Photo Credit: Kevin O’Sullivan
After a brilliant start to our Victorious weekend, we woke up to a slightly soggier sight on Saturday. But we weren’t going to let any rain dampen our spirits as we headed to the common with our rain poncho in tow and straight over to the Castle stage.
The first act on our agenda was Devon three trio Tors who were opening up the stage, with the rain stopping it was time for them to showcase material including that from latest EP Miracle. Letting fans in on the story of drummer Jack Bowden getting his now ex a ticket for Victorious and their determination to shake off the negativity came with Amsterdam; aptly renamed Victorious. With dual vocals from Matt and Theo Weedon and the first bit of crowd participation, it didn’t take long for them to get the fans on side. The trio had a brilliantly fun energy about them, checking in to see how many people in Portsmouth were dreamers… a grand total of six, they proceeded to play Miracle and with its big chorus and air of magic, we were hooked on Tors’ set. Having never seen the band before, their slick set but also relatable lyrical content made us gravitate towards them in particular during Anything Can Happen; a song about depression and as they explained their mission statement as a band to hold on. Opening up a stage is never an easy job, but the trio didn’t let this phase them as more joined the crowd as their set progressed. Closing with Never Give Up, inspired by their parents and thanking ‘mum and dad for letting us do this and not get real jobs’; their funky guitar driven tracks led to an impressive start to our Sunday. (NC)
A not so secret set from Busted was up next over on the Castle Stage, having been teased and then confirmed the morning of the show there was a really fun energy over by the castle despite the impending clouds above us all. If you’ve seen Busted before you’ll know it’s impossible to not find yourself reminiscing on days gone by and having a great time with the ’00’s trio. Kicking off with Air Hostess, they soon found their stride as the crowd were passionately singing along to a band we didn’t think we’d be seeing this early on in the day at the festival. ‘Surprise we’re Busted’ explained the band before going into Thunderbirds Are Go! which soon saw the heavens open and the torrential rain pour down just after Matt Willis said it wasn’t raining. But did anyone care? Absolutely not. Whether it was Eddy Thrower evidently having the best time behind the drums or James Bourne spinning his microphone stand to get the crowd involved it was impossible to not enjoy yourselves. Slowing things down during their hit filled set with Sleeping With The Light On, the crowd were carrying the vocal section as Charlie Simpson’s guitar solo brightened up the grey skies. As they questioned whether anyone was born for the release of Crashed The Wedding, closing track Year 3000 saw the sea of fans braving the rain crouching down and doing the perfectly timed jump much to the bands delight. The weather might not have been on side but they’d more than made it worth it being drenched! (NC)
Making the walk back over to the Common stage and drying off in the process, we were met with the special guest slot of Saturday, Tom Walker. From the moment we arrived during Not Giving In, his breath-taking vocals made us wish the clash between his set and Busted’s had never been a thing. Taking in the crowd watching his set, a little early PM beverage later and Walker spoke out about forthcoming second album I Am ‘the best piece of work I’ve done in my whole life’ before therapeutic and his angriest track Burn kicked in. Shouting out the track for those who’ve ‘been cheated on, hate their job, hate their boss. We are going to get the anger out in singing form’ and the whole of Victorious certainly did that. From the calm to the angsty, seeing his musical versatility laid bare during the track showed off the range of his performing talents. As his set drew to a close, the crowd began to chant for that song which we knew would complete the set, ‘it’s not karaoke you get what you’re given!’ before they got exactly what they wanted with Leave The Light On. Everyone knew this track, filled with emotion, passion and power as an all crowd singalong begun. We can’t help but think if the weather was a little brighter the crowd size would have been bigger, but for all those watching Walker and his band we knew we’d seen one of the highlights of Victorious 2024. (NC)
Hometown heroes Crystal Tides might not be a household name yet but with Saturday’s crowd being packed full of fans repping their t-shirts we knew this was going to be a standout set of the day. Opening up with One Night In Paris, the rain was threatening to make a reappearance but it seemed like the weather was a fan of the band as it held off. The crowd were soon singing along to the catchy chorus with Billy Gregory as we felt the bass from George Regan flowing through our veins. With the barrier covered with their fans and pockets throughout the crowd, as they performed tracks including Just Friends and Honey, it was more than clear why this once small venue band have recently sold out their headline show at Portsmouth Guildhall months in advance. Yes, there might have been a few times where there were some strained vocals but the enthusiasm, energy and sincerity behind the lyrics of their tracks made it easy for us to overlook this. New single The Middle, about experiencing losing a friend to cancer is one many can relate to and clearly resonated with many who knew the band or were just catching their set by chance. Reminiscing about playing a small tent at the festival, Gregory explained how they want to be the first local band to headline Victorious’ and you know what? If they keep putting on shows like this then we believe we’ll see them there. Crystal Tides are an example of hard work paying off and that Portsmouth have some of the best bands out there. (NC)
Country-pop queen CMAT bounded into stage with Nashville, showcasing her jaw dropping vocals and at the same time her down to earth personality which made it impossible to not fall in love with her. The CMAT band add to the whole live experience as shown during California which received a resounding cheer from the crowd as we watched them laughing, joking and just having the best time on the Victorious stage. Speaking about her previous visits to Portsmouth to spend a lot of time at Tiger Tiger, with the Spinnaker Tower which was behind the stage being a symbol of walking home after a hangover. The little insights into her world added another layer to the feisty set, we couldn’t help but smile as during Have Fun! The vocalist legged it down to lie in the photo pit and enjoy the summer weather with us all. From the vulnerability of Aw, Shoot! to the swinging I Wanna be A Cowboy, Baby! which got the crowd two stepping along perfectly in time to the track. Taking the time to point out Olivia down at the barrier, whose mum had sent a lot of messages about the fact she’d be at the show, she reminded Olivia and the rest of us that we can be professional whingers too! It was without a doubt the most fun set of our whole weekend as it came to a close with Stay For Something, the heavens open and the singer-songwriter came down to enjoy the heavy and unexpected rain with the rest of the crowd with a beaming smile on her face. (NC)
