“We’re standing in a line to disappear.”
Shot on the 13th June, photography by Konstancja Szwed, contact prior to any use. Words by Joe Edwards.
Since its inception, Outbreak Festival has always been a firm fixture of northern venues. Moving between Sheffield, Leeds, and now Manchester, Outbreak continues its storied history. This meant that the announcement that the Friday of Outbreak, previously either part of the full festival or pre-show, would now be in London, did raise a few eyebrows. England’s capital, which is home to the likes of Ironed Out, TRC, and Supernova, has played host to festivals over the years such as Upsurge and Reality Unfolds. It was arguably only a matter of time until Outbreak partook in the rich vein of hardcore that runs throughout London. The boldness of Outbreak having their first foray at Victoria Park, part of the LIDO festival weekend, was an immediate shot across the bow that was ultimately foreseeable.
With a capacity of forty to fifty-thousand, which is ten times that of Bowlers in Manchester, it seemed an almost improbable task, along with many other factors, that Outbreak‘s London venture would be a forthcoming flop. The existence of a barrier, the clashing with Download, and it simply being remotely in the south were enough. Even the sheer pull of Turnstile, who are now hot off the press of releasing NEVER ENOUGH, could not be seen as enough to some for Outbreak London to justify its existence. Yet despite this framing that Outbreak London had been given by some, the day itself was an astounding statement for hardcore and the festival itself, despite issues with their collaboration with LIDO.
SPEED
A warm 28 degrees Celsius and a vibrant Bow welcomed those heading towards Victoria Park, which is arguably London’s finest park for many, and provided a wonderful backdrop throughout the day. The airport style security that now blights many of London’s festivals and gigs was present. Ruffling through bags, sniffer dogs and evident PCSOs across the festival had the air of a strong hand. Yet this isn’t much of a surprise as the city now forces punters through a walking tour of Brixton at the O2, a lot of which comes across as deploying the riot police for when you’ve got a home fixture against Forest Green Rovers. Even with more security than bar staff, it did not stop reports of people having their mobile phones reportedly stolen. As this is something which has plagued these festivals for almost a decade now, it does beg the question of what is the ultimate point of it all.
Main stage played host to many of the more shoegaze and post-punk leaning acts. Momma played through singles from their sublime Welcome to my Blue Sky along with tracks from Household Name, a joyous performance in the sun that eased the mind into the day. Drug Church, as always, put on a raucous set. This led the G4S security to call in the “Response Team” to help with the amount of crowdsurfers that Kindlon was commanding. The late afternoon did offer up a harsh clash between Fleshwater and Speed, resulting in a questionable crossover of fanbases that would exist between the two. Unfortunately, it was Fleshwater who seemingly suffered out of the tandem. Cruising through the likes of “Kiss the Ladder” and “Woohoo“, the crowd could be seen peeling away towards the second stage. Despite a few sound issues that Momma also suffered, the grugegaze unit were as special as ever. With DiDio, the crowd convened into circle pits and jumped along to one of the genre’s finest acts.
Julie
Speed, as expected, played to a full tent on the second stage. Seemingly one of the most popular bands of the day with an audience only rivalled by Knocked Loose on that stage, Speed merch was visible on punters throughout the day. An act seemingly in ascendancy that had a furious pit and crowdsurfers to go, it was a scene of chaos, which is what Speed have come to perfect with their live shows. This along with Knocked Loose did bring into the mind why perhaps they were both not on the main stage. Given how the ‘gaze’ sounds of many bands are suited to more closed-in venues and how crushed in both felt due to the tent sizes with higher temperatures to boot, it could be seen as poor stage choice.
As the day moved on, the setup that LIDO had in place became more irksome. In general, there was a consumerist and corporate sensibility to a lot of the setup. While part and parcel of many festivals, it all felt deeply extractive. Six pounds upwards for a 330ml or 440ml can of beer felt like a secret plot from Outbreak to encourage straight edge. There were O2 priority areas and queues even for the bars, sponsors from Asahi, gin companies, and one even offering out free condoms. While it is one that feels endurable when Knocked Loose and others play the larger venues in the UK, for a festival that is built on hardcore values, this sort of setup simply felt wrong and out of step for Outbreak.
