Festival Types

I am not altogether sure the reasons why, but I was late to the plate in discovering festivals and only attended my first one as a day ticket to Reading Festival in 1995 at the tender age of 27. I also missed the years when you could feasibly obtain tickets for Glastonbury before tickets became unattainable and as a result, I have never graced Worthy Farm with a visit.  

In the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit shamefully I have never camped at festivals and have always stayed off site which is maybe not fully embracing the whole experience but is hugely beneficial if inclement weather strikes, which at certain sites it has regularly obliged in that regard.

Though singular ‘normal’ gigs are fun there is something enticing about outdoor festivals where you have a tsunami of bands available to you, the main stage being in the open air. They also can be hugely advantageous to discover exciting new bands and due to the short sets, the bands do not overplay their welcome. If you lose interest, you can easily wander off to either have a drink or a doughnut or seek solace in another tent or on rare occasions a cheeky bit of sunbathing!

At the many festivals I have attended there have always been a variety of options, including circuses, reggae, dance, northern soul, funfairs, cinemas, a plethora of food outlets and sometimes thankfully real ale. A pair of comfy shoes is a requisite requirement.

In the last 10-15 years there has been an increase in what I would quantify as an ‘urban festival’.  These are primarily located in city centres and involve a suite of venues generally within feasible walking distance of each other. You obtain a wristband from the source venue and off you go.

Some of the events in this sphere I have attended are Live at Leeds, Hockley Hustle in Nottingham, Sounds from the Other City in Salford and Dot to Dot, Carefully Planned Festival and Off the Record in Manchester. They mingle the established venues with more innovative ones such as clothes shops and cafes.

My gig OCD can rear its head when attending these shindigs as I am always endeavouring to attend every venue on the roster and as a result, the friends who accompany me are hugely tolerant of my foibles.  

I always scour the listings as soon as they are published to identify new venues and ensure they are visited on the evening. These events can present conundrums in set time slippage and where to imbibe the odd beer or two en route. Are you fortunate to arrive at the start of the set where the band are worth staying for or do you land halfway through the last track? My overriding imperative is to catch as much music as I can on the day.

Some events can have widely dispersed venues which may involve a 20-30 minute walk from outermost venue to outermost event so even comfier shoes are required but if you are willing to put the mileage in you can cover up to 20 venues in a day!