Bestival 2016 - how was it for you?

[5co77ie]

6 minutes ago, jackarmy said:

 

I remember reading an interview with RDB where he said he was looking to cater for a more "current" crowd (i.e less older acts) - I would imagine that a lot of the older crowd who used to go to Bestival now look to do Camp Bestival, Festival No. 6, or End Of The Road instead...

I'd say Boomtown has definitely cut into their audience a fair amount - EOTR crowd seems pretty much the same each year, and less Bestival like (the glitter count is low) however I hadn't considered No.6 and you could well be right there.

[rseamer]

10 minutes ago, jackarmy said:

Reading/Leeds a bit, but more likely Boomtown is the one that springs to mind for booking a killer dance lineup.

I remember reading an interview with RDB where he said he was looking to cater for a more "current" crowd (i.e less older acts) - I would imagine that a lot of the older crowd who used to go to Bestival now look to do Camp Bestival, Festival No. 6, or End Of The Road instead...

 

Boomtown is certainly one that my friends who used to do Bestival are now talking about.

Incidentally, and slightly off topic, in terms of competition does anyone know how Camp Bestival did this year? I still can't think of another festival of its size that caters so heavily for young families.

[eFestivals]

Just now, 5co77ie said:

I'd say Boomtown has definitely cut into their audience a fair amount

yep, and I reckon it'll be extremely difficult to turn around back to Bestival, too.

Boomtown now has a "I must be there" factor similar to Glastonbury, which is something bestival never quite managed. If that's going to die-off for Boomtown I think it'll be due to another change of scene rather than something Bestival might counter via stronger line-ups.

If a festival relies on fashion for its success the chances are that success will fade as the fashions move on. It's something, I'd say, that Boomtown needs to be aware of too, cos where there's a boom there's often a bust.

[2853rob]

6 minutes ago, rseamer said:

Boomtown is certainly one that my friends who used to do Bestival are now talking about.

Incidentally, and slightly off topic, in terms of competition does anyone know how Camp Bestival did this year? I still can't think of another festival of its size that caters so heavily for young families.

We went to Camp Bestival for the first time this year and had a great time but another weak line up musically and it was evident from speaking to others who had been previously that things were a bit slimmed down this year. But we enjoyed ourselves and aside from our campervan breaking down a stones throw from the isle of wight ferry came back thinking we would do it again
Now Common people that is one we will be giving a miss, Victorius in Southsea did it so much better in 2015 when i went

[Baggins7]

 

My first time at Bestival. I thought the transport put on was really good and efficient – shuttle bus from Southampton Central to the ferry, then the ferry to the festival and back. Queues for wristbands were slow moving, got there around 3pm so likely peak time but took an hour and a half to get through. Also wasn’t a fan of the plastic wristbands! Got in and barely any space, got pointed towards yellow to then find out it was full so ended up at the front of green after lugging bags round for another hour. Actually had a really good spot near to food, not too far from toilets and only a few minutes walk from the arena so easy to nip back to the tent for drinks and a jacket if needed.

In terms of the site – I really liked the lay out and size of the arena and the stages were never more than a few minutes walk away from each other. Spent most of my time at the Big Top, Main Stage and Invaders of the Future stage so all really close together with no sound clashes. Really nice wandering through the forest at night too and lots to see. The line up did lack big names, but still so much to see and personal highlights were Glass Animals on Thursday, The Sherlocks, Oh Wonder and being front barrier for Wolf Alice.

Can’t comment on how it compared to previous years but I really enjoyed it and loved the atmosphere. Rain all day Saturday (after such good looking forecasts a week or 2 ago!) made it a big muddy in places but not too bad and Sundays sun dried this up anyway. Would definitely go back and a great way to end the summer.

[Paul ™]

2 hours ago, eFestivals said:

have you not been paying attention, Paul? It's always been big on sponsorship.

Rob's sidekick is very well tapped into that world.

Yeah not as bad as it is now though, did notice it creep in around 2010 though.

[5co77ie]

1 hour ago, rseamer said:

Boomtown is certainly one that my friends who used to do Bestival are now talking about.

Incidentally, and slightly off topic, in terms of competition does anyone know how Camp Bestival did this year? I still can't think of another festival of its size that caters so heavily for young families.

