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Ollie Hayman tells us all about working as a photographer at one of the best new emerging alternative music festivals.
Festival season is finally over (aww) - and it’s been a hell of a year for them. Burn It Down in Torquay this year was no exception, two big headliners and multiple big names on the lineup made for an incredible two - day festival in the South West harbour town.
I’ve only started doing festivals this year, but something I quickly realised at Slam Dunk and 2000Trees was that it takes ages to walk between all the stages, missing some parts of acts and not being able to cram full sets in. Burn It Down, however, is completely different with all 3 stages being literally a 30 second walk from each other. The Apple and Parrot, a pub, on one side of the road, and then The Attic and The Foundry being in the same building. Although that might seem fairly cramped, it worked perfectly, with a good enough break between most artists to have a chill for 5 minutes!
My weekend started with the incredible Vanitas kicking off the Apple and Parrot stage, and the entire weekend. The Birmingham - based djent band were genuinely incredible, and definitely not one to miss for the future! They released their debut EP, “Chaos Theory” only last month, and in the 2 years since they’ve been together, have really exploded into the scene.
Staying in the Apple and Parrot, were Arimea, who I’ve been meaning to see for a while now, and they did not disappoint. They’ve definitely gained a new fan here, with music reminiscent of Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit, a couple of my favourite bands!
My first viewing at the Foundry was the incredible opening duo of Haggard Cat. I genuinely love watching duo’s perform live, because the sound they can make is just something that you can’t recreate with even a 5-piece. Their songs such as “American Graffiti” and “Quit Your Jobs” rocked the first main stage band! After Haggard Cat came my good friends Blank Atlas, with their hard hitting riffs and incredible sound, they’re sure to be main stage soon! Definitely one never to miss if you’re where they’re playing!
Then came Grove Street and Darlah, both are incredible live! I remember seeing Darlah support the outstanding As Everything Unfolds in Plymouth, and I’ll always remember how great they were then! To see them playing at a festival in Torquay was amazing!
After my lunch “break” came the absolutely world class Graphic Nature. I saw them for the first time supporting Dream State at one of my local venues, and bloody hell they were incredible then. To see them at The Foundry was just an incredible sight, and I managed to catch the majority of their incredible set. Another band who are going places is Tropic Gold, who for some strange reason played the Apple and Parrot stage. They are way too good for that stage, I’ll tell you that now! They really remind me of Bring Me The Horizon in some of their songs, I’m not too sure what it is about them, but they truly are incredible and it wouldn’t surprise me if they’re one of the biggest bands in the next few years!
Then came the day one headliners, the incredible Wargasm. I’ve wanted to see them since “The Void Stares Back” - with Enter Shikari. That song blew my mind, and although I didn’t see them play THAT song live, they were still incredible to watch, and I would for sure catch them again! Speaking of which - they’re playing a headline tour at intimate venues around the UK at the end of the year. Do not miss them!
Day two was another early start, and a late change of acts saw the incredible COSM opening! I hadn’t heard of them before at all, but I feel like they were one of the best acts of the weekend for sure! Something about their music really called to me and I could definitely get into them.
Another good friend of mine was next, the incredible one man punk band of Boss Cass (FKA Fluff). A recent name change came with the incredible single of “House Always Wins” - which if you really want to know what he’s about, watch the video on YouTube - it’s a brilliant video! Honestly though, he’s incredibly energetic and fun live, and definitely knows how to get the crowd going!
Artio are one of the hottest acts on the scene right now. Their incredible music about how Rae (lead singer) feels really can hit home for a lot of people right now, and their debut album “Babyface” is an actual masterpiece. It’s not very often you can say that about debut albums, but this one is.
A very fast turnover between Alt Blk Era and High Regard for me then, and the former being a band I’ve only ever heard a couple of songs from before. However their live performances are definitely incredible, the duo is incredibly talented and they really compliment each other live.
Coming to High Regard, who in my eyes are one of the best bands around right now. I can never seem to stop listening to their music, with “Dead To Me (featuring Charlie Rolfe from As Everything Unfolds)” is just such an incredible song, and one I can personally relate to. I’ve also managed to hear their new single, “Mirror Glass”, and it’s now one of my favourite songs I think ever? Basically what I’m saying is go and say you were there before they headline Wembley.
A band that really surprised me was Split Chain, I’d heard of them but have never listened to them before. They were truly brilliant live and super talented. Next was Bex then - who’s set I didn’t catch too much of, but she was super talented and really got the crowd going! She was also fairly Insane, jumping into the crowd from a shelf in a pub!
One band I have been waiting nearly a year to see again was Lake Malice. I saw them over in Copenhagen supporting Enter Shikari and had a great chat with the couple after the show! They really are such down to earth people, and absolutely brilliant musicians. Absolutely full of energy and incredibly good music, they are also one not to miss! After Lake Malice came the wonderful Caskets, and seeing them in a smaller venue was absolutely brilliant. They’ve got a lot of sing along tunes, and hearing the crowd sing to them was outstanding and bone chilling for sure.
Finally came the band everyone had been waiting for. Creeper, day two and final headliners. I’ve been keeping a good eye on Creeper for a while now, but I’ve never had a chance to see them live. They did not disappoint and left me wanting to see them again. The show they put on is something else, and Will’s (lead singer) stage presence is truly something else. He really commands the stage and makes it truly feel like the style they want, cinematic.
Words and Photos: Ollie Hayman
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