Who would say no to 3 sunny days in Paris filled with great live music? Definitely not me.

So, what is it? A 3-day music festival (or ‘festi’ to use the local slang) based on the banks of the River Seine, a ten minute walk from the nearest Metro stations which can whisk you away into the City of Light.

Rock en Seine had a similar line-up to its English cousins, Reading and Leeds, however this was only one of the limited similarities. There was a number of things which tempted me to Rock en Seine, the obvious one being that it is held in a national park, in Paris, rather than muddy fields of England. However, the fact that The Prodigy were headlining one of the nights instead of Blink 182 really enticed me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was my second time at the French festival, however in 2011 I’d only gone for one day (Foo Fighters – what more can I say?) therefore it could be said that this was my first proper experience of it. When walking through the festival grounds you come across historic monuments and fountains galore, this differs completely from the majority of English festivals, where there’s just trees and a heck of a lot of bushes. Also there was actually foot paths to lead people around instead of just grass!

Okay, first off… Musically, this festival was ace. There were a lot of brilliant artists: Arctic Monkeys, The Prodigy and Queens Of The Stone Age headlined over the three nights. Lana Del Rey, Joey Badass, Die Antwoord and Crystal Fighters also entertained the crowds, to name just a few of the 80 bands in total that were booked – five per night on each of the four stages.

Standing out the most for me over the weekend were three acts. Surprisingly, only one of these was a headliner… And it was the band who swayed me to come here instead of going to Reading or Leeds – The Prodigy. They rushed on to the stage and from start to finish, the entire crowd went mental. Their upbeat sound was reciprocated by the crowd in the way which they bounced.

Joey Badass was my second favourite act at the festival. His set surprised me a lot… I don’t normally listen to his type of music however, he got the energy flowing around the crowd in a way which was astounding. Everyone was either moshing or swaying to his music. He also drew in a massive crowd considering he was on the 3^rd stage and was performing at the same time as rockers Portishead. My favourite moment from his set was when he covered Jay Z’s ‘Niggas In Paris’ – everyone sung (or rapped) along and the atmosphere was top.

The final act to round of my top 3 are alternative dance/folk – Crystal Fighters. After seeing them before I knew that I was in for a treat. An hour of overwhelmingly energetic, intense music – with the occasional stage dive from the bassist. They performed tracks from both their studio albums and a couple of new ones, which the audience adored. Surprisingly these were also only on the 3^rd stage; after the performance they put in I’m sure that next time they’re booked they will be higher up the bill.

Whilst I did not get to see them personally, I heard good things about the South African, hip-hop rap group Die Antwoord, who had the whole site jumping whilst watching the lead singer Ninja performed some spectacular dives into the crowd.

Everyone needs food at a festival, at the majority of English fests (except Glasto) there is a limited choice. Normally you have to scrape through on an extortionately over-priced burger, maybe there will be an incredibly greasy pizza; if you’re lucky. At Rock en Seine it was a complete contrast. Freshly cooked pizzas (And by that, I mean the pizza dough rolled out in front of your eyes, before the toppings are added and then cooked in a wood fired oven), Sushi, Chilli… And that’s only a few of options… It was a pleasure to be able to snack on affordable, tasty food instead of something which resembled cardboard. English festivals could learn a lot from this! Beer in the main areas was an unpleasant €5.50 for 470ml, but for campers the local supermarket provided a cost-effective alternative.

The camping was different to that of English festivals, each camper was designated their own space, which worked out well as it wasn’t too cramped. There was also a good view from the campsite, as it overlooked the rest of the national park and the famous Paris skyline.

In all honestly, there could be a few problems for British visitors. One being that the people who worked there did not speak a lot of English, however if you know enough French to get by you should be fine. Additionally there’s a limited range of bands which English people may know. The French have a fairly large music scene of their own, consequently a lot of the artists who play will be new to people who have travelled across the channel. Some of the new bands I saw were very good, Frànçois & The Atlas Mountains being one – I would urge everyone to check these out.

Overall I feel that the weekend was wonderful, with a trip to Paris joine in with the festival – it would have been hard not to enjoy. This has shown that big cities can host brilliant festivals. In an ideal world, Rock en Seine could partner up with perhaps Reading and Leeds leading to a bigger and better line up for all involved. But who knows?

Rock en Seine is a must for every avid festival goer. It was a different but magnificent experience. Am I going in 2015? Depending on the line-up… You bet.

Morgan Russell