Dot to Dot Festival as seen by Neve Dawson and Daisy Kent
Festival season is in full swing and no city does it quite so well as Bristol. This Saturday, the South West took to the streets of its cultural capital for their annual music pilgrimage – Dot to Dot Festival. Championed for its showcasing of local, national and international music talent, Dot to Dot has hosted some pretty recognisable artists in the past (Wolf Alice, Fontaines D.C, Easy Life et al.) promising the future’s hottest bands and a day to remember.
The sun beats down on Bristol’s locals, students and visitors as they make their way down to the Thekla Dockside to collect wristbands that will remain on for weeks as nonchalant, self-assured head nods to other alternative music fans. The city is in full bloom, the Dockside submerged in an explosion of colour, sound and moreish smells sourced from the plethora of food trucks lined up regimentally in front of Bristol’s own pride and joy – the infamous Thekla boat. Dry throats are soothed by the plentiful supply of crisp, quenching cans of Super Bock (the festival’s sponsor) as fans gradually disperse to their first locations of the day.
At SWX, Manchester-formed Picture Parlour take to the stage clad in leather and neck scarves, affirming an aura that is effortlessly cool. Following a year of tours, notably with Austenian-rockers The Last Dinner Party, the band delve into a set consisting of current releases and previews that set our hopes high for the four-piece sensation, who have already been heralded by the likes of Courtney Love. ‘Judgement Day’ showcases Katherine Parlour’s snarling, crooning Turner-esque vocals. The band’s debut single ‘Norwegian Wood’ captivates the audience, our eyes wide and searching as we bellow the mellifluous chorus, evidencing the musical talent that has so quickly established the band as one to watch.
A subtle shyness fills the venue as rising stars Mary in the Junkyard file out on stage, cheekily sporting tops embellished with the words ‘Jason Donervan’ – Bristol’s notorious kebab shop. Clari Freeman-Taylor’s ethereal vocals are hauntingly beautiful, gracefully fragile. With ‘Ghost’ the band dive into the revitalising, dark depths of their experimental sound, self-described as ‘angry, weepy chaos rock’. The stage is consumed by a flickering light as track ‘Tuesday’ begins; the crowd are lyrically guided down labyrinths enveloped in shadow. ‘Teeth’, recently released on the band’s latest EP, brings an eerie darkness to the set as Saya Barbaglia swaps out the bass for a viola, boasting the trio’s multi-instrumentalist talent and howling, yet angelic sound. With the final track, the curtain falls as Freeman-Taylor and Barbaglia turn to face one another as two perfect reflections, falling to their knees in sacrifice to their own creation.
For a change of both genre and scenery, a trip to the O2 Academy was in need to see Cardiff’s wildest Panic Shack. The band’s uniform consists of daring fishnets, smudged eyeliner and matching tied tops that read ‘Dangerous Gigs for Men’, altogether setting the scene for the band’s feminist message. Erupting into the opening bars of ‘I Don’t Really Like It’, the band channel their inner Bikini Kill and Riot grrrl influences with bared teeth and raised fists. Vocalist Sarah Harvey addresses the audience: ‘I am not traditional’, empowering each individual in the audience who at some point in their life has fallen short of expectations in true Holden Caulfield style. Top hit ‘The Ick’ beckons the first crowd surfers of the day as band members Meg Fretwell and Romi Lawrence fall to the floor in true punk fashion, performing a synchronised leg routine whilst lying on their backs and continuing to master their respective instruments.
Sticking with the female band theme, over at Strange Brew Prima Queen viscerally demonstrate the immeasurable power of female friendship. Doubled up in boots and co-ord sets, Louise Macphail and Kristin McFadden share moments of intimacy with the audience, entrusting them with guarded feelings ranging from grief to romance. Resonance is what the duo strive for, and my word do they achieve it. Guitar-driven ‘Back Row’ ignites a fire within the heartbroken, lonely wanderers within the crowd. The song perfectly epitomises the all-too-familar shedding of tears on a bedroom floor, the hopeless search for something that has never been, and never will be. Following a brief hunt for a camouflaged slide on stage, the band change their tune with ‘Invisible Hand’ – a song McFadden declares she wrote about hiding in the bathroom to escape prying questions from loved ones. The duo recount humorous tales from their recent tour as they promise to return to Bristol soon. We await their next visit with full hearts and open arms.
