Barn on the Farm 10 Year Anniversary: George Ezra, Lewis Capaldi, and more make highlights for this year
Josh Sanger is the brains behind the UK’s strongest independent festival, Barn on the Farm. Celebrating it’s tenth year, the festival boasted the largest line up yet, full of global pop stars to local indie bands that are on their way up. Here are the highlights from the favourite festival for any true music lover:
George Ezra aka Reggae Zero Surprise Set
‘Reggae Zero’ was the intriguing name on the program who was to take the stage directly before Maggie Rogers, but it didn’t take long for the Barn on the Farm crowd to realise it was merely an anagram for George Ezra. “I have nothing against reggae,” he confirms first and foremost before cracking on with his set. Fresh from his European Tour, George performed sitting on a stool after hurting his foot, but nevertheless did not fail to provide a vibrant stunning show for his new album “Staying at Tamara’s” with performances of fan favourites ‘Paradise’ and ‘Pretty Shining People,’ as well as the classics for the long-term fans like ‘Budapest.’
The Farm Band featuring Maggie Rogers
Festival favourite Jade Bird’s last minute illness meant she could no longer appear, but Barn on the Farm makes sure to never disappoint fans, and thus was born the Farm Band. Consisting of Maisie Peters, JC Stewart, Lily Moore, and Plested – all of whom were asked an hour before stage time to do this, joined the Wooden Barn stage to together perform each other’s songs. The best kept surprise of all, festival headliner Maggie Rogers appeared on stage out of nowhere to perform her breakout hit ‘Alaska.’
Lily Moore Performs New Single ‘Over You’ for First Time
It wouldn’t be a complete Barn on the Farm line up without Lily appearing. Taking to the main stage, Lily performed her brand new track, released just this weekend, ‘Over You,’ for the first time. “I wish that you would fuck one of my friends in our bed” is the brutally first line that of Lily’s new single, ‘Over You.’ The song comes from a place of humour, as Lily addresses the irony of the difficulty of ending a relationship on good terms. Inspired first and foremost by classic soul artists, ‘Over You’ is an example of how she transpires reliability in her songs and lets us into her world that we can share.
Zak Abel sings Happy Birthday to Mum
Zak Abel perfectly encompassed the true meaning of Barn on the Farm’s community-driven, family-friendly vibe, singing Happy Birthday to his mother Rachel as he headlined the Outdoor Stage on the Saturday. He did accompany this with his original songs too, performing tracks from his storming debut album “Only When We’re Naked” as well as new tunes to be released. Check out a full interview with Zak here ahead of his Barn on the Farm performance.
“Sexy Priest” Lewis Capaldi headlines the Outdoor Stage
Calling out festival founder Josh for rejecting him when he used to apply to play Barn on the Farm back in the day was all in fun and games, but still having the opportunity to headline this stage was clearly a big moment for the record-breaker. Everything you could expect in a Lewis Capaldi gig was present, from Lewis’ signature self-depreciating humour – this time about how his outfit looked like he was dressed like a sexy priest - all the way to a couple getting engaged during his set. But these don’t take away from the impact of performances of tunes like ‘Someone You Loved’ for the crowd who queued all day in the sweltering heat to take front row.
Apre Swagger Through Sound Issues
So the main stage sound cut out for a while – but Apre didn’t let that phase them! The playful duo delivered a tasteful set full of their innovative tunes. Lead singer Charlie enjoyed the huge space on the main stage, jumping from every corner and angle he could find, and was joined by fans who were full-out dancing to every tune. The charisma of the band is one that can’t be missed.
More Artists to Watch:
Holly Humberstone – Though Holly is yet to release online, she is no stranger to the festival stage as she had already played Glastonbury just last week. Playing to a hungover crowd desperate for coffee at 11am on the last day of the festival, Holly’s smooth vocals and sweet melodies were the perfect cure. ‘Falling Asleep at the Wheel’ is always a live highlight!
Easy Life – Definitely the only band on the line up where the lead vocalist also plays the trumpet, Easy Life’s 5-piece band is a fun-filled, action packed set for music fans from all walks of life.
Emily Burns – A new pop star on the rise, Emily played tunes on her acoustic guitar on the Wooden Barn stage. Straight-to-the-point song titles ‘Cheat,’ ‘Bitch,’ and ‘PDA’ are reflective of the punch melodies and lyrics she writes, and as she explained the story behind each song, each anecdote was definitely met with a loud cheer!