QR Music: I went to Roskilde Festival alone, and here's why you should too
Two weeks (ago at the time of writing), I had the privilege of attending Denmark’s Roskilde Festival, Northern Europe’s largest music festival, and for one week every July, the fourth largest city in Denmark. This year’s festival drew about 130,000 visitors, many arriving for headlining acts such as Eminem, Bruno Mars, and Gorillaz, and I had the opportunity to see some of my personal favourite bands, including Preoccupations, My Bloody Valentine, and Fleet Foxes. Travelling alone, I was unburdened by compromise, which allowed me to drink far too much, eat far too little, and constantly siphon money from my savings account to ensure I did not die penniless in a field of piss and litter in Scandinavia. Most importantly, my choice to go solo allowed me the chance to see over forty bands live, from world-famous acts such as Interpol, St. Vincent and Nick Cave, to relative unknowns and fresh up-and-comers. I could write about how Mogwai almost ruptured my eardrums or how Interpol lulled me into a meditative trance, but that seems frivolous, so instead I’ve chosen to discuss a few acts that managed to fly under my radar up until now and leave me very pleasantly surprised.
Haley Heynderickx
Perhaps one of the artists who left the biggest impression on me, I saw Haley Heynderickx around midday on the second day of the festival, on the smallest (and only indoor) stage. A quirky indie-folk singer from Portland, Oregon, my curiosity was piqued by her comparisons to Sharon Van Etten and Angel Olsen in the Roskilde guidebook. Playing to a crowd of no more than one hundred, I soon found that while the influences of the previously mentioned artists were apparent, Heynderickx possesses a style and talent that is uniquely her own. With her emotional folk sound, impressive fingerstyle playing, and refreshingly creative lyrical themes (‘Untitled God Song’ discusses the traditional Western notion of God using entirely feminine language), Heynderickx aptly brings something worth checking out to the increasingly derivative indie-folk scene. Clearly nervous but incredibly entertaining and conversational between songs, her back-and-forth playfulness with her excellent backing band further served the intimate nature of her performance. Her sole album to date, I Need To Start a Garden, is definitely worth checking out if you’re a fan of Lucy Dacus, Waxahatchee, or just about anything currently happening in folk music right now.
Oh Sees
Not exactly ‘unknown’ or ‘up-and-coming’, but God forgive me for skipping out on the Oh Sees for this long. As a fan of Ty Segall and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, I’ve always known the Oh Sees would be up my street, but as an individual with finite time, I’ve always been wary of where to start with their nineteen studio albums. Yes, nineteen – they’re even more productive than King Gizz. Playing a set on one of the festival’s smaller stages at midnight of the second day, everything about their set blew me away: their double drumkit assault, improvised sections easily surpassing the fifteen-minute mark, but most notably, John Dwyer and his band’s unrelenting energy. A crowd ranging from people much younger than me to Danish folks easily in their sixties were left hanging on every reverberating, effects-drenched guitar hook, and the raw excitement easily surpassed most of the bigger shows at the festivals. To contextualise my point, I decided to check out the Oh Sees while waiting for My Bloody Valentine to start at 2am, and despite my heavy eyelids on my way over to their stage, their set was the perfect kick to wake me up and keep me going throughout the night. I am still very much in the process of exploring their back catalogue, but if you’re not sure where to start and want to check them out yourself, I’ve had their newest album Orc perpetually on repeat for the past two weeks, and it’s a blast.
Omni
I will admit, despite only briefly dipping my toe in Omni’s first album, Deluxe, I was excited to see them as soon as they were announced on the line-up. Guitarist Frankie Broyles is a former member of Deerhunter, a band I’ve grown to love since my first exposure to their albums Microcastle and Halcyon Digest way back during my first steps into alternative music in my awkward early teen years. What struck me first about Omni was their stage presence – vocalist/bassist Philip Frobos was incredibly interactive with the small crowd they played to on the festival’s final day, whereas Broyles said barely a word and instead let his guitar do the speaking for him. Although Omni deviate from the experimental psychedelia that defines Deerhunter’s sound, they were no less capable in delivering an unbelievable set which seamlessly blended the stripped-back attack of post-punk with an accessible and downright fun pop edge. Broyles demonstrated his tenure in Deerhunter perfectly with an unconventional approach to his guitar duties while the rhythm section carried the band through the set as a perfectly cohesive and technically impressive unit. Omni’s Bandcamp page describes their sound as ‘coarse, angular tunes meant to be jammed at full volume’, and this really is the only way to label their style. They are catchy, colourful, and most importantly, loud. For those interested in more, Deluxe is definitely a fantastic starting point, while their latest album Multi-Task promises that the project have a lot more to offer in the future.
As an addendum, if you’re considering trying the festival experience alone, I highly recommend it. It may seem daunting at first, and if you’re as unorganised as I am, the act of travelling solo might seem ridiculous, but the positives greatly outweigh the negatives. Along with having the freedom to attend as many different shows as I desired without the need to placate others, it was an excursion that allowed me to meet many great new people, try new things, see new music, and step out of my comfort zone. It’s the best thing you can do for yourself, and the second you arrive your insecurities and reservations completely evaporate, paving the way for a truly memorable experience.
By Luke Dodds