The National at Primavera
I'm getting serious pangs of jealously at the minute. Last October I made the decision to not buy a Glastonbury ticket and this week it's hitting me really bad. I've been most years since 2007 and whilst I've absolutely adored my time on the sacred Worthy Farm, the past couple of years has seen me explore smaller, more alternative festivals which has made me realise how suffocatingly big Glastonbury is. Don't get me wrong, I love the big crowds and the atmosphere that comes with them but the stress of trying to secure a camping spot on Pennard's Hill, the hike from the Park to the Pyramid Stage and the ever present mud has made me appreciate the simpler things in life.
I've been to a fair few festivals in the UK and abroad and I'm always keen to try new ones. As a teen I used to frequent Reading Festival (and even Leeds Festival one year) but I grew out of that a long time ago because frankly Reading is an appalling place. I might go for the day if someone I love is playing like Green Day back in 2013 but the thought of camping amongst GCSE kids who are getting drunk for the first time fills me with absolute dread.
Wild Beasts at End of the Road
Allo Darlin' at Indietracks
I went to Rock en Seine back in 2012 to see Green Day headline the final night of the 3-day festival during the August bank holiday weekend. Before I knew Green Day were playing, I'd never heard of the festival which is fairly surprising as the bands that play are pretty indie. Grandaddy even played one of their reunion gigs the same day! Rock en Seine takes places at the Château de Saint-Cloud's park in Southern Paris and being based in London meant we could get to Paris easily on the Eurostar. If memory serves right the day ticket only cost €40 which is the same if not more than the ticket cost to see Green Day play at Shepherd's Bush Empire the same summer so it's definitely great value for money.
The festival is lovely, as soon as we walked through the gates the atmosphere instantly felt relaxed and unlike many British festivals people weren't falling over themselves drunk. It's grown a little since I was there, as do all festivals, but I'm sure it still maintains it charming and friendly vibe. I particularity enjoyed the poster display which featured a unique print from each band playing that year. The site isn't massive and there's only 5 stages (4 back then) so it doesn't take long at all to walk around. The only 'issue' I remember facing was the serious lack of toilets but perhaps that because we went to the small set up near the main stage.
I thoroughly enjoyed my day at Rock en Seine and would definitely considering going again if the line up was of interest. Like a lot of European festivals there's no camping which means you've got the perfect opportunity to combine it with a city break.
I'd been wanting to go to Primavera for years. The line up has always interested me as it's quite heavy on alternative indie / guitar bands plus it's in Barcelona which is an awesome place. However for whatever reasons I'd never been able to go, until I managed to convince
Lily to come with me last year. One of the really appealing things about Primavera is the bands don't start playing until the evening, giving you most of the day to spend in the city. Now, this does have one drawback, if bands start late they're going to finish late. I don't think we stayed much later than 2am over the 3 nights but I'm pretty sure bands were due to come on a 3am and later! Fortunately the big headliners tend to play around midnight which isn't so bad. On our first night we had caught an extremely early flight and I have flashes of me almost nodding off during Arcade Fire's set around 1am that evening. Despite the late nights (or should I say early mornings) we still managed to get up and out of the hotel before midday so we still saw plenty of the city.
Primavera is situated in the Parc del Fòrum leisure site, approximately 6 km north east of the city centre. It's a funny place, it feels like a giant car park with futuristic architecture and is deceptively big but it's right next to the sea making the views really special. Again, there's no camping but I can't imagine many people would want to sleep in a tent during May in Spain anyway. We stayed at
Chic and Basic Born Hotel which was located perfectly for the festival. We were in the hustle and bustle of the city centre but on the same metro line as the Parc del Fòrum plus the taxi home each evening never cost more than €20.
Would I go back to Primavera Sound? Maybe, but I'd be more interested in visiting it's sister festival in Porto,
Optimus Primavera Sound as it's meant to be smaller and greener but with all the same bands, perfect!
