The Dorset festival charms again with standout sets including Joanna Sternberg, Richard Dawson, Lankum and Snõõper.
Above: Slowdive by Gem Harris | Words: Lloyd Bolton
End of the Road is perhaps Britain's most endearing festival, intimate, friendly and constructed with a feeling for fun that provides a backdrop to a consistently great lineup. Hosted in Dorset's idyllic Larmar Tree Gardens, with peacocks roaming the grounds, it brings together around 15,000 music fans, operating on a small scale that means one is constantly running into old friends and new favourite bands and comparing highlight sets and late night plans. The woods are filled with playful surprises, from art installations to marble runs, and there is a rather fabulous games area that inspires the giddiest of after dark merriment.
Warming proceedings up on Thursday, Laetitia Sadier followed by Richard Dawson provided two immediate highlights of the weekend. Dawson in particular is such an imposing presence, commanding the hushed attention of his crowd with his humble solo setup, elaborate purely for his beguiling lyrics and idiosyncratic compositions. New York post-punks Gustaf were also welcome returnees to a UK stage, while headliner Bonnie "Prince" Billy performed a set long in the making for the festival and proved to be another artist whose captivating and sensitive writing engrossed listeners even with minimal two-person arrangements.
Richard Dawson holds the crowd at the Woods Stage
On Friday the festival really swings into life, the mundane ferality of compost loos, slightly squashed campsite food and constant noisy bands setting in. Holiday Ghosts made for a pertinent wake-up call in that respect. The Garden Stage provides undoubtedly the best setting for its bands, an organic amphitheatre provided by the trees that envelop its leafy arched frame. One can see why many will set up camp there all afternoon, catching a little shade and the steady stream of music. Gruff Rhys was an early favourite at this spot, playing a set that spanned his excellent and various solo catalogue. While IDLES had the main headline slot, we stuck with the Garden and opted to watch Lankum that night. Their expansive, experimental take on folk material created a rich gothic atmosphere among the nighttime shadows of the trees. From here, it was on into the night, The Boat our preferred dancing spot for the evening… after a quick few rounds of Corn Hole in the games area!
Lankum by Rachel Juárez-Carr
One of End of the Road's great strengths is the open-mindedness of its lineup. In catering to its crowd of alternative music fans, they recognise how diverse this musical definition has come to be. While there were plenty of guitar bands and folky acts, traditionally the festival's bread and butter, there were in equal measure plenty of other styles represented, some more easily categorisable than others. Indonesia-via-Netherlands psych funk group Nusantara Beat were a revelation on the main stage, while the late nights especially catered to tastes for dancefloor-ready electronica in the form of, among others, Floating Points (a last minute addition to the bill) and a 2am set from John Talabot.
Saturday opened with a secret solo set from Julia Jacklin, who as it turned out was there celebrating her birthday, and who was tremendous performing a stripped set that emphasised her intelligent and heartfelt lyricism. Other highlights of the afternoon were Brown Horse (we were glad to catch their full set having been drawn in by a handful of songs at Green Man) and Modern Woman, whose latest lineup has their sound feeling more complete than ever.
The run-in on the main stage on Saturday felt like one of the strongest series of performances of the weekend. The dazzling Lemon Twigs kicked off proceedings before a truly epic set from Jockstrap. The latter proved the potency of their music in such an expansive, bowl-like hillside setting, which compared favourably with the sweaty tents they often find themselves in. Some new material made its way into the set as well, a tantalising taste of things to come down the line. For this, however, we will have to wait; Georgia announced that this would be the band's final live performance for quite a while.
Jockstrap by Chris Juarez
All this came before Slowdive took things over. Their richly layered songs packed a powerful punch as they blared across the field, backed by dazzling projections. From here, we headed into the night once more. The woods fill with good natured party energy when the sun goes down and the children go to bed, providing a magically detached setting to let loose. While the Lemon Twigs and Lip Critic followed earlier performances with secret sets at the Folly, we headed for an intense DJ set from Tom Ravenscroft, who leaned into his reputable rave catalogue, before handing over to End of the Road house DJs for some reggae classics.
