When you find yourself in a different country, it’s always a good idea to check out the music scene. And when there happens to be a festival happening the weekend you’re there, it’s definitely a good idea to check it out.
Over the weekend, Portsmouth, England, hosted Victorious Festival, a 2-day celebration of local arts and culture, as well as some notable touring acts.
Before I had to catch my flight back to Boston, I caught Day 1 of the festival. I also caught a heavy dose of that stereotypical English weather: the rain didn’t let up all day. However, amidst the wellies, ponchos, and umbrellas was a really positive vibe; everyone was enjoying themselves (or at least they were really good at putting on a brave face about the weather. I guess if you’re British you’re used to it).
In all, there were about nine stages around the grounds where you could catch some live music. The two main stages anchored the whole festival, but before the main acts started playing, it was worth it to walk around, taking in the open air market, castle, aquarium, and local food stands that dotted the paths between each stage. Honestly, since the festival took over most of the Southsea area, that included admission to Southsea Castle, Blue Reef Aquarium, and more.
Talking with some locals, it was clear that this wasn’t their top music festival by any means. In a country (or I guess Kingdom is more accurate) that also hosts Reading, Leeds, Glastonbury, and Isle of Wight to name a few, Victorious Festival is a slightly newer and slightly modest addition to the festival circuit. A lot of the acts were drawn in from the surrounding area. There were DJ tents and acoustic pop-ups featuring local artists like Daniel Eagle‘s acoustic set at the Strong Island Recordings tent.
Once the main acts started playing, you really had to choose which acts you wanted to see because many sets overlapped. Plus, the rain was a big incentive to stay put and warm yourself on a cup of tea or a fresh doughnut. I picked the Common Stage, but not before running over to the Castle Stage to catch part of Honeyblood‘s set. This Glasgow-based duo is really heating up: their fuzzy energetic rock songs like “Killer Bangs” and “Babes Never Die” were really worth the sprint through the rain.
Victorious’ lineup is an eclectic –almost throwback– mix of artists: The Magic Numbers took the stage, followed by The Fratellis, Primal Scream, and finally The Flaming Lips. We also got to hear some Joy Division and New Order hits during Peter Hook and the Light’s set earlier in the evening.
Victorious also does a decent job as showcasing up and coming talent: Flyte, Kill It Kid, and Blackfoot Circle are a few acts that won over the crowd during their sets.
And finally, as if by magic, the rain stopped right as The Flaming Lips took the stage. Actually, I think they must have turned all the rain into confetti, which is not a bad thing at all.
