The festival served up some of the best new music around.

Truck Festival: your one-stop shop for all things pure indie nostalgia with some dance acts thrown in for good measure.

The weekend of the 25th to 28th of July saw a plethora of acts take to Hill Farm in Oxfordshire, with the line up one to rival Glastonbury’s just a few weeks prior. A crossover of acts that were at Worthy Farm were also seen in Oxford, making Truck a great bite-sized festival — less restricting on your bank balance too, double win!

Since its beginnings in 1998, Truck now welcomes up to 30,000 people across the weekend and it’s the perfect size for you to catch a lot of your favourite artists in fairly close proximity. Bristol-based post-punk veterans Idles opened the festival Thursday evening, which would have sat well even as a Saturday or closing headline due to the unmatched energy that those boys provide. A community of Idles supporters were out in full force and the mixed ages within the crowd showed how much the band are vastly adored.

Friday, the first full day at the fest, welcomed a wave of upcoming artists that are killing it across the festival circuit, such as spoken word poet Antony Szmierek and Galway shoegazers NewDad. Antony was our first taster of the opening day and he delighted the Market stage with his high energy dance-filled set packed with poetic charm and, after his first Glastonbury appearance a few weeks ago, this is someone on the verge of something special. Then it was onto grunge-led, four-piece The Wytches who brought things up a notch with their dark psychedelic sound radiating in the Market stage, which was built with heavy guitars in mind and not shy of a pit.

The first day was closed by Jamie Alexander Treays — better known as Jamie T — with his stellar collection of nostalgic indie anthems, it was a surprise to learn that Truck was Jamie’s first-ever headline slot at a festival. The mixed-age crowd were still able to recognise and sing along to many of Jamie’s songs, showing just how his music sets spreads across a wide demographic.

Swimming into Saturday where Hill Farm again welcomed a mix of up-and-coming acts, such as ones to watch South London-based Fat Dog as well as a big day for the recently disbanded indie four-piece The Magic Gang. Although both acts were a brutal clash on the day, it was bittersweet as some chose to see Fat Dog for the first time and others The Magic Gang for the last. The crowd during The Magic Gang’s send-off were visibly emotional with many a mosh pit being created for their loyal following to engage with one another by chanting back their songs word for word.

Laid-back singer-songwriter Willie J Healey warmed things up before Magic Gang took to the stage, all decked out in short-shorts and a white cowboy hat to keep things cool in the warm July sunshine that Truck was super blessed with this year. Willie’s songs couldn’t quite be squeezed into the half-hour set with the band cheekily trying to squeeze in another song just as the sound was cut (much to the crowd’s dismay). We then moved on to raucous punk rock duo Soft Play over on Main stage who captivated the crowd with their outrageously high energy set, paired with their funny wit, thanks in part to constantly engaging with the crowd in between each song.

Yard Act — the Market Stage headliners — brought a whole new vibe to the stage with choreography and backing singers putting them in strong competition to front a main stage very soon. To close off Saturday, Wet Leg pleased the crowd with their take on a “Brat Girl Summer” by covering Charli xcx’s 360 in between playing their first debut album with repeated praises of gratitude from frontwoman Rhian Teasdale.

After being blessed with warm sunshine all weekend and heat that was on perfect levels for an English summer festival, Truck’s final day was in full swing. Another strong billing across the day from the likes of Brighton-born female-fronted Black Honey and one of the most hotly tipped indie three pieces, The Amazons. We got stuck right into the last day, starting with Black Honey, whose Lemonade track went down a treat with the crowd who were still more than up for it. Izzy’s full Union Jack puff ball sleeve mini dress was a talking point and created an extra stage presence alongside the other band members.

Then it was onto the band that just keep giving at the moment; Royston Club, with their well-polished indie tracks that created a buzzy vibe on the Market stage before Scottish heavyweights The Snuts — who were eagerly spoken about across the festival — headlined the stage, then a mass run over to the main stage to await musical genius and frontman Mike Skinner of The Streets.

With the final night buzz in the air, many people were still keeping that momentum high. Birmingham-born garage act The Streets closed proceedings and were the perfect ender to do so. After all the indie anthems that graced the stages, the final goodbye being a mass dance-off was just what everyone needed. The band have more than enough classics to fill a headline slot and captivate an audience, especially with Skinner’s charm and wit by making many a joke in between the bangers.

One poignant moment was Skinner working his way into the crowd on one lad’s shoulders whilst personally saying hello to as many people as he could. After ending on Take Me As I Am, Skinner — following on from his similar goodbye at Glastonbury — thanked the crowd for coming tonight then finished with “My name is Tony Blair, goodnight” followed by a mass flurry of fireworks filling the sky. This festival really has come into it’s own and, with line ups like this, it really is no surprise why.

Truck Festival will return in 2025 between 24th - 27th July 2025. Super Earlybird Tickets are on sale now and can be found here.