Looking for a rave in London, then look no further than United Festival, a dance music festival which brings back the legends of the British rave culture!
Taking over North London's Finsbury Park, a day after hosting Ceremony Festival, this single day festival returned in 2015 on a bigger scale with 8 arenas and over 150 artists. Heading to the festival, there is a sense of old skool rave culture as we hit Finsbury Park station with festival goers dressed ready to dance. Out of the wardbrobes have come the fluro coloured tops and pants, glitter makeup and sneakers, all accompanied with the lazer light protecting shades!
Bringing Drum & Bass, Old Skool, Jungle, Uk Garage, House Classics, Hard House, Trance and Hardcore, there was something for everyone. Our first stop is the Frantic arena to check out a good friend of ours, Masif head honcho Steve Hill, who has flown all the way from Sydney, Australia. With smoke pouring out of the tent, it was obvious that the Frantic arena was full of energy as 100's filled the tent to bounce to Steve's notorious hard trance sound. Hosting the likes of Andy Farley, Lisa Pin Up and more, the hard house / trance lovers had plenty to keep them going all day.
The main stage is the place to be for Drum and Bass lovers. Sunday brought together the best of old skool with Fabio & Grooverider, Baby D, Ratpack, DJ Hype & DJ Marky keeping the tent packed the entire day. Complete with a massive l.e.d screen and lasers, the tent illuminated up as the sun fell down over Finsbury Park.
One of the other highlights of our day was the TwiceasNice arena where DJ Luck & MC Neat, Ironik, Pied Piper and more of UK Garages finest lined up. It was great to see these legends take to the stage all in one place. Luck & Neat's performance of one of the biggest known garage tunes With a Little Bit Luck had the crowd going crazy!
Elsewhere at United Festival 10,000 people had arenas like Promised Land which hosted old skool house with Brandon Block, Arkoss, Philgood & Ram and more, Mental Asylum Records where you could put your hands in the air to Trance, One Nation and Moondance which shared mixture of rave, drum and bass and more ensured that all your musical tastes were satisfied.
Outlook has just revealed the final wave of artists for September 2015 as the festival enters its 8th season in Croatia. Set in an abandoned 19th century fortress of dance floors, intimate spaces and passageways which look over the Adriatic Sea, Outlook unites some of the world’s finest purveyors of dub, reggae, hip-hop, drum ‘n’ bass, garage, grime, dubstep, house, techno and electronica and more across a spectacular weekend of music.
SBTRKT is the final artist announced for the opening concert at the incredible 2000-year old Roman Amphitheatre in Pula. One of the UK’s most celebrated and intriguing producers, his catalogue of esteemed remix work includes M.I.A, Radiohead, Modeselektor, Basement Jaxx, Mark Ronson, and Underworld. SBTRKT joins the already announced Jurassic 5, Roni Size Reprazent Live, Gentleman’s Dub Club and Trojan Sound System on Wednesday 2nd September.
Outlook Festival’s roots dig deeply into a rich range of sources and inspirations, with reggae and Jamaican dancehall just two of these strands. Beenie Man is a Grammy award-winning Jamaican reggae artist and is referred to as the world's "King of Dancehall," whilst New York by way of Brixton meets France as Shinehead & Legal Shot Sound create crowd-rousing Jamaican Reggae sounds. The Bug’s ‘Acid Ragga Live’ joins the dots between experimental acid and ragga dancehall to incredible effect, the 7” label and Ninja Tune offshoot a truly unique creation from Kevin Martin, and The Heatwave is a bashment-raving scandal, a non-stop dancehall party like nothing Outlook has ever seen before.
Outlook features several momentous anniversaries in 2015. DMZ will be bringing their full crew celebrating their 10th anniversary with Digital Mystikz, Loefah, Kode 9, Hatcha, Youngsta, Chef, N-Type, Quest, Silkie, Distance, Pinch, Sgt Pokes & Crazy D, featuring long-lost dubs to showcasing the freshest heavyweight plates. Also deeply embedded in the festival’s DNA is drum and bass, dubstep, bass music and garage. The final round of names further enhances Outlook’s credentials; Rinse FM’s Oneman has been turning heads melding old school UK garage with DMZ style dubstep, famed for his hip hop and sets for The Boiler Room, the now legendary back to back parties with Jackmaster or opening for dance titans such as SBTRKT and Major Lazer. DJ Hype is one of the most iconic names in drum and bass, the long-serving Fabric London resident a pillar of the scene, and Renegade Hardware is one of the most iconic drum and bass nights in the past two decades, from their scene-leading The End parties in London to curating riotous sessions around the UK. In 2015 they celebrate 20 years in the business, and bring Loxy & Ink, Bad Company UK, Maztek, Digital & Spirit, Keaton, Ant TC1, Cold Fusion and MC Stapleton to Outlook. Break & Kyo (Live) bring their drum and bass to Outlook too, and Pinch, Bristol's leading man of dubstep who runs Tectonic Recordings, also comes to the party showcasing the 10th anniversary of his label.
Chris Lorenzo / Cause & Affect are widely known for pioneering the jack house / bass hybrid scene, furthered by Lorenzo’s award-nominated productions with Hannah Wants, Cause & Affect’s weekly show on Rinse FM and accolades from the likes of Annie Mac, Eats Everything, Monki, Skream, B Traits, Target and EZ. And Loefah’s Swamp 81 label will be taking over the Moat Stage with their bass infused house & techno, helmed by Loefah alongside label artists Mickey Pearce, Paleman, Klose One, Benton and Chunky.
