Tramlines Festival 2022 took place in Hillsborough, Sheffield, over the weekend of 22-24 July. It is an annual festival with five stages, fairground rides, and plenty of food stalls and drinks bars. The festival takes place every year and is centred around indie artists and music.
Previous acts have included Dizzee Rascal, Royal Blood, Catfish And The Bottlemen, Two Door Cinema Club, The Kooks, The Fratellis, and The Pigeon Detectives.
My experience of Tramlines Festival 2021
I attended Tramlines Festival 2021 as a VIP, which meant I had access to the VIP area that included its own bar, and proper portable toilet blocks as opposed to the standard portaloos. It also had its own seating area under a large tepee, which was nice to sit under to get away from the sun for a bit when it got too warm. This year, I’m attending as a standard ticket holder. VIP was nice, but probably not worth the extra cost for the ticket, in my opinion.
Also, due to some covid restrictions still being in place, the trams in and out of Sheffield were cancelled for the whole weekend, making it a lot harder for everyone to travel to and from the venue. Luckily, that isn’t the case this year!
Day one review
Tramlines Festival 2022 kicked off at midday on Friday 22 July. Throughout the afternoon, acts included Declan McKenna, Orla Gartland, Lady Leshurr and James. The weather was alright throughout the day too, until the very end when it started pouring it down. Typical England!
My favourite act of the day was, of course, the headliner Sam Fender. He opened his set with Will We Talk?, and stopped halfway through for a medical emergency near the front. What a guy! As I expected, the crowd were the loudest for Howdon Aldi Death Queue and Seventeen Going Under. He finished off his set with Hypersonic Missiles, alongside a small firework display!
The only disappointment that became immediately apparent was the drink prices. For example, a double spirit and mixer drink cost £10, while a can of Red Stripe beer cost £6.20 per can. 500ml bottles of water cost £2.50, but the bars did offer empty cups to take to the free water stations dotted around the site.
Besides this, the food prices had also increased from last year, with a 10-inch margarita pizza costing £12 this year, compared to £10 last year. People were not happy with these price increases!
Day two review
After a rubbish night’s sleep at my hotel, I was somewhat ready for day two. We started this day off with Inhaler on the main stage, which unfortunately clashed with Kawala. We then headed over to Little Man Tate and watched from a distance. By this point, I had an energy crash and needed a nap, so we had a little rest while listening to them. After that, we got some food and drink and we were ready for The Vaccines, Alfie Templeman and Kasabian one after the other.
This day made it clear to me that, unless you have a lot of energy or you can run on little-to-no energy, weekend-long festivals are not easy! Luckily, though, I managed to get a much better sleep and felt more awake for the last day. Plus, it didn’t rain on us this time!
Day three review
The last day of Tramlines 2022 was arguably the best day. The only thing that was a bit annoying about this day was that the timings of acts got changed last minute, meaning the acts we had planned to see now clashed. Also, it was raining on-and-off all day, but that didn’t mean we weren’t prepared. We are Northerners, after all!
We started the day off with Sports Team, and then headed over to catch the last few songs of Scouting For Girls. Scouting For Girls were on the smaller stage in the tent, meaning that it was packed to the brim with people standing outside the tent in the rain too. It made it all worth it when they played She’s So Lovely at the end. It’s a real feel-good song.
With a huge gap between acts that we wanted to see, we headed over to the Elvana set, a cover band that sing Elvis and Nirvana. It was fun to see everyone dancing to Elvis songs that cleverly faded into Nirvana songs. A strange combination of musicians to cover, but it worked!
We then went to see The Wombats, my favourite act of the day, followed by The Yard Act and then Madness. Having grown up listening to Madness because of my dad, it was crazy to see them live. They sure know how to entertain the crowd, as well as give a good performance!
Overall review of the weekend
Overall, Tramlines 2022 was a fun experience, despite my lack of energy and the unpredictable weather. Also, my bank account might be screaming, but it was worth it! I got to see a lot of bands that I have grown up listening to, and that experience singing along with a crowd of tens of thousands of people is something else.
I do recommend Tramlines Festival if you’re into indie music. Unlike other big Festivals, like Leeds and Reading, the music stays relatively consistent in terms of sound, so it isn’t necessarily music for everyone if you’re more into pop and hip-hop, for example. But, as far as music festivals go, ticket prices aren’t super expensive, and there are some big names that play there. It’s a great experience overall, and I would definitely go again!
My advice for attending Tramlines Festival
Firstly, organise accommodation sooner rather than later, as there is no camping at Tramlines. Hillsborough Park is accessible via trams but can get very busy on the surrounding roads before and after each day. If you want to be closer to the venue, sorting out your accommodation will make the difference between you being only a couple of miles away, or up to 15 miles or more away.
Secondly, leave enough time to make it to any acts you want to see. While the trams through Sheffield make it a lot easier to access the venue, there can be delays and cancellations of trams if there is an accident near tracks, for example. Leaving plenty of time before your acts will ensure you don’t miss them!
Also, save up some money if you plan on eating and drinking at the festival! The drinks, especially the alcohol, can be steep, and the food isn’t much cheaper. It’s always better to ensure you have enough to last the weekend in advance.
Finally, prepare for any weather. We all know how notorious up north is for unpredictable weather. It can literally be sunny and warm to the point of sunburning but could start pouring it down the next minute. Therefore, take sunscreen and sunglasses and a disposable poncho or a raincoat. That way you’re prepared for all eventualities!
The takeaway message
If you are an indie music lover, Tramlines Festival might be the festival for you! It’s held annually in July at Hillsborough Park, Sheffield, so is an ideal location for Northern indie music fans. But, with Sheffield’s regular trams running specifically for Tramlines Festival goers, it couldn’t be more convenient for music lovers to attend from all over the UK. I can’t wait to see who will be performing next year!