Photo Credit: Mick Byrne
The first edition of THE BRIT FEST made its debut at Ashley Hall Showground in Altrincham in Cheshire, hosting a ray of indie and Britpop staples from the last 30 years on their opening day.
It was an extremely hot Friday afternoon when CHRIS HELME formerly of The Seahorses, made his way on to the stage as the first act of the festival. The audience were already feeling the effects of the heat from their ground-level seats, so HELME‘s laid back performance was ideal for unwinding to. A significant amount of people joined in for a sing-along as ‘I Want You To Know‘ kicked off the set, and this trend continued with ‘Love is The Law‘ and ‘Love Me and Leave Me‘, the latter of which was dedicated to close pals Dodgy, before finally concluding his flawless opening slot with ‘Blinded By the Sun‘.
Since everyone’s objective for the day was to “stay out for the summer” there’s no better way to start a DODGY performance than with that song. In ‘Stand Up its Dancing‘, Nigel Clark used the tambourine to create a feel-good melody that emphasised the keys too. Chris Helme made a reappearance to play ‘Scattered Memories‘ with the band, whilst crowd favourites ‘In A Room‘ and ‘Good Enough‘ had everyone back up on their feet. DODGY concluded their set with ‘Grassman‘, in true fashion to round off their joyful performance once again.
An essential addition to the line-up, surf rock group REEF opened their afternoon slot with ‘Story to Tell‘, with shredding guitars becoming a focal point in their performance throughout. The crowd remained lively across the site as ‘Consideration‘ and ‘Place Your Hands‘ followed next, and a cover of ‘The Chain‘ got everyone singing along one last time as the Glasto band delivered a feel good show, as they continue to do.
Pop-rock group THE FEELING really know how to entertain the crowd, from a range of fan favourites, to a feel good cover to keep the party going. The band gave their performance their all, kicking off with top 10 hit single ‘Fill My Little World‘, which still remains a favourite across their fanbase. A joyous cover of ‘Video Killed the Radio Star’ had everybody off their feet, followed by ‘Talking About Jamie’ before concluding arguably the performance of the day with ‘I Love It When You Call’ to see out their well-received show.
THE LOTTERY WINNERS are a humorous indie pop band that also have plenty of experience entertaining large crowds. Frontman Tom Rylance’s comedic values are non-stop throughout and make every performance of theirs very unique. Opening the show with ‘Worry’, the upbeat song attracted everybody’s attention immediately. Guitarist Rob Lally taught the crowd how to sing ‘Favourite Flavour‘, and they executed this perfectly, as well as a rendition of Madness’ ‘Must Be Love’, which takes no encouragement for anyone to join in. Their biggest hit ‘Start Again’ started off with yet another crowd introduction, with all four members of the band watching in awe of how many people were joining in, before concluding their show with ‘Burning House’ with frontman Rylance strutting around the stage filming himself, the other members and the crowd whilst still delivering the lyrics effortlessly.
Britpop legends CAST were next to embark on the main stage, and fans of the band knew exactly what they were in for. The crowd were treated to a variety of riffs and lively tunes, such as the opening track ‘Sandstorm‘. The mesmerising Liam Tyson creates the sound of an arcade game from the 1980s as he taps away on ‘History‘, while John Power also shreds as he bounces around throughout. Whilst the charming ‘Walkaway‘ is an excellent way to calm down the energy briefly, ‘Guiding Star‘ picks up the pace once again before the bands emphatic conclusion. CAST were met with thunderous cheers from the audience, as they wrapped off their performance in typical style with ‘Alright‘, marking their slot at THE BRIT FEST a suitable addition to the band’s packed summer itinerary.
The first edition of THE BRIT FEST was certainly a welcomed one in Cheshire, and with a day full of the best of British music on display for fans to see, the same will be replicated once again in 2025 for their returning weekender.
The Brit Fest returns to Ashley Hall Showground, Altrincham on 4th – 6th July 2025. More info HERE.
Taped Magazine 