Going to watch two of your favourite artists at a festival was a great way to kick off the bank holiday weekend – despite the rain. With performances from Audrey Hobert, Maisie Peters, and Djo; Forwards presents: Lorde provided a line-up taken straight from an indie pop fan’s playlist. Sadly, I was only able to catch the final two acts of the night, Djo and Lorde, but they both provided immensely enjoyable sets.
After arriving and grabbing a (horrendously overpriced) drink, we headed over to the first set – Djo. Finding fame through the TV series Stranger Things as character Steve Harrington, Joe Keery began releasing solo music in 2019 under the name Djo. He gained wider popularity in 2024 when his song ‘End of Beginning’ gained traction on TikTok, cementing a passionate and dedicated fanbase.
Walking towards the stage, we were initially surprised at how small the crowd seemed. I had expected Djo to be a big draw for the festival and was disappointed at the apparent lack of support for the artist. However, when we crested the slight hill in front of the stage, a mass of people came into view. Hidden in a dip in the ground, the crowd was massive, and consisted of all age groups. The set had just begun when we arrived, and the first song we heard was ‘Lonesome is a state of mind’ (2025). The crowd liked this song; people’s energy was high early on. The upbeat melody and lively drumbeat provided a strong beginning to Djo’s performance. My personal favourite Djo song – ‘Roddy’ – was played towards the middle of the set. The song blends Joe’s voice – suited to stereotypically indie tracks – and slow melody with synth piano and an electronic beat drop. Although the singer changed the melody slightly during the live version, the song was enhanced by the loudspeakers and holographic visuals, and it was a great experience to hear this track live.
Each band member supporting Djo was excellent, although the bassist was the personal star of the show for me. Not only did he play bass guitar, but he also joined Keery on the piano for a couple of songs during the middle of the set. Every member had a significant amount of time displayed on the big screens that streamed the performance to the crowd, which was a good way to highlight the perhaps less well-known but equally talented musicians.
The final song was, unsurprisingly, Djo’s 2022 hit ‘End of Beginning,’ which became popular in 2024 after a snippet of the bridge went viral on TikTok. This song was preceded by a heavy rock instrumental, misleading the crowd and increasing the excitement displayed when the first few chords of the song were played. The audience was undoubtedly loudest for this final track, ending Djo’s set on a similar high to the one it began with. With a short goodbye and the statement “this is one of the greatest moments of my life,” the singer left the stage. Overall, Djo’s performance was excellent. The lights, visuals, sound, and energy blended to create an engaging and immensely enjoyable show, one that rivalled Lorde’s headlining act.
The crowd moved en masse from the West stage towards the East, some running ahead to secure a better spot for Lorde’s upcoming set. The excitement from Djo’s gig lingered and grew, as the time for Lorde’s set drew closer. New Zealand-born Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O’Connor began releasing music at just 16, under the stage name Lorde. She found immediate success with her 2013 album Pure Heroine, with the single ‘Royals’ topping worldwide charts for weeks. Her fanbase and discography have only grown since then, and this was reflected in the sizable crowd that formed for her performance. She emerged on stage at 9:15pm and was greeted with deafening cheers. The age range of the audience at Forwards presents: Lorde was surprisingly varied; I would have expected more of a younger crowd on the Friday due to the viral nature of the lineup, so it was nice to see a wide range of people enjoying the music. Lorde’s set began with a short rendition of ‘Royals’, still regarded as one of her most popular songs. This older track was immediately followed by her newer hit ‘What Was That (2025)’, and the blend of old and new music was a continuous theme throughout the night.
The singer greeted the audience and mentioned that this festival was the first show she had ever played in Bristol. Whilst the genre of her oeuvre is generally indie pop, she certainly embraced the Bristolian love of house music during her performance, and her songs were interspersed with short, electronic DJ instrumentals. This not only made the set livelier, but also created a musically diverse performance. The visuals that supplemented the show were excellent, and included two back-up dancers, strobe lighting, a floating box stage, and fireworks. Along with Lorde’s constant interaction with the camera streaming to the screens, the production of the set made it feel more like an arena tour performance than a festival show.
I was surprised and happy about the song choices that comprised the setlist. As her 2025 album Virgin was released so recently, I was expecting these newer tracks to dominate her performance. However, Lorde drew on her significant discography, playing older songs such as ‘Perfect Places (2017)’, ‘Supercut (2017)’, ‘Girl so Confusing (2024)’ and ‘Tennis Court (2013)’, that created a sense of nostalgia within her performance. Despite the singer choosing to play many of her older, popular songs, the crowd were not the loudest audience I’ve experienced. This is perhaps my biggest criticism of the night and took away from my enjoyment slightly. The lack of people singing along or dancing was unusual for such a big artist. Despite this, the singer performed well and although there was little dancing or singing, the energy of the crowd was still very high.
Towards the end of the set, Lorde spoke for a few minutes about how much she appreciated the fact Forwards Festival is almost exclusively powered by green energy, something she felt passionately about. Speaking on the difficulty of attempting to do the right thing (expenses, time, lack of motivation), the singer expressed her admiration for Bristol as a city for succeeding at doing this – the ‘right thing.’ This long interaction with the crowd was engaging and provided an interesting respite from the music. After this speech, she performed the hit ‘Liability’(2017), a slow, sad song which was immediately followed by the most upbeat track of the night, ‘Hammer (2025).’ This song’s rhythm and beat were increased during the live version, and the drastic change of pace increased the musical variety of her set.
Finally, ‘Green Light (2017)’ was played, followed by the 2013 hit ‘Ribs.’ The audience’s energy expectedly peaked during these tracks, being two of her most popular songs. Lorde’s performance ended on a high, just as Djo’s had done, and she left the audience having given an engaging, immersive, and incredibly fun show.
Forwards Presents: Lorde was an excellent day for the indie-pop fans of Bristol. Both performances I watched were musically and technologically excellent with both singers displaying their talents with brilliant vocals and instrumentals. The crowds undoubtedly left on Friday night feeling excited for the coming days of Forwards Festiva. The high of Friday night promised an enjoyable bank holiday for those set to attend the upcoming days.
Freya Grimley
