It was a long two-year wait to see live music at a festival again as Leicestershire’s 110 Above Festival defied the odds last weekend.
Around 1,000 people who love emerging talent walked through the gates to catch some of the best new talent including Sports Team, The Snuts and Alfie Templeman.
Thursday night saw an intimate set from Amber Run on The Old Town Hall stage where a handful of lucky ticket holders were able to see the Nottingham trio perform their latest single ‘I’m Tired’ live for the very first time.
On Friday there was also another world’s first as Birmingham outfit The Clause were the very first to play the new Elizabeth Stage. Their set was absolutely killer as they, and a lot of other artists, had also been waiting to perform to an audience for 18 months.
Other highlights from Friday include Lauran Hibberd, Tom Lumley & The Brave Liaison, and Black Honey who put in ace performances filled with energy and excitement which was emitted back to the crowds.
Sports Team also impressed as the night’s headliner put on one hell of a show that set the bar high for The Amazons and Sundara Karma to follow up with. Hits ‘M5’ and ‘Fishing’ were the clear crowd favorites as fans bounced up and down, shouted lyrics at the top of their voices and the return of some mosh pits!
Saturday was yet another night to remember. Despite the pouring rain, we weren’t deterred from seeing some of our favourite artists. Manchester’s Corella – who seemed almost too drunk to play – put in a colourful display of energising indie pop-rock. Later in the afternoon Valeras, Zuzu, Alfie Templeman and Abbie Ozard all took to the stage and wowed fans with charismatic performances.
The Amazons, who headlined Saturday night, were by far the best performers of the weekend. Their stand out show was action-packed from start to finish. Banger after banger, there was endless mosh pits with most of the crowd jumping with hands in the air. On top of this, they gave festival-goers one last special treat with an extended encore including an acoustic rendition of ‘Junk Food Forever’.
Onto the final day of 110 Above Festival, Deco brought the 80s back to the farm with the addition of Sign With Emily, a 14-year-old girl who has been learning sign language (BSL) since November 2020. She signed the band’s oldest single ‘Chances’ on Instagram a few months ago and was invited on stage to perform alongside the band. It was a great moment to see plus it’s something I’ve not come across yet.
The Snuts and Sundara Karma closed off the festival on the Elizabeth and Commune Stages with more first-class performances. The Snuts, who recently achieved a No.1 album in the UK charts, were massive hits with their energy and incredible tunes. Sundara Karma played a mish-mash of old and new anthems and received quite a mixed response from the crowd.
For a lot of artists it’s been well over 500 days since they’ve played live – some seemed to be a little rusty in their performances, however overall 110 Above Festival was a weekend to remember – plus there have been no reports of Covid cases so far. Result! Hopefully see you there again next year!
Featured images by Alex Pearson
