Bestival (Summer of Love), Robin Hill Park, 10-13 Sept. 15

Despite it being the last of the summer, Bestival seems to be constantly on everyone’s minds throughout; it’s the grand finale of festival season, bigged up to the point where it’s almost impossible to imagine it living up to expectations. Lo and behold, it did (sort of)…

What’s particularly refreshing about Bestival is the eagerness to explore – arriving at a festival on Thursday afternoon it’s not unusual for people to be sat outside tents preparing themselves for the madness of the first night. At Betsival, while the first night was set to be a big one, people seemed to head straight for the arena. This eagerness more often than not pays off at festivals – as we discovered, you may just catch the likes of L.A Salami. A fantastic opening to the festival, L.A – a London-based singer-songwriter – truly kicked off the festival spirit with his wit and talent. And with a small crowd gathered, seemingly genuinely interested in discovering new musicians, it was instantly clear Bestival was going to be a good one.

Renowned for his ability to curate flawless lineups, Rob Da Bank clearly wouldn’t let Thursday night pale in comparison to the rest of the weekend – and with Underworld playing, it clearly didn’t. A proper 90s throwback – despite most of the crowd being too young to remember the 90s – Hyde and the rest of the band had an energy that all bands should aspire to. Playing the likes of Rez, Spoonman and, of course, Born Slippy, it was difficult to question why Rob Da Bank didn’t put Underworld on Sunday night, but their high-energy madness was undoubtedly a perfect way to kick off the festival.

Friday’s lineup saw some of the best new bands play around the festival; from the effortlessly cool girl bands like Jagaara, Honeyblood and Girlpool, gracing the festival with their various brands of indie tunes, to Drenge and Eagulls, both adding a dose of welcome to darkness to the rather unexpected sunshine, Bestival proved why the main stage isn’t always the best. That being said, Duran Duran made sure they were the centre of attention on Friday: with fire displays kicking off about 10 seconds into the set and almost laughable – though no doubt crowd pleasing – displays of egocentricism courtesy of Simon Le Bon their set was… fun. Whilst I can’t help but question myself for enjoying it, the karaoke element of tracks like Hungry Like The Wolf and Girls On Film makes for a perfect festival set. Later in the evening, Tame Impala smashed the Big Top with an absolutely packed out set.

Saturday further proved that it’s not all about the headliners – though the main stage was arguably far better than it had been with the likes of Little Dragon showing the Isle of Wight their quirky Swedish electronic music, special guests House of Pain pulling out the hits and Jungle proving to be one of the most fun live bands at the moment. Elsewhere on Saturday, Hidden Charms played to a pretty much full Jägerhaus and, weirdly, The Chemical Brothers disappointed just a little. Whilst it took off to a good start, the set became more of a glorified DJ set than a true headline set.

Luckily for them, Missy Elliott’s set was even more of a lesson in how not to headline a festival. Rob and Josie Da Bank are not a couple whose intentions I want to question, but particularly after such an amazing weekend, and an incredible set from The Jacksons it’s tricky not to ask why Missy Elliott was considered a good final headliner. Though it had the potential to go so well, stopping almost every track because “it wasn’t good enough” and helplessly attempting to engage the audience with an overly rehearsed “I want everyone in the building to put their hands up” (um, we’re in a field?), it was a disappointing way to end what is such a fantastic festival.

Thank god for Roisin Murphy’s quirky set bringing the atmosphere up…

Melissa Svensen
@MelYeaahh