Love Really Did Save The Day
Bristol’s iconic Love Saves The Day festival returned last weekend at Ashton Court, hosting an incredible lineup, including Sammy Virji, Sub Focus, Rizzle Kicks and 4am Kru.
I had the pleasure of attending with Burst’s very own Sansa Kirby, whose amazing review of the festival can be read here.
I wanted to give the music a spotlight of its own in this article, and since most of our music team was at Dot To Dot, I’m afraid you are stuck with me, Burst’s operations manager.
LSTD is quintessentially Bristol, and the lineup really reflects that notion. Bristol collective ‘Teachings in Dub’ hosted a stage powered by ‘Firmly Rooted Sound System’, which is also based in Bristol.
SWU FM hosted the Transmission Stage, headlined by Special Request on the Sunday, which I am told was a particular fan favourite.
On the Sunday, Bristol DNB institution ‘The Blast’ hosted the Big Top, the festival’s home of dnb.
DJs across the festival were local, and that “Bristol Sound” of bass music - dark, heavy, and wobbly basslines (Simula x Jakes set, anyone?) - echoed through Ashton Court. And how can I talk about Bristol’s iconic dance sounds without giving the legendary 4am Kru a mention?
The sun is beginning to set over the huge heart-shaped Main Stage when thousands of patiently waiting ravers hear the live horns section - the brand new Horns Kru - begin to play.
Soon, the horns are joined by a hefty 90s-style breakbeat, and the energy of the crowd EXPLODES. Onstage, a group of wildly energetic dancers, known as the Daisy Roots Movement, sprint into position, throwing shapes with so much enthusiasm that I felt simply compelled to join in with my friends at the back of the fields.
The whole set radiated an energy simply not found anywhere else in the music world. As Rhys, my sober friend, put it:
4am Kru cannot be known as DJs who spin their tracks, they are so much more than that. Where else are you gonna find a whole live band and touring dance group who are so much fun to see onstage?
Moving away from the main stage, a particular highlight for me was the fun, chaotic, genreless space known as the Dubtendo Stage. Dubtendo, for the uninitiated, is the branchild of the team at Dazed Music, one of Bristol’s biggest promoters. If you’ve been to a dnb event in Bristol, chances are Dazed had something to do with it. Dubtendo means a DS-themed stage, silly music, costumes from the world of Mario, and the inevitable Wii theme donk remix. It’s fun.
The Wii theme remix in question…
From start to finish, the stage was packed, the crowd was loving it (see video) and the energy was unreal. It was the first stage to fill up when the festival opened, which is testament to Bristol’s craving for silliness, even in a rave.
DJs such as Badger and Drinks On Me were delving deep into wobbly basslines and bouncing beats to make this delightful corner of the festival a genuine joy to experience.
Over to the Big Top. The first set we caught was Mozey, who I have been lucky enough to see a few times previously. I was excited to start the 2026 festival season off with a bang.
Walking into a festival circus tent full of sweaty ravers dancing to high energy dnb reignited the same feeling I got at when I was doing the same thing at Reading, at 16 years old. I didn’t want to feel like I was at Reading. Luckily, however, that feeling quickly subsided when I realised that this festival was not one full of rowdy GCSE completing, bucket hat wearing wankers. This was a Bristol festival.
The crowd reciprocated Mozey’s infectious energy, and the music kept up to par too. Jump up doubles, classic dnb bangers, happy bloody days. My only complaint is one of niche nature - Mozey has been mixing some of those doubles for almost three years now, and I would LOVE to see him flex those creative muscles and bless us with some new dirty drops.
Finally. the Brouhaha Stage provided sun-kissed house beats which felt right at home in those early days of the heatwave (get me to Ibiza please). As a dnb head, I have the devil on my shoulder telling me to slate the house tracks spilling from that expansive, beautiful, tropical blue stage, but I am going to try and be better than that. Because I am nice like that.
I caught the majority of Jazzy’s (‘High On Me’, ‘Somedays’) late afternoon Sunday set. She has recently dominated UK dance charts, and it was an absolute pleasure to see her mix live. Expertly selected blends between her singalong fan favourites and lesser known underground beats created a true sense that LSTD was THE summer party of the year.
To sum up, I am delighted to say that love really did save the day. The DJs provided world-class soundtracks to a blissful Bristol summer weekend, and I cannot wait for it to return next year.
Photos credit Sansa Kirby