Slam Dunk returned over the bank holiday weekend as tens of thousands of fans travelled to Temple Newsam. And what a great Sunday it was, it has been heavily debated if it was a wise decision to move the Festival away from Leeds City Centre over the past few years. However this year, we thought the Festival had a greater intimate feel being out of the city and in the mud, yes it rained although not as bad as some had predicted. The greater and larger new layout and set up seemed to work very well. The festival felt like a festival and it connected with fans widely. There was no sprawling in and out of streets across the city centre, rushing across busy roads to get to different venues. We were in the open air of the Yorkshire Countryside and festival goers embraced the elements of heavy downpours but also sunny periods .

Our picks of the day included Funeral For A Friend who rolled back the years with their new fill in vocalist Lucas Woodland from Holding Absence. As a boyhood fan he has been delighted to front the band since the exit of Matt Davies-Kreye. And he was phenomenal. Lucas gave the band an added dimension, with his big stage presence and eyes wide open performance. We thought he really connected with the funeral faithful and hope to see him back with the band in the coming months and years. Funeral had fans singing aloud to tracks such as History, All the Rage and Streetcar. Fans flocked to the Go Pro stage to see the Welsh Rockers who were full of high energy and brilliant riffs. Fans were also enjoying a few mosh pits in the mud.

You Me at Six headlining the Slam Dunk Stage( FESTIVALFEVER.NET)

Welsh Rockers Funeral For A Friend at the Go Pro Stage - FESTIVALFEVER.NET

Against the Current and Pale waves led with their front female vocalists as they rocked the tent with high energy, it gave some respite for for fans who packed the tent to avoid downpours of rain. Pale Waves from Manchester ran through tracks Theres a Honey, Easy and Change, as their sultry singer Heather strutted her stuff in the Kerrang Tent.

Following on from the female rockers, American New York pop punk band State Champs were back in Leeds after their recent tour as supporting artist for Simple Plan, their Fall Out Boy esq tracks were met with pleasure as their catchy tracks were sung by fans who had to endure another quick downpour of rain.

Indie Rockers All American Rejects play to a packed main stage as the skies clear FESTIVALFEVER.NET

Despite a few heavy downpours the rain held off for the majority of the day and there was periods of sun and clear skies in the late afternoon and evening, fans can be seen here during All American Rejects Set. (FESTIVALFEVER.NET)

The All American Rejects became a highlight of the day for many as they united the crowd with their indie hits such as Move Along, Dirty Little Secret and It Ends Tonight as tens of thousands of fans could be heard singing along to their tracks.

With their announcement of their final gigs and tour You Me At Six headlined the Slam Dunk Stage. Its been twenty years of memories for their adorning fans. And the southern Surrey rockers didn’t disappoint as they treat fans to tracks such as Save it for the bedroom, Kiss & Tell and No-one Does it Better. Emotions ran high as You Me At Six thanked fans for the support over the years. They were also joined on stage by the Blackouts lead vocalist Sean Smith.

So that’s it for another year, We found the organisation, staff, and new lay out exceptional this year.

There was an abundance of food vendors and bars this year and no extensive queues for toilets. This Festival just seems to be getting better and better. Our only improvement would be to move the Go Pro Stage further away from the smaller stage next to it as the sound from both bands often clashed during sets.

That’s it guys, see you next year for Slam Dunk 2024. Bands we would love to see include, Alkaline Trio, Inme, Taking Back Sunday, Good Charlotte etc