Y Not Festival 2014

when?
July 29, 2014
Where?
Y Not Festival
Pikehall, Derbyshire

Last weekend, us lot at Raw Meat were partying in the mud at Y Not Festival. 

Y Not Festival 2014

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Y Not Festival 2014

Last weekend, us lot at Raw Meat were partying in the mud at Y Not Festival. 

Best known for its fresh and upcoming talent, it’s no wonder we made sure we were at Y Not to catch some new artists whilst they’re hot… unlike the weather.

Although the crappy weather would be enough to put most people off – yes, it put us off for a while - the sheer talent that bounced off the stage for each and every artist made the rain and wind so much more bearable. Also, the food was amazing too. 

Here’s a quick summary of six acts that made the festival. 

Superfood have been tipped by many to be the next big thing and on Friday, they certainly proved why. These guys make for a juicy blend of intoxicating alt and indie rock. Their summery vibes managed to get the sun to peak out of the abysmal clouds that hovered over Y Not for the whole weekend. It’s impossible to watch this band without a gleaming smile on your face whilst singing and dancing along to their hit tracks ‘TV’, ‘Bubbles’ and their self-titled track ‘Superfood’. If a band has the guts to name a song after their band name, they’ve got to be good. Surely? This band have the potential to be as huge and as good as indie wonderers, Peace.

‍Superfood, intoxicating alt and indie rock

Next up on the Friday we had Turbowolf. Turbowolf contain elements of rock and roll, psychedelic rock, heavy metal and electronica. Admittedly, that concoction sounds pretty fucking terrible but trust us when we say it works. And it works even better live. With lead singer, Chris Georgiadis, throwing himself into the crowd as soon as the first song gets going, you know it’s going to be a sweaty one. This band put everything into their live performance and got the crowd going like no other band could throughout the whole festival. Their connection with the audience and the music continued to grow throughout the set making the whole performance a unique experience for everyone.

 

Max Raptor. These guys are almost embedded into the mud at Y Not. Having played Y Not seven years in a row and being from the surrounding area, you kind of expect that the band would get a good reception – regardless of whether they played well or not. But luckily for everyone, they played an amazing set. In fact, they were so good, they played twice. Pure and punchy punk rock, Max Raptor are a band on the brink of success. It wouldn’t be surprising if these guys were headlining festivals in years to come.

‍Max Raptor, so good, they played twice. Pure and punchy punk rock

Going to a festival this year? There is no doubt that Darlia will be on that line up somewhere. Take our advice and GO AND SEE THEM before they’re selling out arenas. Seriously, this band have been hyped up so much this year but their performance at Y Not on Sunday showed exactly why they’re being hailed as ‘rock/grunge revivals’. Walking on stage to the instrumental of The Black Eyed Peas ‘Pump It’ with the drummer wearing braces and frontman wearing a straw hat, this band instantly give off the impression that they know exactly what they’re doing and don’t really give a shit if anyone likes them or not. Fortunately for them though, everyone loves them. Their set consisted of all their recent tracks as well as some oldies, pleasing the hardcore fans. But whether you knew the band or not, there is just something about them and their stage presence that instantly makes them enjoyable for the metal-heads and indie-folk alike.

‍Darlia. Check out our recent interview with front man Nathan Day

Possibly one of the best sets at Y Not has to come from heavy metal band Baby Godzilla. These guys were absolutely phenomenal. Walking into the Giant Squid, you could see at least 10 different photographers all cramming into the VIP area ready to catch the mayhem that was about to ensue. Actually, mayhem is probably a polite word for what happened at the Giant Squid. Absolute fucking chaos would probably be a more accurate description. During their set there was a circle pit at least 15 metres wide, a ludicrous moshpit, amps in the circle pit with the guitarist standing on whilst playing, the singer standing on ten foot high speakers and by the end of it, he had climbed onto the roof of the tent, screaming at innocent passers-by. Total and utter carnage.

 

It’s really, really difficult for bands - particularly heavier bands - to come up with a new and distinctive sound that actually works. It’s all well and good having constant riffs and thrash metal but so many bands have just that and after a while it gets a bit monotonous. The Wytches have a bit of everything from psychedelic, shoegaze, grunge and surf. Y Not really brought the best out of, what looked like a very tired Wytches. They had the crowd going from start to finish without even trying and Kristain Bell’s haunting vocals were enough to echo through the audience for the remainder of the festival. Putting on such a compelling performance after being consecutively on tour for the last three years is hard for any band to do but these guys completely nailed it. With a well-deserved break and the release of their debut album Annabel Dream Reader coming upThe Wytches are going to go from strength to strength.

The Wytches, psychedelic, shoegaze, grunge and surf. Image by Kiera Cullinane

Y Not 2014 was full of class acts, as like every year, and for the 10th anniversary coming up – we cannot wait to see what’s in store for next year.

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