Parklife, it may well be a bit of a blur
Since its birth back in 2010 deep in the student heart of Fallowfield, Parklife has grown into something much, much bigger and is now a force to be reckoned with. The weekender had slightly more humble beginnings and was originally just one day with everyone who attended left wanting more. To feed their appetite the Parklife team, who are also responsible for The Warehouse Project and Hideout Festival, not only made the festival a two day event but also last year checked out of Platt Fields Park and took up residence in the huge Heaton Park. These promoters and never too from the centre of debate when it comes to events across Manchester, often being heavily criticised, however, critics were silenced when they made their barnstorming debut on perhaps one of the hottest days Manchester has ever seen!
By transforming Heaton Park into what for most of the day resembled the world's largest beer garden frequented by a lot of dodgy sunburnt bodies, the Parklife team put on a cracking two days which saw the who's who of the current dance music scene grace the many stages and tents dotted around the massive arena. Parklife's main focus is most definitely the music. With a huge amount of the festival goers being regular ravers at The Warehouse Project, most people know what they were getting themselves in for. And the team never disappoints. Wielding the power that the organisers now have in to booking world, the line-up is staggering. Spread across 6 stages each day, dance music heavyweights such as Jamie Jones and Carl Cox share the line up with the new wave of dance music chart crossovers such as Duke Dumont, Disclosure and Route 94, with acts such as Factory Floor and Bonobo flying the flag for all the indie lovers. All this mixed with chart sensations such as Bastille, Sam Smith and Clean Bandit plus DnB rockers Rudimental will provide the soundtrack to this year's weekender. To make it extra special, much to the surprise and astonishment of all Parklife lovers, the number one don of Rap, Snoop Dogg himself will be headlining the main stage on the Saturday.
A bigger festival sadly means a higher price. At £87.45 for a weekend ticket, plus somewhere in the £4 mark for a deliciously warm beer and all those other festival add-ons, you better start scrimping and saving. Yes it's a lot to spend, and knowing the Manchester weather the site may well look like a world war one battlefield come Sunday night, human casualties included, but if the line-up tickles your musical fancies then sticking a tenner away every week will definitely be worth it.
Admittedly, last years premiere at Heaton Park had a few teething problems, crazy taxi queues and some last minute stage alterations, however, the brains behind the weekender are confident after a years planning everything will be smooth sailing.
Remember, Parklife is a non-camping event, so leave your tent at home to avoid being heckled by the waiting masses and don't make the mistake, as some reportedly have done, of buying a ticket for Parklife Australia....
By Jack Evans