Review: We Are FSTVL – A Perfect Start To The Festival Season

Smaller festivals can be a shock to the system if you are more used to the huge crowds moving en masse towards the main stages, but so often they can be a welcome break and a chance to see your favourite artists in an intimate setting.

A newcomer to the festival scene, We Are FSTVL hooked me in with a massive line-up and promises of finally being able to see the likes of Knife Party, Annie Mac, Duke Dumont and the one and only Fatboy Slim hitting up the main stage. Plus the early start to the festival season and the chance to ease myself in with a non-camping event was too much to resist! After months of build up, excitement and pouring over the pictures from last year’s event, finally it arrived and unfortunately so did the rain clouds. Blackened skies and pounding bass awaited us at the festival site, which was amazingly easy to get to and was particularly well-organised, but we refused to don wellies in the hope the weather would hold. (We were glad we stuck to our guns by the end!)Despite being quite surprised by how small the festival site was, we soon appreciated the close quarters as we navigated the stages and bars with ease, something that proved very useful later when trying to run to the bar or the loos during a set. Walking on site, you couldn’t help but be drawn over by the huge main stage and I was overwhelmed with the excitement of the thought of seeing Fatboy Slim on there the following night. I loved the decoration of the stages and across the festival site, it really added to the holiday atmosphere and everyone was certainly in the party mood as they posed for pictures among the flowers. Perhaps the weather put people off slightly, but the festival never felt overly busy as you walked around and was definitely quieter on the first day, but this was great for those who were there and fancied dancing to Disclosure by the main stage. Knife Party finished off a brilliant first day with a banging set that had us all jumping in the mud – as best as we could with our shoes stuck – and their light show and flames were incredible. We were a little disappointed that pretty much the whole festival seemed to shut down straight after their set and their set had just left us wanting to dance long into the night.The second day was much busier and the sunshine had clearly brought everyone out in a good mood and ready to dance – the line-up was fantastic and the bars were busy. On a back to basics not – I was very impressed with the state of the portaloos which were the cleanest I have seen at a festival – probably helped by no camping. But was rather let down to be charged £5 for a tiny 330ml can of beer – I understand the bars are there to make money, but this seemed a bit much. Especially when there were no water points to even fill up a bottle of water. Something else that I found, and heard many others complain about, was the extreme police presence on the second day – the previous day had seen minimal police and plenty of well-mannered and friendly security who were happy to help you find your way around. The second day, everytime I turned around, the police were hauling someone off to be searched or sprinting into the crowd by the stages to tackle someone. Perhaps completely justified, but it did change the atmosphere of the festival slightly with everyone waiting to see who would be dragged off next.

My favourite part of the stages, and the festival, had to be the platforms which had been set back from the main stage and provided the perfect view across the crowd and the stage. I spent a lot of time up on these, and one particular highlight had to be Annie Mac’s sunset set as the final rays of the second day were cast across the crowd and she told us all to turn and look at the view.

Later on, for Fatboy Slim’s set, these provided an incredible view over the crowds as they danced furiously to hits like Renegade Master, Praise You and Eat Sleep Rave Repeat. I’m not sure I can do the set justice with words, but the incredible light show, lasers, fire and confetti that streamed out of the stage just blew everyones’ mind. For those who, like myself, might have seen him play on the Eat Sleep Rave Repeat tour in a dark and dingy club – this was beyond anything I could have imagined and the clubs did not do him justice. He certainly knows how to put on a show.

A shame I wasn’t there to compare this year’s expansion to last year’s but I’ve heard from many people that they were very impressed – looking forward to seeing We Are FSTVL develop in the future! A perfect start to the festival season! Full review is available to read here.

