LIVE: Slam Dunk South 2025

Slam Dunk South; traditional kick off to the UK festival season, it delivers the elusive festival highs and global lineup that sets the bar for the rest of the summer. A political undercurrent cuts through the day, like the rain clouds which threatened and never burst into controversy, but so did a sense of genuine fun. The world outside might be stressful, but for one day, in one field? We had the best day of the year so far. 

Words: Kate Allvey   Photos: Penny Bennett, Abbi Draper-Scott

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The Meffs

“All we had to do is say we were a skate punk band and they let us in,” laughs drummer Lewis Copsey, but the Meffs are fooling no one. Their brand of old school punk renewed and boiled down to its essentials is a political wake up call, all shouted slogans and wobbly, ominous guitar solos from Lily Hopkins. “We’ve never seen a mosh pit in the morning time before,” she grins as we get in our first slam of the day to their cover of the Prodigy’s ‘Breathe’.‘Deathwish’ gets fists raised before we boo in ‘Broken Britain, Broken Brains’, rife with strong political statements and no compromise. The Meffs are effortlessly rowdy and purposeful, which is what makes them so powerfully dangerous to the establishment.

Dream State

Opening with a scream, Dream State deliver a rousing lunchtime boost, causing a waving sea of hands disproportionate to their time slot. Circle pits ripple as as Jessie Powell sweeps into the melody of ‘Still Dreaming’. “We have no management, we have no record label, we’re an independent fuckin’ band!” she screams as the synths rise on ‘Bloom’. It’s an admirable showing both for the pull on the crowd and a band who pour a drop of early originality into the day. ‘White Lies’, ferocious and introspective, sparks the first rave moment of the day, setting us up for more excitement.

Point North

Past and future combine with spacey effects and classic pop punk energy for Point North’s ‘World Vs Peace’. Spring loaded and caffeinated, they offer scant pauses but throw in big numbers one after another for their second trip to Slam Dunk, gathering enough fans along the way to cram their corner of the field. ‘Into the Dark’ belts out appealing melodic echoes and shred like a plane taking off and ‘Bring Me Down’’ cuts a bit deeper with a bass focus and a heavier darker breakdown, while a man dressed as a giant lobster crowd surfs merrily in front of this very promising early band. 

Movements

‘Afraid to Die’ slices into resonating sincerity as Movements appear on the main stage. They’re dwarfed by the setting but their sound is huge, ‘Lead Pipe’ booming out, carried by the rising wind.Slightly lofi and desperate with touches of desert rock,’Fail You’ bursts into realism, swerving in and out of focus. Movements boast a subtlety in their alt sound, ‘Full Circle’ an emotional stream of consciousness with cantering drums before ‘Colourblind’ jolts into life, illuminating the afternoon.

Heart Attack Man

They might be half an hour late onstage, but the Hammy Nation don’t care in the slightest. Heart Attack Man kick off with ‘Pitch Black’, more soulful than we remember and packed with good honest yelping plus enough guitar to shake the roof. ‘Leap Year’ with its maximised nineties guitar is a party song live, stacked with purity and joy in each note. We dance in the face of our own mortality to ‘Joyride the Pale Horse’ as Eric Egan bounces above us, one hand tucked behind his back. “This next song’s about dying!” The vocalist jokes, going double time through ‘Lay Down and Die’, giving us a brief space to air our resistance to the inevitable through the happiest nihilism of the day.

Rain City Drive

The crowd is massive and we’re bathing in the super atmospheric watery chimes of Rain City Drive’s ‘Lose My Composure’, complete with with pop droplets rising through depths of emotion. ‘Over Me’ booms heavy and light with stadium potential, channeling dreamlike nightclub energy with a sense of motion and a lovely acoustic finish before whirling straight into  ‘Wish You The Best’. All in black, they’re almost lost against the backdrop, their music speaking for itself.

Stray From the Path

If you’ve ever wanted to see an ocean of people losing their damn minds while Drew York spits bars, you need to catch Stray From The Path drop ‘Needful Things’ at Slam Dunk. It’s so dark, with threatening Freak On A Leash tuning that almost causes the clouds to break. ’May You Live Forever’ burns with combative cohesion, as York whirls onstage, a swaggering tornado, before ‘III’s air raid siren guitar kicks off the pit. Stay From the Path wear their hearts proudly on their  tattooed sleeves and we’re on the same wavelength for one of the tougher sets of the day. 

Mouth Culture

Grinding, vitriolic and glorious, Mouth Culture spill out of punkish britpop with glitching movie soundtrack rage. They’re eloquent and furious with the occasional fuzzy pause, and as a band they’re only getting stronger with each show. The smallest tent is packed out for their Slam Dunk debut, heads bouncing to ‘No Shame’ as vocalist Jack Voss shouts out his frustrations. ‘Dead in Love’ is full of noughties cuts with a harsher indie acidity and feathery guitar, the strange delicacy to guitar that reveals dramatic bass, and while it’s their first time here, we know for a certainty that Mouth Culture will be back.

Hot Mulligan

The appearance of Nathan ‘Tades’ Sanville on the main stage sparks a mass migration across the field, his first scream on ‘How Do You Know It’s Not Armadillo Shells?’ speeding up our feet. ‘Drink Milk and Run’ eases us into Hot Mulligan’s set with just a touch of whimsy, open and resonant with a seismic bass boom that skips into guitar waves. “Banter is hard and so am I,” jokes Sanville, his words appearing in full caps in our imagination. ‘Fly Move (The Whole Time)’ fits perfectly into a set that stretches across their back catalogue and is far too good for their time slot, wrapping us in the complex, honest embrace of Hot Mulligan’s vibrant world. 

