somehow manages to pack a serious punch without any sense of corners being cut. Venues are small and intimate – which is always a plus (unless you are the shy and retiring audience type who doesn’t fancy getting picked out for some gentle ribbing from time to…
Read more - Long Division: Warehouse 23, 2018 (review)Steve White writes… So, after a week of almost constant sunshine Saturday decides to be wet, windy and miserable. Wakefield is damp and grey when we arrive but beginning to brighten up both weather-wise and event wise. Long Division Festival started in 2011, is an annual event (although organisers took a break from duties in 2017) and over the years has played host to The Cribs, British Sea Power, The Fall, Gang of Four, Ash and a whole load of others. Spread over five days the festival features a diverse range of music, spoken word and exhibitions with the main…
Read more - The Magic Numbers and Penelope Isles: Brighton Old MarketOpening up for The Magic Numbers at Brighton’s Old Market are a starry-eyed young band called Penelope Isles. Somewhat confusingly none of the band members are called Penelope Isles – but two of them are called Jack. One of the Jacks is the brother of Lily, and then there’s Becky to make up the magic number four. Penelope Isles have a strong Brighton following, but the hark from the Isle of Man – until now best known as the birthplace of The Bee Gees. As well as the brother/sister thing, musically they share a lot in common with the Magic…
Read more - Why are Alabama 3 still able to be so good?On paper a 20-year-old hash-up of country styled techno tunes delivered by nine blokes of a certain age doing occasional choreographed dad-dance routines should be growing tired – some might question how it ever worked in the first place. But far, far, far from it. What The Alabama 3 have held on to over two decades is the ability to perform – not just deliver their songs in a neatly polished package – but we mean PERFORM!! In the sense of breathing new life into every note and every word with every show they play. If there is a genuine…
Read more - Bestival 2017 review: mopping up and reflectingIt’s so hard to separate a festival from its weather or any tragedy that happens within its gates. Regardless of anything else, extremes of hot or cold, wet or dry always tend to define an event – as do those terrible moments that happen every day in the real world but seem to have no place at festivals (and so capture undue media attention). So, while Bestival’s post-event headlines should be how it managed its move from its spiritual home on the Isle of Wight to its sister-site in Dorset, this year’s write-ups will inevitable major on Sunday’s show-stopping winds,…
Read more - Boardmasters 2017 – REVIEWFirstly, I’d like to take a moment for the people of Boardmasters who had their makeup and mirrors taken away on entry. We all thought there was some sort of clause to the “No Glass” rule that would allow for L’Oreal True Match – but evidently not. I like to think the excessive glitter around the festival was due to it being used as an alternative. Boardmasters Festival is the biggest music festival in Cornwall, with up to 50,000 people in attendance this year. What attracted me to Boardmasters other than the lineup was how they incorporated one of the…
Read more - Boomtown 2017 – 97% fun, 86% safeOnce again Boomtown has shown the world how to really ‘produce’ a festival. As Rome announced during the stupendously amazing Sublime with Rome show on Sunday night – “You guys really know how to have a party – we just ain’t got nothing like this back in the States…” The point is that for a festival to stand out from the crowd these days it has to be so much more than a few hundred bands playing on a few stages for three days. There has to be an energy and the ever-present chance of discovering something amazing. And there…
Read more - Bloodstock Festival 2017 ReviewSo it’s been a week since Bloodstock and it’s took that long to take in what we saw. It kicked off Thursday with the Sophie Lancaster Stage but it was Friday when they heavyweights made an appearance. It wasn’t Whitechapels (6) day on the main stage as it seemed front man Phil Bozeman was concentrating more on holding his towel than delivering a solid performance. Moving over to the New Blood stage to see the end of Blood Thread (7) gave a much needed boost in what Bloodstock is about. Things only got better when we popped over to the…
Read more - Nozstock 2017 ReviewedHats off to the Nozworthy clan. Herefordshire ought to give the freedom of the county if such a thing exists) to this family of free-thinking hedonists. For, as the creators and curators of Nozstock, they have established the sort of festival many other event organisers can only dream of. Because anyone who started going to fests back in the 90s and now grumbles when looking at the Glastonburys of the world that ‘it’s not what it used to be’ should seek out the hidden valley. That’s not to say this is a ramshackle retro theme park – Nozstock features quality…
Read more - Zooquarium 2017: reviewed and in photosHeadlining Zooquarium’s first edition on a windswept, but otherwise dry and warm (in sheltered spots), Hastings Pier was Ratboy. The darling of the music press also proved a big hit with the young audience at which the festival had marketed itself, and as the sun set he took control of the main stage. Sadly due to over-running earlier acts and a strict curfew he played a reduced set, but young events need to learn from these issues and plan more carefully in future to ensure there is time for all the allotted acts to deliver what they have planned. Other…
Read more - The Vicar’s Picnic 2017: a proper grown up little festivalCheck below for links to all out photo galleries. Rate the festival if you went this year (login securely with Facebook) You can’t go wrong with an audience made up largely of people in their late forties and early fifties with a set of Mod classics: From the Jam. You’re also on a winner when Tom Hingley and the Kar-Pets belt out some timeless tunes from Tom’s Inspiral Carpets days – they were never the same when he left. Glass Peaks brought some welcome contemporary indie action to the big top, but you couldn’t fault Rudy Warman and the Heavyweather…
