Live Review: RADAR Festival 2024 - Friday
26 July 2024
Words & Photos: William Mawdsley
Prog rock/metal festival Radar is back once again this year after the storming success of last year’s festival. Once again situated at its new Manchester home inside Victoria Warehouse, this year’s festival promises to be another fantastic weekend featuring a refreshingly varied lineup of prog, rock, metal and alternative acts. Once again, the two-stage setup features an impressive no clash policy so attendees are in for a packed weekend of nonstop music.
We start proceedings over on the Sneak Energy stage. Tucked between the rows of industrial columns of Victoria Warehouse's “smaller” room it’s a fitting setting for the grittier side of what the festival has to offer. The Newcastle based progressive rock collective Giant Walker are first to grace the stage at this year's festival and although it’s still early doors on a Friday the crowd is satisfyingly filled out. The band stand as a nice encapsulation of things to come with their mix of emotional and dreamy verses that lead straight into bass heavy riff sections that land with enough force to shake off any remaining early morning cobwebs. Their big sound fills out the room nicely and is a very welcome start to the day.
First up on the main stage are German group The Intersphere who offer an interesting mix of styles. Tracks like ‘Wanderer’ move fluidly between quiet and calm guitar parts into beefy crescendos whereas on ‘Who Likes to Deal with Death?’ the band aren’t afraid to turn things a little funky with a more light and summery sound. There are of course still those progressive elements running in the background throughout but the songs don’t lose that pop sensibility that keeps things danceable. Even when the songs breakdown into heavier sections the vocals of singer Christoph Hessler help keep the sound lifted and upbeat.
A creation of vocal artist Kat Marsh, Cestra is a journey into a world of dark and moody soundscapes. A mix of heavy industrial electronic backing tracks create an atmospheric foundation for Marsh's haunting choral vocal style to shine bright. There is clearly a strong vision behind Marsh's performance, awash in dark red light a black cloaked figure mounts a turntable in the centre of the stage adorned in a ceremonial style mask. Paired with the aethereal vocals it's quiet a site to behold calling to mind something close to ritualistic or ceremonial. It’s a captivating performance and later in the set Marsh is joined on stage by members of her other project Choir Noir for a choreographed section, adding an additional layering of vocal prowess to the performance.
Back on the main stage Earthside had the unfortunate misgiving of falling victim of possibly the only major technical hiccup of the weekend which resulted in a short delay to the start of their set as well as some of the vocal tracks for the performance only being played into the bands in ear monitors. Nevertheless, the group didn't let this deter them and put on a commendable set full of their cinematic styled prog rock. Keyboardist Frank Sacramone wasted no time in getting the energy going, jumping down to stand at the barrier and play up close and personal for fans. Once back on stage the antics didn't stop with Sacramone making full use of the stage with a display of high jumps off of the drum riser.
Currently running the festival circuit following on from the release of their fantastic debut EP there is a palpable buzz of anticipation as Unpeople take to the stage. The group's unique blend of alternative gritty rock with down and dirty breakdown is very much at home in this live setting with the perfect amount of grit and grunge to really raise the energy to a new high. Paired with the pop catchiness of the choruses sing-a-longs are a must and of course with a healthy dose of ‘HEY's and ‘WOAH’s thrown in for good measure it's a perfect recipe for a good time. A call to get the room moving is answered in full and we get our first circle pit of the weekend and the crowd is clearly eager for more. If Unpeople are playing a show near you make sure to get yourself to it these are definitely a band to watch.
The Japanese guitar prodigy and YouTube sensation Ichika Nito is up next on the main stage and coming straight off of the chaos of Unpeople’s set it's quite a contrast to say the least but definitely not an unwelcome one. With no flashy lights and minimal stage setup this performance is about as stripped back as it gets this weekend with only Ichika and guitar on a chair centre stage. Anyone familiar with Ichika’s work will know the next 40 minutes will be a relaxed masterclass in guitar technique. All the impressively technical guitar noodling is pulled off with the utmost of ease, and a calm and composed attitude that makes the entire performance feel effortless. The set is a just a wave of chill vibes which is a great refresher as we head back for another round at the Sneak Energy stage.
