Welcome to edition 51 of Laughing Stock. It’s time to review what Rally Festival has to offer braving the rain, slugging Red Bulls, and pissing in trees.
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There’s a dark cloud which hangs over Rally Festival. A permanent fixture on Southwark Park. Both years, without fail, it has poured. A shame. As the festival deserves more than punters in cagoules, soggy cigarettes, and a squashed Skehan’s tipi. The lineup was flawless, really, and I had excitement to see HiTech for the first time. The other billings were what you would expect for a line up produced by NTS, The Cause, and Gala. It was essential South London. A battle between grey denim and Bar Italia versus speed dealers and Two Shell. Tribes colliding in one of the most underrated parks in London (Surrey Quays too is a post-snob paradise).Â
After meandering around both the band stand and locked up bowling green, I opted to not stand for too long at the stage created by the local South Bermondsey scaffolding firm, which had an awkward setting, nor to stand stationary at the main stage. DJ Fart in the Club first kept me warm, easing into my first festival sober. Staying at the Visionaire stage for Pearson Sound, who gathered one of the biggest crowds of the day, something was amiss with the sound as people kept rushing off past the accessibility viewing platform, into the trees, for a piss. Spirits were up though. The £4 on site rechargeable vapes a keepsake. The £4 red bull to be expected.Â
Then rolled on Lena Willikens and Moopie, whose mixes I’ve loved for a while, picking up the energy in the crowd even as the heavens opened. You could instantly feel a difference in atmosphere. The sounds less dark and muddy from that of Pearson Sound, something we all needed as we stood piss wet through, huddled around a speaker stack.Â
From there it was onto HiTech who had the small tipi reaching what felt like the dizzy heights of 50 degrees Celsius. It was euphoric. The rain had passed and everyone’s drugs were starting to kick in. Smiles all round, as revellers clambered to get in the tiny Millhouse tent. Moving across the site after, I was lucky to catch the back end of Bar Italia. Deep grey denim country. They sounded more professional than what I read and heard about, looking more in sync than ever. Â
Braving the awkwardness of the long thin scaffolding stage (very industrial-beautiful, very useless for seeing anything) was a must to see Actress. A total masterclass in set building, the hemmed in crowd on strings he’s pulling, hooked in from the off. Starting slow with bits of his career-high ambient-leaning album Statik, seemingly to the bemusement of some of the two shell-awaiting drop heads, he builds and builds to a huge techno slam down that, if the damn scaffolding had a roof, would have been blown off. Ok, the lights are nice in here too, now the grey gloom has turned to heavy twilight.Â
There was much hype for this Two Shell set. From their meet and greets a few days prior to teasing out re-edits for promotion. It was their only London date of the summer and it lived up to expectations. They transformed the stage into a play pit. It was what the stage needed as Two Shell made it a free for all for goers to get in the booth and climb the scaffolding all in the name of dance. One of the highlights was when they dropped a version of the Milky Bars are on me. A song which in my mind captures the year and moment: all the Brat stuff, class As, Oasis, irony.
Ending the night with Call Super slowly burning and twisting the energy moving through a range of styles felt a perfect encapsulation of what the festival offers. His set was a touch of class. The G wagon claimed Rally to be the best small festival in London. I would agree. The atmosphere feels less touristy than say Field Day or All Points East. Even when it does rain again next year, I’m sure it will continue to grow from strength to strength.Â
Next edition, a first-hand account of trying to make as much money as possible touting Oasis tickets.