Rally Festival Review: Thrilling Mix of Cult DJs and Indie Darlings

The first edition of the Rally festival in 2023 faced considerable challenges. Torrential rain drenched attendees in South London’s Southwark Park, and headliners Obongjayar and Princess Nokia pulled out at the last moment. This left the post-punk group Squid to save the day with an impressive set once the skies cleared. Despite these setbacks, the festival stood out for its commendable approach. Rally diverges from corporate-led festivals like All Points East or BST by embracing a grassroots ethos. Small local venues, including Ormside Projects and Avalon Cafe, curate alongside larger sponsors like Resident Advisor and NTS. Artists from Goldsmith’s University and Camden Art Centre also contribute installations across the site, adding quirky artistic corners amid the music.

The return of Rally on another rainy—but thankfully less so—day in Southwark Park is a welcome sight. Instead of being weighed down by last year’s mishaps, the 2024 edition is bigger and bolder. Cult-favorite DJs, including a rare performance from the anonymous duo Two Shell, headline the festival, along with indie favorites Nilüfer Yanya and bar italia.

On the dancefloor, the Visionaire stage offers an array of seamless mixes beneath towering plane trees. Pearson Sound’s set transitions flawlessly from thumping bass-weight to Detroit electro to two-step. Meanwhile, Berlin-based Ogazón and British DJ Christian AB showcase a masterclass in back-to-back selections, blending house and melodic techno ecstatically. In the scaffolded warehouse setting of the Agnes stage, London techno veteran Actress delivers a mixed set, beginning with ambient textures before drifting into muffled, esoteric beats that seem to play as if through the wall of a neighboring club night.

The highlight of the festival’s rave scene comes from Two Shell. The duo enlists two dancers to pump up the crowd while they remain hidden behind their mixing desk in hoodies. Their set is both ear-splittingly loud and euphorically fun, cruising through R&B vocal edits, dub, and hyperpop tracks like their 2022 single “Home.” Two Shell lives up to the hype, delivering a dancefloor experience that is more about physical sensation than passive participation.

The transition between the different musical styles can be jarring at times. For instance, Nilüfer Yanya struggles to capture the crowd’s attention with intimate versions of tracks like “Call It Love” and “Midnight Sun” as bass from Two Shell’s performance reverberates across the field. However, an earlier performance by singer-songwriter Fabiana Palladino is captivating, channeling the Teena Marie influences from her debut LP into 40 minutes of ‘80s soul and funk, all backed by her flawless vocals.

Headliners Mount Kimbie create a perfect blend of electronic influences and songwriting. Now a four-piece, the group explores the shoegaze distortions in their latest record, “The Sunset Violent.” Vocalists Dom Maker and Andrea Balency-Béarn exchange lines over low-slung guitars in tracks like “Fishbrain” and “Dumb Guitar.” Older pieces like “Marilyn” and “Made to Stray” from their post-dubstep era expand beautifully into electro-acoustic jams. Drum machines merge with drum kits, and vocals complement synth melodies, encapsulating the broad range of Rally’s programming. This memorable end underscores Rally as one of London’s most exciting small festivals.

Source: The Guardian