More about: Kendal Calling Festival

Kendal Calling welcomed thousands of revellers back to the fields of Lowther Deer Park in Cumbria for the 12th edition of this much-loved festival. It has amassed an army of devoted attendees; sells out consistently year on year and is held in high regard by music fans and bands alike - and by us here at Gigwise.

We kick off Friday with Kate Nash who took to the stage late afternoon, paying homage to her now 10-year-old debut album Made of Bricks. Delivering an important message of hope and togetherness in times of political turmoil and adding newer material like anti-Trump song ‘Agenda’ into the set, she proved why she remains as relevant in 2017 and she was in 2007. Concluding with Foundations, Kate and her band delivered one of the loudest sing-a-long moments of the weekend.

Stereophonics closed the main stage proceedings on Friday night but we headed for the action that was taking place at Calling Out, where Loyle Carner delivered a sweaty and energetic set of UK hip-hop from his freshly Mercury nominated debut Yesterday’s Gone. Carner has the audience bouncing to every word, it’s clear the honesty in his lyrics resonates with the crowd.

Trailing through the Woodlands at night, we found ourselves immersed in the art of Lost Eden - feeling the warmth of the fire, hearing the sounds of the ‘Colony’ installation, letting the lights guide us away to the hidden delights of the Kraken Freaky Tiki bar. Ravers of all ages donned a pair of headphones for the silent disco, whilst the Cinema offers up a perfect retreat from the rain. Offering family friendly classics during the day, and horror films by night.

Saturday is fancy dress day at Kendal and this year’s theme of Into The Wild did not disappoint. Festival goers were dressed up in their hundreds, a field brimming with flamingos, giraffes, lions, tigers and bears. The festival parade makes its way across the site, leading us to our next discovery, Tim Peaks Diner.

This pop-up is the brainchild of The Charlatans' Tim Burgess, and a hit across various festivals, but nestled away in the corner of Kendal is where it really finds its home. With proper coffee, cake and other sweet treats, this heavenly log cabin plays host to a full line-up of bands, DJs and conversation pieces. Keeping with tradition, Tim Peaks would play host to a secret set and this year was none other than The Coral. Crammed into the Diner, the band delighted fans and lucky bystanders witnessed something special. Ahead of their Calling Out headline set, the band gave an intimate and spine tingling set. There’s nothing quite like being in a room full of Northerners, singing every word and chanting every riff to a band of that calibre.

Just a stones throw from Tim Peaks Diner, we caught The Pale White on the Calling Out stage. Championed by Radio X, BBC and fresh from set at the introducing stage at Glastonbury, our expectations were high and they did not disappoint. The tent filled with classic rock style riffs as they hammered through their set with songs both familiar and new to the audience’s ears as a group of teens at the front jumped and pushed each other around.

Next we headed over to the House Party stage - one of the most colourful stages - with a large wooden peacock over the entrance. One of the charms of Kendal Calling is it’s setting. Every tent and every stage is perfectly curated to draw out the beauty of your surroundings, a subtle reminder that you are in the middle of the incredibly beautiful Lake District. This is a slight contrast to the Blinders, one of Doncaster’s most recent exports, who took to the stage with raw, crunchy, riff heavy music, full of political digs at the state of our country.

Our Sunday kicked off with an act championed by Gigwise, Blaenavon. The Hampshire three-piece opened their set on the Calling Out stage with popular track 'My Bark Is Your Bite' from their debut album, That’s Your Lot. The band played a powerful set, full of movement and an infectious energy that stemmed from the stage all the way to the back of the tent.



Later that day, Brian Wilson made an appearance on the main stage to perform his Pet Sounds album, a somewhat legendary performance that we had been anticipating all weekend. Apparently this was the case for many other festival goers, as the main stage arena over spilled with excited fans. His performance saw the former Beach Boys singer make his way through the hits, including Dance Dance Dance and Beach Boys classic, Surfing USA. It was a successful set, however we can’t help but feel that Brian Wilson may be a little bit past his prime, as he stayed seated behind a keyboard for the entirety.

Sunday night headliner, Tinie Tempah, didn’t quite take our fancy so we opted out and headed for The Coral on the Calling Out stage. If there is one thing we can confirm, it’s that there is nothing quite like being sandwiched between a couple of Northern blokes singing every word and chanting every riff to The Coral’s back catalogue. Ending on a high with the ever-catching 'Dreaming of You', we can safely say that this year's Kendal Calling will be one that sticks with us. It's resonating especailly well becaue in addition to there being all these incredible bands, the crowd here make it that extra bit special.

Kendal is like one big festival family…leave your problems at the gate because here you’re part of a tribe like no other. You cannot take yourself too seriously, and nobody is too cool to break into a bit of dad-dancing with The Lancashire Hotpots - and we love that.

More about: Kendal Calling Festival