LIDO Festival: Day 5 – London Grammar close triumphant debut year (Review)
SUNDAY 15 JUNE: The inaugural LIDO Festival closed on Sunday with a showstopping set from London Grammar following unique bills curated by Massive Attack, Jamie xx and Charli xcx, along with Outbreak Fest headlined by Turnstile.
London Grammar topped a lineup including Celeste, Róisín Murphy and Maverick Sabre.
The widescreen pop of London Grammar was celebrated to its full with songs like ‘How Does It Feel’ ringing around Victoria Park, Hannah Reid’s vocals riding the beats. Their cover of Kavinsky’s ‘Nightfall’ is an unlikely singalong but it is gorgeous in its stillness before the unrelenting rhythm kicks in.
‘House’ was equally thunderous, London Grammar laying claim to the site, while ‘Wasting My Younger Years’ and ‘Lord It’s a Feeling’ reverberated around the field.
‘Baby It’s You’ was heartbreak disco for the park’s dancefloor and ‘Metal & Dust’ was cloaked in regret. Fans were treated to stripped back versions of ‘Fakest Bitch’ and ‘Darling Are You Going To Leave Me’.
The crowd sang with Hannah for the anthemic ‘Strong’ and closer ‘Lose Your Head’: “You say you miss me now. What a way to lose your head.”
The previous day, Charli xcx presented PARTY GIRL, with an iconic headline set and support acts including Gesaffelstein, 070 Shake, A. G. Cook and The Japanese House. Amelia Dimoldenberg made a surprise appearance for the ‘Apple’ dance, while Harris Dickinson and Paul Mescal, ‘Lennon and McCartney’ in the forthcoming Beatles film series, were in the crowd.
For the first time, OUTBREAK Fest was staged in London on Friday, with Turnstile delivering a huge headline set fresh from the release of their acclaimed album NEVER ENOUGH.
Jamie xx’s headline set last Saturday saw him reunited on stage with fellow The XX stars Romy and Oliver Sim. It was a day of collaborations with B2B dj sets featuring the likes of Skrillex, Nia Archives, Shy FX and Jamie himself. In the crowd and dancing was a certain Harry Styles.
London’s new festival opened with a very special sustainable day, the first 100% battery-powered event of its kind, led by Massive Attack. The band welcomed guest contributions from Elizabeth Fraser, Horace Andy, Deborah Miller and Yasiin Bey.
For the final day, Dan Whitlam opened the main stage with Sunday vibes, deft poetry peppering chilled tunes like closer ‘Satellite’. The third stage, The Club, enjoyed a moment of classic rock with Essex-based The White Gates Band making their festival debut. “Which means you’re our first festival audience,” said powerhouse vocalist Jessica Richardson. “You’ve been amazing so far so how about giving yourselves a round of applause. This one’s called ‘Desire’.”
On the second stage, Clementine Douglas asked the crowd: “Can I play you something new? It’s only the second time I’ve played it live so see what you think. It’s called Tokyo.” What they thought was that they might just have heard a brand new radio/club classic, perfect for a Sunday afternoon – and that was followed by the hard-hitting Calvin Harris collaboration ‘Blessings’.
Also presenting new material were Wasia Project on the main stage. Keyboardist Will GAO said: “Thank you. How we feeling? So, this next one is a new one. It’s called ‘Letters From the Day’ and it’s coming out this summer at some point. We don’t know when, but stay tuned!” The project, with sister and singer Olivia Hardy, brings classical training to a jazzy blend of dream pop, the vocals and synths washing over a swaying crowd.
Róisín Murphy’s set opened with disorientating blasts from the band before the unmistakable star, in technicolour dreamcoat, for ‘Pure Pleasure Seeker’, the 2000 hit by her band Moloko. The pummelling hits kept coming with the likes of ‘Dear Miami’ and ‘Simulation’. Songs like ‘Sing It Back’ are undeniable and no one in the front row was turning down a long-stem rose offered by the star.
Pip Millett’s unique songwriting drew an ecstatic crowd to the second stage, with jazz inflected R&B providing a platform from deft, direct and touching lyrics in the likes of ‘Better’ and new song ‘Mad’. A take on ‘Try a Little Tenderness’ was perfectly pitched.
“I found today really lovely,” she said. “It was my first day back at festivals in two years so it was really nice. Everyone was so sweet. There was a really nice energy to this festival. I’ve just had the best time.”
As the afternoon waned, LA duo Neil Frances brought wall-to-wall bangers for a Sunday disco (Gypsy Woman (La Da Dee La Da Da), Music Sounds Better With You).
Meanwhile, the spellbinding Celeste was on the main stage. Songs like the unreleased ‘Only Time Will Tell’ are jazzy and sublime, while the likes of ‘Free’ embraces a degree of chaos. ‘Everyday’ built on the riff from Death In Vegas’s ‘Dirge’ and is something harder edged.
Equally aggressive is ‘Could Be a Machine’, and Celeste said: “This is a new song about technology and how sometimes we would come to be one with it, but then, by doing that we’re not really ourselves in the same way, with our heart intact – in the way that it could be or the way it should be.”
For Celeste, now a local resident, it was a return to Victoria Park. She said: “I did a little thing on Wednesday but the last big show I did was 2021 in this park so it’s good to be back.”
That show was at LIDO’s sister festival, All Points East, which returns this August.
Maverick Sabre’s crowd was treated to an impromptu ‘Can’t Be Wrong’, just vocals and guitar, before the band returned for the Irish star’s trademark soul with ‘Like This’.
“This year marks my 20th year doing shows and putting out live music. So I put my heart out to you. I appreciate it.”
LIDO Festival features a cutting-edge ML3A sound system from Martin Audio. Supplied by Solotech and mixed by renowned sound engineer Robb Allan, the system delivered crystal-clear audio that filled the park.
LIDO is putting artists first and handing them control, for a festival entirely programmed by the headliners. They will bring their favourite artists, collaborators, newly tipped artists and their own style to each day. From the acts to the artwork and stage design – every aspect is personal to them. Named after Victoria Park’s Lido Field, the 10-day event will offer hand-picked music line-ups with a strong focus on sustainability, as well as community events during the week.
