Dot To Dot Festival, Bristol - Review (Part 1)
Posted on: 2017-05-31
Our rating:
Venues across Bristol were chock-full of new and established talent on Saturday 27th May for the Dot To Dot Festival, and the city’s music fans responded with a huge turn-out. Martin Allen and Laura Allard covered as much ground as possible...
--Keep your eyes peeled for tomorrow's second part of the review. There was too much going on to fit into just one piece!--
(1).jpg "Dot To Dot Festival, Bristol - Review (Part 1)")
With well over 150 acts across 21 venues, there was a somewhat bewildering choice for music lovers attending this year’s Dot To Dot Festival. It is the 10th year that the event has visited the city, although its origins go back a little longer, starting in Nottingham in 2005.
It has become one of the best events of its kind for discovering new music, offering the chance to see bands in relatively modest venues before they go large. Alumni of past year’s Dot To Dot include the likes of Ed Sheeran, Ellie Goulding, Mumford & Sons, Foals, The xx and many others.
This year’s headliners were Sundara Karma, returning from a slot at last year’s festival to take top billing this time around, and they certainly did not disappoint. Frontman Oscar Pollock’s slightly awkward-yet-mesmerising onstage presence was captivating, leading the band through an hour-long set at the o2 Academy - complete with confetti cannons - which seemingly went by in a flash. The band included all of their biggest songs so far, playing most of their tracks from their debut album ‘Youth Is Only Ever Fun In Retrospect’ which was released at the start of the year.
Earlier in the day at the same venue, Scottish duo Honeyblood impressed with a raucous set. Singer/guitarist Stina Tweeddale and drummer Cat Myers manage to create a fully rounded sound that you wouldn’t think possible from just two people. Highlights of their set included the single ‘Babes Never Die’, the title track from their 2016 second album.
Upstairs at the O2 Academy 2, relatively local duo Ardyn kicked off proceedings with a characteristically accomplished performance including new material that further elevates their melodic, ethereal songs with a slightly more forceful pop tendency. The beautiful ‘Over The River’ and ‘The Valley’ were highlights, alongside most recent single ‘Together’ and new songs ‘Life Happens’ and ‘Without You’.
Up the road at SWX, there was another strong line-up of crowd-pleasing acts, not least The Big Moon. The all-female four-piece fronted by Juliette Jackson have been enjoying plenty of critical acclaim over the past 12 months or so and went some way towards proving they are well worth the hype. Their set included the singles ‘Sucker’ and ‘Cupid’, as well as a superb cover of the Madonna song ‘Beautiful Stranger’.
They were followed on the main stage at SWX by Pinegrove and The Growlers, both deservedly attracting capacity crowds.
The Bierkeller’s menu included a few festival highlights too, with Mystic Braves, PINS and Slow Readers Club making it just about acceptable to be downstairs in a dark basement room on a gloriously sunny day. The latter in particular were impressive with their Interpol-esque brand of indie-pop that manages to be atmospheric and brooding yet also uplifting all at the same time.
Article by:
As a lifelong music obsessive, Martin brings his extensive journalism experience to bear on reviewing some of the many gigs that make Bristol's music scene one of the liveliest in the country. Originally from London, he spends his time following AFC Wimbledon, tormenting his children with Dad Jokes, and getting out to see as much live music, comedy and theatre as possible.
