With regular festival staples including the likes of Love Saves The Day, Dot to Dot, Simple Things and Bristol Sounds, as well as the more recent addition of FORWARDS Festival at Clifton Downs, Bristol has always worn its festival credentials proudly.
Next month sees another major player entering the mix with the long-awaited return of local heroes IDLES headlining the city’s historic Queen Square for two nights, which promise to be some of the most significant outdoor shows the city has seen in over two decades.
—
—
For organisers Daniel Ealam and Scott O’Neill, the pair behind Communion ONE, the promoters co-ordinating the whole affair, it’s more than just another date in Bristol’s festival calendar. It marks the culmination of a long-held ambition finally taking shape in the city.
“We’ve been trying to do Queen Square for so long,” Ealam notes. “The story of that Massive Attack show is still a big story 22 years later. It’s such a big deal and I think that there hasn’t really been anything in there of any sort of scale like this since. It’s always been the dream to do it. Scott, in particular, was hounding the council to try and get something off the ground there.”
“It’s been a long time,” O’Neill adds. “Dan and I have both been promoting shows in Bristol for 15 years at least – putting on a lot of shows at Thekla – and that square has been on our minds ever since we first did shows in Bristol.”
Having worked on Massive Attack’s triumphant two-night trial at the disused Filton Airfield in 2019, which acted as a pilot initiative for a long-mooted and much-needed arena space in the city, Queen Square became a major ambition for the duo.
“I think the Massive Attack gig really paved the way for showing the great organisation we put around that,” O’Neill continues. “Some people thought that was an impossible task to get that show to work in the middle of nowhere with no infrastructure and I think we did a great job there.”
Formed just over a year ago through a merger of production companies FKP Scorpio UK and Communion Presents, Communion ONE represents a new chapter for the team, although their ethos remains rooted in artist and fan-first values. Their roster is broad, including the likes of Wunderhorse, Noah Kahan, The War on Drugs, Ed Sheeran and Sam Fender. Their relationship with IDLES, meanwhile, reflects a deep mutual respect.
“From the concept of the block party to every support artist being chosen by them, they’re really heavily involved in everything,” Ealam explains. “It’s great when you have an artist that cares passionately about creating this really special event.”
That spirit of involvement touches every part of the show. Handpicked support acts include Soft Play, Lambrini Girls and Julian Casablancas’ experimental project The Voidz alongside rising Bristol icons, vocalist and producer Grove and four-piece purveyors of noise SCALER. Meanwhile, local food and drink vendors will be embedded throughout the site, while decisions around smaller touches such as the DJ platform beside the main stage and the poster design all stemmed from discussions with the band.
Pulling something like this together hasn’t been easy, of course. For all its central convenience, Queen Square is something of a logistical maze. Once blighted with a dual-carriageway cutting right through it, it is now a listed heritage site, pedestrian cut-through and a public park. There’s even a centuries-old statue of William III bang smack in the middle of it.
“I guess it’s quite a natural place to have your front of house desk in front of the statue,” Ealam muses. “It certainly looks really interesting as a site from that point of view.”
Unlike previous events held at the site – Massive Attack’s legendary 2003 homecoming and Arcadia’s impressive takeover of the space in 2015 – the Communion ONE team have made the decision to keep the entire event footprint within the square itself, framed by its tree line. What this means, in theory, is that the surrounding roads stay open with a view to minimising disruption in a notoriously busy part of the city.
“The stuff beyond the trees is not needed for the event, really,” O’Neill states. “We can do this and in a way that provides less disruption to the neighbors, the residents and the businesses, and keep our event site within the square of itself. That tree line starts on the square. One of the first things we realised was that we can do this in a less disruptive way than what might have been done before.”
For all the city’s musical prestige, Bristol still lacks a major arena, with artists the size of IDLES often relegated to larger venues outside of the city. The band’s recent Grammy nods, not to mention a run of global headline dates, would often dictate headline shows at major stadiums. Instead, they’re choosing to come home for their only UK shows of the year. With a capacity of 14,000 across two nights, it will be one of the largest standalone gigs by a Bristol band in the city in years.