I think perhaps smaller events like Just So, and 3 Wishes Fairy Fest are also doing well against Camp Bestival (I know some people are put off by the 'Cartoon Network type' sponsorship of CB) and the smaller events are little more relaxed, a bit like just being in the Castle Meadow.

[5co77ie]

1 minute ago, Paul ™ said:

Yeah not as bad as it is now though, did notice it creep in around 2010 though.

really? Everytime I went I found it prominent!

[pothead pixie]

Sure its was the same at Electric Picnic this year, we had E-lites, 3, Logic, Bold Motel, Electric Ireland (ESB), Heineken Sound Atlas and loads of other corporate stuff.  Even though the Picnic has sold out for the last few years, it seems giving some of the corporates pitches helps cut the costs of the overheads, I'd say this is more the case for RDB this year, but I hope Bestival still continues and would love to make it there some year. 

[Radgie Gadgie]

First timer , drove down from Yorkshire , whole weekend has cost in the region of £1500.(Wild Copse, don't get me started!)

Been wanting to go to Bestival for years as it always looked amazing and had the best line ups.

Aside from 2 massive astronauts and a few names , there's nothing here that isn't at other festivals.

People need very good reasons to spend their hard earned and there is a lot of choice out there.

It would take an exceptionally good reason for me to pick Bestival over about 6 others i can think of.

It was very , very badly organised throughout and certainly not the friendly , vibe happy place i was led to believe it was.

On a positive note Oh My God It's The Church is the funniest thing i've ever seen at a festival.

And the young lad DJ'ing after them (before Ska Avengers in Caravansei) was the best DJ all weekend ,

think his name was Fizzy Gillespie or something , well played that fella

 

[Jack The Stripper]

3 hours ago, Billjames7 said:

 Also wasn’t a fan of the plastic wristbands!

A bunch of the cloth ones got stolen last minute so they had to revert to plastic ones. You can e-mail wristbands@bestival.net and they'll send you a cloth one by the end of the month. They were also available at the merch stall on Sunday.

[raynor]

I went on my own to my first Bestival and I had a great time. The Cure were the main reason that I went to Bestival and although they were brilliant, I still saw and enjoyed loads of other stuff, including things that I wouldn't normally listen to. Ive read all the comments that people have posted about this year not being as good as previous years, but of course I can't really comment on that, because this year was my first Bestival. 

[rseamer]

For anyone who hasn't seen it, here's Bestival's statement on Facebook about the feedback they have received and their own standards

https://www.facebook.com/bestivalfestival/?hc_ref=PAGES_TIMELINE&fref=nf

Edited September 13, 2016 by rseamer
Wrong link

[jackarmy]

17 hours ago, Radgie Gadgie said:

First timer , drove down from Yorkshire , whole weekend has cost in the region of £1500.(Wild Copse, don't get me started!)

Been wanting to go to Bestival for years as it always looked amazing and had the best line ups.

Aside from 2 massive astronauts and a few names , there's nothing here that isn't at other festivals.

People need very good reasons to spend their hard earned and there is a lot of choice out there.

It would take an exceptionally good reason for me to pick Bestival over about 6 others i can think of.

It was very , very badly organised throughout and certainly not the friendly , vibe happy place i was led to believe it was.

On a positive note Oh My God It's The Church is the funniest thing i've ever seen at a festival.

And the young lad DJ'ing after them (before Ska Avengers in Caravansei) was the best DJ all weekend ,

think his name was Fizzy Gillespie or something , well played that fella

 

Absolutely bloody brilliant in thereon Sunday night, I was the fella dancing on top of the car in an orange suit for around 4 hours.

[smogo]

Radgie Gadgie & Jackarmy - I was in there too. Oh My God It's the Church were just what I needed to lift my spirits after the always-melancholy fireworks finale (and not being able to get into the Spaceport because it was way too full).  A great way to (almost) end my weekend.  And yeah, Fizzy Gillespie was good too.

[jackarmy]

1 hour ago, smogo said:

Radgie Gadgie & Jackarmy - I was in there too. Oh My God It's the Church were just what I needed to lift my spirits after the always-melancholy fireworks finale (and not being able to get into the Spaceport because it was way too full).  A great way to (almost) end my weekend.  And yeah, Fizzy Gillespie was good too.