Read more - The best festival in Central Europe delivers everything but the killer blowNot even a bristling and pitch-perfect set from Radiohead could save the sense that the mighty Glastonbury lacked something truly special this year. Maybe I’m smarting from the fact that the ‘big surprise’ act on the John Peel stage on the Sunday turned out to be The Killers. Pohoda followed suit this year, with a richly diverse festival that just lacked that one, big performance. What Glastonbury is to the UK, so Pohoda is to Slovakia and few festivals in Europe are as valuable in the national psyche of their host country as Pohoda. Since its founding 21 years ago,…
Read more - Village Green Festival 2017: reviewed and picturesFollow the links to each of our great photosets: The Idea 13 Stage: Village Green Festival 2017 Providing a truly eclectic mix of artists hand-picked by those in the know… The Trusted: Village Green Festival 2017 This hot young act played to an audience that spanned generations and won over everyone in the room with their fizz, passion, and genuine love of being on a stage (or in front of it, or flying over it). Get Cape.Wear Cape. Fly: Village Green Festival 2017 Having walked three streets from home to appear at the festival, Sam Duckworth is…
Read more - Download Festival 2017: the Twitter storyAs Sunday night draws in we’ve scanned the Twitter-sphere for people’s reactions to Download Festival 2017…and without a shadow of a doubt this year has been a vintage one…if you ignore calls for Steel Panther to headline, the odd niggle over stage clashes, and no love lost for those down the front not getting properly into the Download spirit… It's time to start the epic journey to Donington 🤘🏻 @DownloadFest #downloadfestival pic.twitter.com/NC0e5ZSTKz — Alex Richardson-Lee (@C7NTT) June 6, 2017 It's #downloadfestival this weekend *Googles "how to build an ark"*🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧 — Heloise Horton (@HeloiseHorton) June 5, 2017 @DownloadFest Off to a…
Read more - The Skids – reviewed live, June 2017The Skids are nine dates in to their 40th anniversary tour when they arrive in Leeds tonight. It’s a gig I’d been looking forward to since the tour was announced. I wasn’t disappointed. The night opens with Arthur & The Invincibles, a four piece indie-punk band from Leamington Spa who hit the stage bouncing with energy. Barely pausing for breath throughout their 40-minute set, singer Arthur Byrne is the perfect frontman. Eye-catching, animated and constantly bouncing around he pumps out his vocals with an accompanying Sid Vicious stare. Great rhythm in the form of thumping drum beats and heavy bass…
Read more - Vintage Trouble – your new bucket list band¥ If you haven’t yet experienced a Vintage Trouble live show you should add it to your bucket list and get ready for something just a little bit special. What we have here is a band who’ve adopted and adapted the styles, moves, grooves and attitudes of many of the great soul legends. But they’re not a pastiche or a tribute. This isn’t The Commitments. It’s not a Blues Brothers tribute show… Far, far from it. But – at the same time – the emotions they evoke are exactly why the songs featured by The Commitments and the Blues Brothers…
Read more - Bearded Theory 2017Bearded Theory’s Spring Gathering once again drew crowds and bands from the length and breadth of the country – if you were there here’s a few memories to hang on to. If you weren’t, here’s what you missed… [custom-facebook-feed id=134273489985622 masonry=false]
- Hastings Fat Tuesday 2017 – reviewedHastings Fat Tuesday (which is actually a five-day Mardi Gras) is a fantastic little festival. Nowhere else in the UK has quite the same grass roots music dynamic at play. At a recent music industry conference in the town, Jeff Thompson, founder of the UnConvention movement, underlined this when he told the audience, from his wide experience of the live music scene across the UK, that as far as he was concerned Hastings is ‘unique’ in the breadth and depth of music on offer every day of the week. In fact the conference was a vehicle to allow the area…
Read more
What makes our festival reviews score highly?
There are five things that really make a difference regarding whether a festival stands out from the crowd, and you should know these because they are what makes you want to keep coming back. We focus here on music-based mutli-day camping events:
Range of artists
We know not every event has a huge budget to pull in the big names, but there are tonnes of really excellent bands around the UK too, who can put on shows so that your event can rival those with the biggest names in the business. Do your reaserch, have an open mind, and have the courage to book innovative acts – because this is what will leave your audience wanting more.
What to do between the bands?
It’s not all about the music because guests have to eat and sleep and may want to escape the bands for a while. Ensure your food and drink vendors are of the best quality and offer a good variety and value for money. Craft ales and good-sized portions score highly in our eyes. Try and offer camping to suit different lifestyles. Some late-night party animals like to keep the action going into the small hours, whilst other people prefer an early night. If you have the space have sections for both. And don’t skimp on site art and tents where people can do more than listen to music.
Production values
There is no point having great bands performing if nobody can hear them. Invest in good quality PA systems run by people who understand festival environments. And put money into good lights and screens for when the sun goes down.
Communication and information
Your audience are your customers and you have lots of them. If they need to know something make it as easy as possible to find out the answer. If they can’t find it on your website make it easy to get in touch…and answer their questions quickly. On site make sure all staff are fully briefed…and have comms channels so if someone doesn’t know an answer they can quickly find out.
Organised chaos
The best festivals feel chaotic but are safe and well-rganised at the same time. This is a really difficulty trick to pull off, but remember that going to a festival is, for many people, and escape from normality. Let them let their hair down, but don’t take risks.