Weekender: Indietracks 2018 – ‘Our favourite bands on an amazing steam railway’
Think you have to spend a fortune on going to a festival this summer? Think again. Indietracks is one of the festival scene’s best-kept secrets, and it’s right here on your doorstep in the East Midlands – combining steam trains, the best in real ale and craft beer and some of the best new bands in the world. What are you waiting for?
TheBusinessDesk.com spoke to organisers Nat and Andy Hudson, Beck Conway (Sweet Revenge DJ, Cambridge indiepop all-dayer organiser), Jas Allen and Emma Kupa (of Mammoth Penguins/Standard Fare).
Can you describe Indietracks in one sentence?
Jas: We’re a unique DIY pop festival on a 1950s steam railway with a mix of new and established indiepop bands – small enough to remain friendly, and with added discos, karaoke, kids’ activities, real ale and rescued owls. That’s a long sentence, Sorry!
What’s new for this year?
Andy: We’ve lots of amazing bands that have never played at Indietracks before, and I’m particularly excited about Amber Arcades, Sacred Paws, Spinning Coin, Dream Wife, Melenas and Even As We Speak. We’re also so lucky to have three incredible headliners in British Sea Power, Honeyblood and The Lovely Eggs, and there’s some familiar faces like The Smittens, Darren Hayman, Night Flowers, Girl Ray and Haiku Salut too!
Jas: Responding to our growing family audience and the success of our kids area last year, we will have two dedicated kids areas this year – in addition to our family-friendly all age activities in the workshop marquees. ‘Indietots’ is for under 5s, and ‘Indiekids’ is aimed at the 5-12s!
Beck: We’ve also been working with a couple of our festival regulars to help improve the accessibility of the festival this year – for example, by advertising the PA tickets we offer for visitors who need a carer or assistant. We’ve also got a couple of exciting new food options to try – vegan-friendly of course!
How has the festival changed over the past decade?
Beck: In the seven or so years that I’ve been attending, I think the line-up has become a little more diverse while still keeping the same lovely, friendly and collaborative spirit of Indietracks.
Nat: There’s little things that we try and improve each year, like making the train stage easier to join, having gender neutral toilets, spacing out the bigger bands in the evening so there’s fewer clashes, having different choices on the food options, and generally just trying to make it as welcoming, fun, safe and friendly as possible. It’s still the same festival at heart though – just our favourite bands on an amazing steam railway!
How do you think the festival helps the Railway, and the wider local economy?
Jas: Indietracks is one of the biggest independent music festivals held in Derbyshire and so is an important part of the local music scene. It is also the largest event held at the Midland Railway. All proceeds go to the Midland Railway charity, keeping the trains running throughout the year.
Beck: As Jas says, the festival runs as a fundraiser for the Midland Railway to support their heritage work. Speaking as a visitor from a couple of hours drive away, I think it’s great how Indietracks encourages a bunch of indie kids to visit such a beautiful part of the Derbyshire countryside – I know a lot of people stay either side of the festival to visit some of the lovely places nearby like Matlock Bath.
Do you feel part of a DIY festival community, or do you feel you’re looked down upon by the corporate-backed events?
Beck: Personally, I see Wales Goes Pop in Cardiff as our sister festival and am so inspired by that and other DIY all-dayers and events, bands and record labels. I feel so passionate about this amazing DIY community that we’re a part of and it just keeps getting better! It’s exciting to see bands that played at Indietracks early on, now getting picked for bigger events like End of the Road – I’m excited about the idea of them getting their music out there to different crowds. However, I don’t really compare us to festivals like that because to me, the DIY aspect of Indietracks is what makes it so special.
Jas: I think some corporate-backed events are sometimes world’s apart from small DIY festivals like Indietracks, which is run entirely by volunteers. For example our ethos is not just about raising money for the railway charity but also providing a platform for smaller bands, artists and DJs to play and perform to larger audiences, alongside the more established headlining bands. Another way we are different from some of the more mainstream festivals is that Indietracks has often tended to have a pretty good gender balance among its artists.
What are you looking forward to most this year?
Jas: Being reunited with festival friends, seeing British Sea Power headline, and seeing what energy Dream Wife, whose debut album was released earlier this year, bring to the festival.
Beck: Yes, I’m also super excited about catching up with lots of my friends and dancing at all the festival and campsite discos! I can’t wait to see Anna Burch, Dream Wife and Strange New Places for the first time, either.
Nat: I’m looking forward to Girl Ray, Gwenno, French Boutik, Sink Ya Teeth and Honeyblood, as well as helping to organise the new kids’ activities. Our son will about 20 months old, so we’re sure he’ll enjoy the play areas and steam trains! The karaoke sounds amazing too, although we may leave that for the late night disco crowd!
