It feels like a prank is being played on the people of Butserfest. As you arrive on site you do so in a sea of youths donning neon hairspray so patchily applied that it seems as though half of the attendees have attempted to dye their hair in the midst of a hurricane. It’s a rather amusing trend to see sweep the site, though most likely not one that will extend any further than the grounds of the youth-oriented festival. Though the average age of Butserfest-goers is raising slightly as time goes on, it is still very much a young person’s day out, tucked right at the end of festival season as a fellow bookend to the likes of Slam Dunk and Takedown. The result is something not quite the same as your typical festival atmosphere but still ensures a high energy afternoon as the best and brightest in the British rock and metal scenes converge on the Queen Elizabeth Country Park.
It’s Birmingham metallers Aurora who soundtrack 7bitarcade’s arrival on site. After their appearance alongside the likes of Marmozets and Hacktivist on the festival’s second stage last year, 2014 sees them make the jump up to the main stage and they make the most of the higher slot. Frontwoman Jessica Calvesbert starts out a little hit and miss with her clean vocals, but as far as screams are concerned it’s as if there’s a different person sharing the same lungs. Instrumentally the quintet (coming complete with a trio of Joshes) are on form, and all round it makes for a solid opener to the day. When We Were Wolves are the band tearing into the opposite end of the festival site, and ahead of their supporting slot to the Blackout later this year, the five-piece are hitting all the right notes. The Introducing Stage, meanwhile, provides Kodiak Jack with an opportunity to make a scene, though it’s a little early in the day for the Portsmouth act to get many bodies moving amongst a lineup which is slightly more Metal Hammer than Planet Rock. The Hype Theory are themselves a respite from the heavier main stage bill, but Butserfest proves a strong end to festival season after the band have sunk their teeth into the likes of Camden Rocks, Yardfest and Sonisphere earlier in the summer. There is still Nightmare Festival this November for the pop-punk fivesome, but this weekend has ensured that it’s good form with which the outfit bear down on their autumn schedule.
I Divide and Our Hollow Our Home go head to head in the 3PM slot; a battle between bands who have been well represented on the one day festival circuit in the last year or so. Both are in good voice once again at Butserfest, and while its the main stage that packs a harder punch on this occasion, the following clash between The Catharsis and Tek-One sends the advantage to the second stage instead. It’s a little early in the day for the latter’s brand of grating electronics, and the sudden change from I Divide’s thumping riffs sends more people than at any other point in the day quickly off to peruse the other stages. Blitz Kids, however, provide a great antidote, and while the alt-rockers are still not quite at their best in an outdoor setting, the early evening slot finds them in far stronger stead than their appearance at Slam Dunk earlier this year. Black Futures, meanwhile, pounce on the chance to give the Alternative stage a good kicking; another band whose brief visit to the Queen Elizabeth Country Park can be considered a resounding success. Like Black Futures, 2014 will certainly not be the last time that Baby Godzilla descend upon Butserfest. There is nothing you can say about the feral nature with which Baby Godzilla throw themselves at a festival set that has not already been stated and restated countless times over. Word of mouth may prove a dangerous thing, however, with the quartet’s disregard for conventional band-to-audience ettiquette (while usually only serving to make an already intense band even more memorable) has started to become all too infectious. An opportunity to examine just what the visceral four-piece will do next as they branch out more and more with each successive performance instead leaves most distracted by the rather embarrassing antics of those fans who have clearly had too much Monster included in their packed lunches for the day. Musically, Baby Godzilla are as good as they’ve ever been, but the rather off-putting efforts of an over-excited few reduce many hopeful fans to a disgruntled murmur as they exit the tent.
Never have sound issues done so much for a band as they do for Feed the Rhino in the opening stages of their main stage set. Frontman Lee Tobin’s mic volume is clearly set too loud for the sound systems to handle, and the result is a far gnarlier, explosive performance than anyone could have expected. Dozens more tickets were no doubt shifted on the spot for the band’s October tour as Butserfest finally and convincingly came alive. The final precursor to the co-headline acts prove a more than worthy match, feeding on fans’ desperation to light the evening up in style and delivering perhaps their most incendiary festival set to date.
It’s the end of an era for Kids in Glass Houses. Co-headlining Butserfest is their last ever festival performance, as their farewell tour this autumn looms ever closer. But Christ, do they close this chapter in a raucous fashion. The main stage crowd swells as more and more fans come out of the woodwork to witness what will be, for some, the last they ever see of the Welsh pop-punk veterans in a live setting. The greatest hits set that ensues is fired off with a much different atmosphere amongst fans than there was when Smart Casual got a front-to-back airing at Slam Dunk back in May. For the band and audience alike this was a memorable one for all the right reasons, and there is no sign of the quintet losing their edge as the final shows pass by. Sonic Boom Six, however are here to stay, closing out the Alternative Stage in their typical, high octane style. ‘Virus’ and ‘Sound of a Revolution’ never fail as crowd pleasers, and the new tracks that have been tried and tested in the band’s summer shows have proven to display similar qualities.
On this night, however, there is no topping The Blackout. It’s no surprise really, the band impressed as they headlined Takedown Festival last year, and a return to Butserfest as headliners is a logical progression.With a new EP and tour fast approaching, Butserfest offers up a retrospective of the Welsh outfit’s career so far as the main stage crowd laps up every second. There’s a new fervor to the band this time around, and they spend the entirity of their hour-long set with the audience in the palms of their hands. It’s the kind of closing set guaranteed to leave the entire crowd buzzing, a fantastic way to close out another fine year for Butserfest. Same time next year, we hope.
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