Rocker (feedbot)
Gold Member
The sun is relentless, a boot holding a sea of dad caps underfoot. The promise of a storm hangs low in the air. Thankfully the line up at Outbreak Fest in London, organised as part of the Lido Festival at Victoria Park, is stacked enough to make a bit of physical suffering worth the while. We were already planning on sweating.
If you have enough time, and are willing to cut a couple of sets short, you can see some of the most exciting acts in modern hardcore, post hardcore, and alt rock here over the course of one day. One person could hypothetically see music from They Are Gutting A Body Of Water, Momma, Drug Church, Fleshwater, Speed, Julie, Superheaven, Have A Nice Life, Alex G, and Turnstile. If they were, this is how that day would look.
They Are Gutting A Body Of Water open the third stage. Of the three, this stage has the most issues of the day – the fault of none of the bands. They Are Gutting A Body Of Water are plagued with sound issues with the drums seeming to be the only thing coming out of the PAs, all guitars heard only through stage amps. The band have made a stylistic decision to face away from the audience, perhaps to create more of a focus on the music. It’s a choice that would be more effective if the music could have been heard more, but it’s still enjoyable hearing them play ‘Eightball’ bookended between guitarist and vocalist Douglas Dulgarian using an electronic interface to create intermediary backing tracks. [WB]
On your way to see Drug Church, you have time to catch indie rockers Momma’s opening track on the main stage. They open with ‘Medicine’, from their 2022 album ‘Household Name’. It’s a brilliant track, with gorgeous vocal harmonies from founding members Etta Friedman and Allegra Weingarten. It’s a shame that there are more sound issues here, with Weingarten’s microphone coming through incredibly quietly for a large part of the song. [WB]
It’s on to Drug Church, playing on the second stage. Thankfully, there are no sound issues on this stage throughout the day, which is hosting the festival’s heavier offering. The band walk on to the dulcet tones of the Beastie Boys before launching in. The energy is immediately off the walls. Front man Patrick Kindlon does a brilliant job at getting a crowd that are already lethargic from the heat moving, bouncing, and crowd surfing. “If you stage dive today, you will die,” he jokes, “so instead, it’s crowdsurfing until you can’t no more.” It’s a set which never slows, ending with the massive one-two punch of ‘Myopic’ and ‘Weed Pin’. [WB]
Fleshwater, playing on the same stage, bring a brilliant energy despite ongoing issues with the vocal sound. The band fly around the stage regardless, all three guitars bringing a huge sound. They play through most of their 2022 album ‘We’re Not Here To Be Loved’, after hitting us with 2024’s sensational ‘Standalone’. Thankfully, the vocals return to cheers from the crowd, and the day’s sound issues seem to be over. [WB]
Back to the second stage to see Sydney hardcore band Speed, who are intent on keeping the crowd moving. Speed won’t stop until they see the entire crowd erupting. As front man Jem Siow points out, “this music is made for moshing”. They may not get everyone here throwing fists and elbows, but the mosh pit is intense, frenetic throughout the set. [WB]
Julie take the main stage with an introductory sample of cello music. They sound fantastic – the bass is chunky, the guitarist is constantly cycling through at least three guitars, and the energy is spot on. You’d be forgiven for having to double check that this is a three piece. They play songs from across their five year release history, opening with ‘catalogue’ from last year’s debut album and going as far back as 2020’s ‘Flutter’. [WB]
On stage two, Superheaven follow up Speed with a brilliant set mostly made up of songs from this year’s self-titled album, the band’s first long-form release in a decade. Opening with ‘Numb To What Is Real’, Superheaven take the crowd, exhausted and sweating, on a journey through their music. By 2015’s ‘Poor Aileen’, the closing song, the crowd are singing along, ecstatic. [WB]
‘Pretty Lush’ into ‘Siberia’ isn’t exactly what you’d call a cold open. Under the warped steel ribs of the tent, Glassjaw performs with staggering ease. Frontman Daryl Palumbo’s voice is hot and heavy, a pressure that bears down on the crowd, folding into the fiery motion surging back at the stage. Every eye is fixed, every body locked. This is not a game to them, but a ritual.
They press on with a relentless setlist, ‘Majour’ cutting deep in its passionate pleas, whilst ‘Babe’ surges forward – guitar lines scrambling to keep pace with the drums storming onward. Then comes a moment in the set, a sudden stillness. The band freeze, their silhouettes caught in the moody glow of dimmed stage lights. The crowd hesitates, unsure. Has it ended? Palumbo stands at the centre, motionless. He runs a hand through his hair, fingers trembling, eyes lost somewhere beyond the haze, hovering in catharsis. The silence stretches – then shatters. It becomes clear we’re not participants – we’re witnesses. Glassjaw holds us completely. [JM]
By the time Have A Nice Life begin their set in the third stage, the heat has built up so much that it’s hard to tell whether the haziness in the air is all thanks to the smoke machines, or a fog of sweat. The crowd is large here, and unexpectedly young. Have A Nice Life’s 2008 album, ‘Deathconsciousness’, has always been lauded online by music fanatics – apparently this has led to them having a viral moment on TikTok last year. It’s refreshing to see so many young faces loving the music. It’s soft, slow, haunting. They open with ‘The Big Gloom’ – apt, given the haze in the room and the red lights behind the band that throw them into stark silhouettes. By the time ‘Bloodhail’ comes around, the crowd are singing every word and front man Dan Barrett is among them, holding the microphone out to a raptured audience. A real highlight of the day.
