Life Festival 2014 | Review

On Friday 23rd of May punters flocked to Belvedere House, Mullingar to attend Life Festival 2014.

Unfortunate weather conditions resulted in a muddy campsite from early Friday evening and one festival goer was overheard describing it best as ‘like walking around on chocolate fudge cake’. The lack of pathways and wood chippings resulted in mud slides, squelches and sludgy forest walkways that could not be saved by hay when it eventually arrived.

However, muddy or not the grounds of Belvedere House are simply stunning. The lake is a beautiful spot that provided campers with an area to regroup and recharge before heading into the main arena. The forest area included the Bear Trap Stage, Hunter Gatherer Tent and Circus Noir areas which were decorated with quirky art installations and also offered film screenings with free popcorn to attendees.

The Main Stage did not run as smoothly as hoped with timetable issues occurring before the festival even started. Due to organisational mistakes by the festival organisers Dublin favourites Zaska (who we previously tipped as one to watch) were left with no choice but to pull out of the festival. Groove Armada commenced their set about an hour before their scheduled start time, leaving campers confused and wondering was if it was actually the renowned duo on stage. Severe downpours on Saturday night also meant that the Main Stage was delayed by several hours on Sunday due to adverse site conditions.

The Red Bull Stage was quite a sophisticated set up with a proper roof to house DJs like Jamie xx and Nina Kraviz. The Koppaberg area quickly became a fun bar to hang out in with DJs playing great tunes all day long.

What is frustrating about Life Festival, is that it had all the great ingredients to be something spectacular but something fell short. Life is in an exceptional venue, it attracts world renowned dance acts, there is good grub at a wide range of food stalls and this year it even added live acts and arty groups. However, issues such as stewards not knowing where various stages are located or acts starting sets earlier than scheduled is frustrating for campers. With organisational and site improvements, it has the potential an incredible festival in years to come.

Here are some of the acts we caught when we were down there.

Groove Armada

There were several reasons to get excited about Groove Armada’s main stage headline slot on Friday night. Andy Cato and Tom Findlay have long standing reputations as producers and DJs, not to mention the excellent Groove Armada live show and the fact that they have been running their own festival, Lovebox since 2003.

Sadly, the set was a dull, flat, and never seemed to get past third gear. The occasional tease of dropping in a vocal from their smash hit I See You Baby, to the delight of the sizable crowd waiting for something to happen, wore thin as the night plodded on. They finished with Superstylin’, got paid and went home. (CB)

Mama Kasbah

A big focus for this year’s Life Festival was to include more live acts as the festival has been heavily focused on Electronic, DJ-based music in the past. With a push towards more variety this year – Mama Kasbah certainly seemed to fit that bill. A band that proclaim themselves to be an “original mix of rumba, ska, reggae, balkan and Latin American rhythms” – it certainly seemed to be a smorgasbord of influences as the band sang in English, Spanish, Sicilian and Italian.

The band fought hard to engage the small crowd but most passers-by came and went, probably in search of some early afternoon beats. The sound was immaculate and we’re sure that the same Mama Kasbah set would go down a treat at other festivals if and when the crowd are more open to this style of music. (RM)

Raglans

Raglans garnered a modest crowd for their first Irish festival appearance of 2014 on Life’s main stage. They get a decent crowd given that they’re onstage an hour later than the timetable says, something the lads give a cheeky nod to during their set.

If you’ve seen Raglans before you know what to expect; high-tempo indie rock with more hooks than a well stocked fisherman. We’ll hazard a guess here and say that most of this crowd have never seen them before but after a single chorus, they have everybody singing along. A well placed, punkish cover of MIA’s Paper Planes gives the crowd something they know.

Raglans were always a well rehearsed entity but all their recent touring has them taking it to the next level with a performance that justifies their place on the main stage. (DD)

Booka Brass Band

Having recently caught Booka Brass Band down at Vantastival on our GoldenPlec themed Vanhalla stage. We were more than looking forward to welcoming the lads on to our GoldenPlec main stage at Life. The guys threw down a barnstorming set and it’s a testament to the guys to see the crowd during the first song (around 30 people) grow to a crowd of around 300-400 – all being dragged to the main stage with all the excitement happening on stage.

