For the third year in a row, Record Weekly’s been blessed enough to have press invites to Deer Shed Festival*. It’s a weekend of whimsy, frivolity and pure joy, so we couldn’t wait to get back to Baldersby Park for 2024’s instalment.

We weren’t able to make the Friday night, so our walk down from the car, past tree-climbers and eco toilet users was soundtracked by Katie Gregson-MacLeod on the Main Stage on the Saturday. With just a sashay up the central thoroughfare, we were met with everything from permanent jewellery to vintage garms stalls on the right, food vendors dishing up gyros, vegan burgers and burritos, Tibetan curries, pizzas and so much more, on the left. Coffees and cocktails? Whatever your taste buds were tempted by, they could devour it. 

Alongside the music, Deer Shed excels at laying on a plethora of comedy set line-ups, as well as hands-on workshops for all ages. We’re talking space helmets, bespoke bags, clay tiles — the works. Although we didn’t partake, there was evidence aplenty that children and grown-ups had — and we were fully there for the magic of it all.

Recent NME cover stars, Picture Parlour, caught my ears while having a little shred during soundcheck. A fairground-music-style walk-on rang them in, before Katherine Parlour’s very distinctive, deep yet Lana Del Rey-esque female vocals gripped me once again. It didn’t take long for me to understand why her swagger had been likened to that of Alex Turner. The outfit’s pure rock ‘n’ roll served up neat solos, along with the wistful ‘Judgement Day’, catchy ‘Talk About It’ and a very pacy new tune yet to be released. Yep, another one for the list of bands to see again — the real perk of catching such a breadth of artists at a festival!

The contrasts of the next acts we saw… Where to start? Dividing and conquering, we went for a fifty-fifty between chilled versus energetic. Frozemode, a rap trio, were the high-octane latter that I went for. In The Dock was their stage and they had everyone from toddlers to much older adults eating out of the palms of their hands. That place gave festival tent vibes, and those fast, impressive emcees were a burst of caffeine without glugging a tea. Super-fun performers, they even integrated the odd bout of dance choreography. But the thing I rated the most? The fact they played with a full band — props to their guitarist for the two-handed tapping, too — rather than a backing track. 

Conversely, Lizzie No was the ideal choice for a calmer afternoon set. She brought her acoustic honey goodness via happy harp melodies, and her songs’ lyrics resonated with her life experiences and spoke of themes of accountability.

You get all weather eventualities at Deer Shed, and you’re so exposed to the elements that you just don your waterproof poncho and crack on. As six-piece DEADLETTER summoned us all to the Main Stage through their roll call of multiple guitars, a sax, tambourine and more, they were an upbeat tonic to the scattered rain showers. I’d personally seen them before but they were even tighter this time, exhibiting jaunty guitars, post-punk with an avant-garde twist, funky dancing from their frontman, and some serious showmanship. Pushing through the drizzle, “there’s something in the air, there’s a storm coming” was a fitting in the looming backdrop of thick, grey cloud.

A series of acts punctuated our day; Baba Ali were a duo that delivered pumping electro-punk tunes and ear-blasting ‘80s synths. In their suits and sunglasses, they exuded cool — and so it came as no surprise when I read they’ve apparently worked with Hot Chip and LCD Soundsystem before. And the uptempo KOKOKO! were another to roll out superb synths amid their otherwise drum-led set. In their red tracksuits and via fantastic, DIY instruments, they really got lots of people up on their feet, clapping along.

In The Dock was heaving when Personal Trainer came out; they really drew out a crowd the size neither of us had seen before at Deer Shed. They had quite the arsenal of band members, who were individually epic on the sax, keys, six strings and so on, and therefore nailed the Europop/Britpop vibes impeccably. Hailing from the Netherlands and boasting enthusiasm by the bucketload, this group had one hell of a massive sound. They could pare it back but also dial up the heavy, and I was in awe — everyone else was in raptures, too. And their flitting between male and female vocals on occasion offered another dimension to their tunes. I can safely say that I’ll be going nuts for ‘Still Waiting’, their new album, which they shared is out Friday 2nd August. Another band I’d see again ASAP!

