Review: Hideout Festival

Hideout is a blissful 24 hour party atmosphere with a gorgeous location and delicious weather. So its easy to understand why this blogger is a totally smitten kitten.

Day One

The action takes place across three sprawling outdoor venues on Zrce Beach and it is hot, really hot. Which can only be a good thing, I don’t want to harp on about the weather but like most English people, a sniff of sunshine and I’m both pathetically grateful. Anyway, the point here is that people at Hideout are happy because it is a happy, sunny place with a glorious beach. In addition, there are a lot of very good looking people, which you’d think would be annoying but it isn’t because no one is really interested in the way you look (apart from me, obviously). So, it’s the first day and I’ve realised that I am at a festival that is wonderfully free of pretentions. Wear what you like, don’t brush your hair, eat dinner in your bikini – no one gives a fuck! Hurrah!

At night I watch Red Light, who is at his rowdy, big bass, best. The crowd are already up for it but his set is vibratingly brilliant. The performance of the evening is Rudimental’s. The breadth of their set is amazing. They cover more genres of electronic music, with more skill, panache and exuberance than a lot of DJs that I’ve seen before. It might be the fact that there are four of them but I think it’s probably just because they’re really good. And there’s a live trumpeter, what’s not to love?

Day Two

At most festivals there are ‘activities’ for when the music isn’t on. Personally, I find them a bit of a copout – PLAY MORE MUSIC. Seems that Hideout agrees. There are Boat Parties, After Parties, Beach Parties, After Beach Parties, Pool Parties and all are packed with big name DJs. The boat parties are a highlight, one of the few times when a DJ has a chance to properly connect with the crowd. It is a bit weird raving on the open seas but, go with it. At night, Maya Jane Coles is sweeping and feisty and completely breath-taking but she can’t steal the crown from High Contrast because that man knows how to throw a party. 

Day Three

You’d think it would be more sedate given that music has played almost continuously for the previous 48 hours (blissfully, you get to sleep in air-conditioned apartments in nearby Novalja, where it’s quiet – most of the time), but the last day is just as wild as the others. Artwork plays to a heaving pool party with a set that has a great sense of humour; bass heavy and packed with hits from the 70s and 80s. At night Skrillex plays one of those sets that he’s famous for, y’know, screaming bass line, lots of crazy lights, it’s really rather good but Skream is better…or maybe I’m just too much of a patriot? Either way the party continues well after it should stop, thanks in large part to Steppa and MC Tonn Piper (that low, down, dirty scoundrel deserves a medal for services to partying).

As a festival of just over 9,000 it feels homey, like going to a really big house party where you kinda know everyone a little bit because you’re all friends of friends of friends. It’s not Ibiza (erm, so 1999), but it is a continuous club atmosphere.

Words: Alexandra Jones

Images: Michelle Vickerman

©Idol Magazine 

http://idolmag.co.uk/music-review/hideout-festival