Rockaway Beach 2025

This year is the 10th anniversary of Rockaway Beach. It is a small hand-crafted festival that takes place at Bognor’s Butlins. I have been to five of the previous festivals. In 2015 I wasn’t initially sold on it. I wanted more stages, more bands, I think I wanted it to be an indoor Great Escape, which was clearly an insane way to judge a very different festival. At the time, I liked the intensity of jumping around stages having to deal with clashes and no time to breathe between sets. However, the switch to January helped me reevaluate the festival. I have learned that after the indulgence of Christmas, I am not ready for a multistage slog and it has now become a firm fixture in my calendar. I cannot think of a better way to easy myself into a new year of gigging, than my weekend in Bognor. (Spoiler: I have already booked for next year).

The format of the festival remains the same. Up and coming acts during the day, with legacy acts in the evening, taking place on indoor stages with no need for camping. This leads to it attracting an older audience than many festivals. Think of the festival as a festival for the ‘6 Music’ audience.

With this being an anniversary festival, many expected a ‘greatest hits’ festival. I was hoping for a headliner from the upcoming bands in 2015, such as Nadine Shah, Young Fathers or Public Service Broadcasting. Sadly, they stuck with their formula of legacy headliners and I knew, Spiritualized, Leftfield and Ride would unlikely be my thing and was faced with the prospect of filling large gaps in each evening.

After last year’s festival, which was full of artists I like. This year had a number of artists who have previously left me cold. But that is always the risk with every festival. Not letting this put me off, I approached the festival with the view that this gives me another another chance to reconsider my thoughts about these bands.

Friday

Arriving early on Friday, it was clear the New Year at Butlin’s had been fun, with confetti in the corridors of the hotel. While I had to wait until 2pm to get in my room, this was still earlier than they advertise and gave me enough time to unpack before heading into Centre Stage. By the time I got back to the hotel in the evening, all the corridors were clean and in general, I find Butlins staff do their best to make your stay welcoming and deal with issues you raise. (My safe was locked and they sent somebody up to unlock it) If you arrive early, don’t be afraid of asking if you can check-in, Butlins staff try to be accommodating.

This year saw a change to the stages. Centre Stage had previously been used as the evening stage for headline acts. After complaints about the sound and timings in REDS, Rockaway decided to use Centre Stage as the day stage and Studio 36, Butlins new multipurpose event space, for the headliners.

I can’t say I was looking forward to the change. Large venues aren’t my thing. Scala is usually my jump off point as bands become more popular. Pre-festial, I was unsure if the change was going to be a good thing. Despite sound issues, REDS worked well for the smaller bands and had its own weird charm.

However, I was fortunate this year to be given a photo pass. So I knew it would be much easier getting photos without having to hog the barrier throughout the day, as I did last year.

Did Centre Stage work as a daytime venue?

Amongst the people I chatted to, there was a general feeling that the sound on Centre Stage throughout the weekend was good and the space worked better than expected. Acts weren’t completely lost on the bigger Centre Stage. While some of the immediacy and weird charm of REDS was lost, there were some positives right from the off. I can’t remember ever seeing it so busy on the Friday for the first act, which was one of my mains worries, that bands would play to an empty room and it seemed busy all weekend. All in all, I think it worked. I would prefer REDS with decent sound. But if this is the new format. I’m happy with it.

Up first was The None. What a cracking start. Right up my street. Comprising of Kaila Whyte (Blue Ruth, Youth Man) on vocals, bassist Gordon Moakes (Bloc Party, Young Legionnaire), guitarist Jim Beck (Cassels) and drummer Chris Francombe (Frauds). Their brand of uncompromising noise rock was just what we needed to prove the sound system on Centre Stage worked.

Underground indie darlings Man/Woman/Chainsaw followed, spinning their intricate musical patterns that take right turns and drift off in a different direction. They remind me of early Black Midi and BCNR. An enjoyable set from a talented bunch of young musicians. I expect them to go on to bigger things this year.

One of the challenges of festivals around the New Year is illness. Christmas seems to be a time for sharing bugs. Many of us get ill after seeing family and friends and I try to be as careful as possible during the holidays, having missed 2022 after catching COVID at a football match. During Christmas, Rockaway’s organisers must dread every email and phone call the receive. Sadly, Liz Lawrence had to drop out. Thankfully Holiday Ghosts stepped in as a last minute replacement. Their brand of laid-back rock ‘n’ roll tinged indie pop, is enjoyable and also not challenging. A nice palette cleanser before heading into the evening.