And we’re back for another dose of heavy, this time courtesy of the newly formed Vower. Despite this being only their 4th show as a group the 5-piece are already as tight a unit on stage as if they've been playing together for years, but with the impressive lineage this band wields it hardly comes as a surprise. The undeniable talent present on stage continues the progressive metal trends found across all of the members previous projects with some fantastically intense post hardcore elements keeping things sounding raw and emotional. The group are incredible to watch on stage with vocalist Josh McKeown leading from the front. Anyone familiar with a Palm Reader live show will understand the intensity that McKeown brings to his performances and that intensity is on full display here.
Once again, a shoutout must go to the sound team on this one as this set in particular is a major highlight of the weekend with every element sounding clear and crisp but still managing to bowl you over when the bass drops.
It's time for the main stage to share in some of the heaviness of today's lineup as Denmark's Vola take their place. The Dane's synth laden stylings sound massive in the space with vocalist Asger Mygind belting out huge choruses in songs like set opener ‘Alien Shivers’. There is a tranquil nature to a lot of Vola's music but when the low-end hits it hits hard with the heavy bass washing over the crowd like a wave. It is a seriously impressive showing from the group and there is clearly a lot of love in the room for this band already with lyrics being sung back at top volume. By the time the end of the set rolls around its undeniable Vola have won over anyone not familiar with them just an hour ago.
By the time Swedish hardcore outfit Thrown take the stage it’s to a packed crowd who are practically chomping at the opportunity to throw down in the pit. With just an EP so far to their name and an album coming up at the end of August, Thrown have stormed onto the scene with point to prove.
The band have gained a reputation over their relatively short career for their incredibly intense live shows and it is on full display here seeing them up on stage. The rage present in Thrown's music is powerful and intense as expected but the unexpected infusion of nu-metal elements on songs like ‘On the Verge’ certainly adds a welcome bounciness while not detracting from the overall ferocity.
There are crowd surfers and pits a plenty throughout and if you haven’t already, make sure to check these guys out as soon as possible.
In wild swing away from the previous 50 or so minutes we stumble away from the Sneak Energy stage to catch the penultimate main stage act of the night, Plini. No strangers to Radar fest having put in an appearance at the festival's old Guildford location back in 2022 the instrumental outfit take to the stage with a clear confidence. The sweeping guitar melodies founder Plini Roessler-Holgate creates are easy to get lost in but feature enough playfulness to keep the energy levels rising, taking nothing away from the other musicians in the band who are all incredibly skilled and as a whole form an incredibly tight musical unit. Plini very generously guides us at the start of each song with an announcement in jest of the energy level appropriate for the next arrangement.
Energy level 10 is of course reserved for set closer ‘Pan’ which comes along with a cheeky request for a circle pit.
Rounding out today's proceedings on the Sneak Energy stage are Leeds based metalcore stars Caskets. The band treat the awaiting crowd to a set full of large sounding metal riffs and melodies flush with the emotional hooks that the group are known for. Sing-a-longs are a must as the crowd shout the lyrics back full volume. Frontman Matt Flood does a great job of engaging with the crowd and keeping the energy alive.
And with that it’s time for our final set of the day with synth-wave outfit The Midnight, the opening notes of opener ‘Neon Medusa’ instantly calling to mind images of neon drenched palm trees and sunset beachside drives. The crowd are clearly here for it all of it and by the time the roaring notes of Justin Klunk's saxophone blare out on ‘Deep Blue’ the dancing is in full swing and shows no sign of stopping for the remainder of the evening. Its impossible not to be charmed by the retro vibes as the group take is through a packed set and it's appropriately with the final crescendo of ‘Sunset’ that we see the night out on this first day of Radar fest 2024.
Photo credits: William Mawdsley
