Bestival 2015, The Isle of Wight.

10-13 Sept 2015

Regardless of the long lines and logistics of travelling to Bestival (held between the 10th-13th September at Robin Hill, Isle Of Wight), this year was certainly a spectacle. All came dressed in their best outfits attempting to adapt to this year’s ‘summer of love’ theme. Many relished at the opportunity to dress in the most bizarre and inventive costumes such as condom packets, the tunnel of love and love hearts were amongst the many choices. For those who managed to battle the queues for the ferry and shuttle bus to pitch their tents up early, there was plenty of things to check out and do. For those arriving earlier, acts such as Palace and The Mispers were on and for those who arrived slightly later there will still acts running up until 5 am. The first evening was generally warm and everyone was eager to fill themselves up with drink and begin to enjoy the music.

Roseau’s set was our first stop of the night in the Invaders Of The Future tent. Her unique electronic sound with roots borrowed from folk proved to create a tranquil atmosphere in tent. Many could not help to comment on her powerful singing voice that sings every note with total ease. Despite claiming to not have played a stage as big previously, Roseau makes it hard to believe,  she owns the entire tent making herself look completely comfortable.

Over in The Big Top, crowds zealously awaited Jamie XX to come on stage. Although there was this aura of excitement initially, the crowd quickly became quite lifeless which was as shame seeing how bouncy his numbers were. However, this may have just been down to the long day of travelling everyone had gone through. Nonetheless there were still a good number dancing to his more prominent tracks such as ‘Loud places’  that he had saved for the end of his set.

With most people settled in their camps, Day Two proved to a longer day for those already there. The weather remained excellent with it only cooling down in the late afternoon and evening. Throughout the festival a constant problem was choosing who to see due to the clashes. There were a lot of decent acts and the only solution was to miss some acts or watch half sets.

Drenge kicked off their set playing an array of songs from their grunge fuelled repertoire that they are well known for. The band delight the crowd with a decent mix of old and new material such as ‘Bloodsports’ coming across as a crowd favourite. However, it is a bit of a shame the band had left crowd favourite ‘Fuckabout’ off their set list.  Despite that, fans enjoyed their catchy riffs and moshed about to every song.

Bearcubs was another noticeable performance of the day proving that the was truly an up and coming artist that everyone should have their eye on. His calm electronic melodies were often accompanied by crowd vocals especially during ‘Paper Walls’. Setting Bearcubs apart from other electronic artists, it was a pleasant surprise to see a real drum set on stage as opposed to an electronic drum pad.

Not long after, Pond played to a packed out Big Top tent. The band are known for featuring an ever changing line up and their glam rock and psychedelic influences. The current line up includes some current and past Tame Impala members. Although this being the case, the band really shone as a band independent from Tame Impala putting on a spectacular show. Closing their robust set with their song ‘Duck and Clover’ the band exemplify that they are much more than ‘ Kevin Parker’s other band’ which many have dubbed them as although Parker has long left the project.

Having Recently released her album Blood, Lianne La Havas kicked off her set on the Main Stage with ‘Green and Gold’. Although there was a large number of people sat down they watched eagerly as La Havas’ soulful vocals captivated them. Crowd favourites included ‘Unstoppable’ with everyone swaying along regardless of whether they were sat or standing. Memorable parts of her set included her crowd engagement during her performance in which she prompted the crowd to aid her in singing the lyrics.

Honne similar to Bearcubs were also one of the more tame acts of the day. With slower Jazz and funk influences, Honne were definitely another band that the crowd could unwind to. Their performance was strong on bass lines especially during ‘Love The Jobs You Hate’. The performance most certainly enabled many to walk away in high spirits having found one of their new favourites.

On one of the most colourful stages we had ever seen Fickle friends played the Kaleidoscope stage. A colourful stage to complement their upbeat tropical sound that was begging for a day time performance instead of the night time slot that they had been assigned. Although the stage they played on was probably one of the smallest on the site,  they enjoyed one of the most liveliest audiences who were gathered around the stage using every inch of space to dance. The band played all their well loved songs such as ‘For You’ and even what they dubbed as ‘the only slow song in their repertoire’ titled ‘Paris’. The band dish out some act recommendations leaving the crowd energised with their song ‘Swim’ to end their set. Many walked away wishing that they had been placed on a bigger stage.

