Dot to Dot Festival 2024

Dot to Dot Festival 2024:

Year after year Dot to Dot delivers a genre-blending festival like no others. providing the perfect platform for upcoming artists to hone their craft, whilst also showcasing some of the biggest and best alt. musicians around. After a stellar Saturday in Bristol, Dot to Dot brought the music to Nottingham, taking over the city's most vibrant venues including Rock City, Rescue Rooms and Bodega. The festival featured a number of headline acts, including Jockstrap, Wunderhorse, and one of The Magic Gang's last ever festival shows, alongside a host of upcoming artists from each city. Although I had to leave earlier than expected (thank you East Midlands Railway..), I was lucky enough to head down and see a host of exciting local talents, alongside some of alt-rock's best bands. Scroll to read my thoughts on a brilliant day spent at Dot to Dot 2024

Panic Shack:

One of the most highly anticipated sets of the day was that of Welsh punk-rockers Panic Shack. The band have had an astronomical rise in the last few years, and a packed-out Rock City were desperate to see why. This was my second time reviewing Panic Shack, with the first time seeing me describe them as "Live music at it's very best". I'm not sure what has happened in the 6 months between then and now, but they have somehow managed to get even better!

Dot to Dot is one of the most genre-diverse festivals around, but there can be no doubt that every single person who left Rock City after Panic Shack's set was now a punk fan. This was Panic Shack's third live performance of the weekend, but at no point did they let that show, delivering song after song of high intensity punk-rock brilliance. The set blended a number of Panic Shack's biggest hits such as 'The lck' and 'Who's Got My Lighter?' with exciting unreleased songs like 'Tit School' and 'Jelly Baby'.

Although the released songs gained the biggest reactions, as is standard, the upcoming releases went down an absolute storm with all in attendance. With several massive releases under their belt, and a huge amount of traction, there can be no doubting Panic Shack's potential, but the new music showcased really could be what sees them fully breakthrough.

Like most good punk bands, social commentary is never too far away from a Panic Shack gig, as they took to the stage wearing shirts saying, 'Dangerous Gigs for Men'. The shirts were in the style of the 'Safe Gigs for Women' shirts reflecting the band's support for the organization. This poked fun at the fact these obvious statements even need to be made, and the ridiculous notion that women are the ones who have to push for change. This, combined with Panic Shacks anti-misogynistic lyrics on several songs such as 'I Don't Really Like It`, show they are not afraid to speak out, and their shows are much better for that. They create safe space where anyone and everyone can enjoy live punk music to the fullest, and punk doesn't come much better than Panic Shack

Bleach Lab:

Next up on the Rock City stage were London quartet Bleach Lab, bringing their unique blend of ethereal indie-rock to a capacity crowd. The four-piece, made up of Jenna Kyle (Vocalist), Josh Longman (Bassist), Kieran Weston Drummer) and Louis Takooree (Guitarist), have such a stunning approach to music, whereby every single note played is meticulously chosen to create this surreal soundscape of dreamy indie music. Jenna used her soulful delivery, and Stevie Nicks-esque dancing, to guide the crowd through one of the day's most mesmerising performances

As the set went on the songs increased in energy, culminating with the band's 'rockiest song 'Everything at Once'. This was extremely well received by all in attendance. The band's debut album 'Lost In A Rush of Emptiness' was one of the best releases of late 2023, and it is so amazing to see their live performances match the albums brilliance. Bleach Lab are a live band like no other, and will transcend you to another plain of musical appreciation

Abby Sage:

Abby Sage is one of music's happiest accidents. After accidentally making a song go live on SoundCloud which rapidly gained traction, she has grown from strength to strength. Abby has got better with every release, and her performance at Dot to Dot proved she can more than match that quality when on stage. A huge crowd awaited Abby in rough trade, spilling out of the designated concert area, desperate to see this alt. pop brilliance, which Abby more than delivered with. She is the definition of class on stage, mastering her way through a set of soulful songs that will live long in the memory.

This performance really was a mystical performance, with Abby's stunning vocals being backed up by a live band at the top of their game. The only negative of this performance was that it wasn't in a bigger room, as there can be no doubt about the widespread appeal Abbey Sage and her music brings. Alt-pop's future is in very safe hands

KAP:

After winning NUSIC's Future Sound of Nottingham 2024 competition, The honour of opening the festival's main stage in Rock City went to local hero KAP, and it didn't take long to understand why she'd won. KAP, and her brilliant live band, mastered their way through the set in way even the most experienced performers would be proud of. She has some of the best indie-pop songs I've heard in some time, but they are taken to a whole new level when played live.

Mid-way through her set KAP humorously recalled "Last time I was at rock city I was that side [in the crowd], and pretty drunk". I am sure many local artists share similar stories, but I can't imagine many then took to the icon Rock City stage quite like KAP did. She was an absolute natural on stage, and there can be no doubt the venue will see a lot more of her in the future. With an authentically infectious stage presence, and relatable Iyrics throughout, KAP is without a doubt one of the most exciting upcoming artists in the UK today

Otala:

The day was started off by Nottingham's own, Otala. The multi-talented 5 piece brought a huge crowd to Rock City's Beta, an impressive feat at any time, but even more impressive given they opened the day. Being the first band to face a huge crowd excited for a day of live music can be quite a daunting prospect, but Otala took it in their stride and absolutely smashed it out the park.

The band, consisting of Oscar Thorpe (Vocals & Guitar) Rory Allen (Bassist), Fin Hills (Drummer), Jack McInnes (Synth), Charlotte Foulkes (Saxophone), were commanding on stage, taking all in attendance on a journey of musical brilliance. They blended influences from jazz, alt-rock, and spoken word, to create a performance unlike anything I have ever seen before.

2024 has already been a huge year for Otala with the release of their newest singles 'Commedia' and 'Guatavita', and this performance show it will only get bigger!