The 7 best things we saw at End Of The Road 2015

End Of The Road Festival 2015 review, Laura Marling, Future Islands

Photo: Richard Gray

Given that it takes place as the last dregs of the summer drain away, when most bands have been playing festivals for the best part of three solid months, you might expect that the performances would be hindered by a hint of fatigue. End Of The Road is no ordinary festival though.

Almost consistently, and with genuine sincerity, bands fall over themselves to express how much they love this Wiltshire festival, which celebrates its 10th birthday this year. Long may it continue. Here are the seven best things we saw.

1. Hinds
"We are Rihanna, and we came here to shine bright," shouts Carlotta Cosials as Hinds burst into the effervescent, sun-drenched 'Trippy Gum'. Later in the set, which is full to the brim with scuzzy, infectious tunes and gleeful pace changes, she explains, "We are not actually Rihanna, we are Hinds...'What?! I want my money back!'" before she and Ana Perrote burst into fits of giggles. You wouldn't know they'd been up 'till 6am last night after a delayed flight ("Fuck Ryanair") left them racing across the country in their tour bus. The Spanish four-piece's afternoon main stage slot is the perfect accompaniment to the blazing sunshine that beats down - both it, and the band, have wholeheartedly ignored September's memo that summer is drawing to a close.

2. Marika Hackman
At Latitude earlier in the summer, Hackman performed in a cramped tent with a full band behind her. Today, she is outside on the Garden Stage, and entirely alone. It seems to be the situation she is most at home with - her set is richly self-assured and free from the technical issues and nerves that nearly scuppered her Latitude performance. A beautiful, sparse cover of Joanna Newsom's '81' is a particular highlight.

3. Future Islands
No one could ever accuse Samuel T. Herring of not giving himself fully to live performances. As Future Islands' fame has grown, he's become known for his intense, almost demonically energetic stage presence. His appearance at End Of The Road is no exception. With guttural screams usually reserved for metalcore bands, Herring delivers a headline-worthy performance - though, predictably, the most affecting moment is reserved for 'Seasons (Waiting On You)'.

4. Dolores Haze
Though they occasionally lean too heavily on their riot grrrl influences, a cover of Peaches' 'Fuck The Pain Away', and a spirited rendition of their glitchy single 'I Got My Gun' proves there's a bright future ahead of the Stockholm four-piece.

5. Laura Marling
Marling never performs songs from her debut album anymore. Both musically and lyrically, she's strayed too far, matured too much, to return to Alas I Cannot Swim. At least, that's been the party line for the past several years. Tonight though, she proves that party line to be nonsense. After opening with Short Movie's 'False Hope', she traverses through her entire back-catalogue, landing eventually on 'Ghosts', 'My Manic And I' and 'Alas I Cannot Swim' - all of which are from her 2008 debut, released when she was just 18-years-old. The curveballs continue in the form of a Dolly Parton cover that showcases her effortlessly soaring range. We're forced to miss The War On Drugs to watch Marling headline The Garden Stage, which is unfortunate scheduling, but her performance proves our decision to be more than justified.

6. The Piano Stage surprise sessions
Nestled in the heart of the forest is a perfectly recreated Victorian-style living room, with a piano at its centre. It is on this stage, in front of a handful of people, that Julie Byrne plays a stunning, intricate set the day before her official performance. The undoubted highlight, though, is when Laura Marling floats through the crowd gathered for Marika Hackman's surprise session, and the pair perform a cover of Foo Fighters' 'Tired Of You'. It's unrehearsed, a little shambolic, and completely beautiful.

7. Du Blonde
"All I needed was a little of your respect," sings Beth Jeans Houghton to conclude 'After The Show'. "We all know what that feels like," she says to the crowd, conspiratorially, as the song finishes, before spitting on the floor and offering to swap her bassist for a burger. It's a playful, polished set of folk-rock, which meanders frequently into psychedelic pop territory, and proves once again that Houghton's debut album as Du Blonde, Welcome Back To Milk, deserved more attention.