Across the road, the evening continued with sibling quartet Infinity Song at SWX. Signed to Roc Nation, the record label founded by Jay Z, the band’s mesmerising cover of ‘Dreams’ by Fleetwood Mac welcomed late comers to the venue. Delivering dreamy lyricism and transcendental harmonies, the band reinvent Nicks’s sound with subtle twists of soul and classical gospel. As the weather begins to turn and rain-filled clouds overshadow the city, a melancholia fills the air as I make the journey back to the O2 to see one of the final shows scheduled in The Magic Gang’s farewell tour. After 11 years of making music and memories, the band announced their split earlier this year, promising dedicated fans – myself included – one last run of live shows. Bursting with a vivacity to perform and to give their final all, The Magic Gang forlornly file out on stage to their infamous Hollywood walk out song ‘It’s Magic’. Playing everything and anything time will permit, the band’s set list is comprised of their favourite works from the past decade. Jack Kaye leans towards to audience, singing to us as well as with us as the band take us on a trip down memory lane playing the likes of ‘Getting Along’ and ‘Death of the Party’. Applause ricochets around the venue as we cry our goodbyes and holler one final time for the truly magic, Magic Gang.
Time for the headliners. As fans battle with humidified-hair and rain-drenched clothes, we split off to the SWX and O2 respectively, opting between the experimental pop of Jockstrap or the grunge-fuelled, indie rock offered by Wunderhorse. Selecting the latter and attempting to avoid the ruthless elbow battle to get to the barrier, I stationed myself on one of the venue’s upmost balconies, peering down at the increasingly populated crowd. Commencing with an elongated intro accompanied by frontman Jacob Slater’s anguished screams, the band slowly segway into ‘Leader of the Pack’, to which members of the pit stretch their limbs and prepare themselves for the body slamming soon to occur. With ‘Butterflies’, Slater lyrically dives into his tumultuous youth, exploring past relationships and precocious mistakes. The opening bars of ‘Teal’ bring with it an instant release of pain and anger. We dig our nails into our hands, raise our fists and embrace our own turbulent pasts. ‘Teal’ calls to us all regardless of age, gender and identity. It touches us all in different ways as we find release and comfort in the band’s music like never before. We call back to Slater, acknowledging that we are not alone. As mosh pits rise and fall centrifugally, Slater clings to the shadows of his past, reviving each memory with each lyric. His heart appears heavy and his performance is charged with emotion sourced from a deep rooted place. It is sobering, yet comforting like the light of a candle in the darkest of nights.
While fans search for free pub tables to rest their weary legs and take shelter from the storm, Bristol’s turn at Dot to Dot Festival 2024 comes to an end. As day’s artists set their sights onto day two in Nottingham, us Bristolians sip our pints enviously, wishing we could do it all again.
@nevedawsonphotos @_nevedawson
My current role for TBGG is as a Reviewer, Interviewer and Photographer, which I do in my spare time when I'm not studying English Literature and History at the University of Bristol.
I'm available for reviews, previews, interviews and shoots through the company. Alongside TBGG I also write for The So Young, Groupie and Rodeo Magazines, with an aspiration to enter magazine and newspaper journalism focusing on culture and the arts.
What was your first Gig?
The first gig I remember seeing (when I wasn’t dragged around by my metal-head father) was The Killers live in my hometown of Birmingham in 2016. Brandon Flowers’s iridescent cowboy suit still blinds me to this day and echoes glamorous indie rock n’ roll for years to come.
What's your dream Gig?
I would have to say my dream gig would be seeing Hendrix’s star-spangled banner live at Woodstock ’69. Call me cliché but I was born in the wrong generation.
Daisy Kent @daisylkent
Role: Photographer / Reviewer / Interviewer
Hi! I'm Daisy, and I'm a music photographer and digital creative. I also write live music reviews.
Qualifications: 2:1 in BA Photography: Editorial and Advertising at the University of Gloucestershire.
Available for: Gig Shoots, Gig Reviews, Photo Shoots, Album and Single cover shoots, Interviews and Touring
First attended gig: Mcfly at Westonbirt Arboretum, June 2009.
First gig shot: My first photo gig was The Stranglers at O2 Academy Bristol, in March 2019. My first writing and photo gig was Bastille at Marble Factory, in February 2022.
Dream gig: Taylor Swift, 100%. No doubt.