Reviews / Love Saves the Day
Review: Love Saves the Day, day 2 – ‘A perfect love letter to UK drum and bass’
With Ashton Court having been battered by rain overnight, Bristol’s drum and bass lovers were expecting to return to the Love Saves site and be met with an all-too-familiar swamp, questioning whether the “Love Saves curse” really had struck again.
Clad in walking boots and armed with spare pairs of socks, we were instead greeted with lush green grass, hot sun, and the sounds of the incredible reggae-samba band Batala Bristol echoing over the hills.
The energy was high, and it definitely set us up well for a jam-packed day.
is needed now More than ever
Samba from Batala Bristol got the energy going early doors – photo: Jessie Myers
As we danced down the hill to the infectious tunes of Batala, we got pulled into Wray’s Lounge, lured by Dancehall Generals’ dub and reggae-filled Caribbean party and the buckets full of rum punch behind the bar.
While we were naturally looking forward to seeing some of the big names of the day, this tiny tent was genuinely one of my favourite areas of the festival.
It was such a pure, joyful atmosphere: early enough in the day for everyone to still be full of life, and the sun shining down to cure any hangover blues.
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Having seen the teaser collab with Dubtendo and Pizzarova ahead of the festival, we couldn’t resist the call of the Dubtendo stage. We headed there next, just in time for a brilliant set from London-based DJ ESC.
Minutes turned to hours listening to ESC, who effortlessly blended grime, 140 and garage to create the perfect dancing soundtrack for the sunny afternoon – made infinitely better, of course, by the addition of a bearded man in a Princess Peach costume.
Dubtendo will never get old – photo: Alistair Brookes
Finally pulling ourselves away from Dubtendo, we moved over to the Big Top to watch Degs’ incredible set.
Combining intense liquid beats and soulful, R&B-tinged vocals for a captivating performance and playing some deeper cuts along with crowd favourites like Poveglia and Levitate Your Mind, Degs was definitely one of the day’s highlights for me.
At Love Saves there are spectacles and side shows everywhere you look – photo: Elliot Hingston
As Degs’ set was drawing to a close, the Big Top went from busy to packed, with people pouring in from all angles. We stayed with them, and, as Austrian duo Camo & Krooked (featuring Daxta MC) took to the stage, we were very glad we did.
With bass that you could feel rattling up your spine, Camo & Krooked’s set was transformative and all-consuming.
Their full-throttle mixes put the crowd in a trance-like state, the entire set becoming an elaborate production that completely blew us away.
With eight stages and a ton of art installations and sound systems dotted across the site, it’s a busy day for revellers – photo: Eljay
With a line-up as stacked as Love Saves’ with drum and bass legends, there were certainly some tough sacrifices that had to be made. Pulling myself away from the hypnotic powers of Camo & Krooked was certainly one of them, but Groove Armada were calling.
Absolute giants in dance music, Groove Armada, joined by Eats Everything, brought a fantastic pop-infused, entirely joyful performance.
Groove Armada x Eats Everything were a big crowd pull and fulfilled their promise – photo: Eljay
Drawing on seventies and eighties classics with mixes of tracks like Diana Ross’ Upside Down, and appeasing the crowd with repeated renditions of their big hit Superstylin’, I couldn’t get enough of their set.
The trio pulled out the hits as well as some classic crowd-pleasing remixes – photo: Eljay
Moving from strength to strength, the Love Saves stage then hosted SHY FX.
After a cancelled set at the festival last year, his appearance was eagerly anticipated. Playing a whole range of drum and bass big hitters, including a remix of Fred again…’s leavemealone and Chase & Status x Becky Hill’s Disconnect, SHY FX had the crowd singing along from start to finish.
Interjecting this with some of his own biggest tracks, such as Roll The Dice and his edit of Gold Dust, before closing with Chase & Status’ remix of his track Original Nuttah, this set felt like a perfect love letter to UK drum and bass.
Love saved the day for this festival wedding party…. – photo: Giulia Spadafora
It was then time to regroup and reset over some chicken fries, consumed elatedly while taking in the Teachings in Dub at the Firmly Rooted stage.
The rest didn’t last long, though, as we knew we had to catch the reunion of Skream and Benga. And so we rushed back to the Love Saves stage, just in time to catch the dubstep pioneers in action.
The infamous duo had the entire festival in the palms of their hands, playing back-to-back classics and even remixing tracks from Charli XCX’s brat, the pair effortlessly demonstrated why they were the ones to watch at this year’s festival.
The Love Saves stage hosted some huge names this year – photo: Giulia Spadafora
As the sun finally set over Ashton Court, tension only grew for the long-awaited headline act, Nia Archives. One of the biggest names emerging from the jungle and electronic scenes right now, Nia Archives delivered an unforgettable set to close out the weekend.
Bringing classic staples of jungle and drum and bass but with her own totally distinctive, unique flair, she was an unstoppable force on the Love Saves stage.
Headliner Nia Archives was ‘an unstoppable force’ – photo: Eljay
Playing her biggest hits, including Baianá and Get Loose, as well as a brilliant remix of M.I.A’s Paper Planes, Nia Archives proved herself as one of this generation’s finest DJs.
As her set drew to a close, I heard the girl next to me whisper, “that was unreal” to herself. And, truthfully, I couldn’t have put it better myself.
For many, it was the best possible ending to a weekend packed with huge dance acts and quality festival experiences – photo: Eljay
This year’s Love Saves the Day was full to the brim of incredible artists, some of the best of the best DJs in the country, and some underground acts that stole the show.
Bristol is such a haven for drum and bass lovers and, if we are the worshippers, Love Saves is our temple.
Main image: Giulia Spadafora
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