Gigraphy Review - Parklife 2024

By Sophie Ditchfield

Saturday

For over a decade, every June Heaton Park hosts one of the biggest events that Manchester sees throughout the year. With up to 80,000 expected attendees over the weekend, I knew it was going to be a hectic two days.

Having never been to Parklife before, I was a little nervous about attending given that it’s not my usual genre of events. I discovered beforehand that there was no parking onsite or even nearby which proved to be slightly problematic for not only me but general festival goers. This also applied to collecting wrist bands - I found it difficult to locate the press box office due to lack of signage despite being sent directions prior.

Once inside, I was astounded by the variety of both vendors and facilities on site. Having been an avid festival attender for several years now, I knew what a good festival should encompass, and Parklife had absolutely everything and more. Not only that but the site was quite easy to navigate with most things being on the edge of a circular layout. I ventured over to the VIP section first and the atmosphere inside was so positive with there being an exclusive DJ performance happening. Every single person seemed to have a smile on their face, with a few even dancing along to the immaculate soundtrack that the DJ was playing.

I began the weekend by heading over to the Magic Sky stage and was impressed by the layout. I’ve found at festivals that most stages can be pretty standard looking aside from the mainstage - but not at Parklife! Magic Sky had a whirlwind sculpture intricately built out of scaffolding suspended above the stage, it was stunning. Unfortunately due to the late sunset, the lights installed inside it couldn’t be displayed to its full potential.

The first set I managed to catch was award winning DJ, Bou. Given that this was practically a hometown show for him with being from Manchester, I knew that it would be one to watch. As Bou graced the stage, he was met by a roaring crowd who were eagerly anticipating the performance. From mashups to hit singles, the set was filled with absolutely everything you could ask for and was the perfect set to start the weekend.

With big boots to fill, Hybrid Minds took over and all I can say is they put on one hell of a show. Every track had the crowd singing along word for word and I was not excluded from this. Hybrid Minds have been on my list of shows to catch for a while and I was not disappointed. With endless jets of CO2, occasional bursts of fire and a cascade of confetti to close the show, it was an explosive end to a brilliant set.

Next up we were graced with Wilkinson’s attendance. Wilkinson put on a stellar performance that would appeal to anyone in the audience. There was an eclectic mix of 90’s hits including a few songs by both Pendulum and The Prodigy - this satisfied the alternative side of my music taste. To close their set, Wilkinson played the song that they’re most famously known for - 'Afterglow'. With nearly 200 million listens on Spotify, it’s virtually impossible to not know the words to the chorus and that chorus certainly rang loudly round Heaton Park, leaving a lasting impression as they exited the stage.

I thought that would be a good time to go off and explore more of the site as I hadn’t realised how much time had slipped away after being so engrossed in the performances on Magic Sky.

I wandered over to the Hangar stage and admired the sheer size of the infrastructure. Though the space was open plan and enormous, it was still absolutely rammed and made it impossible to get a real feel for the atmosphere and set up of the stage. From what I could see from afar, the energy close to the stage was incredible, however very similarly to the Magic Sky stage, I think a lot of the ambience was lost due to the fact that it was so light in the evenings now. That being said, performers certainly kept the audience engrossed with a mix of pyrotechnics - the fire effects were particularly spectacular.

I then made my way over to the Parklife stage to catch some of Sugababes’ set. Personally, I found it strange that the stage named after the festival wasn’t the main stage but I also think that the name for the Valley stage was very fitting - though I feel this may be me being slightly pedantic. I didn’t hang around too long for the Sugababes as I found their performance to be a little flat with a lack of stage presence from all members of the group. They spent several songs perched upon stools which was a stark contrast to several of the high energy performances I had attended prior in the day. Nonetheless, the rest of the crowd seemed to eat it up and appeared to be having an absolute ball.

I made my final journey of the day and set off to spend some time at The Valley. I was lucky enough to catch the end of Peggy Gou’s set and appreciate the path she has forged for herself in such a male dominated scene - the turnout for her set was phenomenal and showed how revered she is. Despite myself not being familiar with her music, I couldn't help but be entranced by her talents and seamless transitions between tracks.

Due to my early arrival at The Valley, I maintained an excellent viewing point in preparation for the long awaited headliners, Disclosure.

The pair declared this to be their first live UK show in 8 years, which initially had me confused due to them headlining R&L Festival only 3 years prior. I then came to the realisation that their previous appearances had been DJ sets sans the full band behind them. If anything this made fans all the more eager for their performance.

