The magical festival returns to Larmer Tree Gardens.
Goat by Rachel Juarez-Carr | Words: Brad Sked
For four days every year, a magical portal opens up just north of Salisbury within the wondrous Larmer Tree Gardens, revealing an arcadian utopia where 12,000-plus like-minded music lovers commune amongst the flora and the peacocks. With an excellent selection of music, cinema, comedy and art installations nestled in its Alice in Wonderland forest, End of the Road crams a huge array of riches within its modestly sized setting. 2025 was another stunning year at this beautifully bucolic festival.
Wristbands secured, we set-up camp with an already-warm can in hand and then headed over to the Woods Stage to catch Daara Tribes. A most glorious way to kick things off, the Moroccan outfit filled the fields with their joyous desert psych blues under a stunning sunny sky. Ultimately, it turned out to be one of the weekend's rare moments of sunny bliss, and in the golden evening light it seemed the perfect way to start the celebrations.
Daraa Tribes by Burak Cingi
Over in The Folly, which has increased vastly in size over the years, were Montreal's La Sécurité. The art punk outfit were a mesmeric, groove-heavy, motorik rollercoaster with danceable anthems that felt like an amalgamation of Bodega and Talking Heads, all with an intergalactic twang. Next up at The Folly, Brazilian artist Rogê was similarly enrapturing, his funky, feel-good samba bringing back memories of the not-so long ago heatwave. Afterward, Berlin-based Anna Erhard serenaded us with her honeyed jangly lo-fi indie-pop. A performance of 'Botanical Gardens' – which includes the lyric "the peacocks looked depressed" – felt particularly apt, though the Larmer Tree peacocks tend to seem more cheerful. That said, they did seem to be a little shy this year, and we notched a grand total of zero sightings. To be fair, this tends to be the total peacock count for most festivals anyway, so we won't put a mark against End of The Road on that point.
Closing Thursday on the main stage, The Woods, Sharon Van Etten's awe-inspiring headline show was one for the ages. The modern-day indie legend delved through her repertoire, the set featuring classics like 'Serpents' and 'Seventeen' – the latter dedicated very sweetly to a 17-year-old fan in the audience. These sat well alongside newer tracks like 'Idiot Box' and goth-disco delight 'I Can't Imagine (Why You Feel This Way)'. It is hard to fathom how this was Van Etten's first ever UK festival headline billing – this was a magnificent set by one of the best songwriters of her generation, and performed so humbly. Indeed, at one point she stopped to thank not only every member of the band, but also the entire touring party, their long-time agent, and the festival itself.
Sharon Van Etten and the Attachment Theory by Burak Cingi
Sharon Van Etten and the Attachment Theory by Rachel Juarez-Carr
Awaking feeling surprisingly fresh, the first full day started with the spiralling racket of Makeshift Art Bar. The Belfast cacophony turned the Big Top stage into an absolute sweat-pit. Sounding like the viscerally gloom-soaked Birthday Party entwined with that early Horrors goth frenzy, the band's almighty wall-of-noise could threatened to cause mass tinnitus to those who were present, but it was worth it for a truly thrilling show.
On the other end of the spectrum was Daisy Rickman performing in the viridescent, verdure-laden Garden Stage, perhaps the most aesthetically pleasing setting in live music. The acid folk artist backed by her splendid band summoned the spirits dwelling among the nearby Stonehenge monoliths. The most perfect set and setting.
End of The Road are always on it with their programming. Influenced by the current flourishing of alternative music spanning folk, psychedelia, dance-punk and post-rock, the festival really did reflect the broad leftfield independent zeitgeist. One of the key on-the-pulse acts of the weekend were Man/Woman/Chainsaw, who brought down The Big Top with their expansive orchestral, Mogwai-tinged form of post-rock. Then, over on The Boat Stage, Smote revived the psychedelic drone mood of Rickman's set, albeit coloured by some heady, ship-sinking fuzz, which felt more comparable to label mates Goat.
Daisy Rickman by Chris Juarez
Man/Woman/Chainsaw by Rachel Juarez-Carr
It was a short walk through the fantasy forest back to The Garden for The Orchestra (For Now), whose art-rock theatre was a dazzling spectacle. From there, we dashed off to The Big Top for one of the highlights of the weekend, Dame Area. The duo were nothing short of bonkers with their glitchy techno-induced punk, which saw them sharing synth and percussion duties. Transforming the Big Top as if into some all-night rave with their blistering industrial hyperclub assault, the Barcelona outfit stood as one of the absolute best sets of the weekend. File next to FCKERS, KOKOKO! and MADMADMAD.
We cut from the rave back to a hippy freakout, Broadside Hacks bringing together a collective to celebrate The Incredible String Band in a splendid psych-folk odyssey at the Garden. This rolled into the psychedelic carnival from fuzz deities Goat over on at the Woods Stage. Returning after their rain dance back in 2016, the Swedish sorcerers this time brought glinting orange sunshine with them for their prismatic psychedelic space shuttle ride. Forever one of the greatest live acts on our planet and possibly across the universe.
Dame Area by Rachel Juarez-Carr
Goat by Burak Cingi
Left and Right: Goat by Rachel Juarez-Carr
At the pastoral natural amphitheatre of the Talking Heads stage, the very last-minute booking of Ustad Noor Bakhsh, made for an unconventional and absolutely incredible close to Friday night. The master of balochi benju – an instrument said to be adapted from the taishōgoto (fans of Flamingods or Alex Maas might be familiar with the instrument) – Bakhsh's ebullience was a spiritual experience. Bats flew overhead whilst purple lighting reflected off the trees at a very packed Talking Heads Stage. Via translation, it was said that he usually plays for 3 hours, not 45 minutes. For many present, such an extension of the set would very much have welcome. Nonetheless, it was a lovely way to close out the second day.