Superheaven
An audience which at most was ten-thousand did lead times for acts to suffer on their respective stages. Another brutal clash occurred between Julie, Superheaven, and Model/Actriz, who all in their own right deserve to be seen. It was the main stage that had a lackluster crowd and led to Julie‘s act feeling slightly empty, while Superheaven thrived with a loyal audience that made good space of the second stage. When exiting the loud beats of Model/Actriz played from “The Club” aka Third stage, everyone sounded like they were having a grand time.
It was next when the obtuse system for that third stage would become particularly evident. Hosting Have a Nice Life, who after originally finding popularity on 4chan’s /mu/ and had seen a resurgence on TikTok, led to a lengthy queue to even get into the stage. A one-in-one-out style system was a simple overreaction for this, leading to many people entering the tent late or giving up on queuing. Despite the sheer warmth of the tenth, which was also a mild issue on the second stage, Have a Nice Life put on a stellar performance. There is something to witness with an act that you never thought you’d see live, and for Have a Nice Life, it’s performing the likes of “Defenestration Song“, “Bloodhail” and “Earthmover“, to make the enduring heat of the tent worth it.
Have a Nice Life
Realistically, there was only one act worth seeing as a precursor to Turnstile. A quick return after their recent tour across the UK and also playing Outbreak, it is rare luck to be able to see these titans twice in such little time. Moving through “Blinding Faith“, “Mistakes Like Fractures” and “Deadringer” early on, a baying crowd chanted along diligently and moved side to side. As the set moved into the likes of “Suffocate” and “Billy No Mates“, the crowd did not wither despite the heat. Towards Knocked Loose‘s crescendo, there were at least five separate mosh pits on-go. Hale for the closer “Everything Is Quiet Now” called in a wall of death-come-mosh pit, with the demand of “get off your phones“. Knocked Loose‘s snub from the main stage did show that this was a festival with hardcore acts, rather than a purely hardcore festival.
The amassing of the crowd for Turnstile pulled the Outbreak London venture into an odd perspective. There was a sense of proportionality to seeing a band while now slightly departed, are home to the hardcore scene. To draw a crowd of this size on a Friday evening is even more impressive. In that sense, from the moment Yates sang “NEVER ENOUGH” there was a captivated crowd and all the wider aspects of the festival melted away. There was a heart to the Turnstile set, seemingly wanting to pay homage to their previous sets more than a decade ago, which Yates himself mentioned. Turnstile pulled out “Drop” and “7” from the back catalogue as part of their 90-minute set. Moving through their more notable hits of “DULL“, “UNDERWATER BOI” and “I CARE“, Yates had the crowd in his hand singing and dancing along. Opening the second part of their set with “BLACKOUT” and closing out on “BIRDS” was near-perfect. As the skies closed and the rain began, it oddly fitted in with the mellow nature of Turnstile’s recent offering, giving a magical touch to their set. There was no one more fitting than Turnstile to see Outbreak play in front of its largest venture yet, twelve years on from when the Baltimore act first headlined the festival in Sheffield.
Knocked Loose
As the night ended under thunderstorms while being funnelled by security into Mile End station, it had the contrast of emotions present. There was the sheer high of seeing Turnstile, Knocked Loose, Have a Nice Life, Fleshwater, and Speed perform in a venue that in itself is wonderful. As the security moves you through stop and start signs, everything that was simply wrong with Outbreak London begins to dampen that high. While there will be no taking away from the bands that performed, there is something uneasy about the setup which Outbreak chose for their first foray in London. Furthermore, there are evidently logistics and pricing constraints at work, yet I suspect many would rather see Outbreak build something outside of the corporate festival system as they did over the years, rather than indulging them as they have with LIDO here. What comes next will ultimately be the act that defines Outbreak‘s stance in London. There is a chance it could be a one-off, one for the archives similar to All Points East 2019 that stands as an unsuccessful swing for the fences. If it carries on in the form it has this year, the argument for it would be difficult to either justify or stomach, given the consumerist shell it would have to live within. Despite the naysayers, London is worthy of an Outbreak, yet the form it comes in next should be much more homogenous to the values and heart that have made Outbreak such a success over the last decade plus.
Turnstile
Our coverage of Outbreak Manchester will be going live in the coming days. For further coverage of this year’s festivals including 2000trees, ArcTangent and Burn It Down, keep an eye on BoolinTunes.