Lazydays Festival returned last weekend for its second year at Southend’s Priory Park. After attending last year, I was excited to see how the organisers expanded on its debut. With a bigger lineup, a fully-fledged second stage and tons of good food & drink on offer – I had a great time.
I arrived at 11am on Saturday, after taking the train from Wickford station to Prittlewell. After buying a return ticket I soon learned that there were no barriers anywhere, so that was great. All waste of money aside, I would recommend getting off at Prittlewell, as it was only a 10 minute walk to Priory Park, although there are shuttle buses from Southend Central that are free to ride (which is a nice touch).
There was a slight delay in people entering the festival, so I had a few minutes to check things out, and grab a picture with Sammy the Shrimp (up the Blues!) before seeing Peter Doherty soundcheck on the main stage. Everything seemed to be well thought out in terms of layout, with two sides split evenly between music and food & drink, with little entertainment spots inbetween. A personal highlight was eating a gyro on a bench as a man hoisted himself in the air on ribbons. The gyro itself was so nice, but there’s something about seeing a human flailing about in the air that made it that much better.
It’s here that I should mention that there are lots to do aside from check out the artists. There were smaller stages that housed talks with various people, merch stands, second-hand clothing stands, as well as the numerous beer stands that were dotted about the entire festival. There was also a section for kids to play, meaning there was something for everybody. Lazydays Festival really nailed being all-inclusive, and provided enough variation for all kinds of families and individuals to get a good, unique experience out of the weekend.
MUSIC: Unfortunately I failed as an amateur influence and forgot to clear enough storage from my phone. This meant that I couldn’t capture content for all the artists I saw on the day, and that’s probably why I should stick to writing about things. Here’s who I saw and enjoyed:
ISLA RICO: The first band to kick off the day was Isla Rico. A trio who recently dropped their EP, Uber Set to Eden, last month. Their set was filled with songs that filled the tent with atmospheric, chilled sounds as well as loud moments that soundtracked the sunny weather perfectly. They were proper catchy, which helped set the tone for the day.
LOW GIRL: As mentioned in our preview of the festival, I was very excited to see Low Girl live for the first time. As a fan of theirs since the Big Now days, it was so good to witness their all-encompassing sound in person. They were great, and filled the tent with a setlist that spanned their discography, including big hit ‘Icarus’ as well as the mind-melting extended cut ‘2007’. They also performed newest single ‘Handbrake‘, which sounded great, and made me anticipate their upcoming debut album even more. Is It Too Late to Freak Out? is out October 24th via AWAL.
ELLUR: After releasing the brilliant EP God Help Me Now at the start of the year, I was excited to hear Ellur open the main stage. There was a delay in her start time, which allowed me to grab some food (they were tacos. £14 for two pulled brisket tacos and a handful of nachos. They tasted alright, but the nachos were cold and that made things feel a little sad.) and catch Low Girl’s set instead. Once I headed back to the main stage, the crowd was huge, with Ellur pulling in big numbers which was great to see.
She and the band sounded great, performing a huge setlist that commanded the crowd with numerous sing-a-long moments and an all-around great presence. Hearing new single ‘Missing Kid‘ live really transcended it into an even more powerful song. I feel like she’s destined for great things, so wouldn’t be surprised to see her become a staple of the main stages of festivals.
FIONA-LEE: Back to the Big Hop Stage to see Fiona-Lee, who was performing on her own but had the presence and personality to deliver a great set. Armed with just a guitar, Fiona powered through a setlist that featured her latest EP Nothing Compares to Nineteen, as well as a single from her upcoming EP that’s also set to arrive this year.
Her voice sounded great, and she also gave a lot of insight as to what many of the songs were about. It made it quite easy to appreciate and relate to her, as the topics were quite heavy, and that was easy to connect to.
THE RILLS: Next up and the last artist to be captured on my low-storage phone was The Rills. The trio have been rising up the ranks in recent years, thanks to the release of their debut album Don’t Be A Stranger last year. They had slipped under my radar, but performed such a blinding set that they blew the radar apart.
It featured songs that were full of grooves, riffs and nothing but pure energy. It was awesome, and really suited the ever-increasing humidity that filled the tent. The crowd were really into it – perhaps in part of their drummer being from Southend – and I think a case could be made that they should be performing on the main stage next time. Well good. One of my favourite sets of the day.
Following that was a huge stint at the main stage, where the bigger names began to perform into the evening. Hearing The Lightning Seeds play “Three Lions” live was amazing, as the crowd got into it to cheer on the Lionesses in their Euro 2025 final against Spain (note: What a result! Chloe Kelly is a national hero). Pip Blom also brought some Indie vibes to the main stage, bringing hits like “Babies Are a Lie” to the crowd which went down well.
Peter Doherty closed out the night with a superb set, that featured songs from his latest album as well as a couple Libertines tracks that ensured a great night. It was a fantastic time, and really felt like Lazydays Festival had settled into its role as Essex’s best festival.