Our festival spotlight today brings us closer to home as we cast our gaze at the festival formerly known as Mad Ferret.
A lot has changed in the last decade since the Platt Field’s mud-baths and the Parklife Weekender is now as big as any non-camping festival on a sweating, clinically obese circuit.
Set in the quaint, historical village of Manchester, carved out of a majestic cliff-face, where the sun warms the streets like the praise of a proud parent on good child and the medieval architecture and white sandy beaches… Joking obviously…
Although traditionally more beans on toast than humus and kettle chips, Parklife is still probably the best house and tech festival you can do without a passport. Last year was the inaugural event at Heaton Park, one of the biggest parks in Europe, and by all accounts it was a huge sun-soaked success for everyone; not least because the total lack of phone signal saved you from the horrors of external, real-world contact while your jaw slowly rotated under a fresh pair of Ray Bans.
The lineup as always is ridonkulous. Where to even start? Snoop and Kendrick, Soul II Soul and Public Enemy is one angle. Add to that everyone who smashed it last year plus wheelie-bussin’ jack of all trades Oneman, TEED and old-skewl Andrew Weatherall. That might sound like a bit of a cop-out but it would be super solid to narrow a list down to a bite size handful of names. The fairest criteria is perhaps TNG’s 2013 festival faves – namely Scuba and his partner in crime George Fitzgerald, Skream (disco set), Bicep and David ‘Ram Jam’ Rodigan. That really is just the tip of the iceberg but we assume you have the wherewithal to have a little look for yourself.
There are no boat parties, no beach parties, no Roman amphitheatres or castles but there are a shitload of huge tents and stages, grass, rides and a whole lotta scantily-clad lads and lasses. Last year’s Parklife was a summer highlight for many, nothing but good vibes and happy memories and we can’t see anything that would put a dampener on that. Mind you it is Manchester, where things can get pretty damp, pretty quick.
The Parklife Weekender takes place on the 7th and 8th of June. Tickets are up for grabs from around 50 squids for a day, with weekend passes a little over a one-r. Travel was a nightmare last year so a Parklife bus ticket is recommended (though not necessarily a walk in the park) as unlicensed taxis are queuing up to rip you off (over £30 to the city centre).
Check out sets and tracks from an assortment of acts below for your listening pleasure featuring Bicep’s iconic Fader mix and Scuba b2b with George Fitzgerald.
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