As the season starts to turn, and the days get a mite shorter, the field-based festival season is winding down. Which is great, because it means that inner city charity festivals can make the most of the last days of summer. One of them being Macmillan Fest, back this year with five stages that will be straining under the weight of acts from the alternative spectrum and all in the name of Macmillan Cancer Support.
Kris Davis has been ringmaster for five years now, having set up the festival when he was just sixteen. Yep, while we were all working out the best way to avoid revising, mooning over some unattainable crush or scoping out clubs with unattentive bouncers, Kris was using music to raise money for a charity close to his heart. And because we're not a cold-hearted bunch here, the festival has grown with each year; more bands, more venues and more... arse tattoos...
Yeah, having shaved his head a couple of years ago as a way to raise extra money, Kris wanted a new challenge. He promised that if he could raise £500, he would get the Macmillan Fest logo tattooed on his arse. It's at £581 at the time of writing. Kris now has a tattoo on his backside. "There is photographic evidence, but I want to make it a special occasion at the festival so I haven't released the photos yet. I will be showing the tattoo to the public on the day, most likely mooning everybody gracefully from the main stage." If that isn’t worth the £10 entry fee, then we don’t know what is.
After last year's goal of £3,000 was reached, they’re aiming for £4,000 this year, which hopefully they'll smash. Kris reckons that we're a pretty giving city, “The number of successful Nottingham charity festivals shows how kind hearted the people of Nottingham are, as well as the quality of live music which the city is producing along with its events. It's unusual to see so many for a city but it can only stand as a testament to how awesome our city's music scene is!”
There will be loads of wicked bands on the day, but we got Kris to give us his top five picks on who to look out for:
1. Bleed From Within - After playing some of the top alternative festivals in the country such as Sonisphere, LesFest, Ghost fest and others. Their live show is described as being flawless. This will no doubt be one of the first events where you can witness some of the new tracks off their eagerly anticipated crowd funded EP Deathwalk, their set is not to be missed.
2. Lock & Key - These guys are one of the quickest rising melodic hardcore bands around; with brutal riffage and vocals which will make you revert into your non existing shell, Lock & Key promise 110% at every live show and are not a band to disappoint.
3. Anavae - You only have to listen to any one song released by Anavae to appreciate the level of musicianship within this band. Their soundscapes are huge and ridiculously catchy and are forever testing the boundaries of pop/rock.
4. No Honour - After tearing Macmillan Fest 2013 apart with ridiculous amounts of crowd surfing, stage invading and more moshpits than you can shake a stick at, these guys are a must watch at this years festival.
5. Adelphia - After releasing their debut EP Fingers Burnt and Lessons Learnt, playing at Hit The Deck Festival, then winning the Red Bull Bedroom Jam to play at Download Festival, these guys are on top of their game and are certainly one of our top five to go see.
Aside from the music, here's what else you can expect on the day and it's sounding pretty fun.
A World Defined and Violet will be having a waxing competition to see who can raise the most money for ripping out the hair from the back, legs, and wherever else of the festival goers. Go on, it'll grow back, eventually.
Main stage, end of the festival - Kris' newly inked rear will be making its first public outing.
A huge signature board which you can sign on the day if you've made a donation.
You can get involved in the ubiquitous ice bucket challenge - just drop an email in advance to [email protected]
Caribbean food (including vegan and vegetarian grub) from 3C'z throughout the day to keep your energy levels up for all that jumping around.
Macmillan Fest, Saturday 6 September, £10, Rescue Rooms, Stealth and Spanky Van Dykes.
Macmillan Fest Facebook
Kris' Just Giving page
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