Watching the world through a screen

My first festival of 2014 gave me a good opportunity to ease myself in to a summer of raving in the sunshine. A non-camping festival, We Are FSTVL gave a perfect chance to have a couple of days in the sun (and a bit of rain) dancing with good friends to amazing music. While I was there I was lucky enough to see the likes of Annie Mac, Knife Party and Fatboy Slim giving massive sets on the main stages. It was incredible to finally see three of the top acts I have been dying to see live on a main stage in just one festival and with a huge line-up We Are FSTVL was a surprisingly intimate affair. Despite this, I noticed a continuing theme across the stages and tents, which made me slightly sad. Forget those who are hepped up on pills and the rest, forget those who are too drunk to stand up, forget those who decide to light up flares in the middle of a crowd. At least these guys are living in the moment and are really making the most of the experience. These ones aren’t the ones who bother me.

The ones who really upset me are the ones who are living it through a screen. I might be overreacting slightly, but it actually really offends me to see a crowd full of people who are watching a once-in-a-lifetime set as a DJ they have been wanting to see all their lives closes the main stage, but that they would prefer to watch it through their camera lens. After seeing Fatboy Slim play XOYO in London on the opening night of his Eat Sleep Rave Repeat tour, my mind was blown. I had never expected I would actually get a chance to see him live in my lifetime, let alone playing brand new material. But from then on, the dream grew and I was just desperate to see his set transform from the basement of a tiny, dark club to the main stage at a festival and how lucky I was to find he would be headlining the first festival of my summer! I, and all my friends, were beyond excited to see him play live and we made sure we got up on one of the platforms facing the main stage nice and early so we could get a good spot for Annie Mac as well. We had a perfect view of the whole crowd, the main stage and the sky above it which was filled with fireworks, flames and confetti throughout.So imagine my dismay at seeing the people around us pulling out their camera phones and holding them up for the entire set. Not just up on the platform, but even down in the crowd, there was a sea of phones raised to the sky. What is the point? Can anyone tell me? In the days of Woodstock and early Glasto – when some would argue festivals were at their finest – no-one had camera phones or insisted on Instagramming every moment. Instead they lived every second, they dances to the music, felt it in their bones and spent the time meeting people, making friends and singing along. THIS is what festivals are all about. I know the convenience of camera phones means people want to capture every moment, and I have no problem with that as I too love to take photos of my friends smiling and happy, to keep those memories for long after the hangover had faded.

My problem is that people are choosing to do this rather than live the festival and the music. They would rather watch the whole explosive and incredible set through the phone screen and be sure that it is perfectly framed and looks like you are having an amazing time rather than actually experiencing it themselves. These are the people who don’t end up dancing at the festival, the ones who arrive home looking as perfect as when they set out and care more about the way the festival looks than feels. To me, the most important thing has always been they way I felt in that moment. When you see an incredible headliner take over the main stage after waiting months to see them live, when the stage explodes with confetti and flames, when you are singing along so hard you lose your voice, when you’re dancing so hard you nearly knock out the person next to you, and when you and a complete stranger throw your arms round each other and bellow out the words because you’re both just so excited. THAT is what festivals are about, losing yourself in the moment. They are about getting home and trying to tell people about it, but knowing that words just cannot do that moment justice. That no matter how you try to describe it, that those who weren’t there just won’t understand.My concern is that our technology is so convenient that so many are missing out on this experience. They don’t know the beauty of having a single picture that transports you back to that moment and how you felt, rather than an hour-long video of the set with terrible sound and a jiggly camera focus. Who really wants to sit there watching it back later on? Do you really think your friends will be jealous when they see you spent that hours-long set videoing it rather than enjoying it? I certainly wouldn’t be jealous of that, I would just consider it a wasted ticket. I have lots more festivals in the pipeline for this summer and I just hope I will be seeing a lot less of this and a lot more people living in the moment. Ironically, one of my favourite festivals from last summer was BoomTown fair which was all about the experience and I barely have any pictures from it because I was so caught up in the moment and thoroughly enjoyed myself. (See my preview for BoomTown here.)

What kind of festival-goer are you – guilty of living behind a lens or totally in the moment and forgetting you have a camera?

