Y Not Festival got underway on Thursday 27th July, allowing those who had paid for Thursday entry to start the party early with some exciting Thursday acts. Jon Hague and Benedict Watson detail their experience of the first few days of this iconic indie festival.
Swim School delivered a great set of energetic indie-rock, although they did seem a little frustrated that the crowd didn’t seem to want to match their energy – perhaps it was just a little too early for the crowd to get going. The two acts that I’m sure the majority of the crowd bought their Thursday tickets for were Circa Waves and Bombay Bicycle Club though. Circa Waves took to the stage at 8pm and delivered a strong 45-minute set that traversed their impressive back catalogue of indie hits. Old favourites like Get Away and Movies were mixed with songs from their recent album Never Going Under such as Do You Wanna Talk and Hell On Earth. The crowd lapped up these sing-along songs, with mosh-pits forming for the more rocky songs. By far their biggest hit is T-Shirt Weather, and they finished their set with this to leave their fans fully satisfied with what they’d seen from the Liverpool band.
"The crowd lapped up these sing-along songs, with mosh-pits forming for the more rocky songs."
One thing that surprised me at Y Not was the lack of a screen behind the main stage and behind the biggest tent (The Quarry). This was something that I was used to seeing at festivals and can help to see from afar who is on which stage. It also allows an opportunity for the artist to express themselves through what they choose to put on the screen, especially for headline performances where there are often graphics chosen to go with each song in the set. Whilst many main stage acts brought a banner with them, it didn’t look as professional and impressive as what they’d have put on a screen.
This meant that I was delighted to see that Thursday headliners Bombay Bicycle Club had brought with them an intricate set design that meant that the lack of a screen was barely noticeable. Opening song Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing But You) saw confetti cannons being shot, which further helped to give this performance a real headline feel to it. Bombay have an infectious positive energy on stage which easily translates to the crowd, as it’s so clear to see that they are enjoying playing together on stage. They currently have two new singles released from their upcoming album My Big Day, and both these songs sounded great live. A personal favourite from the set was the surprise inclusion of debut album song Lamplight, with its contrast between loud and quiet played expertly. Returning from an encore to play biggest hit Always Like This was the perfect way to end a stunning set that started Y Not Festival with a bang.
"Bombay have an infectious positive energy on stage which easily translates to the crowd, as it's so clear to see that they are enjoying playing together on stage."
Friday was the day where the main festival started, and the increase in crowd numbers was very noticeable. There was an early schedule change as noughties indie legends The Pigeon Detectives – who were meant to be headlining the second tent ‘The Giant Squid’ – were moved to the main stage at 2:45pm due to unexpected demand. This seemed a sensible decision as the crowd seemed very excited to hear their old hits like I Found Out and Take Her Back.
I was much looking forward to seeing Mystery Jets at 5:15pm, but they were slightly underwhelming unfortunately. Credit must be given to lead singer Blaine Harrison for still performing whilst on crutches, however their sound lacked power, especially on the guitar line in Bubblegum. They also waited until the second half of their set to play their three biggest songs, at which point it felt like some of the crowd had lost interest a bit.
"The Wombats delivered an unrelenting set of hits..."
Nevertheless, there were plenty more great acts to see on Friday. Main stage sub-headliners The Wombats delivered an unrelenting set of hits which delighted the large crowd gathered, with opening song Moving To New York certainly setting the tone for the upbeat set. It was then time for the Friday headliner Royal Blood, who impressed the crowd with their intense guitar lines and powerful drumming. With only two band members, there is nowhere to hide, and they both grab this opportunity to take centre stage, with drummer Ben Thatcher often leaving his drum set to engage with the crowd, or standing on his drum stool to orchestrate a mosh-pit. The varying age
demographic at Y Not meant that not all of the crowd was perhaps as eager to jump around as they may do at some other Royal Blood gigs, but it’s still clear that the crowd much enjoyed Royal Blood’s set.
With the sun shining on both days, Thursday and Friday were a fantastic start to Y Not Festival, and there was plenty more to come on Saturday and Sunday.
Jon Hague and Benedict Watson
Edited by Tabitha Smith
Cover and in-article images courtesy of Y Not Festival via Facebook
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