Festival Review: End Of The Road 2025
Rain-soaked fields and mudslides couldn’t dampen End of The Road’s spirit, as a weekend of fearless performances, experimental sounds and communal warmth brought the summer to a close.
If you didn’t find yourself holding onto your friend for dear life as you navigated your way out of a tent and into a mudslide, you probably did End of The Road wrong this year. The British summertime was not gentle on this weekend of magic, wonder and connection but the music made sure to conquer any feelings of anguish and cold, as a stacked line-up of musicians, comedians and artists rounded up the end of the summer for a large range of festival goers.
Getdown Services packed out the Folly on night one, for the eager starters who arrived on Thursday. ‘Shout if you’re from London’ which would receive some cheers. ‘Now everyone point and say fuck you’. Moments like this immortalise the ethos and energy of the duo with their fun and observational lyrics packed with whit and relaxed delivery, Lifting the spirits of an eager crowd, the performance was a seamless way to start off the festival’s proceedings.
As well as a place to hide from the rain, The Big Top hosted a wide range of acts, from one of London’s hottest bands Man/Woman/Chainsaw, to LA’s rock trio Cryogeyser, and the peculiar and enigmatic John Maus headlining on the Sunday. DAME AREA’s set was an act of pure endurance with an hour of industrial dance punk to shake you to your core. The Spanish duo with their racing synths, lyrics screamed in Spanish, and thundering bass in abundance was impactful enough for them to be invited to do second secret set, proving to be a thunderous highlight of dynamism and grit leading a legion of head bashers and shakers. Post-dubstep act Blawan took to the stage on Sunday, in turn becoming a lesson in masterful layers and building with his complete control of the crowd with the switching of tempos and energies that showcased the range within his discography, touching on techno, garage and industrial. An early slot for something you’d perhaps want to be in the thick of night moving to, but the darkness of the big top matched with the strobe show to go with the set was enough to make you forget about the light of day. Hearing different beats and patterns filter through was a delight at each turn, as one of the more singular electronic acts of the weekend ended up working the centre of the crowd into a frenzy.
The Boat stage hosted some of the more experimental acts on the bill, with Saturday being stacked back-to-back with some of the most interesting musicians working today. RIP Magic came through with a moody vocal laced with grit, helmed by the synthesist of London’s very own Sorry. London’s underground finest, Black Fondu, found his way to The Boat stage in a nonstop performance that had elements of grime, experimental, industrial and dance music, moving to the beat of his own productions, working the crowd up to his energy level in an eclectic set. Kassie Krut, one of the most anticipated performances of the festival, did not disappoint. A mystery online still remained a mystery in person, but now there were three faces to that mystery, with songs that weren’t online being performed only elevating the mystique the band are shrouded in. Expect drum patterns that sound like syncopated placing back of dishes, ethereal vocals and dreamy synth sounds laden with some dub inspired sonics. ‘Reckless’ is a good song to introduce someone into their sonic landscape as they spell out the band’s name in such a way that you must move along to it.
Mount Kimbie were built for summer festivals. British gratitude with the endless thank yous after each song, the band would close on an early track ‘Made to Stray’, ‘You Look Certain’. A set filled with tracks from ‘The Sunset Violent’ and prior works, the sun would be limited in its appearance this weekend and did not make a show during the set, nevertheless, the music ushered that sense of warmth in.
American rockers Horse Jumper of Love were taking it slow and steady at the The Folly, with a set that would build in tempo as the show went on. Euphoric tracks like ‘Orange Peeler’ and ‘Gates of Heaven’ bringing through a tenderness. The set was ultimately the band honing in on their slowcore rock sound that has expanded by each record. The lead guitarist was moodily striking down on his guitar as the audience finds themselves in a slow, mutual sway, summarising the general tone of their performance as one of comfort and dissociation.
It was Father John Misty wrapping up with proceedings at The Woods stage on Sunday night, showcasing his extensive discography to one of the largest crowds of the entire festival. From members of the audience not familiar to large, long-time fans enjoyed the final large set of the festival that hosted an indie folk akin to red wine; better, with age. Not too far down the road, a romance was being established by Black Country, New Road, charming the audience with their newly adopted chamber rock/folk sound in a busy year that has seen their scope grow larger and their musical horizon enter a new foray with a successful outcome.