Slam Dunk South 2023 has never looked so busy. Sold out crowds make Hatfield look heaving, on one of the festival’s most vintage years for acts gracing the bill. From headliners Enter Shikari to The Offspring and Kids In Glass Houses celebrating the 15th anniversary of Smart Casual and Yellowcard showcasing Ocean Avenue in all its glory, Slam Dunk 2023 across its sibling sights in Hatfield and Leeds could arguably be one of the strongest line ups of the fest to date.
However, its triumph came dragged down with its tribulations. Catastrophic car parking, hour long food ques, dangerously weak security and heartbreaking overlapping sets cause its attendees to miss bands sets for all of the disorganised reasons stated above.
“We recognise there were problems and that some customers did not have an experience to the standard which they expected” starts Slam Dunk’s statement on the shambolic organisation of this year’s edition of the fest and you can’t help but forgive them, but never forget their poor event management. Because as the sun shines over Hatfield and punters revel in the pleasure of paying £38 for a round of four pints, for a lot of people the bands were the saving grace for Slam Dunk 2023.
From the punk rock on display on The Dickies stage to the breadth of alternative acts on the Rock Scene Stage to the masterclass in metalcore bands storming the Knotfest tent and the infectious pop punk acts alternating the two Kerrang! tent stages, organisation issues aside, Slam Dunk 2023 not only kicked off festival season in style, but Slam Dunk truly, truly outdid themselves.
Starting our day at Slam Dunk 2023 dashing to the Kerrang! tent to catch the tail end of Orange County’s Movements set, and having written one of post hardcore most loved anthems in Dayily and earlier that week one of the man bands to book up any venue they could get their hands on in the UK for a slew of Slam Dunk warm up shows, when Movements’ vocalist Pat Miranda asks “Who has never heard of Movements before, be honest” the reception in response to the question was minimal. Starting their set with Feel Something favourite Third Degree before delving into their bass driven sultry new era of the band with Lead Pipe and lastly finishing on the emotionally charged Dayily, Movements were able to make the hundreds that packed out their early afternoon slot in the Kerrang! tent bounce, move and mosh with emotional angst to singing along with tears filling their eyes the next.
“Open this pit up Slam Dunk South, let’s show them how it’s done” demands Trash Boats Tobi Duncan as the band take over The Rock Scene stage with their tasty riffs. Promising to start their set with Strangers, Trash Boat delivers with style and substance. The punk rock rattle of new track Delusions Of Grandeur To Duncan diving into the crowd for He’s So Good, his on stage actions, character and charisma, cementing him as one of the most formidable frontmen in the scene. “This is our fifth time playing Slam Dunk” recalls Trash Boat mid way throughout their fifth set at Slam Dunk and the band have come a long way from the early days of being voted in to play the Fresh Blood stage back in 2015 to being a most wanted mid afternoon set on the main stage, Trash Boat’s ascend to Slam Dunk stardom is fully deserved.
Before Blackpool boys Boston Manor destroyed the Kerrang! tent, whilst the red head bagged, baggy blue jean wearing figure pinned up to the cross that backdrops alongside fuzzed out TV screens to Static Dress’ Knotfest stage set, flinches occasionally, tilting his head and wiggling his fingers might be disturbing, Static Dress’ set is anything but tied down or shackled. Paving the way for the art driven side of post hardcore, vocalist Olli Appleyard is a creative force to be reckoned with. Like a bull in a china shop, Appleyard stampedes across the stage the chaos in the crowd below erupting when Static Dress unleash songs such as Di-sinTer, sweet and clean, upon screaming his lungs out to these songs, dedicating them to “Higher Power and Movements.” Impassioned mosh pits and an equally impassioned band raging across stage, Static Dress are underdogs of red and blue hazed post hardcore no more.
Following up one of the tightest bands in metalcore would be a hard act to follow for any band, but coming up after the mighty French fivesome LANDMVRKS, American metalcore outfit Fit For A King deliver just as much as a high octane set as their European counterparts. “We are just getting started Slam Dunk” promises frontman Ryan Kirby post performing colossal tune Vendetta where Ryan O’Leary’s bass spins were perhaps at their most monstrous sight to behold, a magician and a gymnast of the four stringed guitar. “We’ve been trying to make a point to come back to the UK after our support tour opening for The Amity Affliction last year and we are finally back and we will be back here at the end of this year too” concludes the band at the end of their almighty set on the Knotfest stage. Returning to UK shores later this year to showcase their recent record The Hell We Create will be a delight to fans, as their time at Slam Dunk was only a tantalising taster of the abilities FFAK can flex in the metalcore sphere.
If there is one thing tonight’s co-headliners Enter Shikari pride themselves on its community. Tonight this is our place. A temporary suspension of normality, where we object to rules that define our society, corruption and greed. Tonight, this is our place where we pick eachother up when we fall down. That’s the true meaning of society where we show community. If you take one thing from tonight let it be that you are not alone” Shikari’s spokesperson Rou Reynolds says moments after bouncing on stage gleefully to commence their 18 song setlist with opener (pls) set me on fire, the band illuminated by the neon glow of the nature esque artwork depicting their latest album A Kiss For The Whole World and he isn’t wrong. If anything, Shikari’s headlining slot at Slam Dunk feels like the biggest triumph of the band’s career to date. Coming off the back of scoring a number one album, winning a HMA the day before and announcing a massive UK arena tour for next year, you might think that there is a certain expectation to be met and even if there is, Shikari smash through it and defy all the odds with a light show that The Chemical Brothers would be seething about and Glastonbury’s thriving nightlife over in Block9 would be proud to put on.
Watching Shikari headlining Slam Dunk feels like a journey for the history books. As the band takes us through the museum of their albums, each of the artworks for their seven studio albums cemented on pillars, in frames or simply standing there like statues, the band’s two decade long career flashing before your eyes.
Where Bloodshot turns singer Reynolds into a deep sea stage diver, Juggernauts showcases Shikari’s climate stripes and the bands smash clap sensation Sorry You’re Not A Winner gets teleported into the 21st century version of Shikari, admits the inspiring and philosophical speeches made me the band throughout the night, one thing prevails. Their production was timeless, classy and simply second to none.
Defying expectations of a band now of their stature, Enter Shikari headlining set at Slam Dunk balanced jaw dropping visuals and awe inspiring showcases of their songs all with the modern electronic glitchy twist Enter Shikari are known for. Now this should be something displayed in a museum.
Photo credits: @bethanmillerco, @apertunes, @katiemcmillanphoto and @eddymaynard.
