Recap : Slam Dunk Festival
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Slam Dunk 2017 consisted in three days of pure and utter craziness. It was a world of its own, a bracket in time that makes you believe that for the duration of a bank holiday weekend, the outside world isn’t a thing anymore. For three days, you live for what is going on inside Birmingham’s NEC, around the streets of sunny Leeds (for Leeds always manages to see the sun that day, it seems) or on the campus of the University of Hertfordshire. You don’t look forward to anything apart from the next band you’re going to watch, or the next friend you’re going to run into and catch up with, around a beer or in a moshpit. For three days, that’s exactly how you want things to be. Slam Dunk is a carefree stop in every alternative kid’s daily life, a little solar system of its own, the best weekend of the year.
For me, its 2017 edition (my seventh year attending!) has consisted of all three days, as I jumped all aboard the Megaticket train, about twenty-five bands, no trips to the first aid tent for the first time since the ridiculous Empty Pint Injury of 2015 and a vodka latte. Its motto probably should have been “don’t question it, just embrace it”. Can we get that on a t-shirt for next year?
The headliners
As was the case last year already, I wanted to watch A LOT of headline sets over the course of the festival - four, to be precise, which is a problem because Slam Dunk only lasts for three days. I started by checking out Bowling For Soup in Birmingham. It shouldn’t work, should it? Their live sets are a collection of iconic ska-punk tunes played at twice their original speed to leave more time for repeated beer breaks, useless smoke effects and terrible jokes. Yet, when it’s over and you’re finished dancing to your heart’s content to 1985 or Girl All the Bad Guys Want, somehow, you’ve had the time of your life, and you’re ready for another round. I still can’t quite figure out if Bowling For Soup are a comedy act who happen to have a bunch of albums out, or a genuine band who happen to be funny, or both, but it doesn’t matter. It was pure, unapologetic fun, and sometimes, it’s all you want from life.
In Leeds, I divided by the headliner slot between two bands. First, I caught up with Wrexham pop-punks Neck Deep. I could have been okay with not seeing them at all this weekend, despite how much I enjoy their music and live shows, as I had seen them earlier this year, but they had just released Happy Judgement Day and, since it has a key change, I needed to see it performed in the flesh. (My obsession with key changes has reached a new high this year, and I don’t know how I feel about it). My first time seeing Neck Deep had also been at Slam Dunk, back in 2014, so it was nice going back to where I first saw them - even though they moved on from a packed room to a packed city square. Neck Deep are going to make it big, aren’t they? Big for real, I mean, not big by this scene’s standards. I had a hard time leaving the set, because every song was so catchy and there was no down time. The key change was also a treat. They always are.
I then made my way to the Jägermeister Stage to see the end of Enter Shikari. Once again, I could have been okay not seeing them over the weekend, as I had seen Take to the Skies performed in full in Milan, but it was too good not to see more of it. I was sat at the back, taking it all in, and let me tell you, the cover of Oasis’ Half the World Away as a tribute to the victims of the Manchester attack was the most heartbreaking and heartfelt thing I have heard all weekend. Enter Shikari are one special, unique band, aren’t they?
Last but not least, in Hatfield, I caught up with Australian outfit Tonight Alive. To anyone who knows me, it’s no secret how much I love those five, what their music means to me and how much it has helped me over the years (after the Hatfield afterparty, it’s also no secret to bass player Cam Adler, who had the grace and kindness to suffer my drunk ramblings and feelings for about fifteen minutes). There was absolutely no way I could miss them - apart from the tour they did with You Me At Six, I haven’t missed a single tour since 2012 and I don’t want to start now. The venue wasn’t packed and the crowd was chill, peacefully singing along and dancing. Long gone are the times when your girl here opened up moshpits to their sets, and I had the loveliest time. Of course, I cried - there will never be a day when The Other Side stops pulling on my heart strings. Mostly, I smiled. Every time I see Tonight Alive, I feel refreshed, I feel genuinely happy, I feel like I am right where I need to be. Seeing them is always a little bit magical, and Slam Dunk was no exception.
The bands I saw three times
Last year, I saw too many bands three times over the weekend, or just badly organised my time. Either way, I had promised myself I wouldn’t do it again this year, and keep the amount of bands I would watch on all three sites to a minimum. This minimum was four. There was, unsurprisingly, We Are The Ocean. The end of their career as I know it and their last ever shows were the main reasons I upgraded to three Slam Dunk days instead of just two, and I couldn’t miss a second of it. I started crying the second they came on stage in Birmingham. In Leeds, I cried so much my friends were worried about me. In Hatfield, I started out crying, and then ran headfirst into a pit and crowdsurfed to Nothing Good Has Happened Yet, only to find a picture of myself on the festival’s Instagram story. Having a picture of myself with a giant smile on my face at one of my favourite band’s last ever show was the greatest thing that could have happened over the weekend. Yes, I’m sad they’re gone. Mostly, I’m happy they were, are and will always be a part of my life. That deserved a smile. And a crowdsurf.
