The Steel Yard impresses on its debut solo event.

Arriving at Victoria Park in London on bank holiday Sunday we were greeted by grey drizzly skies, had I not been so excited about my first trip to the Steel Yard presented by the legendary Creamfields the weather would have possibly damped my spirits, I mean who wants to stand in a park in the rain on a bank holiday weekend?! Entering the Park it was clear to see that yet again Creamfields had pulled in the crowds from all over the globe for the two day event, with the likes of Eric Prydz and his Epic 5.0 show and Axwell and Ingrosso headlining it's hard to see why you wouldn't want to go! The ten thousand capacity structure (It's far too big to refer to it as a tent) was sat between bars and food outlets with enough green space in between to sit and enjoy the sun when it stopped raining.

 

The line up could not have been any more impressive, made up of Weska, Cristoph, George Fitzgerald, Kolsch and Eric Prydz on the Saturday and Anthony Probyn, Third Party, Fathless Dj set, Don Diablo, Matin Solveig and Axwell and Ingrosso on the Sunday, ravers were in for a teat. Sunday definitely did not disappoint and entering the steel yard through the top end I was greeted by the Faithless DJ set, With the lighting rig stretching halfway down the crowd hundreds of lasers were hitting each corner of the tent as Sister Bliss played a mix of modern dance tracks and Faithless classics which were well and truly warming up the crowd for the headliners who were due on after Don Diablo and Martin Solveig. Diablo extended his set in the absence of Solveig who had been caught up on his flight, both DJs kept the crowds captivated with their song choices, having seen both of theses djs before I knew what to expect and I was not disappointed by either performance. But for me it was all about the headline act, Axwell and Ingrosso. Being two of the three Swedish House Mafia these guys are always one of my top picks for any festival headliner. Watching them from the crowd you can tell they live and love to DJ and they certainly know how to work the audience playing the right mix of their own work alongside the classic SHM tunes which the crowds never fail to go wild for singing louder than the music at times and really embracing the show that's being put on for them. It may have just been me but it seemed that the visual effects were a hundred percent more impressive during this set, More lasers (if that's possible) brighter backdrops as well as pyrotechnics and confetti. Their set finished with Axwell taking a moment to take in the atmosphere, and thanking the crowd for coming from far and wide saying 'you came from somewhere, maybe you came from Manchester - Bless you, Thank you for coming, you know we appreciate you' before finishing with 'More than you Know' shortly followed by the words 'We love you London, more than you know' on the big screen.

 

For me Steel Yard was the perfect event to start the festival season, and has defiantly made me more excited about traveling up to Creamfields this August Bank Holiday. Ticking every box and more, I was definitely in awe of the gigantic structure which having improved on its size from last year it's clear to see that Creamfields are setting a precedent in the festival world for thinking outside the box when it comes to enhancing the festival experience. I cannot wait to see what they come up with next but one thing is for sure, I will be there ready and waiting first in line for the next Steel Yard event.