“IDLES are one of the biggest rock bands in the world,” Ealam states. They get nominated for Grammys. They’re having number one records. There should be somewhere for them to go and be able to have that massive homecoming moment. We obviously noticed that and sort of pitched the idea based on being able to give them the homecoming that they deserve after another incredible album cycle.”
—
—
The shows shine a spotlight on Bristol’s green credentials too. Taking inspiration from Massive Attack’s Act 1.5 show at The Downs last August – billed as a large-scale climate action accelerator – the shows will also be powered by batteries charged by renewable energy, making it one of the most environmentally responsible gigs staged in the UK.
They also land at a time when the live industry continues to find itself in turbulent waters. Venues across the country are closing, promoters are increasingly being squeezed by rising costs and the combined aftershocks of COVID and Brexit continue to strain touring logistics.
“It’s definitely a weird time,” admits Ealam. “There’s pressure on ticket prices to go up because, obviously, things just cost more. We also lost a few people from the industry who sort of realised that they could make as much money doing other jobs. So I think there’s pressure for ticket prices to go up because things just cost more, partly because people have realised how important they were.”
Looking ahead, Communion ONE are already plotting next year’s Queen Square events. Their license covers a full weekend on the site annually for the next five years, signalling that Bristol may be on the cusp of a new regular entry in its festival canon.
“Bristol’s probably the place where we do our second or third amount of gigs,” Ealam adds. “Everything from Louisiana all the way up through, so it’s a really important city to us.”
—
—
IDLES headline the two-day Block Party in Queen Square, Bristol (August 1st – 2nd). Tickets are available now
Words: Paul Weedon
—
Join us on WeAre8, as we get under the skin of global cultural happenings. Follow Clash Magazine HERE as we skip merrily between clubs, concerts, interviews and
photo shoots. Get backstage sneak-peeks and a view into our world as the fun and games unfold.
With regular festival staples including the likes of Love Saves The Day, Dot to Dot, Simple Things and Bristol Sounds, as well as the more recent addition of FORWARDS Festival at Clifton Downs, Bristol has always worn its festival credentials proudly.
Next month sees another major player entering the mix with the long-awaited return of local heroes IDLES headlining the city’s historic Queen Square for two nights, which promise to be some of the most significant outdoor shows the city has seen in over two decades.
—
—
For organisers Daniel Ealam and Scott O’Neill, the pair behind Communion ONE, the promoters co-ordinating the whole affair, it’s more than just another date in Bristol’s festival calendar. It marks the culmination of a long-held ambition finally taking shape in the city.
“We’ve been trying to do Queen Square for so long,” Ealam notes. “The story of that Massive Attack show is still a big story 22 years later. It’s such a big deal and I think that there hasn’t really been anything in there of any sort of scale like this since. It’s always been the dream to do it. Scott, in particular, was hounding the council to try and get something off the ground there.”
“It’s been a long time,” O’Neill adds. “Dan and I have both been promoting shows in Bristol for 15 years at least – putting on a lot of shows at Thekla – and that square has been on our minds ever since we first did shows in Bristol.”
Having worked on Massive Attack’s triumphant two-night trial at the disused Filton Airfield in 2019, which acted as a pilot initiative for a long-mooted and much-needed arena space in the city, Queen Square became a major ambition for the duo.
“I think the Massive Attack gig really paved the way for showing the great organisation we put around that,” O’Neill continues. “Some people thought that was an impossible task to get that show to work in the middle of nowhere with no infrastructure and I think we did a great job there.”
Formed just over a year ago through a merger of production companies FKP Scorpio UK and Communion Presents, Communion ONE represents a new chapter for the team, although their ethos remains rooted in artist and fan-first values. Their roster is broad, including the likes of Wunderhorse, Noah Kahan, The War on Drugs, Ed Sheeran and Sam Fender. Their relationship with IDLES, meanwhile, reflects a deep mutual respect.
