AFTER ATTENDING a fair few festivals in my lifetime, I was excited to finally experience Lovebox – a festival practically taking place outside my back yard.

Based in east London, Lovebox was the complete alternative from the Wirelesses and Parklifes of the world, with its chilled out homegrown vibe. Below, I dissect just why:

TRAVEL

Anyone who is an avid festivalgoer understands the perils of public transport and the long and strenuous journey of getting home. Luckily for me, Lovebox was based in my very own stomping grounds, making this the easiest journey I’ve ever had. Mile End station – one of the closest to the festival site – was operated well, with concert volunteers lining the streets and directing us all to the site, whilst avid tickets sellers harassed us like druggies looking for their next fix. Well, it wasn’t going to be all smooth-sailing right?

Police assistance was understandably located across east London, and getting to and from the festival was relatively easy. I guess there is a first time for everything.

LOCATION / THINGS TO DO

I was under the impression that Victoria Park was a lot larger than it was, but in fact, the festival was pretty small. It was super easy to locate stages and get to and from where you needed to be, and it really did feel like a festival within a park. People were chilling on the grass, sitting around and eating food and could walk for 30 seconds to get into one of the tents and then another 30 seconds to get some glitter painted on their faces. Talk about efficiency.

Attending Lovebox, you definitely weren’t short of things to do. The festival had a little bit of everything; from vintage pop up shops to get some pretty (albeit overpriced) clothing, to a range of funfair rides for the more adventurous festival attendees. They definitely pulled out all the stops and catered to those who wanted to do more than just listen to music, by creating an entire experience.

FOOD

Everything and anything was available. Whether you fancied Chinese or Indian food, Italian or Thai – the choice of food vendors at Lovebox were plentiful. I personally kept it simple and gauged on chips and bottles of Bulmers cider though. It’s the festival way to be honest.

MUSIC

Now onto the most important aspect of the festival – the music. Lovebox pulled out an array of musicians across different genres over the two-day extravaganza, introducing me to some new acts and seeing some of my favourites at the same time.

For the first day of the festival, Canadian DJ Kaytranda killed the Noisey stage, performing a selection of hits from his album 99.9% which set the crowd alight. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many people singing along to a DJ’s set, and he definitely set the tone for the rest of the day.

Another highlight from the day, and arguably my favourite performer was Solange. Despite being hospital bound for the past three days, the eclectic singer put on one hell of a show. A Solange show is definitely something to behold; from the abstract stage design and outfits, to the dancing and flawless live vocals – it’s hard to believe that many of us have only just begun to acknowledge her excellence now. She performed some of the best tracks from her critically acclaimed album A Seat At The Table including a rousing performance of Don’t Touch My Hair with Sampha.

In typical Frank Ocean fashion, he arrived to the stage 25 minutes late – but of course, all was once forgotten once he started to perform. His mesmerizing performance was pretty intimate despite the big crowd, and his set drew largely from his second album Blonde, as he performed songs including Solo and Chanel.

The second day of Lovebox saw a flurry of talented DJs take to the decks, showing off their skills for us all. From DJ EZ to Siobhan Bell and Sian Anderson – there was no shortage of good music as we heard an eclectic mix, from throwback hip-hop and R&B tunes, to grime and bashment.

One of the highlights of that particularly day was Kano, who performed on the Main Stage. The east Londoner gave an energetic performance of tracks from Made in The Manor and some of his classics, alongside a brilliant band. Kano’s ability to command the stage was effortless, and I have to say, I was pleasantly impressed.