Live review – V Festival 2016
A masterclass in chart music, Bieber & co braved the rain for pop’s finest festival.
V is the chameleon of the UK festival calendar
V is the chameleon of the UK festival calendar.
Year after year, it swaps between genres - from pop to indie, rap to dance – each time throwing up a heavyweight line-up of chart music.
This year, the V Festival lineup read like a who’s who of The Top 40, with Justin Bieber and Rihanna topping the bill.
One look at the list of acts and my indie-worshipping boyfriend flat-out refused to come. Rocking out to Kasabian (2015’s headliner) was great, he told me, but Bieber…well, he would rather stick pins in his eyes.
Thankfully however, the 90,000-strong V Festival crowd did not think pop to be a dirty word.
Over the weekend, Little Mix, David Guetta, Craig David, Troye Sivan and Years & Years also took to the stage, bringing their A-game to Chelmsford despite the drizzle.
Justin Bieber is lip-syncing at V Festival
All Saints kept it classy with a short but sweet performance during a rare patch of sun, playing Pure Shores and Never Ever to the delight of those in the crowd who could remember the 90s.
Later on, Example proved once again to be the king of the festival circuit, whipping the revellers into a frenzy and even initiating a group hug.
Sia provided welcome relief from the brash and brazen with an intelligent and beautiful performance, her dancers enacting Elastic Heart, Cheap Thrills and Titanium beside her on stage. Barely moving a muscle, she sang from beneath a face-obscuring wig, yet captivated the crowd as she did so. Her voice could cut glass.
Jess Glynne and Tinie Tempah were two of the top acts at V Festival 2016
Another highlight were Years & Years. Frontman Olly Alexander wore custom made sports-luxe culottes (“It’s not a skirt,” he insisted) and danced his way through the happiest set of the weekend.
“I’m sweating so much I can’t see out of my eyes,” he laughed after an impromptu backwards rolly-polly.
Fun and frivolous, V Festival – with its identikit crowd of girls in polyester co-ords and Essex boys – delivered a solid slice of pop perfection.
Pop group Little Mix got the crowd dancing
Sia provided welcome relief from the brash and brazen
At times, however, something was missing: grit.
Pop may not be a dirty word, but sometimes it’s just not enough.
Rating: 4/5