Festival Review: 110 Above, Warwickshire 2022
When the Horn Blows return to the Warwickshire fields for what’s rapidly becoming one of the UK’s most well regarded festivals: 110 Above.
Never have I ever heard so many artists proclaim one festival as their favourite. 110 Above is intimate, buzzing, and full of immeasurably happy people. The kindness and community spirit of festival-goers, staff and musicians (many of whom stay for the duration of the festival) creates an infectious energy. Coupled with the festival's thoughtfully limited capacity, unassuming farmyard setting, and disproportionally large and impressive lineup, 110 Above continues to bring people back year after year. Larkins summarised the atmosphere of this year's heat-wave festival best: "Whoever you are, however you identify, have a beautiful weekend and drink a fuckshit-load of water!"
The festival site consists of a converted milking barn that houses the Commune Stage (and a large sculpted flamingo!), a beautiful brick generator house in which you can find the Old Town Hall Stage, bathed in gold thanks to the sunlight which bursts through in shafts from semi-circular windows. A hay-filled stable is transformed into the Gopsall Inn - a pub with beer barrel seating, vintage chairs and sofas, and a small stage. Still fairly new to the festival is the big Elizabeth stage which overlooks acres of beautiful countryside, the sunset, and is home to the festival's headliners. You can also find hand-painted caravans containing open-mic set ups, tee-pees and walled gardens to relax in. The 'temple' ruins, in which Handel is rumoured to have composed The Messiah, can be found in the woodlands not too far from the ice-cave where imported pieces of ice-bergs kept meat preserved centuries ago.
Arriving on Thursday along with those in possession of early-bird tickets, I parked my van in the designated campervan field and headed into the farm, armed with bottles of water and icy beers to combat the 36*C heat that was to last for the duration of the weekend. Opening the festival were Plymouth-based band The Native whose new single got everyone grooving, from kids at the barrier, to the sausage-roll eating sound-tech at the back. The boys exhibited every indie hairstyle; the mullet, curtains, long shag and floppy curls were all represented!
Ellie Dixon was next to take the stage and it was her Remi Wolf-like sass during CEO of Television that drew me in to the Old Town Hall for her set. Using a pot of SD cards as a sample for the drum track of her songs, along with saucepans and other household objects, she ran through a range of originals and covers, the highlight being when she threw jammy dodgers into the crowd during her song about biscuits.
Palace, a long-time favourite alt indie-rock band of mine, closed the first day of the festival. Their Henrix-esque guitar runs, and carefully crafted alternate picking, along with the chorus pedal use which is so signature of the indie genre, formed the rich soundtrack of the evening. Later that night, an incredible orange moon guided us back to the campsite.
The rest of the weekend was filled with more great musicians, some who’ve toured arenas for years like The Pigeon Detectives. They climbed and leapt on and off every structure available, and had to sing upwards after having thrown and accidentally looped the mic and it's lead around the barn's beams. These big names, joined by TikTok sensations Callum Bowie and Casey Lowry, and newbies to the festival scene like Ronnie, perfectly represented the simultaneous greatness of musical talent and experience at this festival, with the quaint charm and unpretentiousness of its atmosphere.
The set I was most eagerly anticipating came just before 2pm when Tom A. Smith, formerly Tom Mouse Smith, took to the stage. I'd first discovered a 15 year-old Tom here, 3 years ago, when Rob, the festival's press manager, told me I'd kick myself if I missed his set. He was incredibly powerful then, but has grown to be an incredible frontman too now. He amazed the crowd with 'Man overboard' and his new song 'Can I live with being fake?' and finished the set with 'Dragonfly', the song he and his band were to play live on BBC TV just 2 days later. Having supported Elton John, Catfish & The Bottlemen, James Bay and Sam Fender, he is more than ready to take center stage. Rob is excited for the day Tom headlines 110 Above and becomes the first act to have played all of the festival's stages.
Other stand out performances came from Indoor Foxes, whose originals and Pheobe Bridgers' covers were punctuated by playful squeals, and Maya Lane who my brother pointed out we'd seen sing years ago at an open-mic night in a pub in Guildford! She thanked "the man in the bucket hat for singing along" to one of her originals and for being "the first person other than [her] Nan to do that!" If you like Masie Peters and Stevie Nicks, you'll like Maya Lane's music.
Hinds delivered a stellar set just minutes after their arrival on the farm after a dramatic journey from Spain full of delays and expenses. Having blown up years ago in the UK before their music got big in their home-country, they feel they owe their careers to the UK, and The Amazons praised their brilliance as they took to the Elizabeth stage to headline Friday night. Branding 110 Above as "a proper festival with its heart and soul intact" The Amazons played rocky hits one after another, softened only by a song they'd never played live before called 'Northern Star,' written about "those people that grab you by the scruff of your neck and pull you through."
The next day, Deco, Red Rum Club and Kawala infected the festival with their gleeful, summery energy and the crowds kept dancing right til the end of the night when Everything Everything headlined.
Women dominated the acts I saw on Sunday morning, with Pixie and Grandma's House being new discoveries for me, and Bow Anderson as the stand-out act. She sang with undeniable control despite injecting so much of her sassy personality into her songs.
Alfie Templeman behaved in the humble manner of everybody at this festival, thanking everyone from his band, to the guy doing his in-ears, the sound mixer and his dad who drove him there, hyping up the crowd with Happiness in Liquid Form just in time for Sea Girls.
The dust rose up from the dry ground, filling my lungs as I, along with the entire festival, screamed along to favorites such as Call Me Out, All I Want To Hear You Say, and Do You Really Wanna Know?, as well as newer songs from DNA and Open Up Your Head.
This weekend was as friendly, joyous and magical as ever and I know that the soul the festival-goers, organisers, and musicians bring to the farm every summer will continue to make it the best place to be for years to come.
Words & Photos by Alice Sutton