Outlook embraces many kinds of diverse artists performing at the festival. UK reggae collective Vibronics Feat Madu Messenger & Echo Ranks lay down their heavy steppers and dub sounds, whilst old skool veterans Kenny Ken & DJ Ron will be taking Outlook on a musical journey through 20 years of jungle and drum and bass. OBF Feat Shanti D & Stand High Patrol will be bringing their dub & dancehall selections from France. Both run their own sound systems, have released albums on their own in-house imprints and rock dancehalls worldwide. LEVELZ is a loose-knit group of MCs, DJs and producers with the potential to evolve into one of the most exciting creative forces to emerge from Manchester in recent years. Hailing from Japan, Part2style are one of the top sounds in the Tokyo bass scene; they will be playing their original dubplates in reggae, dancehall & jungle styles. Reggae Roast will be bringing their Sound System to Outlook for the first time which will vibrate the walls of the fort, and Croatian female experimental hip-hop MC/vocalist Diyala will be making her debut at the festival. She lived in Brooklyn in her childhood and in 1999 Diyala started MCing in Croatia. Influences from hip-hop, alternative rock and experimental music can be heard in her amazing vocal work.
Further names revealed include Fracture, Novelist, The Mouse Outfit, Elijah & Skilliam, Solo Banton, Xtrah, Hybris, Moxie, Catching Flies, MC DRS, SP:MC, Foreign Concept, Hyroglifics, Fre4knc, Kutmah, Chopstick Dubplate Feat Jacky Murda & Aries, Mark System, MC GQ, Stamina MC, Charlie P, Barely Legal, Compa, Gerra & Stone, Anti Social – Quest & Silkie, True Tiger, David Boomah, Kiko Dan, Chef, Siobhan Bell, Work It Girls, MC Sgt Pokes, MC Crazy D, Shanty, Chainska Brassika, Dan Man, Mantmast, Sun of Selah, Vital Techniques, Doctor Jeep, Sammy Dreadlocks, Shepdog, Blazin and Finwa.
The complete lineup: Beenie Man, Run The Jewels, Boy Better Know, The Madlib Carnival – Madlib, Pete Rock, J Rocc and Moodymann, Wiley, Noisia, Dusky, Flatbush Zombies, Shy FX, Congo Natty feat Congo Dubz & Tenor Fly, Jeru The Damaja, The Beatnuts, Digital Mystikz, DJ EZ, Goldie, Mount Kimbie (dj set), Cutty Ranks, Kate Tempest, David Rodigan, Loefah, Oneman, Protoje & The Indiggnation, BADBADNOTGOOD, Yung Lean, Araabmuzik, The Bug Feat Flowdan, Manga & Miss Red, DJ Hype, Chris Lorenzo, Sherwood & Pinch, dBridge, Icicle Entropy Live, Dub Phizix & Strategy, Renegade Hardware 20 feat Loxy & Ink, Bad Company UK, Maztek, Digital & Spirit, Keaton, Ant TC1, Cold Fusion, MC Stapleton and Fokus & Mantmast, Break & KYO (Live), Zed Bias, Toddla T, Tippa Irie, Shinehead & Legal Shot Sound, Sango, Mr Carmack, Newham Generals, Stormzy, P Money, Big Narstie, My Nu Leng, Norman Jay MBE – Good Times, Artful Dodger, Kurupt FM, Youngsta, Hatcha, The Heatwave, Novelist, Maribou State Live, Paleman, Vibronics Feat Madu Messenger & Echo Ranks, Bodhi, Lone, Mumdance, Om Unit, Fracture, Kenny Ken, The Mouse Outfit, Mickey Pearce, Klose One, FKJ Live, Kahn & Neek, The Upbeats, Enei, Mefjus, Rockwell, High Focus Records, Little Simz, Rodney P, Skitz, Mungo's Hifi, Iration Steppas, Channel One Sound System, Soom T, OBF Feat Shanti D, Stand High Patrol DJ Set, Elijah & Skilliam, Barely Legal, Cause & Affect, Riko Dan, Skeptical, Kasra, Ivy Lab, Xtrah, Matt Jam Lamont, Logan Sama, Flako, Kenny Knots, Hybris, Distance, Applebottom, Chopstick Dubplate Feat Jacky Murda & Aries, LEVELZ, MC DRS, SP:MC, Chunky, Moxie, Flava D, Truth, Foreign Concept, Hyroglifics, Fre4knc, Kutmah, Mark System, Emperor, DJ Haus, Billain, Seven Davis Jr, Dubkasm, Benton, Kromestar, Spooky, Mella Dee, Catching Flies, Commodo, Quest, Silkie, MC GQ, Stamina MC, Jack Sparrow, Kaiju, Alexander Nut, Amy Becker, Charlie P, Jay Prince, Jon Phonics, DJ Milktray, Pyrmdplaza, Chimpo, DJ Ron, Diyala, Necessary Mayhem, Part2style, Reggae Roast, 2Shy, Biome, David Boomah, N-Type, Chef, Compa, Gerra & Stone, Egoless, Kiko Dan, True Tiger, Digitron, MC Fox, MC Sgt Pokes, MC Crazy D, Shanty, Chainska Brassika, Afriquoi, Danny T & Tradesman, Ishan Sound, Adam Prescott, Parris, Shepdog, Dan Man, MC Fokus, Visionobi, Mantmast, Fixate, Hi5 Ghost, Boofy, Hannah Faith, Bambooman, Siobhan Bell, Work It Girls, Dread MC, Vital Techniques, Filip Motovunski aka Noon, Rahmanee, 207, Chew The Fat, Roots In Session, Said, Necone, Rasheed, Dirty Beatz Crew, Kodin , Vilify, Push UK, Sun of Selah, Doctor Jeep, Sammy Dreadlocks, Pean, Blazin and Finwa.
