The Libertines, Catfish and the Bottlemen, Kaiser Chiefs and more play Y Not? Festival - review

The four-day event, held at Pikehall, saw extreme weather conditions bring chaos to the site in 2017 – with gutted punters refunded 50 per cent of the price they paid.

This year, it was held at Aston Hill Farm, across the way from the old site and with Britain in the midst of a month-long heatwave, surely luck was on the cards for Y Not? this time around.

Well, sadly it just wasn’t to be.

High winds and heavy rain saw tents decimated, acts rearranged and cancelled, as well as revellers heading home early.

But despite the disappointing dampener, the organisers did brilliantly to respond to the adverse weather conditions to ensure still enjoyed themselves.

After warm-up performances from Razorlight and Reverend and the Makers on Thursday night, indie heroes The Libertines took top billing on Friday.

Pete Doherty and co’s set featured an array of their glowing repertoire including Horror Show, Don’t Look Back Into The Sun and Can’t Stand Me Now as the youthful crowd went into a frenzy on the opening night.

There was an impressive Midlands contingent booked to perform across the weekend, including Birmingham’s Superfood, Jaws and Peace – all of which put on killer shows.

On Saturday, the brilliant Seasick Steve helped put a smile on people’s faces after singer/songwriter Marika Hackman was forced to pull-out due to the wind.

Next up, Ricky Wilson’s Kaiser Chiefs put on a show to impress with their collection of bangers, as the sun did its best to briefly sneak from behind the clouds.

With northern five-piece Catfish and the Bottlemen headlining on Saturday, taking shelter in The Giant Squid tent to catch golden oldies The Buzzcocks seemed more appealing – and they didn’t disappoint.

The Bolton boys smashed through the likes of What Do I Get?, Orgasm Addict and Autonomy before coming to a close with absolute classic Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've) – the highlight of the weekend.

With our broken £15 pop-up tents from Sainsbury’s struggling to take anymore wind and rain, we headed back home early on Sunday.

But organisers battled on through to ensure everything went to plan as the Levellers, The Wombats, Wolverhampton’s Yak and more impressed.

The evening saw 90s jazz-funk sensation Jamiroquai headlining the stage but much to the disappointment of Jay Kay, the festival confirmed after several delays his set had to be cancelled before the end.

Overall, despite the disappointing weather, little Y Not Festival must be given praise for the event it puts on.

It’s a clean and pleasant setting to be in – perfect for families, couples and teenagers who might be eager to attend their festival with friends.

With tickets starting at £115, you certainly get more than your money’s worth and entry is cheap-as-chips in comparison to the likes of Leeds Festival and so on.

Let’s just hope the rain can stay away in 2018, eh?