Ustad Noor Bakhsh by Rachel Juarez-Carr
Saturday saw a prolific run of showers cause the odd mud trench across the site but it's End of The Road: even miserable weather can't spoil the good times. The first act to play The Woods were The New Eves, one of the most exciting acts in the world right now. The Brighton quartet were at their shamanistic best, sounding like some pagan Velvet Underground with krautrock sensibilities. The band seemed at home on the main stage, though they mentioned this was in fact the biggest crowd they have played for to date. Later, over at The Garden, American soulful crooner Tyler Ballgame serenaded the End of the Road crowd, his set including a rendition of the almost advert-ready 'Help Me Out', which feels like an amalgamation of Unknown Mortal Orchestra and Leon Bridges. All this got us in the mood for good guys Personal Trainer, who brought the party with their indie alt-rock-like pint spillers.
It was a quick dash to The Boat next as it was time to rave again. Emerging from the burgeoning New York scene, Kassie Krut's experimental electro-punk is a love letter to the breadth of electronic music. Drawing from deep house, techno and UK bass, Kassie Krut are another outfit from the ever growing pool of live acts taking apart electronic music and putting it back together in a weird new way. Up next at the Big Top, things took a turn for the industrial with Moin's frantic, visceral set, which was almost enough to melt one to a pulp and defoliate the surrounding gardens. Droney yet dynamic, Moin blended the splendid saturnine with experiential noise and elements of black metal for an odd affair that felt sombre and yet somehow ecstatic.
The New Eves by Lloyd Bolton
Moin by Gem Harris
At The Garden was ex-black midi showman Geordie Greep and his sensational band. The boundary pushing artist intertwined Sun Ra-like acid-jazz with Latin and art-rock, for one of the most mind-blowingly tight shows one can witness. It was unruly, unequivocally one of the barmiest live experiences one can witness. Like many present, we stayed on at the Garden for the most worthy headliners of such a place: Viagra Boys. The post-punk rock 'n' roll party starters whirled up a scorching mosh pit-inducing riot. Proving they're not simply a bit of fun but rather worthy of closing out festival nights, they turned The Garden into a toaster. Along with its more frivolous moments, there was a serious side to this set, felt particularly sharply when singer Sebastian Murphy spoke passionately about the current plight of Palestine and Britain's national responsibility for the ongoing crisis. Acts across the weekend expressed their solidarity with Palestine and Viagra Boys put their money where their mouth is, announcing that they would be donating their fee to Doctors Without Borders.
The party goes on long into the night at End of the Road, and after the live music was over on the Saturday, we spent the rest of the night dancing in the woods. Those of us who stayed out late enough were treated to a surprise DJ set from the previous night's Woods headliner Caribou over at the Boat. Continuing into the small hours, it was a dance feast for the enthusiastic crowd.
Geordie Greep by Hugo Healy
Above and below: Viagra Boys by Gem Harris
After all this, Sunday kicked off at a much-needed slower pace. Though stylistically opposite to the Viagra Boys set of a night before, Shovel Dance Collective sustained the message of support for Palestine and acknowledgement of Britain's responsibility for its people's suffering. After The Mary Wallopers' ejection from Victorious Festival the week before over their displaying of a Palestinian flag, it felt particularly vital to have an independent festival like End of the Road to platform artists actively supporting that cause. Shovel Dance's powerful folk adaptations created spaces of contrasting poignance and tranquility.
Next up, over at The Folly, it was time for Theatre. The exciting Irish outfit have no music out so far, but seemed to coalesce 80s indie with shoegaze and astounding vocals. Readers who are aware of fellow mysterious risers Goodbye might find another new favourite in such an act. Then, in the glorious sunshine at The Garden, Vieux Farka Touré blessed End of the Road with a set of effervescent Malian psychedelic blues. The shred marvel and Khruangbin collaborator left those in attendance spellbound. We stayed at The Garden for a double dose of saccharine goodness because up next was Katy J Pearson bringing a benediction of loveliness in the form of her cosmic country. Reaching across her repertoire from the fuzz-grunge pop of 'Alligator' to the space-pop odyssey 'Tonight', Pearson's candied harmonies felt like a gift from the pixies of the Larmer Tree Gardens forest.
Shovel Dance Collective by Lloyd Bolton
Vieux Farka Touré by Burak Cingi
Katy J Pearson by Gem Harris
Closing out the Sunday were Black Country, New Road. From the Windmill to this Garden Stage headline, the ascendance of this London-via-Cambridge outfit has been remarkable and showcases the value of grassroots venues in nurturing such artists. This night, they were as stunning as ever, mentioning that playing at the idyllic Garden Stage had long been a dream of theirs. Their blend of baroque-pop, jazz, folk and post-rock added up to a set that made them worthy headliners and served as a perfect close to an amazing weekend.
The 2025 edition found End of the Road as magical as ever. This year's fairytale is over, but already fans are looking ahead to the next edition, with early bird tickets already sold out. Next year is the 20th anniversary and we can't wait to see what is in store for the birthday of one of the UK's best loved festivals.
Black Country, New Road by Chris Juarez
No comments:
Post a Comment