����������������������������������������
����������������������������������������������
�����������������
���������������������������������������
With many traditional festivals-in-a-field, it’s sad to admit that line-ups can be reciprocated up
and down the length and breadth of the country. Perhaps the secret of Bloc Weekends and
Bang Faces’ success is their hugely underground and forever changing line-ups.
Greco Roman are involved in this year’s Bloc Weekend hosting their own arena.
“The line-ups look backwards as much as looking forwards,” Greco Roman’s Half Nelson /
Full Nelson believes, “a huge proportion of the line-up consists of really choice old school
performers. Most festivals tend to err on the side of complacency and only book what’s going
on at the moment so this definitely makes a change.”
Hardcore rave generator Mark, from Altern8 agrees: “I think it’s the fact that Bloc and Bangface
are so different to other festivals. Everything is about the rave and music, not brands being
shoved at you.”
����������������������
����������������������������������������������������
��������������������������������������������������������
����������������������������������������������
What about the feeling of getting away from it all though? Nothing can beat that sense of
escapism, waking up in the Green Fields at Glastonbury, or losing all your friends in the
woods at Bestival. Is that lost when you stay in a holiday camp for three days? “Not at all.”
Luke declares. “There’s something really kitsch about staying in a holiday camp for a festival,
for me at least, all those places have such a long-lost British Holiday vibe. You don’t get that
in a normal festival.”
But what if a holiday camp makes you think of concentration camps? “These curious choice
of settings at Bang Face and Bloc Weekend are great because it adds a little humour to
otherwise what could be a serious line-up. It definitely strikes the right balance,” Half Nelson /
Full Nelson points out.
������������������������������������������������������
����������������������������������������������������
Rave on
Would someone who went to, say, Bestival bag themselves a chalet h l t at t Bang B Face F though? th h?
With a heavily electronic-influenced line-up at both Bloc and Bang Face, as well as a huge
underground line-up at All Tomorrows Parties, doesn’t that make for quite a niche crowd?
“People are just there to rave from the minute they arrive to the very last kick drum,”
Mark from Altern8 says of Bang Face. “They’re the nuttiest, most up-for-it and open-minded
crowd you’re ever likely to play to.
So, if you still can’t shift that Glastonbury mud or want a home-from-home – clean running
water, hot showers, and plenty of gimmicks to keep you going till bedtime – then give a
holiday camp festival a go and let the grass grow over elsewhere for a while. And remember,
with your own chalet there’s no limit to how long your party can last.
Line-ups
To view a Ceros magazine you need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser and have the flash player 8 or higher installed. To install the latest flash player, click the icon above, install the flash plugin and then click here to refresh this page.