Tucked away in a sleepy little village, Whitebottom Farm seems like an unlikely place for a festival which calls itself “The home of face melting rock”. The track to the farm is narrow and winds along the side of a river, but that doesn’t present too much of a challenge for the many motorhome drivers who have added this venue to their round of favourite festivals. There is plenty of room for camping, too, and although cars are parked off-site, the fantastic shuttle-bus team make getting your gear there really easy.
The festival has a really lovely, family feel and everyone arriving either knows someone or is quickly introduced to new friends. As with all festivals, everyone is here to have a good time and watch some great bands, so there is plenty of common ground.
This is one festival I would not be worried about turning up on my own to! Even the rain and a slight catering issue on Thursday night before the VIP party don’t dampen the spirits and if there was anyone who did need cheering up, Ransom had that sorted with a terrific party covers set which, followed by a rock disco, had everyone singing and dancing into the night.
Friday kicked off with the fantastic We Three Kings opening the festival on the Trooper stage, definitely one of my highlights of the weekend. Their sound and energy are incredible and next time they should definitely be higher up the bill! Everyone was ready for more as we trundled (via the bar) to the Big Top stage. That’s another great thing about Firevolt, two undercover stages and no clashes, with plenty of time in between to grab a drink and do the short hop between the stages. We were treated to a fantastic bill of bands over the course of the day finishing with headliners Vandenberg which was a bit of a fangirl moment for me as a Whitesnake fan and took me back to the days when I had Adrian Vandenberg and Steve Vai posters on my wall! There was plenty more after that though as these guys can definitely party and I was back to my tent long before the party was over.
There were a few sore heads in the barn for Jayler on Saturday morning but the crowd that made it saw something very special. Only together since 2022, they are so talented, so full of stage presence and so, so YOUNG! I spent half the time watching and half the time trying to work out if I was, in fact, old enough to be a grandparent to one of them, but even slightly distracted it was obvious that these guys are going to be big if they keep doing what they are doing. There was a real buzz about them for the rest of the weekend. Other Saturday highlights included The Hot One Two, Crashdiet and classic rock stalwarts Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons who rounded off Saturday night.
I don’t think I was the only one who had a bit of festival fatigue setting in by Sunday but Thieves of Liberty on the Big Top stage early doors sorted that out. They never disappoint and always treat the stage like they own the place – very entertaining to watch. Sunday’s lineup included Loz Campbell, who always draws a big crowd, and The Last Internationale, who were brilliant. Gun brought the festival to a close as far as the live bands were concerned but there was still a DJ set for those who had any partying left in them.
Firevolt is a great little festival, it is small enough to feel friendly and welcoming, but big enough to have a great mix of bands both new and established. They’re also not afraid to go out on a limb with something different to mix things up, something that is occasionally lacking on the rock scene. Shout out to the organisers and their crew of volunteers who work hard to make sure everything runs smoothly – absolute legends!
Words by Fiona McMurdo
Photos by Philip Goddard
Firevolt Rock Festival (firevoltfestival.co.uk)
2025 tickets on sale 15th September
Note from Editor/Photographer – Sadly the majority of my photos are possibly lost on a corrupt SD Card, if by a miracle I can rescue them, I will post at a later date