Preview: Kicking Off A Summer Of Raving At We Are FSTVL

For those who would like to read my preview story for This Festival Feeling on We Are FSTVL (which I am reporting on this weekend for my birthday). Here is a copy of my preview along with a link to the full version.

Is it just me or is anyone else struggling to remember the last time they saw the sun shine? It may have been a mild winter, but it has been a dark one for us festival-lovers. We’ve all been knuckling down, working those extra hours and praying for summer sun and smelly tents – what have we been working for? To pay for that first festival ticket – that first taste of freedom and madness that will set the tone for the next six months.

For some of us – the luckiest ones who managed to snag tickets – that first taste of festival fun will come in the form of We Are FSTVL this weekend. I couldn’t be more ecstatic at the thought of going to a festival so early in the summer but also being able to ease myself in to a non-camping one. After not having put up my tent in over six months – I wasn’t quite ready to break that streak yet.

My friend and I have been chomping at the bit to go to We Are FSTVL since before the line-up was even announced. After hearing last year’s incredible electronic offering, we knew it would be right up our street and after last summer at Hideout Festival, we needed a hefty dose of bass to get us all warmed up. The huge sell-out success of last year’s event was more than I needed to tell me that I just had to be in the huge crowds packing out this year’s event, and the fact that it is just a day before my birthday seems even more of a perfect excuse! Friends who went to the festival last year said they were more than impressed at how big it was despite still being such a youngster in the festival world, and with the event doubling on the number of days this summer and growing the infrastructure of the festival itself – I’m sure those returning will be in for a treat when they see how it has grown in just one year.

I’m not sure there are enough words in the English language to explain how incredibly excited I am for this line-up, but I’ll give it a go. The Saturday will see a huge nine stages for us revellers to wander amongst, I know when I arrive I’ll be instantly battling myself and praying that my favourite DJs have enough time between their sets for me to run between stages. Over on the main We Are FSTVL stage I’m just dying to see Disclosure and Maya Jane Coles playing alongside Hot Since 82 and Maribou State, but let’s hope there’s no clash with Knife Party over on the We Are ELCTRNC stage because I have been waiting for an opportunity to see these guys live for years!

I can never turn down any stage curated by MK after seeing his set on one of the Hideout Festival boat parties last summer. He’s an amazing DJ and I’m sure he’d have only the best lined up to join him which we can see instantly from the likes of Ninetoes, Route 94 and Shadow Child. The Hospitality stage is the one I am most excited for because if I manage to get myself over there, know I could stay there happily all night long listening to huge summer sounds of Fred V & Grafix’s latest release Forest Fires which is on repeat in my car at the moment. But even when they finish up there’s more from Camo & Krooked, High Contrast, Shy FX, Danny Byrd and Friction among many others. Wow. What a huge line-up! The other stages are equally packed with huge DJ talents and I just know my head will be spinning as I try to keep up with each set.

Sunday will just blow my mind as the one-and-only Fatboy Slim headlines with Annie Mac and Duke Dumont – just brilliant. After seeing Fatboy Slim the first night of his Eat Sleep Rave Repeat tour in the UK, I know how incredible he is and it was one of my dreams to see him headline a festival and blow up the main stage. Over at the Cocoon stage I’ll have to catch some Sven Vath to give me flashbacks to when I saw him at Glade Festival two years ago – again an amazing set. A RAM Records girl through and through, I’m so excited to see Andy C leading the charge with special sets from Sub Focus and Noisia, and with Calyx & Teebee, Loadstar and Mind Votex also lined up – there’s a chance I’ll never get away from the stage. Over on the Desperados WHSE stage, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs are not to be missed and I know I’ll be spending a lot of time at the Toolroom Knights Ibiza stage, soaking up the Ibiza sounds and reminiscing about Hideout Festival with the likes of Mark Knight, Tensnake, Tough Love and Pete Griffiths.

Phew – just writing all of this has blown my mind, I can’t imagine what it will be like in reality but I’m expecting big things and hopefully lots of glorious sunshine to help me start off my summer tan. Here’s to the first festival of the summer!