The guys chemistry on stage is clear to see and with modern classics such as Destiny’s Child – Survivor and Sugar Hill Gang’s – Rappers Delight to pick from, it’s little wonder as to why these handsome fella’s have been booked for most festivals around the country (and Glastonbury too – no biggy).

As well as having a raft of crowd-pleasing covers, they also have a barrel of superb originals that can easily stand up and be counted alongside the greats like the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble. The guys are also relatively new as a band to the scene, so the future seems bright for one of Ireland’s most promising, exciting and unmissable Irish live acts. (RM)

Kormac’s Big Band

Between clashing with Jamie xx and following a very excitable Booka Brass Band, Kormac’s Big Band had a battle on their hands from the very first note. The set consists of DJ Kormac leading his sizeable backing band through a mishmash of brass, beats and bass. To prevent it from getting too loose the whole thing is held together by a rock-solid live drummer.

The rhythm section laid down a throbbing foundation as the horns are sprinkled on top whilst Kormac enthusiastically invites every single person present along for the ride. The occasional appearance from MC Little Tree adds some variety as he bounces across the stage spitting rhymes. All in all, it’s a well received set but placed a little too early in the bill to truly hit with the desired effect. (DD)

Jamie XX

Jamie XX’s Saturday evening slot at the Red Bull stage was simply, a joy to dance to. Well rehearsed, meticulously planned and designed to do exactly what a good set should – take you on a journey. This particular journey felt like an electronic music history lesson with a London twist; with Jamie’s personality stamped all over it.

Highlights included a filthy rework of noughties UK garage hit Body Groove by Architechs and an offensively bass heavy mix of The XX’s Sunset that reminded us more than ever how stunning this man’s production skills are, and how badly we needed to shower. (CB)

Heroes in Hiding

Heroos in Hiding (HiH) were placed on the wonderfully set up Bear Trap stage, based in the forrest environs of the festival site. A massive well done must go out to the Bear Trap stage organisers as this little section of the festival really put on some amazing live music across the weekend. HiH took to the stage late on the Saturday. Despite the cold weather, one of the members, not to be outdone by a silly bet, threw his t-shirt to the floor – god bless his poor nipples.

HiH powered through a fantastically constructed set that ebbed and flowed nicely throughout. Lead singer Joe Carroll really has a fine pair of lungs on him as his powerful voice rose high above the crowd and into the dark night. A band we’ll certainly keeping an eye out for as their brand of folk-rock really grabs you and holds your attention – not an easy feat. Catch them playing The Grand Social on June 13th for their EP launch. (RM)

Meltybrains?

Clad in white with paint-splashed venetian masks. Is there any other band out there like Meltybrains? We think not. Oh that’s all before we even get to the music. A hat tip to whoever booked this quintet for a midnight slot on Life’s Bear Trap stage as they’d make even less sense during the daytime hours.

They blend electro, post-rock and hip hop for a hypnotic, alarming set from one of Ireland’s most unique entities. Subtle soundscapes merge into full-on sonic bombast but it doesn’t quite beat you with the same intensity like their appearance at last year’s Castlpalooza. It’s akin to a carnival maze. You’re not too sure if the signals that your eyes and ears send to your brain are correct, but you’re more than happy to be taken along for the ride. (DD)

Faune

Dublin Synthpop/Electronica duo treated the packed out Hunt & Gather tent to a DJ set in the early hours of Sunday morning. Bass and buttons man Will St Leger was on deck duty, spinning a 90s house classic smattered set of party tunes, while Sarah Byrne provided live vocals.

This worked particularly well partly due to the set selection (who wouldn’t want to get down to bangers like Tori Amos – Professional Widow at 2am?) and the fact that Sarah’s stunning vocals command the attention of the room. A perfect mix of highly danceable, synth and glitter heavy tunes that managed to keep its cool. (CB)

Contributors: Anna Job, Claire Beck, Ros Madigan and David Dooley.