I think it was during this set that there were some complaints from people on the barrier that we were getting in their way. As I live a life on both sides of the barrier. I understand the frustration photographers are to those at the front. Yes, it is often because people on the barrier want to take their own photos or videos and our heads are in the way. It is also because people have queued to get the barrier position with an expectation of an unhindered view. I usually try and sit on the barrier as much as I can, so I don’t block people. Like me last year, many were hugging the barrier to ensure they were at the front a bands later in the day. I’ve noticed as the festival as grown, the number in the pit have gone from one photographer, to a dozen. It is a reflection of how popular the festival has become and that it is getting a lot more coverage. Sadly, it wasn’t possible to sit down and take photos. In my own attempt to compromise, I decided to only cover two songs before vacating the pit. I can get enough shots in two songs for a review and I don’t want to affect somebody’s enjoyment.

Heading over to Studio 36, I was struck by how big it is. It reminded me of Alexandra Palace. A flat, warehouse-like space. My initial impressions were that it felt soulless and I assumed sound would be poor. I am not a good judge of these spaces, I avoid all Alexandra Palace gigs and generally find most big spaces soulless the further away I am from the front. However, I was pleased to discover the sound was actually excellent. Well done the sound team. After last year’s issues, this year no one had any reason to complain about sound.

One point to note, there had been some complaints in the Rockaway Facebook group about Butlins lack of accommodation for people with accessibility needs. This space could easily have a dedicated accessibility space, next year they should build a temporary raised platform. There is more than enough space. Butlins really need to look at how they accommodate people with accessibility needs, as the view from the seating areas is non-existent with people blocking the view. While I might choose to sit in the seats as a breather, accepting the compromised view, others are forced to accept a poor view for the whole gig, irrespective of how early they arrive. Given how helpful I find their staff, it is surprising Butlins’ management haven’t made appropriate adjustments. They are usually so accommodating.

Hamish Hawk inaugurated the new stage. He previously played Rockaway in 2023 and was a highlight for many. He has the charm and songs to carry big audiences and was a good choice. He started his set with songs from his new album, which his is most introspective yet and I was worried might not have translated to a live audience who may not have seen him before. However, all the new songs sounded great and audience receptive.

This was one of the few clashes of the weekend. If I didn’t have a pass, I would have stayed with Hamish. Hamish is one of my favourite artists. However, I headed over to see Pete Wylie and the Mighty Wah! while the pit was open, who was entertaining the Centre stage with his 80s inspired political songs. ‘Thatcher is blame for everything’. I think he may have a point. But it was a point I had heard many times and headed back to catch the end of Hamish’s set.

One of my problems with the legacy acts is they often seem to be artists that were just a few years before my time. I didn’t really start listening to music until late 80s. In general, artists from the beginning of the decade don’t have a pull for me. Personally, I would rather discover new music and watch a band grow, rather than go back and listen to older artists afresh. While there have been the odd Rockaway ‘new old’ finds, I would be happy with more new bands filling the lineup.

Walking into a now full Studio 36, it felt too big for my tastes. Apparently, its capacity is not much greater than Centre Stage. However, it felt significantly bigger. It looked very wide and Hamish seemed a very long distance away. It really is not my type of space.

I edged my way down to the right hand side of the stage where there I knew there was a lot of space. It was clear as I edged down, the extra space in the venue meant there were comfortable spaces between people and it wasn’t the unpleasant crowded experience of most big gigs. However, the tables and chairs at the side and back seemed to have been almost randomly placed and it was dark in some places and easy to trip over them. Again, going back to the accessibility issues, maybe the venue could do with clearer demarcation and some guide lighting between standing and seated areas.

Surprisingly, even at the back, the sound was excellent. As a big venue, it is actually not bad! This is from somebody who avoids bigger venues. Take this as a big compliment. If they continue to use this venue, I am confident I would enjoy myself with the right acts.

The headliner tonight was Spiritualized. Previously, they left me cold and they didn’t do much for me tonight. After grabbing some photos, I headed to the bar and had a few drinks with friends. Feedback from Spiritualized fans I chatted to, was extremely positive. The large venue with the big screens seems to have worked really well for them and some commented that the addition of a small choir added an extra dynamic.

Closing the evening was Arab Strap back on Centre Stage. Centre Stage had been closed for sound check and it looked like staff from those bars, shifted to work in Studio 36. Queues built up and the doors pretty much opened as Arab Strap went on. This was repeated throughout the weekend, with people missing the first song. Next year they need to tweak when they open Centre Stage. It is a simple tweak and people would be spending money at the bars rather than queuing.

Arab Strap are another act I have never really bothered with. I enjoyed them far more than I expected. I might have to go back and give them another listen. However, I decided to turn in early and sort through photos.

