The photos displayed by my friends and I were a warm blanket as we re-entered the real world. The initial memories were ones of a struggle to continue to party, the magnified sun rays burned backs, whilst Pendel Hill loomed, the silent monolith of Beat-Herder.
A local festival for me, to have been surrounded by those that I have grown up with consolidated my love for humanity. Despite our society being structured to fit us into our separate groups, at Beat-Herder, everyone was their own individual and we rejoiced at seeing them be themselves.
Dub Pistols told me that Beat-Herder is the perfect size, small enough to maintain autonomy, but still big enough to attract a host of different acts. The music varied from: Kettema B2B DJ Haus, Phibes and Sister Sledge. This eclectic mix allowed fun for all, our titles were stripped, and we became members of Beat-Herder.
Outside, we have our own responsibilities, but in there our goal was collective. Time is suspended at Beat-Herder. No matter if it’s light or dark, there is a crowd waiting to welcome you into their party. Submerge yourself into different worlds - until the music is switched off at 11:30 on Sunday evening.
Time is suspended at Beat-Herder.
Every silver lining has its cloud. When the weekend came to a close, the mood changed. The normal world was fast approaching- “It was a stark return to reality” claimed festival goer Luke Cryer. Tensions were high as our car queued to leave. Stewards were subject to a tirade of abuse from those that couldn’t accept that they were going to have to wait another year. At the time I reasoned to myself that this was to be expected, the abusers weren’t bad people, they had been given a glimpse of how life could be lived, we blinked and now it’s over. But then, the pictures emerged of the amount of waste left by festival goers, leaving a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. This destroyed my earlier memories of Beat-Herder. Were these the same people that I had met a few days ago? But as university draws nearer, I have realised that despite us all being festival goers, we are still humans, who can be well intentioned, but often do the wrong thing. We can do better next year.