Unfortunately, because this tent is an enclosed space, the festival organisers have to be strict on capacity. The queues for bands like Feeble Little Horse and Sunny Day Real Estate are long enough to pretty much make them inaccessible and the heat is unforgiving if you do make it inside. The festival would have benefited from having this tent open air, as with the second stage. [WB]
“Where is my mosh pit?” Frontman Bryan Garris doesn’t ask – he dares. Within seconds, the floor detonates in response. Then comes the gnashing riffs, rupturing screams, all at breakneck speed. By the second song, ‘Don’t Reach for Me’ is in every throat, clawing to get out and it’s a frenzy. Hit after hit land with the weight of concrete slabs, the precision of the five-piece is unparalleled in power.
Bodies are being launched overhead as the band calls for more crowd surfers. The stage on the horizon shifting in and out of view. It’s like being underwater, pulled by the current of bodies, whilst the music washes overhead. We’re cued to scream, it’s primal as we dive headfirst into a flurry of songs. A clear highlight comes with ‘Counting Worms’ – the moment those opening chords land, the crowd reacts, we’ve been waiting all night. We’re peaking and the moment’s almost gone, but before it ends we take one last look around, a united front pulsing to the same beat – and it belongs to Knocked Loose. [JM]
Headliners Turnstile open up with ‘NEVER ENOUGH’, the opening and title tune from this month’s fantastic album release. As they open up their set, so do the heavens begin to open. Rain, much-needed, builds up as Turnstile play through some of their more hardcore numbers before hitting a mashup of tracks from the new album. ‘I CARE’ flows into ‘DULL’. When they play songs from 2021’s ‘GLOW ON’, the lights switch from blue to pink, a nod to their album artwork. Turnstile first played Outbreak in 2013, and this is a triumphant return as a headline act that so comfortably straddles both the hardcore elements that have traditionally made up the festival’s acts and the slightly poppier and more alternative elements that Outbreak 2025 has introduced.
We walk in the rain to the nearest station. Despite some sound issues, and despite not being able to access the third stage for a couple of bands – perhaps inevitable issues as this year is the first one in London – it’s been a nonstop day of wonderful music and beautiful energy. Bring on 2026. They’ll have to work hard to top this. [JM]
If you have enough time, and are willing to cut a couple of sets short, you can see some of the most exciting acts in modern hardcore, post hardcore, and alt rock here over the course of one day. One person could hypothetically see music from They Are Gutting A Body Of Water, Momma, Drug Church, Fleshwater, Speed, Julie, Superheaven, Have A Nice Life, Alex G, and Turnstile. If they were, this is how that day would look.
Words: Will Bright and Jessica McCarrick
They Are Gutting A Body Of Water
They Are Gutting A Body Of Water open the third stage. Of the three, this stage has the most issues of the day – the fault of none of the bands. They Are Gutting A Body Of Water are plagued with sound issues with the drums seeming to be the only thing coming out of the PAs, all guitars heard only through stage amps. The band have made a stylistic decision to face away from the audience, perhaps to create more of a focus on the music. It’s a choice that would be more effective if the music could have been heard more, but it’s still enjoyable hearing them play ‘Eightball’ bookended between guitarist and vocalist Douglas Dulgarian using an electronic interface to create intermediary backing tracks. [WB]
Momma
On your way to see Drug Church, you have time to catch indie rockers Momma’s opening track on the main stage. They open with ‘Medicine’, from their 2022 album ‘Household Name’. It’s a brilliant track, with gorgeous vocal harmonies from founding members Etta Friedman and Allegra Weingarten. It’s a shame that there are more sound issues here, with Weingarten’s microphone coming through incredibly quietly for a large part of the song. [WB]
Drug Church
It’s on to Drug Church, playing on the second stage. Thankfully, there are no sound issues on this stage throughout the day, which is hosting the festival’s heavier offering. The band walk on to the dulcet tones of the Beastie Boys before launching in. The energy is immediately off the walls. Front man Patrick Kindlon does a brilliant job at getting a crowd that are already lethargic from the heat moving, bouncing, and crowd surfing. “If you stage dive today, you will die,” he jokes, “so instead, it’s crowdsurfing until you can’t no more.” It’s a set which never slows, ending with the massive one-two punch of ‘Myopic’ and ‘Weed Pin’. [WB]
Fleshwater
Fleshwater, playing on the same stage, bring a brilliant energy despite ongoing issues with the vocal sound. The band fly around the stage regardless, all three guitars bringing a huge sound. They play through most of their 2022 album ‘We’re Not Here To Be Loved’, after hitting us with 2024’s sensational ‘Standalone’. Thankfully, the vocals return to cheers from the crowd, and the day’s sound issues seem to be over. [WB]
Speed
Back to the second stage to see Sydney hardcore band Speed, who are intent on keeping the crowd moving. Speed won’t stop until they see the entire crowd erupting. As front man Jem Siow points out, “this music is made for moshing”. They may not get everyone here throwing fists and elbows, but the mosh pit is intense, frenetic throughout the set. [WB]
Julie
Julie take the main stage with an introductory sample of cello music. They sound fantastic – the bass is chunky, the guitarist is constantly cycling through at least three guitars, and the energy is spot on. You’d be forgiven for having to double check that this is a three piece. They play songs from across their five year release history, opening with ‘catalogue’ from last year’s debut album and going as far back as 2020’s ‘Flutter’. [WB]
Superheaven
On stage two, Superheaven follow up Speed with a brilliant set mostly made up of songs from this year’s self-titled album, the band’s first long-form release in a decade. Opening with ‘Numb To What Is Real’, Superheaven take the crowd, exhausted and sweating, on a journey through their music. By 2015’s ‘Poor Aileen’, the closing song, the crowd are singing along, ecstatic. [WB]
Glassjaw
‘Pretty Lush’ into ‘Siberia’ isn’t exactly what you’d call a cold open. Under the warped steel ribs of the tent, Glassjaw performs with staggering ease. Frontman Daryl Palumbo’s voice is hot and heavy, a pressure that bears down on the crowd, folding into the fiery motion surging back at the stage. Every eye is fixed, every body locked. This is not a game to them, but a ritual.
