Multitude Festival 2025 showcases the best up-and-coming talent from near and far
The festival returns for another successful year.
Photo: Craufurd Arms
There’s little to be said about the two-day festival in Milton Keynes’ famed venue Craufurd Arms that hasn’t already been said. Once a year, since 2022, the venue closes its doors for two days in August and transforms into a multi-stage festival, with three stages, meaning there’s usually at least one band playing on a stage at any given time. The festival shines a light on independent artists, all while supporting independent businesses in a grassroots venue, all for the price of one gig ticket.
Throughout both days, you’re spoilt for choice; there’s something for fans of heavier, dirtier, grittier noise, and then there’s the softer, indie moments for those that favour the calm and good hearing. I left the festival feeling like I had witnessed some of the best new talent coming through the UK and beyond, but also having learnt a lesson: never rely on a venue to supply earplugs, buy reusable ones (especially if you’re a frequent gig-goer). 34 Great British pounds later and thanks to Amazon Prime, I was back on the Sunday with ear pain I hadn’t quite anticipated, but at least I was now equipped with earplugs. The sound at Craufurd Arms doesn’t mess about.
First up on the Saturday, in the small bar stage, Nick Cave’s actor-turned-musician son Earl took to the stage with his band, The Gash, parading around the stage, and laughing as he announced the next song was about “picking your girlfriend up from school… and you’re her teacher.” Both him and singer Dutch Faro shared mic duties, with Dutch stumbling into the crowd at one point and almost sending a lady flying, losing his sunhat mid-performance but still styling it out back on stage. Their punk spirit won over the crowd, and it was clear to see that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
For a breath of fresh air, we caught up-and-coming indie musician Opal Mag on the outside stage, full band in tow. Having just released new track Kitchen Song (which wouldn’t sound out of place on a coming-of-age movie soundtrack), the Brighton-based, Barnet-born musician tore up the stage as she gently sang her way through a set of songs that are sure to garner a huge audience sooner rather than later. With a voice akin to that of Ellie Rowsell (Wolf Alice) or even Mica Tenenbaum (Magdalena Bay), it’s safe to say that Frankie won’t be Brighton’s best-kept secret for much longer.
Following on from Frankie’s mesmerising set was always going to be a tough act to follow, but thankfully, no two acts are ever the same at Multitude, so Kynsy brought a fresh, high-energy sound to the stage, delivering something completely different, leaving us all wanting to hear more.
I caught the tail end of PleasureInc.’s set — noticeably, the drummer was at the front of just about any and every band that graced the outdoor stage that day, cheering on fellow musicians throughout the day. From what I witnessed, they brought an unapologetically witty and fun set, and had the whole audience in their hands as they somehow got everyone in a party mood before the sun had even begun to set. Most importantly, though, frontman Johnny Silver owns the same Feathers McGraw water bottle as me and, for that reason, they earnt my respect.
Venturing back inside to the small but mighty bar stage, I prepared myself for the sweaty, close-knit set from Glasgow’s Humour, who are creating an undeniably addictive Midwest Emo-esque style that would give the likes of Title Fight or Basement a run for their money, especially with a hotly-anticipated debut album, Learning Greek, hitting shelves and streaming this Friday (8th). Their magnetic, ferocious set came as no surprise, as they tore up the smallest stage at the festival, preparing themselves for when they return to the main stage this November on their album tour (grab a ticket for £14 here).
Photo: Craufurd Arms
PROJECTOR brought a raucous, all-killer, no-filler set afterwards, delivering tracks from the debut release Now When We Talk It’s Violence and follow-up album, Contempt, due out in October. The Brighton four-piece made the crowd erupt into laughter when they announced a song off their new album, Sucking On My Own Dick (or, as per the tracklist, S.O.M.O.D). If this is anything to expect from their album, it might just be one of the best of this year.
The next day was met with fewer bands, but sometimes quality over quantity is just as good. First up, quite possibly one of the best new-ish bands to come out of Northampton: thistle.. Made up of Cameron, Judwyn and Lewis, it’s clear that when you have a strong friendship, the rest of it just falls into place. This isn’t my first rodeo with the band, and it certainly won’t be the last. For good shoegaze, look no further.
The surprise of the weekend came from heavy metal act Battlesnake, as heavy metal wouldn’t usually be my thing, but with a tight-knit set-up and stage act, the band delivered a high-energy set with a lot of audience participation. Ten out of ten for the costumes, too.