“From the concept of the block party to every support artist being chosen by them, they’re really heavily involved in everything,” Ealam explains. “It’s great when you have an artist that cares passionately about creating this really special event.”
That spirit of involvement touches every part of the show. Handpicked support acts include Soft Play, Lambrini Girls and Julian Casablancas’ experimental project The Voidz alongside rising Bristol icons, vocalist and producer Grove and four-piece purveyors of noise SCALER. Meanwhile, local food and drink vendors will be embedded throughout the site, while decisions around smaller touches such as the DJ platform beside the main stage and the poster design all stemmed from discussions with the band.
Pulling something like this together hasn’t been easy, of course. For all its central convenience, Queen Square is something of a logistical maze. Once blighted with a dual-carriageway cutting right through it, it is now a listed heritage site, pedestrian cut-through and a public park. There’s even a centuries-old statue of William III bang smack in the middle of it.
“I guess it’s quite a natural place to have your front of house desk in front of the statue,” Ealam muses. “It certainly looks really interesting as a site from that point of view.”
Unlike previous events held at the site – Massive Attack’s legendary 2003 homecoming and Arcadia’s impressive takeover of the space in 2015 – the Communion ONE team have made the decision to keep the entire event footprint within the square itself, framed by its tree line. What this means, in theory, is that the surrounding roads stay open with a view to minimising disruption in a notoriously busy part of the city.
“The stuff beyond the trees is not needed for the event, really,” O’Neill states. “We can do this and in a way that provides less disruption to the neighbors, the residents and the businesses, and keep our event site within the square of itself. That tree line starts on the square. One of the first things we realised was that we can do this in a less disruptive way than what might have been done before.”
For all the city’s musical prestige, Bristol still lacks a major arena, with artists the size of IDLES often relegated to larger venues outside of the city. The band’s recent Grammy nods, not to mention a run of global headline dates, would often dictate headline shows at major stadiums. Instead, they’re choosing to come home for their only UK shows of the year. With a capacity of 14,000 across two nights, it will be one of the largest standalone gigs by a Bristol band in the city in years.
“IDLES are one of the biggest rock bands in the world,” Ealam states. They get nominated for Grammys. They’re having number one records. There should be somewhere for them to go and be able to have that massive homecoming moment. We obviously noticed that and sort of pitched the idea based on being able to give them the homecoming that they deserve after another incredible album cycle.”
—
—
The shows shine a spotlight on Bristol’s green credentials too. Taking inspiration from Massive Attack’s Act 1.5 show at The Downs last August – billed as a large-scale climate action accelerator – the shows will also be powered by batteries charged by renewable energy, making it one of the most environmentally responsible gigs staged in the UK.
They also land at a time when the live industry continues to find itself in turbulent waters. Venues across the country are closing, promoters are increasingly being squeezed by rising costs and the combined aftershocks of COVID and Brexit continue to strain touring logistics.
“It’s definitely a weird time,” admits Ealam. “There’s pressure on ticket prices to go up because, obviously, things just cost more. We also lost a few people from the industry who sort of realised that they could make as much money doing other jobs. So I think there’s pressure for ticket prices to go up because things just cost more, partly because people have realised how important they were.”
Looking ahead, Communion ONE are already plotting next year’s Queen Square events. Their license covers a full weekend on the site annually for the next five years, signalling that Bristol may be on the cusp of a new regular entry in its festival canon.
“Bristol’s probably the place where we do our second or third amount of gigs,” Ealam adds. “Everything from Louisiana all the way up through, so it’s a really important city to us.”
—
—
IDLES headline the two-day Block Party in Queen Square, Bristol (August 1st – 2nd). Tickets are available now
Words: Paul Weedon
—
Join us on WeAre8, as we get under the skin of global cultural happenings. Follow Clash Magazine HERE as we skip merrily between clubs, concerts, interviews and
photo shoots. Get backstage sneak-peeks and a view into our world as the fun and games unfold.