We dived out of Fatboy Slim early because it was rammed, and waaaay too EDM, after a quality set by Eats Everything. Caravansei saved our evening, it looked like the queues to get in got pretty mental not long after!

[thewayiam]

23 hours ago, eFestivals said:

yep, and I reckon it'll be extremely difficult to turn around back to Bestival, too.

Boomtown now has a "I must be there" factor similar to Glastonbury, which is something bestival never quite managed. If that's going to die-off for Boomtown I think it'll be due to another change of scene rather than something Bestival might counter via stronger line-ups.

If a festival relies on fashion for its success the chances are that success will fade as the fashions move on. It's something, I'd say, that Boomtown needs to be aware of too, cos where there's a boom there's often a bust.

That's not exactly correct is it?, if you are into danceable rave mainly, plus a fair bit of substances and Shangri-la is your one stop every night at Glastonbury then maybe. If you prefer more rock, indie and heavier music then Boomtown isn't probably going to enter your get to festival list for the year very high at all.

[Paul ™]

On 13/09/2016 at 9:54 AM, eFestivals said:

 

[Paul ™]

No idea what happened there ^^

Boomtown is so much more than just 'danceable rave'

[smogo]

Just now, Paul ™ said:

No idea what happened there ^^

Boomtown is so much more than just 'danceable rave'

Yeah, it seems to have its roots in gypsy punk, one of my least favourite genres of all time.

Looking at this year's Boomtown lineup, most of the acts I'd want to have seen there were also at Bestival, plus Besti had many bigger acts too. I'd be very interested to see Boomtown's site design because it sounds pretty good (although if it's just like a bigger Shangri-La then I'm not that bothered to be honest), but the lineup has never grabbed me.

[Matt - Ed Banger Records]

I've always been put off Boomtown because of their line-ups not being what I would be arsed to pay the money to go and see, absolutely hate electro swing, and no fan of gypsy punk, drum and bass and breaks which also feature quite heavily, but the staging and the festival itself are very much up my street and I hear nothing but positive reviews on it so I'm sure one day I will be drawn to it.

[eFestivals]

1 hour ago, thewayiam said:

That's not exactly correct is it?, if you are into danceable rave mainly, plus a fair bit of substances and Shangri-la is your one stop every night at Glastonbury then maybe. If you prefer more rock, indie and heavier music then Boomtown isn't probably going to enter your get to festival list for the year very high at all.

but if you prefer "rock, indie and heavier music" then Bestival isn't going to do it for you either.

But Boomtown is much more than a big rave anyway, and it's musical offerings have been expanding each year. Did you know - for example - they had The Levellers (as just one example, off the top of my head) play there this year?

[Paul ™]

1 minute ago, eFestivals said:

but if you prefer "rock, indie and heavier music" then Bestival isn't going to do it for you either.

But Boomtown is much more than a big rave anyway, and it's musical offerings have been expanding each year. Did you know - for example - they had The Levellers (as just one example, off the top of my head) play there this year?

And Madness, Fun Loving Criminals, Damien Marley, Imelda May, Skinny Lister, Leftfield, Sonic Boom Six, Neville Staples, Bad Manners, Ms Dynamite, Derrick May, B.Traits, Asian Dub Foundation..... and so much more different genres

[eFestivals]

1 hour ago, smogo said:

I'd be very interested to see Boomtown's site design because it sounds pretty good (although if it's just like a bigger Shangri-La then I'm not that bothered to be honest)

From one angle it's that, but it's a whole lot more than that.

I'm personally not hugely taken with it - tho mostly because I'm an old git and it's hard going. As a demonstration of that, this year I had a free (press) ticket, and even arrived on-site .... but ended up leaving again before going inside the fence. That's my problem in the main, I clearly didn't want it enough.

And yet I'll tell you that it's by-far the best festival in the UK today - way, way WAY ahead of anything else. I wish I were 20 again, they'd be no stopping me.

As a comparison, if you like: Bestival is Reading and Leeds, Boomtown is Glastonbury.

[kerplunk]

Looks like I picked the right year to end my unbroken run since 2005 (didn't really 'feel' it much last year so decided to take a break).  I quite like the idea of a scaled back bestival so I may consider it again next year, although I guess it may not be a permanent thing if they shift more tickets. Disappointing that one of the things they chopped was the hill (with the bandstand etc) though. Was there any real ale available this year?