Saturday

Soapbox kicked off the day with energy and attitude. Anyone who were not awake, soon were. Hailing from Glasgow, their songs have a social and political bent. While punk, they are not all po-faced, with humour puncturing the set. Another new band and another highlight of the weekend. It is these gems that make Rockaway worth it for me, not the headliners. I think I would be happier if they left Centre Stage open with small bands playing all night.

During one of the headline sets, I was sitting with like-minded souls, all of whom seem to frequent small venues watching up and coming bands and like me, were not interested in the headliners. Some of them are the backbone of the grassroots music scene. Doing a hundred plus gigs each year, watching bands, most have not heard off. We were discussing the finances of the festival and if this was the reason why the number of acts changes each year? Over the years the number of bands has shifted back and forth between a clashless lineup and there being an overlap with REDS. We surmised that Butlins probably take the lion’s share of the booking and depending on the headliner spend, the amount left sometime means they have to have a smaller lineup. Given that the Butlins price hasn’t risen significantly in the last ten years, we assumed the bucket could be getting smaller each year.

While it is great that the festival makes it possible for bands to travel down from Glasgow and win over a new audience. We wondered if there were local bands who would we willing to turn up for pocket money and pad the festival’s lineup. The festival would then be seen to support the local grassroots music scene and they could leave Centre stage open all night as the ‘up and coming’ stage, giving those of us who don’t like the headliners an option during the two hours allocated to them.

Something else that might be tweaked to help fill the time might be to rethink the talks and to make more of a feature of them. Currently, they are squeezed between acts and very few attend. The Krankenhaus festival also has talks, but they are effectively programmed separately. Also featuring the great John Robb, they are given dedicated time during the morning and are usually packed out. I think there’s some untapped potential to help fill the gaps in the schedule without it costing more.

We also hoped that if the trend continues of the festival selling out before acts are announced, it could be the opportunity to move away from the legacy headline acts to younger acts who are cheaper. It would be risky, but Fontaines DC proved this could work. (Although, I would still love to see Nadine, Young Fathers or PSB headline – and I expect they are quite expensive)

I am not sure if the organisers made a special effort this year to balance female representation after last year’s male dominated lineup. If so, they did a great job of bringing more female fronted acts to the festival. The lineup was much more balanced and showcased the great female fronted bands around at present.

The Pill are a case in point. Hailing from the Isle of Wight. People have made the obvious connections with Wet Leg. I don’t think it is an unfair connection either. They have some of that kookiness Wet Leg have. Mixing in humour and elements of pop to their punk sound. They make a fun festival band.

I had dismissed Brighton-based, CLT DRP the first time I saw them. For some reason, they just did not work that day. I thought they would be one of the gaps in the lineup where I would have to find something to do. However, today they clicked. Full of energy, passion and with something to say. I loved their set. They left me with some hope that the evening’s entertainment might also do the same.

The next artist kicked off some personal reflection. I am of the opinion that acts like Sleaford Mods and Billy Nomates, do not work (for me) on a big stage and it would be good for their music to have a live element – say like Bob Vylan. In Sleaford’s case, I have seen them in a small venue and know their set works best when it is intimate. Frankly, on a big stage, they bore me. With Tor, despite loving her songs and her voice, I have yet to be won over by her performing to backing tracks and dancing around. I found her recent gig with a band, so much more fullfilling.

Dubliner, Meyrl Streek with his confrontational politically tinged music is similar. He performs to backing tracks and the only live dynamic comes from him pacing around the stage. I had seen him first in a small venue. He basically played his set with only a flashlight lighting him. It was intense. I was asking myself during his brilliant performance why I was giving him a pass, when I have not given Tor a pass when she played the same stage? Is it something I need to address? Is there some misogyny at play?

I honestly don’t know if I have an answer to this. I could see some differences. His music is far more confrontational and he spent a lot of time shouting into the crowd. The lighting was kept low so his menacing contact lenses would show up every time the light hit him. He was projecting his performance into the crowd – something that is much easier to do when you have overtly political songs. I also had expectation of him coming out into the crowd, which adds an element of excitement as you wait for it to happen. He does seem to have built a very strong stage presence that works well with his material. There is an underlying anarchist vibe that perforates his songs and his performance, that surprisingly translated to the bigger stage. I suspect if the lights were up. The intensity would have been lost and I wouldn’t be impressed. I think there was a difference between Billy Nomates’ performance and Meyrl’s. But maybe I am a misogynist and treating Tor differently? I hope not.