Sunday proved to be the strongest day at the festival, a resounding finale for the weekend. Kicking things off, Sarah Meth played a blazing set in the Folly, her band sounding better than ever. The Sorry influence could be felt in its use of irreverent but telling samples and in the grungey energy that electrified the heavier songs, including closer 'Fuckboy'. As Meth rightly announced, "this feels like a shades on song", pulling her wraparounds down over her eyes.
Sarah Meth (shades on) by Burak Cingi
Ebbb, a band whose live reputation has built them a massive buzz this year, lived up to the excitement with their set over at the Boat Stage. Their combination of techno influences with Will Rowland's plaintive vocals, guided brilliantly by the shuffling drums of Scott MacDonald, making for something truly original. After this, we sacrificed a chance to see Tara Clerkin Trio, opting instead for Joanna Sternberg on the logic that the latter would not be playing again in the UK so soon. They were of course delightful, which is unsurprising for those familiar with the openhearted honesty of their songs. These tender and melancholic moments were offset in such a human way with endearing and funny chat between tracks. Sternberg was given a full hour and it is testament to their incredible songwriting talent that they could maintain a compelling performance for this length of time with just words and (excellent) guitar playing.
From here, we headed straight over to catch the last few songs by Water From Your Eyes, the brilliant New York duo expanded into a four-piece for the live show for an imposing performance. While still relying on a laptop to attain some of their more artificial sounds (and because, as singer Rachel Brown put it, "the laptop doesn't need health insurance"), the live instruments added a crucial verve to the set, drums pumping through the more forceful moments while the exchange of harmonics between guitars on "Quotations" created a beautiful texture as the set wound down.
Joanna Sternberg by Rachel Juárez-Carr
As the close of the festival approached, we hit on our own highlight, Nashville punk group Snõõper, who took to a stage decorated in their signature surreal papier mâché models. They had piqued our interest as signees to Third Man Records and their studio recordings attested to a strong DIY spirit. Live, they more than lived up the the promise. In the original punk era, it was widely accepted that no one did it faster than the Ramones. It felt like Snõõper were finally going one better, at least within a punk context. This is an evolution they put down to having started the project in lockdown when they did not have to replicate the songs live. In performance, energy seethes through each member as they play blazing riffs at an impossible rate. There is more to them than simple reanimation of that original form of punk, too, with songs lurching in unexpected directions while nevertheless inciting much moshing among the crowd. Band members routinely made dives towards this mass while keeping up the lightning playing.
Rounding out the festival, Yo La Tengo stepped up to headline the main stage after Fever Ray had to drop out due to illness. The band certainly lived up to the slot, drawing a big crowd of appreciative fans, though the predominance of heavier material left us wanting a bit more of the sparser side of the band, in which each intricate layer really shines. Then it was on into Cornelius in the Big Top – we had hoped to catch Lambrini Girls but unfortunately The Folly had already filled up. Cornelius, however, provided a fantastic finale. The band have a strong sense for creating a dramatic and visually compelling live show. Coming on stage behind a curtain, the set started with the band projected as shadows onto this wall. Their larger-than-life appearance introduced the volume and intensity of the music, much more krautrock in this setting than it tends to be on the record. The screen then gloriously gave way to reveal the band themselves, backed by an immersive live display synced up to the beats, featuring a mixture of CGI animations and their signature Pop Art remixes of found footage.
Cornelius by Chris Juarez
The taste of the curation at End of the Road is a given, but what one can forget through the year is the more all-encompassing joy of inhabiting the festival. Accentuated by tasteful art installations and an idyllic grounds, as well as the strong sense of community among attendees, this music finds a setting that seems to inspire the performers as much as the crowd. At points, one could have felt there was some form of contractual obligation for performers to declare how grateful they were to be at the festival. Yet it is palpable how much it means to these acts to be a part of this event… just look at Julia Jacklin's using the occasion to celebrate her birthday! We are still dusting ourselves down this week, but the early sellouts of Early Bird tickets for next year show how deep this festival gets under the skin.
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