Interview: Luke Rainsford talks Slam Dunk

With Slam Dunk Festival coming our way at the end of this month, we had a sit down with Luke Rainsford to talk to him about his appearance at the festival.

Are you looking forward to Slam Dunk? We bet you are super excited?
Hey! I'm so excited for this opportunity. I've been going to the festival for years, and being able to finally play it is like a dream come true.

What stage are you playing this year? Is there anyone you are looking forward to sharing that stage with?
I'm playing the Key Club Acoustic Stage, sharing it with some amazing artists such as Rob Lynch, Speak Low If You Speak Love and Cavetown. I'm extra excited to share a stage with Four Year Strong, who I've listened to since I was 16, so being able to share a lineup is mind blowing.

Can we expect anything special for this festival performance?
I'm definitely going to make sure these are my most emotionally charged shows yet - I'm very thankful for the opportunity to spread my music, and my message of positive mental health to more people.

Have you been Slam Dunk before? Any tips for first goers?
I've been to Slam Dunk every year since 2013, except for 2017. My tip is definitely to stay super hydrated, and make sure you plan ahead times to eat and take a rest. It's so easy to burn yourself out and it's really important that you keep yourself safe. Mostly as well it's just to make sure you check out at least one artist you've never heard before, I've discovered some of my favourite bands at previous Slam Dunk's just through checking out a random band during my day.

Slam Dunk is over three locations over the full weekend, thats a lot of road miles to travel, who is on your Slam Dunk playlist to keep you buzzing?
Road trips normally start by listening to bands such as Movements and The Wonder Years, but then usually gravitate towards anything from the Guitar Hero 3 soundtrack. Lately I've been listening to bands like Nervus, Adventures, itoldyouiwouldeatyou and Tigers Jaw, so I'm sure they'll make an appearance on my playlists.

Is there one band everyone should check out this year at the festival?
Definitely Holding Absence, they're going to be absolutely huge, and you should definitely get on the hype as soon as you can. They're also really good guys, and they deserve as much support as you can give them!



Slam Dunk Festival takes places on the following days - 

Sat 26th May Leeds Slam Dunk North 
Sun 27th May Hatfield Slam Dunk South 
Mon 28th May Birmingham Slam Dunk Midlands