As a counterbalance to Meyrl, Ebbb’s ambient electronica was good programming. While I loved last year’s lineup. Many felt it was too shouty. Ebbb, a new band to me, offered something for those who like their music a bit more chilled with textured electronica. Many said Ebbb were one of their highlights of the festival. I am afraid I like my shouty music and they did not do much for me, but they were the right choice after Meyrl.

Back to the shouty, or so I thought. I have seen ARXX a few times. With a two piece garage set up or drums and guitar, they have previously been that right side of ‘messy with attitude’ you need for a garage band. Always chatty and engaging, I have a lot of time for them. Tonight, I am afraid I did not enjoy their new stuff. Some of the new songs had processing on the vocals. I find overtly processed vocals are my musical equivalent of scraping fingernails down a blackboard. When they played old stuff without the vocaliser, they were great. But the processed vocals kept bringing me out of their performance.

I had seen and Lime Garden before and as Studio 36 was opening soon, I grabbed some photos and headed over to the other stage.

Over on Studio 36, there was some very odd programming opening the evening. Mim Grey, with her country rock sound, played the cavernous venue to a very spartan crowd. It is not a genre I enjoy. Clearly, she was not a pull for the rest of the Rockaway audience either. I am not going to say that she was the wrong booking. I think festival should take risks and challenge us with other genres, but I left feeling sorry for her and her talented band. It must have felt very empty playing to a small crowd in such a big venue.

I guess part of this was down to the early evening overlap with Ruts DC back at Centre stage. They were helping people relive their teenage years with a well received performance. I enjoyed the bit of their set I saw.

This was the point where things went a bit wrong for me. Neither Georgia or LEFTFIELD do much for me. I had seen Georgia play a support slot at the Roundhouse. That evening I did not want to leave the barrier for the headliner and had to stand through what seemed like an interminably long set. LEFTFIELD’s electronica had bored me back in the day. I was not looking forward to what might be a massive gap in the evening before Bodega came on.

Although I was going to give both a try. After taking a few shots of Georgia and not being won over, I mistakenly left my side zip on my camera bag open and one of my cameras fell onto the floor of Studio 36. My cameras are used to being bashed around and dropped on the floor. But this proved to be one accident too many for this camera and the EVF died. I headed to my hotel to try and fix it, but with no luck. I returned to watch some of LEFTFIELD’s set, which I fairness, really suited Studio 36. Whether it was the my mind being somewhere else thinking about how to fix the camera, LEFTFIELD left me unengaged and I decide to drown my sorrows at the bar – only to find Guinness had run out. (Butlins need to sort this out. It happens every year). I can not say this was my idea of an entertaining Saturday night, but chatting with friends who also had given up on LEFTFIELD helped fill the time.

Thankfully, the ever brilliant Bodega were on hand to close the evening with their New York cool art-punk. Brilliantly opening with their set with the Ramones ‘Rockaway Beach’ (why has no one thought of this before), they played pretty much for two hours, with one danceable song after another. It helped numb the disappointment of the camera.

Sunday

Not letting the camera damage disappoint me. I still had a second camera. Although that camera is also limping along with a sticking shutter, forcing me to use it in silent mode which can suffer from awful bands appearing across photos. I had noticed some of my earlier photos had suffered from banding, ruining some of them, so it was going to be a challenging day. Thankfully, I also had a backup pocket camera, that came off the subs bench so I knew I would have at least some guaranteed shots to fill the a review.

Before the festival, the Sunday’s lineup seemed to hold the most promise. With several never seen bands who I purposely did not listen to beforehand, so as to not colour my judgement.

First up were Jaws the Shark, who I saw play a small show last year. At the time I thought some of the songs were a lyrically a bit repetitive and thought they sounded flat, as the drums were provided by a machine. Here, playing a full band show with a human on the drums, the extra dynamics really added to the sound, making them a very enjoyable start to the day.

Bloodworm from Nottingham, are another new band for me. With their atmospheric gothy post-punk, I think they were a highlight for many, including me. They are definitely now on my radar as ones to watch.

Another arguably odd booking, but one I really enjoyed, were The Jonny Halifax Invocation. A psych blues band with ritualistic beats. Kind of like a blues version of Snapped Ankles. I know some thought they were not right for the festival, but I thought they injected a bit of colour after Bloodworm’s goth.

Another new band were the Dirt. Japanese guitarist Sachiko and partner Jack (the poet Leon the pig Farmer), looked to me like somebody had role-reversed The Kills. With elements of psych combined with the Jack’s socially conscious lyrics, they worked really well. Another new discovery for many.

