Review – Ritual Union Festival, SWX, Strange Brew, The Island, Rough Trade, March 23rd 2024

Dream Wife at Ritual Union Festival, SWX, Bristol, 23rd March 2024

Bristol is spoilt for choice when it comes to multi-venue music festivals. What sets Ritual Union apart from the others is a sense of carefully considered curation. Now in its third year, the annual event is full of names that may not immediately jump out at you but, once you take some time to listen through the lineup, it becomes clear that great effort has been made to deliver a day of great music that will win over the audience. Generally, if you like one act on the bill then you are probably going to enjoy all the other stuff you have not yet heard of.

The four venues are just seconds apart and so it’s very easy to move between them and maximise the number of acts you can see in the day. Indeed, the rooms clear out after each gig and the crowds immediately move onto the next thing. This is an event full of people who genuinely love live music and discovering new bands.

It is an incredibly well managed event. There’s smooth and quick entry into each of the venues, plenty of bar staff, no toilet queues and everything runs on schedule.

At most gigs or festivals, the earlier acts suffer from low turnouts. At Ritual Union, there are queues outside of each of the venues before they open. D.I.Y. icon The Cleaners From Venus play a lunchtime set to a full Strange Brew; there’s a well-received Bryan Ferry impression and the day’s first singalong to “The Jangling Man”.

It’s then over to SWX where sets alternate between the two rooms with one starting immediately after the other finishes. A great example of the sense of community at Ritual Union, there’s lots of talk between punters about how good Mould’s opening set was which unfortunately those of us who were at one of the other venues instead missed. It’s followed by an impressive run with 80s-esque synth pop from The Itch (the frontman wears a Human League t-shirt in a literal display of wearing your influences on your sleeve), energetic punk rock from Handcuff (the first of many bands to talk about how good other acts on the bill are including Cende who they played with the night before), and the first pits of the day courtesy of jazz-punkers Maruja. A formidable live force, they open with “The Invisible Man” which has just been added to the 6 Music Playlist and it’s immediately clear that this is a band en route to big things.

Four members of Super Furry Animals have regrouped as Das Koolies and their musically diverse offerings complete with psychedelic visuals are going to be perfect for late night festival slots. It’s perhaps slightly lost on a 3pm crowd who haven’t quite found their dancing shoes yet but it’s a welcome sonic contrast to the rest of the day.

Over at The Island, Arcadia Plantitia Five-a-side Football Team are playing the former police station which is hosting more avant garde electronic offerings. The industrial space is perfect for this and exemplifies the thought that has gone into ensuring the right acts are in the right rooms.

Strange Brew has arguably the strongest lineup of the day – something Katie Malco agrees with as she incites the audience to chant “best stage”. I discovered Katie in Bristol when she was supporting Fenne Lily at Thekla and it was great to have her back in the city, this time with a band; confessional, melancholic songwriting which silenced the previously chatty room. Bristol-based Pem’s dreamy indie is similarly well received.

Wristbands are collected from the Rough Trade record shop which feels like a buzzy hub for the event and one of the acts performing in their live space was Halifax singer, Ellur. Her sound is more polished pop than the rest of the lineup. Perhaps more Radio 1 than 6 Music, her impeccable voice belted out infectious choruses which should appeal to fans of Maisie Peters. She’s confident, likeable and feels like a star in the making. She’s also wearing wellies indoors so perhaps she thought it was a different kind of festival.

Such is the strength of the lineup, there’s now a “one in, one out” queue in place at Strange Brew ahead of an exceptional run of live music. Brookyln’s Cende may have broken up in 2017 but Bristol’s love for them has not waned. Even a broken guitar string and some technical difficulties cannot derail the momentum in the crowd building up to “Bed”. They are followed by Mary in the Junkyard who feel like another ‘just before they make it big’ booking on the bill today. Current single, “Ghost”, wins the award for most phones in the air at the festival which is a sign of a proper hit.

One of the most anticipated bands on the bill are Cheekface. There’s lots of chatter about them throughout the day from audience and other acts and they do not disappoint. Undoubtedly the highlight of the entire festival, it’s a joyous, perfect festival set of uplifting, catchy and funny indie pop. Another full house for Strange Brew, it really feels like they could have been on the bigger SWX stage and no doubt one day they will be.

Post punk fans are treated to Do Nothing in SWX immediately followed by Chalk in Strange Brew. The latter deliver one of the best sounding sets of the day. Their bass-heavy electronic rock proving there is plenty of gold still to be discovered in a genre that some argue has been overmined.

There are excellent options in all the venues and the overall headliner is London-based punk band, Dream Wife; a group who always deliver an electrifying, energetic set. It’s fun, passionate and inclusive. They play tracks from across their three brilliant records and include their recent cover of t.A.T.u.’s “All The Things She Said”. At the start of the day, we overheard people who had travelled from France to attend the festival specifically for Dream Wife. This riotous show will have made the trip more than worth it.

As the crowds disperse, Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own” plays out across SWX. With excellent communal experiences like Ritual Union in Bristol, nothing could be further from the truth.