Given that the gig Holly Humberstone played before Victorious was at Wembley Stadium opening up for Taylor Swift, it was no surprise how big the crowd was to see her set today. Beginning with the title track of her debut album Paint My Bedroom Black, Humberstone’s vocals were delicate although overpowered by the guitars and drums. Into Your Room and The Walls Are Way Too Thin saw the sound issues sorted and the chance for the crowd to singalong to the more known of Humberstone’s tracks. Despite a few technical difficulties when trying to play Kissing In Swimming Pools, the management and swift moving on to Dive showed her professionalism. Falling Asleep At The Wheel, a personal favourite is one of the older in Humberstone’s discography and because of this also meant a good dose of crowd participation. Ghost Me showed off a rockier side to her discography a sign of the chance and evolution of Holly Humberstone’s sound which has seen her continue to gain fans globally. Having seen Humberstone live before, we were expecting something good and once again she delivered an incredibly captivating live show . (NC)
Another thing we love about Victorious is the layout, giving us a chance to go for a wander as we made our way to the Castle Stage to see The Amazons. We had a little detour to take in some of the fresh Solent air and headed up to the top of the hill to watch the band, everywhere you look there’s something new to discover about Victorious whether that’s a hidden stage or a local stall luring you in. With their fourth studio album being rounded up as we speak, fans have been given a taste of the follow-up to 2022’s How Will I Know if Heaven Will Find Me? with new track Night After Night played during their set. Led by Matt Thomson, their gritty vocals and tight guitars from Chris Alderton and Elliot Briggs played key roles during their set making it one of the most musically slick sets from the weekend. As the sun was going down across Southsea Common, it felt as if The Amazons were playing a headline set as Black Magic gave the crowd even more of what they wanted. . (NC)
Over on the Casemates-sponsored Introducing Stage came Portsmouth-based foursome Baby Said. Blasting through original after ferocious original, the courtyard quickly filled up, newcomers drawn by the frantic rock emanating from within — particularly for recent release Mouth Shut, or upcoming single You Hate Me — and giving the Pal sisters and their bandmates the crowd they deserve. Having supported Dirty Honey back in February, and having been a runner up for the The Road To Victorious competition earlier in the year, the four friends are going to go far. (JOS)
After getting our pop fix with an incredible set from Sugababes, we wanted over to see an intimate set from Scotland’s Katie Gregson-Macleod. As we settled down onto the haybales, this stage has always been one of our favourites as there’s something magical about sitting down under the stars and drifting off into a gorgeous new world with a dreamy soundtrack. As a bubble machine covered the couple of rows standing down the front with pockets of fans cheering as there was a live debut of I Just Think Of You All The Time, a vulnerable track. Gregson-Macleod offered up insights into the stories behind the track, with TV show ‘it was offensive but shorter than The Office’ referencing the relationship involved. These story telling lyrics and intimacy of the stage meant as we were told about a forthcoming new project prior to closer Complex it truly felt like a little secret being told from the musician to her friends. (NC)
Tonight’s headliners were arguably the weakest of the weekend in our opinion. We had Pixies over on the Castle stage and then Jamie T on the Common stage. Unsure of who to check out we split our time in two to get a taste of both, first seeing Pixies on the Castle stage. Ahead of their tenth album The Night The Zombies Came coming next month, the crowd was smaller than some of the earlier artists on this stage but that didn’t stop the head banging and rocking from kicking off as 1989’s Gouge Away opened their set. Spoken vocals from Black Francis and the passionate drum lines of David Lovering were helping offer up a tasty gritty-rock dose. Performing tracks from their extensive back catalogue right up to new material Chicken and Cactus, they were a band of few words as they rolled through their set making it hard for a crowd connection to develop and in turn felt as if we were listening to the same track on repeat but with very slight changes. After giving it a go, we wandered back to see if Jamie T was faring any better. (NC)
Maybe it was the weather in the earlier part of the day or maybe people just weren’t feeling it tonight but as we approached the stage we were met with a sea of people leaving Jamie T’s set. As we went in further it became clear something wasn’t quite right tonight, again having seen bigger crowds earlier in the day the lack of energy felt as if it was due to the energy from onstage. The usually vibrant persona of Jamie T seemed to be missing tonight as he closed the first part of his set with Dragon Bones and If You Got The Money before coming back for a quick-fire encore. For a headline act, the crowd excitement and enjoyment wasn’t there and it led to confusion as he seemingly left the stage after his last song then returned soon after with Back In The Game and Sheila. Explaining he’d had to cut songs, it felt as if this might have been why he seemed a little all over the place as he stomped across the stage with his spoken lyrics. When Sticks ‘N’ Stones kicked off, it was a great moment of the set as the crowd lit up and a smile graced his face thanks to their supportive sing-along. We couldn’t help but feel this just wasn’t a true reflection of a Jamie T set, as he spiralled around the stage to closer Zombie as fireworks lit up the sky.
With one more day of Victorious to go, we were ready to see what fun was in store!
Check out our review of Friday HERE.
Photo gallery features Busted, Tom Walker, Crystal Tides, CMAT and The Lathums
Written By: Nicola Craig and James O’Sullivan