Streetlight Manifesto

Bouncing back from their time away stronger than ever, the band with the biggest brass section in modern ska know how to bring it. ‘The Three Of Us’ sends them crashing into view: it’s incredibly tight, Tomas Kalnoky’s slightly rough around the edges vocals, their take still innovative and narrative-focused. Their small but determined cult following are absolutely overjoyed to hear ‘We Will Fall Together’ as spontaneously dancing stretches out to the back of the tent, the song faster than we remember but just as fast as it needs to be. Streetlight Manifesto have been away for far too long and we’re as desperate for their idiosyncratic ska professionalism as ever. 

The Used

“Tonight, we are celebrating 25 years of the Used,” declares Bert McCracken, and “celebrate” is the right word. Even if you’ve said goodbye to your teenage emo self, you’re drawn to the Used in full force today. ‘Let It Bleed’ sparks a rapturous dance before ‘All That I’ve Got’ builds to a solemn and sincere singalong, a beautiful moment in remembrance of how we survived the bad times. The frontman knows how to play us with his trademark good-humoured antagonism, slowing, breaking and rebuilding each song before encouraging the old tradition of booing. The Used have found a niche as elder emo icons and reliably put on a show that brightens our blackened hearts.

Less Than Jake

There’s a small corner of the world for whom Less Than Jake are incredibly important, and that segment of the punk population are out in force today. The tent is rammed long before opening classic ‘Gainesville Rock City’, and it’s not pure nostalgia that’s driving us. As Chris DeMakes puts it, they’re “still Less Than Jake”, capable of turning any show into a mini stadium. ‘Lie To Me’ sparks into ‘Johnny Quest Thinks We’re Sellouts’ as beachballs bounce across the pit, and new song ‘Walking Pipebomb’ proves Less Than Jake are still a powerhouse capable of bringing the good times. 

Electric Callboy

We expect maximalism from the Germans, but somehow we were still unprepared for how much they threw at us. For many, Electric Callboy were the band of the festival, and the sight of the vast Main Stage West crammed with neon fans jamming to self-described porno-metal was the stuff that festival dreams are made of. ‘Elevator Operator’ sends the fireworks flying and the highlighted fringes from the dual vocalists flicking as we’re ‘Dancing Like A Ninja’ to their irreverent pop gold. Their brief moments of seriousness are iconic: as they’ve roped in Frank Zummo, ex-Sum 41, on drums, why not drop in a cover of ‘Still Waiting’? It’s the perfect song to resonate with the nostalgic crowd. Equally perfect is their setup for a romantic, campfire cover of Linkin Park’s ‘Crawling’, and the waves of recognition as we get the joke feel like a communal hug. New single ‘Revery’ gets it’s live debut, fitting in seamlessly to a rare set where every single song is a banger. 

Alkaline Trio

Confetti dropped during ‘Hypa Hypa’ drifts into the Monster Stage tent like ashes as the darker corner of Slam Dunk is illuminated by Alkaline Trio. ‘Time To Waste’ sets the tone with greater emphasis on harmony and realism for a very straightforward set with a focus on the music, the same energy they set out on their last album. Far more punk than they’ve been in a long time, ‘Armageddon’ is played with pauses to make the song about our response as vocalist Matt Skiba lets out rough screams on each chorus before ‘Bad Time’ screeches into life, a welcome, chunky addition to their classics. Take away the shiny production, as Alkaline Trio have today, and they’ve still got a punk ethic that hits hard. ‘Stupid Kid’ blends into a ringing, optimistic take on ‘Calling All Skeletons’ before the elder statesmen of the day slow ‘Sadie’ for maximum goth drama. As ever, Alkaline Trio are a black coffee, refreshing and bitter to finish a rich day of music on the second stage. 

Hot Milk

“This song is a social commentary about the state of England: it’s called ‘Gone to Shit’,“ screams Hannah Mee, tougher than she seemed on Hot Milk’s last trip to the South. Sure, the majority of the crowd today are headed to the biggest stages but those who are crammed in for ‘Horror Show’ are loving the intimate set addressed to them, Hot Milk’s intensity razor sharp. As the lights glow purple, she’s clearly entered her goth era, all steely focus for ‘I Just Wanna Know What Happens When I’m Dead’. ‘Zone Out’ gives an opportunity to shows off her pipes for a closeout dark rave that starts a jump for those who feel the emotion that is Hot Milk.

A Day To Remember

The boys from Florida have one mission; to keep the party going for as long as possible. Of course, some festival=goers have called it a day by now, but it’s worth braving the inevitable transport chaos to see A Day To Remember doing what they do best. ‘Bad Blood’ streams into a slapping, assertive ‘Paranoia’, and their take on ‘Rescue Me’ shows they are capable of brining a prettiness to their metalcore / pop punk mashup, their synths lost in smokes and hoards of bouncing inflatables. In some ways, this feels a little understated compared to Electric Callboy, but A Day To Remember are providing what we need right now: an afterparty before the afterparty, a boost of closeout energy. ‘Have Faith In Me’, dedicated to the ladies in the crowd, is uplifting and joyous.

The sense of simple fun that A Day To Remember bring to their show is what makes them such a good final act. We completely embrace their cover of Kelly Clarkson’s ‘Since U Been Gone’ as Cookie Monster crowdsurfs to the front, before ‘All My Friends’ pushes out waves of euphoria across the darkened field. ‘You Be Tails, I’ll Be Sonic’ feels like a metaphor for the whole day: casually presented but the finest quality, occasionally whimsical and always tempting you to slam.  Frontman Jeremy McKinnon dares us to ‘crowd surf on top of a crowd surfer’ during the pop punk life goal that is ‘LeBron’, and that blend of appealing immaturity mashed into the pyro emotional freedom of ‘Resentment’ is what drives A Day To Remember are still a top-tier headliner.