Festival Review: Slam Dunk South 2024
Slam Dunk South, and the Start of the Summer.
With an expedited entry process, after last year’s less-than-ideal start, Slam Dunk South quickly saw the first few thousand storming the gates. With sunnies in hand, and suncream on everywhere else, it was time for the first bands of the day.
In this case, The Dangerous Summer. Having flown through a few sweaty UK intimate shows to warm up — Plymouth, Sheffield, Guildford, and Southampton — opening the main stage must have felt like a much bigger space to play with, and guitarist Marcus Leopard particularly took advantage; bedecked in anti-camouflage Hawaiian red, rushing around the right half of the stage, he struck a vast contrast with the still coat-wearing, and more subdued, AJ. Having only half an hour to cram as many songs in as possible saw Slam Dunk treated to a selection of tracks both old and new — title track ‘Gravity’ and latest single ‘Pacific Ocean’ took pride of place in their short stint on stage, both lifted from the band’s latest album ‘Gravity’ out June 21.
Ending on the ominous-sounding (due to the forecasts!) duo of ‘Where Were You When The Sky Opened Up’ and ‘The Permanent Rain’ — though, luckily, the weather in Hatfield would end up holding out — and with the promise of a tour ‘announced on Wednesday’ for this coming Autumn, the Maryland natives opened up proceedings with grand panache!
Neon pink was the flavour of the day for saccharine pop-rock sensation Honey Revenge. With rainbow flags sprouting up from around the drum kit, and the band members adorned in either the afore-mentioned bright pink or the more scene-defining pitch black, the eclectic jumble perfectly encapsulated their music; bright and airy earworms that carried hints of the more biting edge you’d expect for a Slam Dunk band. And, despite some technical issues on the Kerrang! stage, their set was still both as effervescent and explosive as you’d hope. Diving straight into ‘Seeing Negative (Disappointment)’, vocalist Devin Papadol a mop of pink hair bobbing and bouncing along the front, their cherry-picked set gave the crowd a perfect taste of Honey Revenge. New song ‘Recipe For Disaster’, released the day before, and mere hours after stepping off stage of a sold-out show at Camden’s Underworld, saw a surprising number of fans already singing along; less surprising, of course, were the raucous voices screaming along to fan-favourites ‘Are You Impressed?’ and ‘Rerun’! The dual-closers of the ecstatically anthemic ‘Airhead’, the crowd just a flock of raised arms, and the slower, electronic-ballad sounding ‘Distracted’, meanwhile, saw the Los Angeles quartet off in style; though, not before the tent saw a circle pit encompass the centre of the crowd. As far as first ever festival sets go, pretty damn good!
Quintessential ‘scene’ band The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, over on the Go Pro Stage, felt like the most welcome of blasts from the past. No matter how many songs the Floridians release, how successful their subsequent albums may end up. 2006’s ‘Don’t You Fake It’ is as era-defining a soundtrack as anyone at Hatfield could hope to find. ‘Brace Yourself’ and ‘False Pretense’ set the scene, so to speak, with the crowd leaping into the air, while the slower ‘Cat And Mouse’ and the beautiful ballad ‘Your Guardian Angel’ quickly followed; sways and sighs alike washed through the crowd, even as a host of phones went up to capture every moment. And, finally, came the anthem.
Well, technically, the two anthems.
See, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus’s set wasn’t just filled with their hits — it was filled with other peoples’ hits too! And, when you want a Slam Dunk-certified classic, who else do you go to but the forefathers of skate-punk, the anthem aficionados, Blink-182? Between ‘All The Small Things’ and their own ‘Face Down’, all the boxes were ticked to close out one fantastic set.
Over to the Kerrang! tent next for the fantastic Røry. With a blend of pop punk vocals, heavy instrumentals, and authentic, poignant lyricism, it’s not hard to see just why she connects to so many people; and her stage presence, striding across the stage and lapping up the love oozing from the audience, doesn’t hurt either. “Slam Dunk!”, came the shout; “if you’re here, you must be fucking sad!”
