Neighbourhood Weekender: A jam-packed weekend full of talent from across the UK
It’s only the third time the Warrington festival has taken place, but it already seems to have established itself as one of the most exciting outdoor music events in the North.
Jake Bugg performing at NBHD Festival 2021. Photo: Graham Joy
Picture the scene: it’s 11am on a sunny Saturday in Warrington. The high street is filled to the brim with teenagers decked out in novelty sunglasses and bucket hats; there’s already a huge queue stretching around the corner of the off-licence, and there are one or two locals going about their business, silently praying for the moment when their town is back to normal. The only possible explanation? Neighbourhood Weekender is finally here, ready to save the summer.
Despite being the first band on, main stage openers The K’s commanded a considerable crowd, who all got stuck right in, and showed that they weren’t going to waste a single second of the day.
Aziya performing at NBHD Festival 2021. Photo: Graham Joy
At the big top stage, I caught the end of London-based singer-songwriter Aziya’s set, which I really enjoyed; the 21-year-old exuded so much energy on stage, sometimes swapping playing the guitar for bouncing around the stage, microphone in hand and oozing with confidence while doing so.
The Magic Gang performing at Neighbourhood Festival 2021. Photo: Anthony Mooney
As the afternoon went on, the main stage was graced by Brighton lads The Magic Gang, who issued the crowd with a dose of their catchy, upbeat indie pop, with the audience giving a particularly hearty reception to debut album track How Can I Compete. This was followed by a set from indie icons The Coral (who charmed the crowd with ease) that contained classic tunes and new releases, both of which were very warmly received as people danced along.
The Coral performing at NBHD Festival 2021. Photo: Graham Joy
I was pleasantly surprised at the mix of people who were in attendance. There was a large range of ages, and some people had travelled a considerable distance for the event; there were groups who had come from as far as Derry, Glasgow and London, to name a few, especially to enjoy a weekend’s festivities in Warrington. Many present, however, were more local, hailing from somewhere in the North West.
I spoke to Rachel Woodcock and Millie Whipp, both from Manchester, who described being back at live events as “emotional” and were most excited to see Jake Bugg, a last-minute line-up addition. I hope they enjoyed his set because I certainly did; one particularly memorable moment was Two Fingers, with people sat on their friends’ shoulders, waving their hands, and singing along with their arms around each other. All I Need and Lightning Bolt saw several flares being set off, the colourful smoke floating above the sea of bopping heads.
The Murder Capital performing at NBHD Festival 2021. Photo: Tom Martin
The anticipation was also building for Irish post-punk outfit The Murder Capital, whose set was possibly my favourite of the whole weekend.
Opening with For Everything, the build-up of the song was the perfect introduction to the set, with circle pits opening across the crowd, and fans belting out the words like their life depended on it. As the set progressed, the audience became even more energised, with the band playing absolutely flawlessly throughout. The final song, Feeling Fades, saw frontman James McGovern crowd surfing through the tent, with people flocking to the front in order to catch a glimpse. In short, their set was nothing short of spectacular; I just wished I’d remembered that wearing hoop earrings in a mosh pit is never a good idea.
Sam Fender performing at NBHD Festival 2021. Photo: Graham Joy
Boasting one of the largest crowds of the entire weekend, Newcastle’s Sam Fender was met with enormous cheers and smiles as he took to the main stage. As the sun began to go down during The Borders, the atmosphere was electric; there’s no better way to describe it.
By the end of the set — and after a short stop to help an injured party — everyone was back in high spirits, with the reaction to closing tune Hypersonic Missiles being enough to suggest to a passer-by that this was a headline slot. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see Sam Fender topping the bill at events like these in the next couple of years. In my opinion, he’d be ready for it tomorrow.
I managed to catch most of The Orielles on the Viola Beach stage, though their slot also encountered a problem: around halfway into the set, lead singer Esmé Dee Hand-Halford lost her voice. However, the band powered through, with the set ending up to be largely instrumental, but it actually worked really well — they still sounded great.
James performing at NBHD Festival 2021. Photo: Graham Joy
Shortly after, Saturday night headliners James took to the main stage, closing the night perfectly as they delighted the audience with a setlist full of their anthemic Madchester tunes.
I arrived the next day just in time to grab a drink and watch indie veterans The Pigeon Detectives who, despite only playing at 3pm, secured one of the most engaged crowds of the day. There were hordes of teenagers having the time of their lives, the youngest of whom had probably only just been born when Wait For Me came out. This was a different generation to the kids who listened to the band the first time around, but the tunes still seemed to resonate the same.
Over at the big top, Working Men’s Club were preparing for their short but highly energised and exciting set. Strutting onto the stage in a t-shirt reading “Todmoron”, frontman Syd instantly captivated the crowd, as the band launched into debut album opener Valleys. At the beginning of the set, the tent was about half full and, by the end, there were people spilling out of the sides.
The Lightning Seeds’ set over on the main stage provided a perfect, slightly more relaxing interlude, playing popular favourites The Life of Riley and Lucky You in the scorching afternoon sun. They even closed their set with a rendition of Three Lions, as a tribute to England’s near-win in the Euros this summer.
Sports Team performing at NBHD 2021. Photo: Graham Joy
Shortly after, Sports Team lived up to their reputation of being one the best lives bands around, as they performed a selection of their guitar-fueled, summery tunes, which went down a treat in the packed out tent.
Inhaler’s set was just as crowd-pleasing, with the Dublin based band being made to feel right at home as an Irish flag was waved by fans down at the barrier. Newer songs from their recently released debut album were received with just as much enthusiasm as old favourites.
Inhaler performing at NBHD 2021. Photo: Graham Joy
After catching the end of Miles Kane’s set, where he even performed a rendition of The Last Shadow Puppets’ Standing Next To Me, it was The Wombats’ turn to entertain the crowd. Their set was back to back bangers, to be honest, with brand new tracks being received just as smoothly by the crowd as classics such as Let’s Dance to Joy Division and Greek Tragedy were.
It warms my heart to see the Liverpudlian three-piece still absolutely thriving. I’ve loved them for many, many years, and I just love that, basically, they’ve never become shit. I could be biased here, but I would’ve much preferred them to headline the day than actual headliners Catfish and The Bottlemen.
Catfish and The Bottlemen performing at NBHD 2021. Photo: Graham Joy
I never quite got the Catfish hype. I bought the first album when it came out and thought it was pretty solid but nothing particularly special. In all honesty, I mostly wanted to catch their set because of all the break-up rumours surrounding them at the moment. However, to be fair, I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised; the band were on pretty good form, and the set seemed smooth and tight.
The crowd went absolutely wild every time frontman Van McCann sang into the mic and were clearly enjoying the music. In many ways, I think that’s the most important thing at a festival; bands don’t always play their best sets, or you might not be a huge fan of the artist, but the atmosphere often more than makes up for that.
The atmosphere at Neighbourhood Weekender 2021 could not be faulted. After missing eighteen months of live music and large gatherings, the weekend provided a perfect few days of quality bands and fun catch-ups with friends, all luckily accompanied by glorious weather. A definite success.