I couldn’t help but watching Bury Tomorrow tear up the main stage three days in a row. Their Birmingham set had to be cut short because frontman Dani Winter-Bates’ microphone was misplaced, but the rest went smoothly. Crowd action to die for, the comeback of Sceptres in a short set and the confirmation that these boys are doing great and taking over the world? Exactly what I wanted.
No one will be surprised when I say I did watch With Confidence three days in a row. We were following the entire UK tour, and it would have been rude not being there at every Slam Dunk set - especially considering how brilliant those shows were. Birmingham wins at best crowd, hands down, but overall, those three sets were some of my favourite times seeing the Australians. The atmosphere was just rowdy enough, I crowdsurfed to my favourite part in my favourite song and everyone was just so loud. I loved those sets.
Finally, I ended up watching Don Broco three days in a row, and they are, without a doubt, in the top three of my favourite bands of the weekend. Don Broco are one of these bands that never cease to amaze me with their live performances. When you see them, they are instantly better than the last time you have seen them, and I don’t think I have ever watched them play even an average set. From the very first day, they have always been incredible. They are showmen, their songs are always perfectly performed and they have the best crowds. Featuring Bury Tomorrow’s Dani Winter-Bates on Thug Workout and With Confidence’s Josh Brozzesi on Pretty was a great addition to the party.
The best band of the weekend, hands down
That is an award that goes to one of the best bands in the scene / at what they do / on Earth / on the line up / on any line up, ever / all of the above : Stray From The Path. The second the first note hangs up in the air, you stop seeing the fact that they are playing on a small stage, on a car park, next to another stage. The only thing your attention is drawn to is the chaos this band has unleashed over the tiny little car park, in the middle of a crowd that will relentlessly crowdsurf and pit for the entirety of the excellent set. Stray From The Path are a band that will never apologise for what they believe in or what they stand for, a band that takes no prisoners, a band that will always play to over a hundred percent of their abilities and a band that will never, ever be scared of shouting “fuck Front Porch Step and fuck Ian Watkins” on a stage, nevermind where that stage might be. I don’t think there are any words to articulate how much I admire and appreciate them. Being at Slam Dunk and not seeing them wouldn’t have felt right. (I still can’t believe I threw myself in the pit for D.I.E.P.I.G)
The band I wanted to see for a while and it finally happened
It has been a while since I have fallen head over heels in love with Seaway’s pop punk sound, and it has also been a while during which I have managed to miss every single one of their UK tours, no exception. Name it, I wasn’t there - until Slam Dunk 2017 happened. I caught their performance at Slam Dunk South and had the time of my life jumping and dancing around, relishing the fact that I was finally getting to watch them play. It was a hundred percent worth the wait.
The best discovery
It’s not a discovery per se as I had listened to their music beforehand, but it kind of is because I only started listening to them two weeks before the event. Say hi to the Australians in Trophy Eyes, the newest instalment in my life, a life which didn’t need another band, but also did. I caught twenty minutes of their set after Sorority Noise at Slam Dunk South and was swept off my feet.
Other honorable mentions
Sorority Noise, as always, were an explosion of feelings of the best kind. I can’t think of a band whose live performance is more genuine and intense. Using will always break me. The Maine never fail at putting the absolute biggest smile on my face. I hadn’t seen Decade in over two years and it was a pleasure seeing them again. They are always excellent live, and clearly deserve more love and attention. We managed to catch a little bit of Boston Manor, and man, that was unreal. The size of that crowd and how loud it was blew my tiny little mind. The One Tree Hill lover and Dude Ranch goer in me caught The Ataris, and enjoyed every second of it. So Long, Astoria is one hell of an album. We The Kings played a cover of Jimmy Eat World's The Middle, and Check Yes Juliet ("the song that made them", according to frontman Travis Clark) twice in the space of one small set, and yet I had the time of my life.
As always after Slam Dunk, I am now already looking forward to next year, polishing my band wishlist and counting the days until I find myself roaming around seven stages, navigating the clashes and catching up with my mates. So long, Slammy D. It’s been a blast.
(Current wishlist for 2018 : While She Sleeps, American Hi-Fi, Jimmy Eat World, Light You Up, Hands Like Houses, Northlane, You Me At Six's ten year anniversary tour for Take Off Your Colours)
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