‘ANTI-REPRESSANT’ and ‘Help Your Friends Get Sober’ immediately won over the crowd, fields of swaying arms a visible counterpart to her emotive anthems, before ‘ALTERNATIVE’ cemented it with the track’s sheer, Slam Dunk-esque relatability. Elsewhere, ‘Baby Vendetta’ saw her unload on her ex-boyfriend, who joined her on stage in pigtails and a diaper; ‘FAMILY TREE‘ gave the audience some much needed afternoon depression; and, finally, ‘UNCOMPLICATED’ helped the 39-year old truly become a firm fan favourite of the day.
Slam Dunk might have been her first festival, but it certainly won’t be her last.
Hearing the news that the recently returned Welsh heroes The Blackout would be returning to Slam Dunk, to celebrate the anniversary of seminal album ‘Best In Town’ no less, was a beautiful piece of news indeed. Having last played Slam Dunk in 2012, back before the festival traded university halls for wide open parks, it was wonderful to see them in Hatfield once more.
A 45-minute set just about gave the band the time they needed to play the album in full… though not without some surprises. From Charlie Rolfe of As Everything Unfolds joining the band on stage for fan-favourite ‘Save Our Selves (The Warning)’, or Sean face planting into and crowd surfing on top of the crowd in ‘The Fire’, to singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to ‘Best In Town’ — 15 years old that day — it couldn’t have felt more celebratory. Whatever happens next for The Blackout, whether they party on forever or call it quits once more, might remain to be seen; but, at least for one glorious Slam Dunk weekend, they shone magnificently.
Speaking of celebratory, over on the Slam Dunk stage, thousands paid witness to Mallory Knox’s long-awaited return. With the return of Mikey Chapman to his perch on lead vocals, their five-year lapse from the stage felt like it had passed in a heartbeat — with the cheers rising from the crowd, and the chorus of audience vocals echoing those on stage, it was like they never left. From ‘Ghost in the Mirror’ and ‘Shout at the Moon’ to ‘Sugar’, ‘Oceans’, and, of course, closer ‘Lighthouse’, the hits never stopped coming; and, with their ‘Asymmetry’ 10-year anniversary tour announced the day before for this coming October, they’ll hopefully never stop. Again, at any rate!
Having sold out their debut tour at the start of last year, with fans queuing up from the wee hours of the morning to get barrier at Camden’s Electric Ballroom, L.S. Dunes’ return to UK soil was inevitable. Having it kick off with the intimacy of the Key Club stage, though, was delightfully unexpected. With a line-up composed of the who’s who of early ‘00s rock heroes, from Circa Survive and Saosin’s Anthony Green to My Chemical Romance’s Frank Iero, L.S. Dunes are undeniably worth seeing just based on the prestige of being so close to legends; the fact that they’re so darn good is just icing on the proverbial cake. Although their forty minutes seemed to fly by, their discography — an eleven-song album and a few recent singles, although an announcement that they’d just finished recording their second record was met with resounding cheers — meant that they were perfectly suited; cherry picked highlights and no album at risk of being ignored. ‘Like Forever’, ‘Benadryl Subreddit’, ‘Grey Veins’, 2022’ and, of course, ‘Permanent Rebellion’ — the lucky crowd were graced it with all. A fantastic set, coming in at the perfect time to help combat the afternoon lull!
Never mind ‘Best In Town’. Never mind Mallory Knox. If you want a set that felt special, look no further than Funeral For A Friend’s early evening slot on the Go Pro stage. Earlier in the year, Matthew Davies-Kreye announced that he was leaving the band; but what would happen to the band’s planned shows over the Summer? You can’t play a show without a vocalist!
