Evolution: The Festival in the Car Park Returns

May Bank Holiday weekend heralded the return of Evolution festival as its army of 60,000 descended upon the Newcastle/Gateshead quayside. With tickets priced at only £35 for two days of musical revelry, the event was flooded by a tidal wave of teenagers and students ready to celebrate post-exams freedom without breaking the bank. The acts were spread, like last year, over three stages. Keen to discover some emerging talent off the beaten track, the first stop was the smaller, folk-orientated Ballast Hills stage, where Ellen and the Escapades, introduced as ‘acoustic pop’, were providing the perfect soundtrack to summer. Hailing from Leeds, the quintet’s wistful harmonies ooze nostalgia and naivety without being old-fashioned, their cover of The Beatles’ ‘Here Comes the Sun’ and closing song ‘Coming Back Home’ simultaneously catchy yet mellow. Next up were raucous Swiss trio Mama Rosin with their intriguingly irresistible fusion of African, Caribbean and Mexican influences. An exciting hybrid of instruments and musical styles reacted to create a bluesy yet powerfully upbeat set, bursting with contagious energy.



Over on the distinctly chart friendly Spillers Wharf stage, Example whirled the masses into a hyperactive frenzy with current number one ‘Changed the Way You Kiss Me’, whilst across the bridge at Baltic Square, Annie Mac unleashed her Sub Focus DJ set controversially half an hour late. Tinie Tempah, complete with trademark wayfarers and high-top trainers, roused the crowd with club hits ‘Frisky’, ‘Miami 2 Ibiza’ and the Ivor Novello award winning ‘Pass Out’. Charismatic, creatively diverse and anthemic, his set succeeded in converting even the most sceptical amongst his audience. Having palpably warmed the stage for headlining act Plan B, Tinie closed his dramatic performance to the chant of ‘Tinie- Tempah- Tinie- Tempah’, confirming his status as the contemporary star of the modern urban music scene. Defying generational boundaries Plan B’s set ranged from a somewhat dubious dubstep remix of Ben.E. King’s classic ‘Stand By Me’, to a more successfully soulful rendition of Otis Redding’s ‘My Girl’. Popular classic ‘She Said’ saw Ben Drew at his vocal best, yet his relentless attempts to inspire fans into creating a wall of death fell rather flat, much to his evident and rather amusing frustration. As darkness fell over the quayside, the main stage was illuminated with dramatic red and blue lights as Plan B drew the weekend to a close with the infectious rhythms of ‘Writing on the Wall’ and ‘Prayin’’.

Evolution is undoubtedly a fun, value for money event, but to say that the likes of Glastonbury and Bestival need not watch their backs would be somewhat of an understatement. At the end of the day, a glorified car park littered with empty vodka bottles and teenage vomit can only exude so much festival spirit. Added to the treks between stages, the overcrowding and the poor sound system, the traditional festival atmosphere was somewhat lacking. Having said that, the music was well worth the very reasonable ticket price, particularly on the grassy, chilled-out Ballast Hills stage, so don’t be put off giving this northern festival with an urban twist a shot next year.