With regular festival staples including the likes of Love Saves The Day, Dot to Dot, Simple Things and Bristol Sounds, as well as the more recent addition of FORWARDS Festival at Clifton Downs, Bristol has always worn its festival credentials proudly.
Next month sees another major player entering the mix with the long-awaited return of local heroes IDLES headlining the city’s historic Queen Square for two nights, which promise to be some of the most significant outdoor shows the city has seen in over two decades.
—
—
For organisers Daniel Ealam and Scott O’Neill, the pair behind Communion ONE, the promoters co-ordinating the whole affair, it’s more than just another date in Bristol’s festival calendar. It marks the culmination of a long-held ambition finally taking shape in the city.
“We’ve been trying to do Queen Square for so long,” Ealam notes. “The story of that Massive Attack show is still a big story 22 years later. It’s such a big deal and I think that there hasn’t really been anything in there of any sort of scale like this since. It’s always been the dream to do it. Scott, in particular, was hounding the council to try and get something off the ground there.”
“It’s been a long time,” O’Neill adds. “Dan and I have both been promoting shows in Bristol for 15 years at least – putting on a lot of shows at Thekla – and that square has been on our minds ever since we first did shows in Bristol.”
Having worked on Massive Attack’s triumphant two-night trial at the disused Filton Airfield in 2019, which acted as a pilot initiative for a long-mooted and much-needed arena space in the city, Queen Square became a major ambition for the duo.
“I think the Massive Attack gig really paved the way for showing the great organisation we put around that,” O’Neill continues. “Some people thought that was an impossible task to get that show to work in the middle of nowhere with no infrastructure and I think we did a great job there.”
Formed just over a year ago through a merger of production companies FKP Scorpio UK and Communion Presents, Communion ONE represents a new chapter for the team, although their ethos remains rooted in artist and fan-first values. Their roster is broad, including the likes of Wunderhorse, Noah Kahan, The War on Drugs, Ed Sheeran and Sam Fender. Their relationship with IDLES, meanwhile, reflects a deep mutual respect.
“From the concept of the block party to every support artist being chosen by them, they’re really heavily involved in everything,” Ealam explains. “It’s great when you have an artist that cares passionately about creating this really special event.”
That spirit of involvement touches every part of the show. Handpicked support acts include Soft Play, Lambrini Girls and Julian Casablancas’ experimental project The Voidz alongside rising Bristol icons, vocalist and producer Grove and four-piece purveyors of noise SCALER. Meanwhile, local food and drink vendors will be embedded throughout the site, while decisions around smaller touches such as the DJ platform beside the main stage and the poster design all stemmed from discussions with the band.
Pulling something like this together hasn’t been easy, of course. For all its central convenience, Queen Square is something of a logistical maze. Once blighted with a dual-carriageway cutting right through it, it is now a listed heritage site, pedestrian cut-through and a public park. There’s even a centuries-old statue of William III bang smack in the middle of it.
“I guess it’s quite a natural place to have your front of house desk in front of the statue,” Ealam muses. “It certainly looks really interesting as a site from that point of view.”
Unlike previous events held at the site – Massive Attack’s legendary 2003 homecoming and Arcadia’s impressive takeover of the space in 2015 – the Communion ONE team have made the decision to keep the entire event footprint within the square itself, framed by its tree line. What this means, in theory, is that the surrounding roads stay open with a view to minimising disruption in a notoriously busy part of the city.
“The stuff beyond the trees is not needed for the event, really,” O’Neill states. “We can do this and in a way that provides less disruption to the neighbors, the residents and the businesses, and keep our event site within the square of itself. That tree line starts on the square. One of the first things we realised was that we can do this in a less disruptive way than what might have been done before.”
For all the city’s musical prestige, Bristol still lacks a major arena, with artists the size of IDLES often relegated to larger venues outside of the city. The band’s recent Grammy nods, not to mention a run of global headline dates, would often dictate headline shows at major stadiums. Instead, they’re choosing to come home for their only UK shows of the year. With a capacity of 14,000 across two nights, it will be one of the largest standalone gigs by a Bristol band in the city in years.