Enter Holding Absence. Having grown up listening to them, and then touring with them as the lead support in 2022 — and now, for vocalist Lucas Woodland anyway, playing with them. And so, bar an intimate Newport warm up show the night before, Slam Dunk South saw Funeral For A Friend, fronted by a man who Sean Smith described as ‘the greatest vocalist in Wales’, make their grand re-debut. But how would he do?
In a word? Fantastic. His vocals might not have been a natural fit, but hell did he make the songs his own. All of the FFAF classics — ‘Juneau’, ‘Rookie Of The Year’, ‘Escape Artists Never Die’ — took on a new lease of life. There were nerves, sure, but if anything they just led to the outpouring of nervous energy by way of impassioned screams. Of course, it probably didn’t hurt having the thousands arrayed in front practically speechless at his performance!
It was on the clean vocals that Lucas really shone, however; the belting ‘Into Oblivion (Reunion)’ acted as the perfect vehicle to display his phenomenal vocals.
It might be too big an ask to hope for a full Funeral For A Friend tour fronted by Lucas, but for the thousands who were lucky enough to pay witness, hope they shall.
You Me At Six. Final UK festival. Slam Dunk South. Even just typing the words feels alien.
Slam Dunk is as much a part of You Me At Six’s identity as You Me At Six‘s are likely a part of everyone in the Hat-fields watching, both fan and fellow band alike. And sure, You Me At Six may have already announced a surprisingly extensive farewell UK tour for next year — but that didn’t make their final headlining slot any less special. Jumping straight into 2008 classic ‘Save It For The Bedroom’, Hatfield was immediately whisked into the past, five fresh faced 18-year olds with a just-dropped debut and a dream. And, suddenly, back to the present, with thousand upon thousand screaming along to ‘Reckless’. Life is good again.
The set felt as much a celebration of the band’s history as it felt a fond farewell. With the set comprised of cuts throughout the past 20 years and eight albums, the band had a lot of ground to cover — but cover it they did. ‘Straight To My Head’ intermingled with ‘Lived A Lie’, ‘Kiss And Tell’ went hand in hand with ‘Liquid Confidence’, and each and every song received the same screamed, frenetic, sing-along energy back from the crowd. Meanwhile, Josh’s favourite part of the set — ‘the mosh pit’ — even explored all of their different styles. ‘Bite My Tongue’ saw the crowd burst into motion, while the more electronic ‘No Future? Yeah Right’, from last year’s ‘Truth Decay’ helped show the band’s evolution and incorporation of different genres — although, sadly, both fellow Slam Dunk headline alumni Rou Reynolds and Bring Me The Horizon legend Oli Sykes’ sections were tracked!
Elsewhere, the klaxon and-now-Sean-Smith-featuring ‘The Consequence’ preceded fan-favourite ‘Loverboy’, while the siren-song of ‘The Swarm’ led much of the crowd to their deaths… or at least a wall of them. The almost ska-esque ‘Jealous Minds Think Alike’ and acerbic anthem ‘Kiss And Tell’ let the crowd relive their glory days of screaming ‘Take Off Your Colours’ in the car, ‘Room To Breathe’ and ‘Stay With Me’ gave Cavalier Youth some much needed love; later, the 2008 deep-cut ‘Always Attract’, last played all the way back in 2015 (bar the Take Off Your Colours anniversary tour, of course!) saw the band joined by Josh’s sister Elissa on vocals, and — along with fan favourite ‘Take On The World’ — made sure there were no dry eyes in Hatfield.
A final triumphant couplet of ‘Underdog’ and ‘Beautiful Way’ brought the beautiful night to a close, and etched another successful Slam Dunk into the history books — even if it meant You Me At Six are just that one show closer to the final night in Wembley next April. A fantastic day in Hatfield, and the start of yet another ‘glorious’ Uk Summer! Now to wait anxiously for Slam Dunk 2025!
Words by James O’Sullivan
Photography by Mariana Patsi // @mpatsivideo