Tame Impala were probably one of the most anticipated acts of the whole day. The tent was densely packed big top tent and a large crowd that had formed outside. The band made their entrance to a radar style backdrop and the crowd erupt with a blaring cheer. The band effortlessly get the crowd to dance along to not only their newer hits such as ‘Cause I’m A Man’ but also their older tracks. The band therefore did not disappoint by playing all their best tracks off their album Lonerism such as Elephant which sent the crowd into a frenzy. The crowd even illuminate the tent by setting off a flare to the tune of ‘Feels Like We Only Go Backwards’. The band clearly show the progression in their sound between tracks that are old and new.

Girlpool kicked off our Day 3 of the festival. The punk duo hailing from Los Angles played angst filled tracks coupled with groovy bass lines and sultry vocals that added a whole new life into their music. The most noticeable feature of their set was the fact that the band lacked a drummer on stage. Instead it is just a simple string set up that is different yet refreshing.

Jungle take over the main stage in the early evening. Spirits remain high as the band were able to perfectly recreate their entire sound on stage without the aid of computers due to the large number of people on the stage. The crowd ‘oooh’ and hum along to the soulful vocals on stage and sing along to their most popular tracks ‘Busy Earnin’  and ‘The Heat’.

Slaves completely change the atmosphere with their snappy rock music back in The Big Top sending everyone into a frantic mosh. The band interact very well with the crowd even asking if anyone was from Islington before playing their song ‘Cheer Up London’ which the crowd applaud and cheer for.

On a more relaxed note, Bipolar Sunshine played a set in the intimate Jägerhaus venue. The venue, quiet and small was reminiscent of a small club. It was therefore different in comparison to the larger stages. The venue boasts no barrier between performer and audience and the venue is filled with the aroma of different spices. Bipolar Sunshine’s body of work consists of inspiring lyrics that have a powerful impact on the listeners. Frontman Adio Marchant has a strong voice and the melodies of the act fill the room with good vibes.

The Bohicas end our night off with their set right next door in the Invaders of The Future tent. Initially, the tent was quite empty and it felt like it would have been a shame for them to play to few people. However, as other acts ended, the tent quickly filled up. Their songs, especially ‘XXX’ really packed a punch. Frontman Dominic McGuinness’ vocals certainly lived up to this and worked well adding a gritty rock quality to their songs through his effortless vocals.

On the last day, there was still so much going on at Bestival other than just the music. There were two parade processions during the day and the night with wondrous costumes and floats making their way through the festival grounds. First on our list was the delightful Låpsley, who although is only 19, manages to successfully serenade the crowd with her calm tunes intertwined with electronic elements creating a coherent sound. She manages to easily reach every single high note and maintain her elegant voice and even lures passerby’s into the tent by the magical sound of her music.

Later on, The Jacksons played a memorable set that included everyone’s guilty pleasures such as ‘ABC’ and ‘Blame The Boogie’ that kept everyone dancing along. Their set included a series of interludes that featured nostalgic videos of their career across the years. Their set sparked many memories for older fans and they even gave a shout out to their brother Michael Jackson who they said was on stage with them in spirit.

Prior to Missy Elliot taking over the Main stage, the audience were riled up in anticipation of her Bestival exclusive performance. She had previously last played in the UK 6 years ago and had turned down the offer to play Bestival twice before in the past. Missy was joined by a team of dancers who at one point wore scream masks. Despite the Rain, everyone cheered on as she played hits such as ‘Get Your Freak On’ and ‘Work It’ closing the main stage. This was followed shortly by a spectacular fireworks display.

Despite the near torrential rains of the early morning, many stayed to wait for Skrillex to play at The Port. His set was lengthy and energetic however many came with the hope of seeing him play mostly his own material.  However he only played hits such as ‘Bangarang’ and played mainly mixes of other peoples music which disappointed some members of the crowd. However, his performance proved to be an amazing end to the night regardless.

Overall, Bestival was a pleasant experience.  It  really set itself apart from other festivals with its amazing line up, outrageous costumes, food and activities. Bestival had definitely lived up to being the best festival of the summer and those who missed out on this year should definitely plan on getting tickets for next year.