As the sun beat down in Peckham Rye to GALA Festival’s eccentric, woozy beats, revellers across London descended into south London for the dance-heavy festival – and the bank holiday happiness was more than tangible.
Never disappointing with their eclectic line-ups for a more than energetic knees up, GALA promised even more this year with another three date extravaganza. Taking place over the aptly named “Platty Joobs” – rising stars including Nia Archives kickstarted the weekend with thumping baselines and a bouncing crowd to match, whilst Nubya Garcia hypnotised with sultry Jazz inflections. Meanwhile, heavy household names such as Goldie and Bradley Zero ripped the roof right off with their booming beats swallowing the crowd whole with a majestic euphoria.
As the excitement grew into the weekend, the likes of Gerd Janson and Gilles Peterson captivated the Friday revellers, with Awesome Tapes From Africa, Job Jobse and Parris as sun-drenched highlights. As Horse Meat Disco, DJ Tennis and Artwork brought the festival to a close on the Saturday, energy remained potent. With pubs open until 2AM and Gala fanatics ready to party on, all you could hear as the crowds dispersed around the buzzing city were whispers about snapping up tickets for next year…watch this space.