BC Camplight’s dreamy indie-pop/somewhat rocky niche blared as a golden glow washed over the Main Stage and we nibbled at our dinner. But the next phase of Deer Shed was all about Los Bitchos for me. Nearby, at the Wilderwild Stage, a low-key, very quaint campfire choir filled the vicinity with ethereal tones, but In The Dock was calling…

Belinda Carlisle’s ‘Heaven Is a Place on Earth’ played Los Bitchos in, to which they responded, “and it’s right here”. Soon, their keys, pair of guitars and medley of genres culminated in this cool-as-hell fusion of surfy, Latino, Cumbia and alternative styles, all bubbled together amid their pan-continental credentials. We were treated to both newer and older material, and their minimal vocals, while perhaps less typical of bands, actually allowed for much more of a focus on instrumental perfection. And damn, they couldn’t resist hopping on the bongos and tambourines either! I could’ve watched them for hours. As they wheeled out a buoyant rendition of ‘Tequila’,  I saved ‘Don’t Change’, ‘Good to Go!’ and ‘La Bomba’ to my daily playlist. 

When all was said and sung, the night belonged to Bombay Bicycle Club. Our heavenly headliners leapt to the Main Stage, all adorned with lit-up butterflies that finished the scene spectacularly. ‘My Big Day’ signage also flashed up behind them in celebration their most recent album. Serving chilled indie to the masses, the full band sprang into action — brass section and all. We relished hit after hit from their back catalogue, with ‘Feel’, ‘Luna’, ‘Lights Out, Words Gone’ and ‘Eat, Sleep, Wake’ obvious crowd-pleasing favourites. They were such a huge acquisition for Deer Shed, so they had clearly understood the assignment: to wow us. They spoke of their debut album turning 15 this year (how?!), before gifting us an acoustic version of ‘Dust on the Ground’, and fresher-faced fans went mad for ‘I Want To Be Your Only Pet’. What a wholesome, magnificent crescendo to our first day of two. 

Sunday’s antics started with seeing a man walk through the Main Stage area with ‘rave ‘till you cry’ written on his t-shirt. Simple but effective, maybe, but not quite the tone I was feeling at such a cute festival. Each to their own. Deer Shed’s all about everybody coming together in harmony, after all — and no truer thought echoed through my head as honky-tonk country sounds were packaged up by Welsh ensemble, Melin Melyn. Their matching stone-coloured outfits were Ghostbusters all over — and it worked in their favour. They also had themed backing dancers, and the mock phone call the frontman took from his mother halfway through their ‘Rhinestone Cowboy’ cover was genius. We didn’t respond to their merch plug, but surely many did! The Tubs were another good laugh, but a bit later in the day — very rock ’n’ roll, so heavier than Melin Melyn, with some jangly guitars and on-stage banter for good measure. 

We were rather taken with Cerys Hafana. On the Welsh triple harp under the canopy of The Lodge stage, where a chilled atmosphere accompanied the seated onlookers enjoying shade from the heat, beautiful strings were plucked. It was a sure reminder of the wholesomeness of Deer Shed and its myriad genres. Welsh and English folk songs studded the set list — and I almost felt some would’ve slotted nicely into an episode of Bridgerton. Cerys also noted — along with other wit-tinged anecdotes — that carols are sung in Wales not just at Christmas, but in May too, to welcome the sun. Something I could get on board with, and that added very well to the genteel nature of the performance.

Upping the tempo and volume somewhat, there was a vigour to Home Counties’ grooviness. The six-piece (since the arrival of female singer, Lois) utilised dual guitars, keys, tambourines and maracas to their advantage. And with those angelic, joint mic responsibilities doing their thing, the band’s quirky, electronic indie was outstanding. Despite the oven-like environment, everyone mustered their leftover energy to shake their hips about for the outfit’s lead single, ‘Bethnal Green’. Suffice to say, I’ve downloaded more than that since!

Duty called and we had to leave the site mid-afternoon, but not before the gorgeous tones of Brighton-based Bess Atwell sent us off. The full band comprised a violinist and I detected a pretty collection of guitars, which made the series of mellow pop-rock songs so solid. 

We had such a fabulous weekend, made even more divine by the mid-twenties, sunny Sunday we had — what a win!

Like the sound of Deer Shed Festival but weren’t able to make it? Tickets for 2025 (on 25-28th July) are on sale now, so plan ahead and don’t miss out. We may well spy you there!

*With thanks to the Deer Shed team for the press access*.