“IDLES are one of the biggest rock bands in the world,” Ealam states. They get nominated for Grammys. They’re having number one records. There should be somewhere for them to go and be able to have that massive homecoming moment. We obviously noticed that and sort of pitched the idea based on being able to give them the homecoming that they deserve after another incredible album cycle.”
—
—
The shows shine a spotlight on Bristol’s green credentials too. Taking inspiration from Massive Attack’s Act 1.5 show at The Downs last August – billed as a large-scale climate action accelerator – the shows will also be powered by batteries charged by renewable energy, making it one of the most environmentally responsible gigs staged in the UK.
They also land at a time when the live industry continues to find itself in turbulent waters. Venues across the country are closing, promoters are increasingly being squeezed by rising costs and the combined aftershocks of COVID and Brexit continue to strain touring logistics.
“It’s definitely a weird time,” admits Ealam. “There’s pressure on ticket prices to go up because, obviously, things just cost more. We also lost a few people from the industry who sort of realised that they could make as much money doing other jobs. So I think there’s pressure for ticket prices to go up because things just cost more, partly because people have realised how important they were.”
Looking ahead, Communion ONE are already plotting next year’s Queen Square events. Their license covers a full weekend on the site annually for the next five years, signalling that Bristol may be on the cusp of a new regular entry in its festival canon.
“Bristol’s probably the place where we do our second or third amount of gigs,” Ealam adds. “Everything from Louisiana all the way up through, so it’s a really important city to us.”
—
—
IDLES headline the two-day Block Party in Queen Square, Bristol (August 1st – 2nd). Tickets are available now
Words: Paul Weedon
—
Join us on WeAre8, as we get under the skin of global cultural happenings. Follow Clash Magazine HERE as we skip merrily between clubs, concerts, interviews and
photo shoots. Get backstage sneak-peeks and a view into our world as the fun and games unfold.
With regular festival staples including the likes of Love Saves The Day, Dot to Dot, Simple Things and Bristol Sounds, as well as the more recent addition of FORWARDS Festival at Clifton Downs, Bristol has always worn its festival credentials proudly.
Next month sees another major player entering the mix with the long-awaited return of local heroes IDLES headlining the city’s historic Queen Square for two nights, which promise to be some of the most significant outdoor shows the city has seen in over two decades.
—
—
For organisers Daniel Ealam and Scott O’Neill, the pair behind Communion ONE, the promoters co-ordinating the whole affair, it’s more than just another date in Bristol’s festival calendar. It marks the culmination of a long-held ambition finally taking shape in the city.
“We’ve been trying to do Queen Square for so long,” Ealam notes. “The story of that Massive Attack show is still a big story 22 years later. It’s such a big deal and I think that there hasn’t really been anything in there of any sort of scale like this since. It’s always been the dream to do it. Scott, in particular, was hounding the council to try and get something off the ground there.”
“It’s been a long time,” O’Neill adds. “Dan and I have both been promoting shows in Bristol for 15 years at least – putting on a lot of shows at Thekla – and that square has been on our minds ever since we first did shows in Bristol.”
Having worked on Massive Attack’s triumphant two-night trial at the disused Filton Airfield in 2019, which acted as a pilot initiative for a long-mooted and much-needed arena space in the city, Queen Square became a major ambition for the duo.
“I think the Massive Attack gig really paved the way for showing the great organisation we put around that,” O’Neill continues. “Some people thought that was an impossible task to get that show to work in the middle of nowhere with no infrastructure and I think we did a great job there.”
Formed just over a year ago through a merger of production companies FKP Scorpio UK and Communion Presents, Communion ONE represents a new chapter for the team, although their ethos remains rooted in artist and fan-first values. Their roster is broad, including the likes of Wunderhorse, Noah Kahan, The War on Drugs, Ed Sheeran and Sam Fender. Their relationship with IDLES, meanwhile, reflects a deep mutual respect.
