New tracks, videos & highlights from European festival season with Bicep, The Smile, Sir Paul, K-Dot & more
As we Americans feast on the summer rays and the latest social and political implosion, it’s always good to allow yourself a bit of distraction. Over in Europe, festival season is well under way, and our writer Aidan Grant delivered some awesome coverage of Melt! Festival, one of Europe’s best hidden gems.
Meanwhile, today we’ll be highlighting some of the best moments from the last few weeks of European festival season. I have never attended Glastonbury before, but I really wish I did this time. The true mother of all music festivals once again trotted out thousands of acts performing on over 100 stages to the tune of almost 200,000 in attendance. Elder statesmen acts like Primal Scream and Skunk Anansie proved they’re still operating at the top of their games, while rising stars Bicep proved that they’re the future of the EDM scene with a galvanizing audiovisual spectacle of their own. Of course, Sir Paul McCartney wowed the festival’s biggest crowd with a little help from his late friend John Lennon. But the biggest waves came from Kendrick Lamar, who closed his dynamic Sunday headlining set with a poignant message of protest and solidarity in support of abortion and women’s rights.
Elsewhere around the continent, the Isle of Wight festival returned to England’s south coast, and featured an incredible set by Pete Tong and composer Jules Buckley performing various Ibiza disco hits with a full backing orchestra! Meanwhile, the Best Kept Secret and Pinkpop festivals hosted emphatic Dutch crowds, with sets from Turnstile and Jessie Ware and a stripped-down backstage performance from Wolf Alice. Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood’s Radiohead offshoot The Smile lit up Spain’s Primavera Sound crowd, as did Texas psych jam-rockers Khruangbin. And finally, French metal festival Hellfest made its bloodcurdling return, and featured a fiery set from Brazilian heavy metal legends Sepultura.
And as this is our usual YouTube video mix, we’ve got a smattering of new tunes, music videos and live performances from rising and/or DIY acts. That includes a breathtaking new single from Florida indie pop rockers Flipturn, a fun interview with Geese as they cover Nick Drake to raise money for suicide awareness, a haunting live performance from Black Country, New Road at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, and a smattering of artists with fresh releases on dream pop label Spirit Goth: Cool Heat, Total Heat, and Video Days. You can check out the full tracklist and dive right into the video mix below!
TRACKLIST:
1. Kendrick Lamar – Savior (LIVE at Glastonbury)
2. Boyhood – Stroke It
3. 700 Bliss – Cosmic Slop
4. The Callous Daoboys – What is Delicious? Who Swarms?
5. Paul McCartney – I Got A Feeling (LIVE at Glastonbury)
6. Flipturn – Whales
7. Cool Heat – Slow Burn
8. Geese and Nick Drake – Place to Be (LIVE Nick Drake cover)
9. The Inflorescence – Board Game
10. Turnstile – Don’t Play & Holiday (LIVE at Pinkpop)
11. The Beths – Silence Is Golden
12. Skunk Anansie – Hedonism (LIVE at Glastonbury)
13. Elucid – Spellling
14. Total Heat – Up All Night
15. Wolf Alice – How Can I Make It Okay (LIVE at Best Kept Secret)
16. The 1975 – Part of the Band
17. Black Country, New Road – Basketball Shoes (LIVE at Queen Elizabeth Hall)
18. Pool Kids – I Hope You’re Right
19. Pete Tong & Jules Buckley: Ibiza Classics – You Got The Love (LIVE at Isle of Wight)
20. Camp Trash – Lake Eerie Boys
21. black midi – Eat Men Eat
22. Bicep – Meli ii (LIVE at Glastonbury)
23. The Mars Volta – Blacklight Shine
24. Alex the Astronaut – Haircut
25. The Smile – Thin Thing (LIVE at Primavera Sound)
26. Alex G – Runner
27. Primal Scream – Movin’ On Up (LIVE at Glastonbury)
28. Launder – Intake
29. Asian Glow – Lit Lips the Bracken
30. Jessie Ware – Remember Where You Are (LIVE at Best Kept Secret)
31. Dry Cleaning – Don’t Press Me
32. Soccer Mommy – Don’t Ask Me
33. Cryalot – Hell is Here
34. Video Days – 35mm
35. Khruangbin feat. Mos Def – Maria También (LIVE at Primavera Sound)
36. Alvvays – Pharmacist
37. Sepultura – Roots Bloody Roots (LIVE at Hellfest)
