So STRUGGLEFEST 2015 was a big success, on my terms. Meaning that every band who came and played were amazing, they all had a great time, got fed and paid and plenty of people came down (around 110) it was busy from the start of the day and a lot of people told me directly that the show was awesome.
Three bands pulled out over the course of planning the event, with Adjust going first due to work commitments and Any Last Words stepped in to fill their opening slot. College were next to go for similar work related reasons being replaced by Fletch from The Sinking Feeling’s new project S O R R Y (with additional poetry by George Garthwaite) finally on the day of the show Bluebird were unable to make it due to a van breakdown before they even left Notts.
Around 20 minutes after doors ticket holders and pay-on-the-door types started filing into the venue, by the time Any Last Words had finished there first song there were already around 50 people in the room messing around with the STRUGGLE balloons and enjoying their jangly post-hardcore. From then we were on a roll, with Veto. upping the tempo and providing energetic pop punk for the growing crowd. I started to stress as Control weren’t around yet and they were due to play after Veto. but they arrived in plenty of time to set up and hit us with a short set of Youth Crew style hardcore jams all the way from Newcastle. Slowlight had a little extra time to set up which we used to set levels nicely and played one of our strongest sets to date, playing this bill was a real honour and we were happy to be well received. Next up was S O R R Y who drafted in poet George Garthwaite to perform some of his amazing poetry before Fletch did his new thing solo, with dreamy fuzz laden guitars and melancholy vocals his new songs are great and it was awesome of him to step in last minute to fill in for College. We left Bluebird’s slot free and some folk headed out to grab food before heading back in to catch The Kimberly Steaks doing their ‘if Green Day never got shit’ sound with added grim Scottishness. Carson Wells were as wonderful as ever with their intense and soaring emo. Maycomb killed it with their melodic and anthemic pop-punk and Bear Arms made an excellent account of themselves as headliners.
Everyone got paid for their efforts, we all had a great time and what more can you ask?!