I think there’s something special about Disclosure that sets them apart from usual D&B acts, the fact that they have the ability to use live instruments like drums, keyboards and guitars when performing instead of always relying on just mixing their tracks on the decks.

This gives them the chance to really showcase their talents and you can tell when watching them that they love every second of it. Although the beginning of their set was slow and repetitive, they quickly redeemed themselves with several back to back hits which had the crowd bouncing.

The first day of festivities came to an end with Disclosure treating loyal festival goers to their final song, Tondo, joined by a full brass band to bring the metaphorical roof of Heaton Park down for the final time that day.

Sunday

It appeared we had taken Saturday for granted and should not have expected Sunday to be so kind. The Gods had decided enough was enough and opened the heavens to drench guests throughout the second day of Parklife. Regardless of the fact that packing snorkels might have been more effective than the wellies most of us donned, the acts surely made up for the drab English weather by putting on performances that helped us forget we were all but stood in the middle of Heaton Park Reservoir.

My first port of call was to catch Ella Henderson’s set, knowing I would be astounded by her flawless vocal range. I was indeed right and massively enjoyed her set, despite there appearing to be some technical difficulties in which her backing music played throughout breaks in songs, she successfully pulled it back and continued on with an outstanding performance full of incredible vocals and lively crowd participation.

I kept my spot over at the Main Stage due to the grounds being so waterlogged and feeling good about my position amidst the mud. I was more than happy to stay where I was as I had long looked forward to Rudimental’s appearance, only to be vaguely disappointed for what could have been an unbelievable set. They kicked off with 'Waiting All Night' which instantly lifted the spirits of the sopping crowd, warming us all up considerably. I had hoped this would be the beginning of a memorable performance but felt it was a missed opportunity as I had waited so long to see them live but was dispirited to find they were playing more of a DJ set and remixed songs like 'Feel The Love' which could, and should, have been so much bigger.

Next up was Anne-Marie, someone I had seen previously supporting Ed Sheeran on a giant stadium stage. I knew this meant that she would be comfortable up on the Main Stage and was excited for what was to come. The opening of the star’s set was very visually stimulating with fire engulfing the stage during the first track and streamers descending over the throngs of people watching during the second. By the fourth song, 'Unhealthy', members of the crowd were removing items of clothing to swing above their heads upon request of the singer, which I can imagine made for amazing shots for the photographers lucky enough to shoot this set. The entire audience was enthralled by Anne-Marie and her stage presence, which became increasingly evident as she sang the first couple of lines of 'Rockabye' before getting the crowd to continue it up to the end of the first chorus. Word for word, they impressed her.

She closed her set with an explosive appearance from Aitch and sent fans into a frenzy, definitely one of the most memorable moments from the entire weekend.

Good things can’t be good for too long, as we all know far too well, because this is the moment the rain decided to really come down on us and not. stop. once. I can’t say the next performance from Uncle Waffle soothed the sting of the rain any, with the same incessant beat playing and a big lack in variation between tracks, the day grew cold and energy levels dropped. This isn’t to say the whole set from this artist was a wash, as the dancers provided high entertainment and showed impressive connections between the members of the group, but unfortunately that is all the praise I have for this act.

Doja Cat was next to enter the stage swaddled in an enormous poncho, upon seeing us out in the thick of it she removed it and braved the elements with us in her revealing outfit. While Doja’s dancing and general stage presence are usually top tier and make for a hell of a performance, the rain was unrelenting and, pun not intended, really put a dampener on the night. This unfortunately led me to leave early and miss a fair portion of the hits but upon my final exit from the festival, I did get to witness the dazzling fireworks exploding in the sky to close this year’s Parklife.

Parklife 2024 was my first ever festival in this genre of music and despite being dubious about the weekend, I actually had a lot of fun and really enjoyed myself. With that in mind, I would 100% love to go back again and think I may have found a new festival to attend yearly. The only complaints were in regards to signage and parking but the layout and the facilities are really good, there’s lots of activities to get yourself involved in and overall just a great weekend out.

I have to say, although I was dubious about this weekend, my first Parklife experience was a lot of fun and I definitely enjoyed myself. Despite the weather being so typically British, I could absolutely see myself coming back year after year and making it one of my regular haunts. As previously mentioned, my only real grievance was in regards to the signage of the festival grounds and parking, but overall the layout and facilities were brilliant with a lot of activities to get involved in and good vibes all round.

Thank you Parklife 2024, hopefully see you next year.