One band I was looking forward to seeing were the much hyped, The Itch. I was a big fan of the Regressive Left and was impressed by this new iteration when I caught them a few times last year. I have to admit, I was left slightly disappointed by them today. With the Itch, Simon Tyrie and Georgia Hardy shifted their post-punk sound to a much more synth heavy version of their sound. Their music sounds great. But the change from intimacy of the Lexington to a big stage, left me wanting more physicality from their performance. Simon was often hidden behind his bank of synths and while they tried to bring Georgia to the front of the stage, her drums blocked her for much of the time she was singing. My feeling is that for these bigger stages, maybe Simon needs to come front and centre and somebody else takes over on keyboards? Musically though, I can’t fault them and I am sure they will have a very strong 2025.

Closing the Centre Stage for this year, Katy J Pearson was another ‘second attempt’ artist. I saw her a few years ago at the Lexington and found I did not get on with the country influences in some of her work and I am afraid, nothing changed with this performance. She is perfectly pleasant. But this is it. However, it was clear from the audience, that I was in a minority..

Opening Studio 36 for the evening was Miki Berenyi from Lush with her band the Miki Berenyi Trio, her set featured a few Lush songs because as she said, they don’t have many songs. It was clear there were quite a few Lush fans in the audience who lapped up her set.

Finally to my own personal headline act. I know RIDE were coming on last. But the band I was looking forward to the most was Sprints. Well done the organisers for taking a chance and putting Sprints so high up the lineup. It was a year to the day since they released their debut and my favourite album of 2024. I had tickets to see them twice last year and was unable to make the gigs. Having seen them at the Great Escape a few years earlier, it was clear Karla had the presence to carry any stage. For me, this set was one of the best EVER at Rockaway and I even think this big venue, contributed to it. They owned the space from the first minute to the last.

Although for most artists I left the pit after one or two songs. Sorry to those on the barrier, but there was no way I was leaving this performance after two songs. I wanted to experience them from as close as possible. After leaving the pit, I started to make my way over to toward the centre of the stage on the assumption Karla would go into the audience. I got half way there and realised I had left my long lens on the camera! I decided there would not be much point taking that into the mosh, so found some space and just enjoyed the rest of the set.

At one point she asked the audience to form a circle. Somebody afterwards said they felt it was wrong, as it should form naturally. But she had the audience in the palm of her hands. So much so, a bunch of old people were willing to form a circle, even though most of them probably regretted it the next day when their knees reminded them of their age. Karla is an amazing front person and the new material tried tonight, has left me impatient for the second album. It was a cracking performance. The only thing that was a let down, was they weren’t tonight’s headliners so my festival finished on a high. I have no doubt, they will be soon. This was everything I wanted and more.

For me, Sprints were a good way to finish the evening. I have given RIDE several chances in the past. They are very good at what they do. They just do not work for me. After grabbing some photos and giving a few songs a chance. I headed to the bar and sat with friends who also were not feeling RIDE’s pull.

The conversation again returned to the lineup. Given this is a self-selecting group of ‘down the front’ small-venue type people who all did not like RIDE. There was a general feeling that the headliners across the weekend did not appeal to us. However, there was a feeling that the headliners rarely do and we book with no expectations that the headliner will work for us. Although there was a feeling that the lack of alternatives this year, seemed like a backward step. Hopefully, this is something that can be addressed next year. Since the headlining acts get up to two hours and every night, this is a big gap in schedules. Don’t get me wrong, sitting with friends, playing on the arcades, shoving 2ps into the machines, or playing pool in the gaps is a large part of what makes Rockaway so enjoyable. Having some more musical options if you do not like the headliners would be helpful.

(It would also be helpful if Butlins made sure the beer doesn’t run out too! People were making trips back to the rooms to grab beers they had brought with them as there wasn’t much left at the bar)

After 2015’s Rockaway, my perception that there was a lack of artists, meant I didn’t book the following year. It was Sea Power on the bill that made me return and forced me to reevaluate my expectations. Since then, I have grown to love this little festival. I know the headliners are not going to be my thing and I am fine with this. I know there are going to be gaps in the day when I will have to fill my time. But I also know lots of people who attend this festival and every gap is a chance to meet up with people which gives the festival a lovely feeling. It has grown to become the perfect way to start the New Year. Rockaway Beach is just the perfect way to start the new gigging year. Booking next year was a no brainer. I am already looking forward to it.

Rockaway Beach 2026 takes place at Bultins Bognor Regis on the 2-5th January 2026. Tickets are on sale now. See https://www.rockawaybeach.co.uk for more details

Previous Reflections

Rockaway Beach 2024
Rockaway Beach 2023
Rockaway Beach 2020
Rockaway Beach 2018
Rockaway Beach 2015