We will be adding some of our favorite photos of the weekend to this page – but you can find loads more over at our Flickr collection page:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/festivalflyer/collections/72157721992808500/
Our pick of the best bands of the Latitude weekend
Gurriers had been high on our must-see list after we were impressed by them at 2000Trees a few weeks ago.
And their late-night slot on the Trailer Park stage (our favourite space at the festival) proved without a shadow of doubt that they will be finding their way onto our 2024 top-three list of bands that bookers will ignore at their peril.
The band’s name is a Dublin word associated with troublesome teens – and that is one way of describing their stage personality… but the creative flare and talent they demonstrate in their songwriting and playing adds a new layer to the definition of the word, instantly flavouring it with a more positive connotation…a sense of pent-up expression bursting out in a violently chaotic display of passionate intent.
Also hailing from Ireland we stumbled (very happily) on Scustin – and Latitude’s team clearly recognised their draw as a potentially perfect festival draw, because the gave them two sets.
Whilst Gurriers are all about growly and often challenging punk ethics, Scustin take a more whimsical look at the world through a jazz-funk prism. They delight in crowd interaction, and their songs instantl draw you into an artfully observed world.
Meanwhile up on the BBC Introducing stage tucked away in the woods we had the delightful pleasure of catching the tail end of a set from Victor Ray.
Ugandan born, but raised in Newcastle, and now a regular fixture on the streets of London, Victor is a charming performer whose recordings – we will admit – might not have led us to check him out. But the joy of the hunt at festivals is the random way that you can stumble on new music almost by accident.
Each song comes with a back-story, and without a loop pedal in sight it feels like there might be a oung challenger for Ed Sheeran’s crown.
Sometimes we recommend listening to a band’s songs before taking the time to see them live…but in Victor Ray’s case we’d say do it the other way around.
