Pukkelpop 2015

[TheNewUnion]

Ho99o9 pronounced Horror and not Hoggog as we called then throughout the weekend.

[DDave]

Ho99o9 pronounced Horror and not Hoggog as we called then throughout the weekend.

I hate bands with names that are difficult to pronounce. Can't help thinking !!! Would be so much bigger if they weren't called !!!

[TheNewUnion]

I hate bands with names that are difficult to pronounce. Can't help thinking !!! Would be so much bigger if they weren't called !!!

 

Agreed, surely seems silly on reflection.

[Semprini]

Boiler

 

Saw loads in here over the weekend so will only comment on the ones where I stayed for most of the set:

 

Goldfox - I made friends with Kristof (Goldfox) just before the storm in 2011 and we meet up each year for a few beers and to watch some music. He runs FortyFive in Hasselt, which is getting a very good name for itself across the whole of Belgium (Andy C is playing next month and they had 2manydjs a while back too). I'd never actually seen him DJ so was a great start to the festival. He played an excellent mix of techno tracks and finished with a current personal favourite: Bicep - 'Just'.

 

The Upbeats & Black Sun Empire - dipped in and out of both of these and there was a great vibe in the Boiler throughout. Loads of huge festival tunes and a few recognisable bootlegs thrown in for good measure - very enjoyable!

 

Spor - this was one of only two Boiler sets that I watched from start to finish and, while I loved most of what he played, it didn't blow me away like I was expecting. He was top of my 'must see' DJ list and maybe it was a case of too much expectation. I thought he'd go really hard on the beats but the sound seemed a bit flat in places compared to The Upbeats and Black Sun Empire (who'd been on just before).

 

Len Faki & Adam Beyer - was well up for both of these and they didn't disappoint. I always find with techno DJs that they don't water their sets down at festivals and that was definitely the case with these two. The crowd were well into it, particularly for Len Faki, and the lights and lasers really came to life against the darkness. The only slight draw back was that there was so much on at the same time that I felt myself being pulled between the different tents. I'm not complaining but there's always the temptation (for me anyway) to want to see whether something else is as good or better.

 

Shadowchild - this was the other full set I watched. He had quite a big crowd and managed to hold it for most of the set. Heard quite a lot of tracks I know and love but the highlight was a beautiful remix of 'Pacific' by 808 State. Was a real moment when the familar chords drifted out across the Boiler and then the saxaphone came in!

 

Dusky - been a big fan of these two for quite a while and I loved their set in the Castello last year. Wasn't sure how it would translate to the much bigger Boiler but they were excellent again. It felt like people really went for it on the last day and the atmosphere was good throughout. Music was on point and was nice to hear plenty of tracks I know.

 

Dance Hall

 

Cardiknox - alongside All Tvvins, these were my other big find in the run up and they put in a pretty solid performance. The sound was true to their studio productions but my only gripe was that they didn't play either of my favourite songs (and the ones that have the most plays on Youtube?!?). Actually bumped into them during Bleachers and had a chat and got a picture. They were loving the festival and certainly getting into the spirit of it!!

 

Watched bits of De Sluwe Vos, Madeon and Brodinski who were all good, but not great. Madeon was probably the best of the bunch, even if it was a bit cheesy in places.

 

Rebel Sound - definitely in my top 5 'must sees' of the weekend so I was surprised that the crowd wasn't bigger. That didn't stop those of us who were there having a great time and some pretty big mosh pits broke out at regular intervals. In terms of the sound, it was pretty full-on from start to finish and some of the beats were really heavy (on reflection, the kind of thing I was expecting from Spor). They didn't mess about and it was funny to watch Rodigan in action. One of my favourites from the weekend.

 

Elliphant - listened to quite a bit of her stuff beforehand and she put on a good show. She's up-and-coming but a lot of the crowd seemed to know a good number of her songs, which helped to create a nice atmosphere.

 

Duke Dumont - got there a bit late as was watching FFS but I really enjoyed what I saw. I'm not sure how much of it Mr Dumont was actually in control of but he's made some great tunes and it was nice to hear them live. 'The Giver' was a big moment but it was set closer 'I got U' that really went off. Lots of fun!

 

Above & Beyond - I used to be well into trance but it's been a while since I've really listened to any of it. I didn't have any plans to watch them when they were announced but while bored at work one day I streamed their set from T in the Park and was blown away by what they were playing. I love Eric Prydz and their sound is not a million miles away from his - loads of euphoric breakdowns alongside some driving 4/4 beats. Their set on the day was superb and the crowd at the front of the Dance Hall were really into it. I knew a lot of the tracks they played and it seemed like most of the people around me did too, which helped add to the atmosphere. Remixes of 'Blue Monday' and Delerium 'Silence' were definite highlights but the whole hour was fantastic. Up there alongside Future Islands for best performance of the weekend.