I honestly don't think you can find a festival more perfect than End of the Road. I'm going for my third time this September and I can't wait to return. Set in the idyllic Lamer Tree Gardens this festival captures the very essence of magic. With a capacity of 11,000, the organisers really pull out all the stops to make this a special experience. It's hard to describe the atmosphere as it's so unique but imagine an Alice in Wonderland themed picnic, set in a the woods and everywhere you look you capture a glimpse of fairy lights, roaming peacocks, hidden treasure and people performing impromptu gigs in a living room amongst the trees. I love EOTR, I love the originality put into the outdoors installations, I love that the atmosphere isn't full of people acting like idiots, I love that bands play secret gigs on a boat in the middle of the woods, I love that the choice of food and drink is pure class, I love that everywhere you look you see amazing artworks that's clearly had so much effort involved, I love that the line up is unlike any other UK festivals, I love that the festival is so small it only takes seconds to walk from stage to stage, I love that the comedy stage is in the darkest and remote part of the woods you almost have to crawl through the tress to get there, I love that EOTR is such a special place you don't know whether to tell all your friends about it or just keep it a secret so only the most amazing of people attend.
One of the really terrific things about EOTR is that they don't care if you bring your own food or drink into the festival (much akin to Glastonbury). They believe that the food and drink on sale is of such good quality you'll want to buy it, and you know what they're absolutely right! Another good thing to note, because the festival is so small it doesn't take long to walk from the car park to the camping sight which means you can bring more stuff and make your stay a real luxury.
I thought EOTR was small until I went to the perfectly formed indie-pop festival Indietracks for the first time last year. My friend
Gemma describes it as having a 'librarian vibe' and she couldn't be more correct. Set in
Midland Railway - Butterley this festival couldn't be any more twee if it tired. Steam train rides a plenty with secret gigs on them, what's not to love? Last year there was definitely less than 1000 people which was pure bliss. You had an amazing view of every band and there were no long queues for drinks or toilets. There are 4 stages including the steam train so it may be small but there's plenty of music going on and if you really want to nerd it up you can visit the train museum / warehouse for free. There's a wonderful selection of craft beer and cider on sale and even though there aren't many food options, the choices are still excellent.
Gruff Rhys at Indietracks
As soon as I walked though the gates last July I knew I'd found my perfect little slice of music festival heaven. Steve and I have agreed to return every year regardless of who's playing because it such a perfect place to relax and unwind. It probably the only festival I've been to where I've felt 100% stress free.
The actual festival site doesn't have camping facilities but
Golden Valley Caravan Park is only a 15 minute walk away and because it's a proper camp site there's a club house with toilets, showers and late night kitchen bar.
In terms of music Indietracks is pretty niche, I reckon you wouldn't know a lot of the bands unless you're really into indie-pop but don't let that stop you from checking it out. This type of music is so fun and lovely you can't help but dance along and have an amazing time. I know the merchandise tent will be my downfall again this year as it's hard to resists the independent record fare type stalls. Steve and I bought so much vinyl last year I'm surprised we had any money left for food and booze.
The daddy of all festival and whilst I've outgrown it for the time being it'll still remain one of my all time favourites. Glastonbury works best with a large group and good organisation. It's an incredible place but you shouldn't take it lightly as there's so much going on and so many people you can become easily overwhelmed. Sure, it rains most of the time and there's loads of people there who's only concern is 'to be seen' but 100,000 idiots aside it's a crazy place that will leave you with many wonderful memories.
I feel that in recent years Glastonbury has become more about the after dark antics than the actual music but of course it's more than possible to have a great time whilst watching some awesome bands. I've seen some of my all time favourite people there from Blur to Pulp to hypnotizing Nick Cave to jaw dropping Beyonce and to the spectacular Rolling Stones. I have so many fond anecdotes that it's a place that will have a special place in my heart for eternity.
There's still lots of festivals on my list that I've yet to visit. I'm desperate to check out
Green Man in Wales and
Electric Picnic in Ireland plus
Indiefjord in Norway sounds absolutely gorgeous. What's your favourite music festival?
Allo Darlin' at Indietracks