They press on with a relentless setlist, ‘Majour’ cutting deep in its passionate pleas, whilst ‘Babe’ surges forward – guitar lines scrambling to keep pace with the drums storming onward. Then comes a moment in the set, a sudden stillness. The band freeze, their silhouettes caught in the moody glow of dimmed stage lights. The crowd hesitates, unsure. Has it ended? Palumbo stands at the centre, motionless. He runs a hand through his hair, fingers trembling, eyes lost somewhere beyond the haze, hovering in catharsis. The silence stretches – then shatters. It becomes clear we’re not participants – we’re witnesses. Glassjaw holds us completely. [JM]
Have A Nice Life
By the time Have A Nice Life begin their set in the third stage, the heat has built up so much that it’s hard to tell whether the haziness in the air is all thanks to the smoke machines, or a fog of sweat. The crowd is large here, and unexpectedly young. Have A Nice Life’s 2008 album, ‘Deathconsciousness’, has always been lauded online by music fanatics – apparently this has led to them having a viral moment on TikTok last year. It’s refreshing to see so many young faces loving the music. It’s soft, slow, haunting. They open with ‘The Big Gloom’ – apt, given the haze in the room and the red lights behind the band that throw them into stark silhouettes. By the time ‘Bloodhail’ comes around, the crowd are singing every word and front man Dan Barrett is among them, holding the microphone out to a raptured audience. A real highlight of the day.
Unfortunately, because this tent is an enclosed space, the festival organisers have to be strict on capacity. The queues for bands like Feeble Little Horse and Sunny Day Real Estate are long enough to pretty much make them inaccessible and the heat is unforgiving if you do make it inside. The festival would have benefited from having this tent open air, as with the second stage. [WB]
Knocked Loose
“Where is my mosh pit?” Frontman Bryan Garris doesn’t ask – he dares. Within seconds, the floor detonates in response. Then comes the gnashing riffs, rupturing screams, all at breakneck speed. By the second song, ‘Don’t Reach for Me’ is in every throat, clawing to get out and it’s a frenzy. Hit after hit land with the weight of concrete slabs, the precision of the five-piece is unparalleled in power.
Bodies are being launched overhead as the band calls for more crowd surfers. The stage on the horizon shifting in and out of view. It’s like being underwater, pulled by the current of bodies, whilst the music washes overhead. We’re cued to scream, it’s primal as we dive headfirst into a flurry of songs. A clear highlight comes with ‘Counting Worms’ – the moment those opening chords land, the crowd reacts, we’ve been waiting all night. We’re peaking and the moment’s almost gone, but before it ends we take one last look around, a united front pulsing to the same beat – and it belongs to Knocked Loose. [JM]
Turnstile
Headliners Turnstile open up with ‘NEVER ENOUGH’, the opening and title tune from this month’s fantastic album release. As they open up their set, so do the heavens begin to open. Rain, much-needed, builds up as Turnstile play through some of their more hardcore numbers before hitting a mashup of tracks from the new album. ‘I CARE’ flows into ‘DULL’. When they play songs from 2021’s ‘GLOW ON’, the lights switch from blue to pink, a nod to their album artwork. Turnstile first played Outbreak in 2013, and this is a triumphant return as a headline act that so comfortably straddles both the hardcore elements that have traditionally made up the festival’s acts and the slightly poppier and more alternative elements that Outbreak 2025 has introduced.
We walk in the rain to the nearest station. Despite some sound issues, and despite not being able to access the third stage for a couple of bands – perhaps inevitable issues as this year is the first one in London – it’s been a nonstop day of wonderful music and beautiful energy. Bring on 2026. They’ll have to work hard to top this. [JM]