Bestival Beautiful

As we lugged our tents up, then down and then up again, it was hard to ignore just how many hills there were at this new venue, however, once we got settled the landscape was the last thing on our minds!

We entered the festival site to a smorgasbord of different outfits, all beautifully unique and colourful with glitter abound; in fact, I still keep finding bits of glitter on me even after the festival has ended. The colourful nature of the outfits and characters at the festival was a clear reflection of the diversity on offer musically, as we had acts such as, The XX, Jaguar Skills, Pet Shop Boys and A Tribe Called Quest on the bill across the weekend. 

The site itself looked pretty splendid with a pair of giant astronauts and the inflatable “Happy Kanye” sculpture at the centre of it all, attracting mass attention and a deluge of selfies, not to mention the Lulworth Castle, providing a beautiful backdrop, especially with all the lights at night.

The festival had not long begun when we heard of the first cancellation – Wiley – a legendary figure in the world of Garage and Grime, but also an individual known for no-shows. However, we were treated to an exhibition in energy by Wiley’s old protégé – the indomitable Dizzee Rascal.

Dizzee, who recently released his new album ‘Raskit’, whipped the crowd into a frenzy that could only be described as ‘Bonkers’. Although he performed all of his biggest mainstream and bouncier hits, it was clear that Dizzeeis fully committed to returning to his roots with an edgier Grime sound. It was like being transported back to the house parties in the early 2000s, as Dizzee went back to smash out tracks such as “I Luv U” and “Fix Up, Look Sharp”, from his Mercury Prize winning debut ‘Boy in Da Corner’ – an album that was a staple in the musical diet of most young people in urban communities across the UK upon its release.

Overnight on Friday the heavens truly opened up, as if to say “Let there be mud!”, and so Saturday was slippery at times, but what is a (British) camping festival without a bit of mud – thank god for wellies!

After their no show at Parklife, many were understandably nervous about A Tribe Called Quest headlining at The Castle stage on Saturday evening -ourselves included! However, we needn’t have been as they emerged to a rapturous applause from one of the largest crowds we witnessed all weekend and absolutely killed it. Q-Tip, Ali Shaheed, Jarobi and honorary member Consequence pumped through hit after hit from their extensive collection, before Q-Tip informed the audience know that this performance was to be the group’s LAST EVER show!

The group left the stage, whilst an almost ethereal acapella of the late Phife Dawg’s solo effort, ‘Butter’ played, before they returned for an electric encore that ended with the powerful, politically charged “We the people” from their latest album. We certainly felt blessed to be part of such a historic occasion in seeing one of the pioneering groups in hip hop hang up their mic’s and they absolutely did not disappoint.

Even after the main acts had left their stages for the night you were left with an assortment of options to continue the party, from Stacey’s hut full of soulful, almost hypnotic vibes and the interesting house in the middle of the site that looked like something straight out of an independent horror movie, to the food stalls by the campsite, where we danced along to some great 70s and 80s funk until past 5am.

Sunday was tougher going for the festival, as the venue had to be closed for part of the day due to safety concerns caused by huge winds, but, the show eventually went on again and did not disappoint. The Pet Shop Boys closed the show on Sunday with their classic brand of synthpop accompanied by a light show that perfectly encapsulated the theme of colour and vibrancy that Bestival represents.

In the build up to the event many had reservations about the venue change, but regardless of which side of the fence you fell on, it’d be hard to deny that Bestival fought the elements bravely and came out a champion for yet another year and who knows, with the fancy dress void left behind by Secret Garden Party things may get a whole lot crazier next year!