 

Wilkinson - saw him DJ a couple of years ago so was interested to see what the live show was like. I know a lot of his stuff and he brought out a variety of vocalists, which added to the occasion. They all seemed to be having a great time on stage and the atmosphere was once again superb in the crowd. 'Higher and Higher' and 'Afterglow' were big moments but the tempo didn't drop at any point in the set.

 

Underworld - as any of you who have been on here in the run up will know, I'd been looking forward to this one more than anything else. I was worried that it wouldn't live up to my high/unrealistic expectations but they delivered and it was great. I found the first half an hour a bit difficult to get into (it was more to do with me than any issue with the music) but once 'King of Snake' and 'Rez' came on everything fell into place. 'Born slippy' was predictably huge but '2 months off' was a personal highlight. Was disappointed not to hear 'dark and long' but that didn't take away from my overall enjoyment. Really hope I get the chance to see them play again one day at PKP but can't help thinking that might have been it.....

[Semprini]

Some general observations on this year:

 

Really impressed by the changes they made. Most were quite subtle though so it still felt like the old familiar place, but better. Barque Futur was interesting, with the retro merchandise stall my personal favourite (old t-shirts were on sale for 1 token but the sizes were pretty limited). Petit Bazar was much bigger and they made a big effort to put more theatre and other weird stuff on. Would have loved to go on the big ride (which was free) but the queue was always huge. I didn't go in any of ther Salon Fou places or the Pukkelpop Cafe but they'd definitely spruced the place up and added more colour.

 

Thought the new tents were an improvement on the previous ones, although there was no sign of any in-built air conditioning system. The Castello was particularly bad, to the extent that I missed quite a few bands I'd plan to see as it was unbearable. Friday was the hottest day and there were a number of times I walked in one door and then straight out the other. A few of them (Marquee, Club and Wablief? were a bit bigger but the lack of tent poles meant there were no restricted views. Seemed a bit easier to get to the front this year (at least in the tents as I didn't try at the Main) and the Marquee never got that busy whenever I went there. Came past when Paolo was on, arguably the biggest act playing there over the weekend, and it was busy but not a road block by any means.  It was deceiving at times though as many of the stages, including the Main, seemed really rammed at the back but if you worked your way through then there was often loads of space to the sides at the front.

 

The Food Wood was an awesome place and imo the best addition they made. Didn't go in there until Friday morning as I needed somewhere to chill out after the heavy night before. The food was fantastic and there were plenty of places to sit in the shade. Had a lovely pulled pork baguette (and another on Saturday!) as then some sort of bacon, cheese, salad and yogurt sandwich on Saturday. It would've been nice if they'd had a craft beer tent or something (you could buy the normal stuff there) but that may well come in the future. Sat and read the Pukkelpop Times on Saturday morning (well, looked at the pictures) whilst enjoying great food, a few beers and the sunshine - it was gezellig! Can't wait to see what they do to improve it next year but even if it stays exactly the same it will easily be the best place on the site to eat and chill out.

 

The bus situation at the end of the night was a huge chore and much worse than I remember. I don't understand why it takes so long to get to campsite B and also why those of us going into Hasselt can't just get on the bus as it comes back round by the arena once everyone's been dropped off at B? I got on Friday night just before 2am and to my joy the bus looped round and headed back past the arena, rather than go via campsite B. That joy was short lived though as we got stuck in an horrendous traffic jam as everyone left after Major Lazer. The bus was packed and I was sweating up badly - it was rank. We must have sat there for a good 45 minutes and in the end some people got off and started walking. We eventually got past the crossing and headed into Hasselt but the whole journey took over an hour. I've never walked it but if I had of known what was going to happen then I probably would have done on this occasion (or walked to the taxi rank and paid for a cab back to the hotel).

 

All in all it was another excellent addition. I used to spend time thinking about which year was my favourite and which one I'd enjoyed the most but the reality is I've never had a bad time there. Despite the lack of headliner's, the music this year was as good as any other and the atmosphere was friendly and vibrant all over the site. Once again, I saw no trouble at all and I met and chatted with quite a few friendly randoms over the weekend. The organisation was excellent as usual and the lack of queues in the arena continues to be a big attraction. I wondered beforehand what impact the new drug policy might have but it was pretty minimal. Having said that, I did see one young lad get busted near the Boiler on Friday night and it was an unwelcome and unpleasant sight to witness. I think he was sitting with his friends making a joint when a couple of the security guards in black polo tops came over. Next thing a whole squad of them appeared and they took him away. The poor lad looked gutted and that type of security seemed to be much more visible this year, particularly around the dance area at night. I've never felt PKP had a drug problem (at least compared to the UK fests I've been to) so it seemed unnecessary to make an issue of it.

 

Anyway, I'm already looking forward to #PKP16 so hope to see lots of the regulars there!!