Green Man Festival 2024

Just last weekend, mega-stars Arlo Parks and Sampha threw us into another dimension on the mainstage on Saturday and Sunday, meanwhile on the Thursday and Friday our highlights were the Spinny Nights b2b Buffee DJ set and Moonchild Sanelly’s charismatic live show. Sampha’s tight band, including one Harvey Causon previously interviewed in METAL, articulated the artist’s gentle yet powerful tracks with precision and ease. During the show a red moon glowed sleepily as it rose from the side of the stage, charging the crowd with passion, an emotion felt at Moonchild Sanelly’s set too that featured a healthy dose of twerking. Arlo Parks, meanwhile, was forever wholesome.

Bannau Brycheiniog, previously called the Brecon Beacons, teemed with music aficionados of all ages from Thursday to Sunday. 2024’s crowd seemed, as we looked around throughout the long weekend, to lean more into the older and family categories than in 2023. Perhaps it’s because you have to be well organised, or well connected, to snag a ticket for the intimate-feeling festival tucked away in the mountains.

For 2024, tickets reportedly sold out in just around two hours after being released in late September, without any indication of the lineup, such is the collective trust in the programmers to book both incredible rising talents and musicians that Radio 6 listeners love. The given of scenic views surrounding the site, of breathtaking verdant mountains, adds to the appeal. Not forgetting the familiar and exquisite food selection — we’re looking at you £6 onion bhaji deal and decadent vegan sushi wrap stand.

The most important thing, along with the community that regularly attends the festival, is of course the music. Opus Kink made a big impact at the Far Out stage early on in the day on Friday with their hypnotic tunes and looks. The post-punk band’s lead singer was one of the artists who called to free Palestine, along with the Lambrini Girls on the Sunday, whose political musings between songs were urgent and well received. Both Ezra Collective and Lambrini Girls also condemned the far-right racist riots that swept the United Kingdom just 3 weeks ago. 

Other artists like Burns Night hyped up the queers in the crowd making this year feel marked by the socio-political experience and leanings of so-called outsiders and hippies at Green Man. Art and music is more often than not an act and expression of impulse. But what leads up to that impulse is still the social, political and historical context we find ourselves in. Luckily, Opus Kink, Lambrini Girls, Ezra Collective and Burns Night all sounded great too. Opus Kink’s noodling guitar and keys partner with harsh vocals that evoke the pulling of a big dog on a lead. The band expertly balance laid-back and assertive.

More artists we saw that felt significant were the Syrian musician Omar Souleyman gracing the main stage with delight, love songs and beautiful-sounding Arabic lyricism, also the enchanting American artist Lonnie Holley was a breath of fresh air in the warm summer sun. After nightfall, Nabihah Iqbal’s indie alternative performance stole our hearts at the Walled Garden. She joined the veritable sea of artists doing well-known covers with an awesome rendition of A Forest. Meanwhile Ezra Collective gave us the famous UK garage song Sweet Like Chocolate and Sleaford Mods West End Girls. Burns Night’s whole set was a David Byrne and Talking Heads tribute featuring artists from across the festival including Lynks and Nadine Shah. In this current political climate, there’s a lot to say for the comfort of familiar tracks for joy and escapism.

Ezra Collective have risen through the ranks at Green Man since their debut at the festival in 2019 in the Far Out tent, now making it to the mainstage on Sunday night. Those who we expect to be on this type of path are Ugly and The New Eves, whose shows on the Rising Stage were enthralling. The two bands both have references in 70s rock, reimagining retro for now with a dash of choral-adjacent harmonies. Guitar music does seem to reign supreme at Green Man, although we saw some impressive sets that lean into the electronic, like the DJ Sherelle, whose show was attended by King Krule after his appearance with Mount Kimbie.

As we rest our weary feet this week all we can think about is returning next year to another cohort of boundary-pushing artists, both established and rising. Long live Green Man.