Slam Dunk Festival 2023
at Hatfield Park in Hatfield, UK
photos and words by Emily Young

On a sunny Saturday, Slam Dunk Festival took over Hatfield Park for the South rendition of their annual festival. With a multitude of bands to witness across the twelve hour event, there is always something for everyone to watch.

There were high expectations following the previous year’s success, and for the most part, the festival lived up to this. Logistics were it’s downfall, with the growth of the festival, attendees felt the brunt of the festival being overcrowded; festivalgoers missing hours of the event to be sat in traffic jams getting into the festival site, or sacrificing watching bands in order to queue for an hour for food at one of the few vendors on site. I myself spent half an hour queueing up to refill my water bottle at one of the two, maybe three water points on the hottest day of the year so far.

Despite these issues that will hopefully be ironed out by next year, the actual event went off without a hitch. I started the morning off at the Kerrang! tent’s right stage to catch California’s Movements, a band I have loved for several years now. Running across the field to the Rock Scene main stage to catch Trash Boat was worth rushing the crowds, with vocalist Tobi Duncan bringing the band’s infectious energy through his powerful vocals.

The Key Club stages were the highlight of the event, with Scene Queen bringing high-end energy and her signature style to the left key stage. Despite teething issues with security unable to do their jobs and maintain her safety when returning from crowdsurfing, iconic single ‘18+’ pulled quite the crowd to call out the problematic bands within the scene the festival is known for.

Following Scene Queen’s set was NOAHFINNCE, an artist known for his infectious energy and lyrics. His ability to capture a crowd’s attention does not go unmissed, with his bouncy riffs and easy to sing-along songs acting as an open invitation to have the time of your life. “Anyone here think they have undiagnosed ADHD?” NOAHFINNCE calls out to the crowd ahead of his song ‘Underachiever',’ the singer being met with an overwhelming “yes!” from the crowd and those of us grinning in the photo pit as well. His endless enthusiasm for his job and thirst for life is unmatched.

Heading over to the Rock Scene stage once again, Kids In Glass Houses were the most anticipated set of the day, it being 9 years since the band decided to step back and go their separate ways. Celebrating 15 years since the release of their debut album, Smart Casual. The crowd didn’t hold back - reminiscing together with vocalist Aled Phillips who couldn’t wipe the smile from his face as he grinned “So we just popped off for nine years and it’s fucking good to be back!”

Wrapping up the festival was Enter Shikari, local band from “about 15 minutes away,” vocalist Rou Reynolds jokes that he arrived at the festival via his bike that morning. The band’s production is as wild as it’s ever been, with a mammoth video wall setup filling the stage and they certainly made the most of it. from the video introduction to ‘(pls) set me on fire’ with a wall of fire displayed. The performance’s energy seemed lacklustre compared to the visuals that accompanied it, particularly between songs where the stage would go dark and quiet and the crowd would be waiting in anticipation for what was happening next. Despite this, Enter Shikari’s energy when they are performing remains impressive, and it’s sure to only improve once these few cohesion issues are ironed out.

SLAM DUNK FESTIVAL SOUTH 2023

movements

TRASH BOAT

SCENE QUEEN

REAL FRIENDS

NOAHFINNCE

KIDS IN GLASS HOUSES

MAGGIE LINDEMANN

PVRIS

THE MAINE

ENTER SHIKARI