“From the concept of the block party to every support artist being chosen by them, they’re really heavily involved in everything,” Ealam explains. “It’s great when you have an artist that cares passionately about creating this really special event.”
That spirit of involvement touches every part of the show. Handpicked support acts include Soft Play, Lambrini Girls and Julian Casablancas’ experimental project The Voidz alongside rising Bristol icons, vocalist and producer Grove and four-piece purveyors of noise SCALER. Meanwhile, local food and drink vendors will be embedded throughout the site, while decisions around smaller touches such as the DJ platform beside the main stage and the poster design all stemmed from discussions with the band.
Pulling something like this together hasn’t been easy, of course. For all its central convenience, Queen Square is something of a logistical maze. Once blighted with a dual-carriageway cutting right through it, it is now a listed heritage site, pedestrian cut-through and a public park. There’s even a centuries-old statue of William III bang smack in the middle of it.
“I guess it’s quite a natural place to have your front of house desk in front of the statue,” Ealam muses. “It certainly looks really interesting as a site from that point of view.”
Unlike previous events held at the site – Massive Attack’s legendary 2003 homecoming and Arcadia’s impressive takeover of the space in 2015 – the Communion ONE team have made the decision to keep the entire event footprint within the square itself, framed by its tree line. What this means, in theory, is that the surrounding roads stay open with a view to minimising disruption in a notoriously busy part of the city.
“The stuff beyond the trees is not needed for the event, really,” O’Neill states. “We can do this and in a way that provides less disruption to the neighbors, the residents and the businesses, and keep our event site within the square of itself. That tree line starts on the square. One of the first things we realised was that we can do this in a less disruptive way than what might have been done before.”
For all the city’s musical prestige, Bristol still lacks a major arena, with artists the size of IDLES often relegated to larger venues outside of the city. The band’s recent Grammy nods, not to mention a run of global headline dates, would often dictate headline shows at major stadiums. Instead, they’re choosing to come home for their only UK shows of the year. With a capacity of 14,000 across two nights, it will be one of the largest standalone gigs by a Bristol band in the city in years.
“IDLES are one of the biggest rock bands in the world,” Ealam states. They get nominated for Grammys. They’re having number one records. There should be somewhere for them to go and be able to have that massive homecoming moment. We obviously noticed that and sort of pitched the idea based on being able to give them the homecoming that they deserve after another incredible album cycle.”
—
—
The shows shine a spotlight on Bristol’s green credentials too. Taking inspiration from Massive Attack’s Act 1.5 show at The Downs last August – billed as a large-scale climate action accelerator – the shows will also be powered by batteries charged by renewable energy, making it one of the most environmentally responsible gigs staged in the UK.
They also land at a time when the live industry continues to find itself in turbulent waters. Venues across the country are closing, promoters are increasingly being squeezed by rising costs and the combined aftershocks of COVID and Brexit continue to strain touring logistics.
“It’s definitely a weird time,” admits Ealam. “There’s pressure on ticket prices to go up because, obviously, things just cost more. We also lost a few people from the industry who sort of realised that they could make as much money doing other jobs. So I think there’s pressure for ticket prices to go up because things just cost more, partly because people have realised how important they were.”
Looking ahead, Communion ONE are already plotting next year’s Queen Square events. Their license covers a full weekend on the site annually for the next five years, signalling that Bristol may be on the cusp of a new regular entry in its festival canon.
“Bristol’s probably the place where we do our second or third amount of gigs,” Ealam adds. “Everything from Louisiana all the way up through, so it’s a really important city to us.”
—
—
IDLES headline the two-day Block Party in Queen Square, Bristol (August 1st – 2nd). Tickets are available now
Words: Paul Weedon
—
Join us on WeAre8, as we get under the skin of global cultural happenings. Follow Clash Magazine HERE as we skip merrily between clubs, concerts, interviews and
photo shoots. Get backstage sneak-peeks and a view into our world as the fun and games unfold.
