Ah, it’s that time of year again. After spending their gap yaaah(s) travelling to cities across the UK, the BBC Radio 6 Music Festival has recently made a return to its spiritual home of Manchester.
With the city hosting the first edition of 6 Music’s flagship event in 2014, the three-day gathering headed back to the O2 Victoria Warehouse at the end of March to, as always, champion some of the hottest artists around, including headliners Loyle Carner, Christine & The Queens and Arlo Parks.
Whether you were there and need to relive the experience or just want to sadistically feed your FOMO even more, here we take a look back at the best moments from the weekend, reminding us that the UK music scene is not only alive and well, but thriving.
Photo: BBC 6 Music
10) Wu-Lu absolutely running riot during their last two songs
“We ain’t a punk band, we’re not a hip hop band, we just make music, yeah?” frontman Miles Romans-Hopcraft proclaimed as Wu-Lu began their set.
Chuck together some chugging grunge guitars, fuzzy alt-hip hop beats and intense punk-rap vocals and you’ve got yourself one hell of a show. Ripping their shirts off and thrashing around the stage, the band’s last few songs are the ones that showcased what they're really about, sparking a contagious energy that floods across the room.
9) Jamz Supernova proving she really knows how to work a crowd
Being the opening act at any show can be hard, particularly when you’re trying to encourage a largely (at this point) sober crowd of characteristically stiff and self-conscious Brits to dance. It’s an age-old cliché for a reason, but the 6 Music favourite’s mix of electro-soul, house, broken beat and dancehall bangers even managed to crack a toe-tap from the awkward parental chaperones at the back (and a full-on manic flail from a couple at the front).
8) Christine & The Queens shutting the lights off and re-emerging with a bloody big pair of angel wings
ICYMI: French electronic pop trailblazer Christine & The Queens recently unveiled a new concept for his latest project in the shape of a new persona, Redcar.
Remaining in character throughout the whole show, he reappeared on stage to mark the live debut of three new tracks, wearing a pair of suitably celestial angel wings. What makes Chris such an exciting live artist, though, isn’t the white feathers strapped to his back, but the fact that his lyrics transcend language barriers and, somehow, the non-French speakers among us can feel what he’s saying without understanding a word. It’s organised chaos, in the best and most beautiful way. But would we expect any less?
7) Arlo Parks absolutely smashing the vocals, and bringing out a very special guest…
You’d be forgiven for assuming that the whispery indie-pop sound of Arlo Parks’ recorded material wouldn’t translate so well to the stage. Forgiven? Yes. Correct? Abso-flippin’-lutely not.
Her soft, airy vocals hit the spot every time, paired with infectious energy and enthusiasm that can only be experienced at a live show. Just to add the cherry on top, Fontaines D.C’s Tom Coll stepped behind the drumkit during her encore performance of 2019’s Sophie too. Two BRIT-winning artists for the price of one?! What a treat.
Photo: BBC 6 Music
6) …aaand another very special guest.
Romy Madley-Croft of The xx fame is a longtime friend of our Sunday night headliner, having recently appeared as a guest on her own BBC 6 Music show, Dream Fuel. Reuniting on stage for a surprise duet of Parks’ 2020 single Black Dog, the result was a spellbinding union of two icons-in-the-making. Truly a real “yep, I was there” moment.
5) Loyle Carner using his platform for positive change (and we are so here for it)
South London’s Loyle Carner is, if nothing else, a storyteller. The narratives that float through his tracks become all the more goosebump-inducing when they’re accompanied with tales of his own personal experiences.
Carner has always been massively vocal about the importance of protecting your own mental health and that of the people around you, with the words of his 2019 single Loose Ends feeling especially potent when they’re prefaced by a confession that, “I’ve lost friends because they didn’t open up and tell me what was going on”. He urges the crowd to speak out to their loved ones, reminding them, “if you’re going through something, especially if you’re a young man like me, tell your homies what’s going on, please, don’t let me lose you, please.”
He speaks candidly and with genuine passion about politics, identity and knife crime, even inviting Youth MP Athian Akec on stage to perform his powerful speech that closes Blood On My Nikes. It never feels preachy or too heavy for a Friday night, proving that L.C. is the voice UK hip hop needs right now.
Photo: BBC 6 Music
4) Lava La Rue just generally being a badass
As if we didn’t already know that. Creative director of Wet Leg’s acclaimed Midsommar-esque performance at this year’s BRIT Awards, founder of the NiNE8 collective and now 6 Music Festival alumni: Lava La Rue’s musical CV is one that should be envied by artists far beyond their years. Showcasing a mash-up of alt-hip hop, electro-soul and scuzzy indie-rock brimming with flair and confidence, if you can take anything away from their performance, it’s that the London native is an artist who truly knows who they are, what they’re about and where they’re headed.
The host city is a moment in itself. With 6 Music Festival banners draped across the Northern Quarter, it seems you’re never more than a few steps away from a music venue bursting with everything from indie, to jazz, to hip hop and beyond. The city oozes authenticity and is a vital force across the nation’s creative industries, with music having sat at its core for decades. While it’s been nice to see other cultural hubs in the UK show us what they’re made of, it’s pretty clear Manchester is the true life and soul of the party.
Photo: BBC 6 Music/iPlayer
2) The Big Moon’s enchanting A capella reimagining of Formidable making us feel like there was a literal choir of angels in the room
Turns out, we really, really want to join The Big Moon. With their third album ‘Here Is Everything’ popping up on Album Of The Year lists left, right and centre last year, the indie-pop four-piece’s presence simply radiates friendship and unity, with the wry wit and quiet confidence that makes them stand out.
Formidable, a track from their 2017 record ‘Love In The 4th Dimension’, lends itself perfectly to the ethereal harmonies performed by three-quarters of the band, standing arm-in-arm at the centre of the stage. For the first time all weekend, there was silence in the room where, for only a few minutes, we could all just listen. So anyway, uh…when are the auditions?
1) Loyle Carner performing Nobody Knows (Ladlas Road) with the AMC Gospel Choir
Loyle Carner’s introspective 2022 single Nobody Knows (Ladlas Road) reached new heights when the AMC Gospel Choir lit up the stage alongside him. Magical is the only word: the contrast of gritty lyrics and a heavenly chorus courtesy of Manchester’s AMC was just what we needed to round off the night.
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