LIVE REVIEWS
In partnership with Open’er Festival
Words: Jordan Bassett and Kyann-Sian Williams
As we’ve discussed this week, you never know quite what to expect at Open’er Festival, the four-day extravaganza in Gdynia, Poland, which this year sees epics sets from Muse, Linkin Park, Little Simz, Doechi and loads more. When you’re not enjoying one of the admirably odd attractions such as the Guess Jeans dance hall where you can have a boogie and watch a video of some trousers rolling around the washing machine, there’s plenty further down the line-up to make your eyes pop.
Take Dom Qultury, a smaller tent tucked away in the corner of this enormous airfield, which on Thursday (July 3) hosted the Gender Blender, a series of drag and cabaret acts that included a guy in a pink suit who did an extremely wholesome acrobatic striptease on a bistro table to Jason Mraz’s ‘If It Kills Me’. Here’s what else we saw on day two.
Hard to believe, but somehow true. In what was admittedly a very different performance, Trent Reznor and his merry band of techno-punks took to the main stage at 10pm for a truly electrifying set. The band was packed tight together, hemmed in by rows of gigantic, white-hot lightbulbs at the front and sides of the stage; it was sort of like Kanye West’s 2015 performance at Glastonbury, but without a slightly awkward rap on top of a crane.
It was less divisive, too. The sound of that buzzing, grinding guitar seemed to jolt the huge audience, who bounced and jostled as one seething mass, only extracting themselves from one another to form a huge circle pit to the pulverising likes of ‘Copy Of A’. Punters spilled way back past the viewing platform towards the middle of the field, marking this as one of the most enthusiastically attended shows of the festival so far.
Reznor seemed to appreciate the explosive atmosphere at the Gdynia-Kosakowo Airfield. Clad in industrial-looking black jeans, boots and jacket, he swung on his mic stand as the pit scythed before him and threw his hands up like a preacher when the band pumped out the liquid funk of horndog anthem ‘Closer’. At one point, backed by the galloping beat of ‘God Break Down The Door’, he parped away on squalling sax. At another, before a cover of David Bowie’s stuttering ‘I’m Afraid Of Americans’, he intoned, “This is a song we got to work on with our hero,” adding that its sentiment “seems to get more true” with every day that passes.
The only crowd member who didn’t seem to be completely transported by the whole affair was one guy towards the left of the stage, who stood there calmly juggling balls while the carnage erupted around him. You see it all at Open’er. (JB)
The saying goes that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome. So, having seen Future repeatedly at various festivals, you’re prepared to be underwhelmed: something about a trap pioneer – a musical needlemover, if you will – pacing the stage, performing half his lyrics like we’re in a karaoke bar, gets old. Plus, Future was nearly an hour late at Open’er and killed all anticipation – especially when every other set here has been so prompt. But, rocking his new bleach blond ‘fro and simple (yet probably expensive) tee and shorts, he swiftly apologised by being a chaos merchant, flipping the crowd’s disappointment into pure wildness with his classic trap war-cries.
The mosh pit is his kingdom – a sweaty, chaotic space where controlled chaos reigns suprem and only he knows how to command it. “Open it up!” quickly became one of Future’s go-to lines and with just these few words, the masses moved as crates were carved in the heart of the crowd, creating a sandy haze as powdery mud and sweat rose throughout the air amid the jumping. On a cold coastal night, you left the pit drenched – preferably in your own sweat, but maybe someone else’s too. “I knew Poland was gonna turn up with me tonight,” Future praised, dripping with raw reverence as though we’d be tired at one-something in the morning: we’ll rage at any time.
This Polish rap audience has truly embraced the art of moshing. Here, taking cues from rock’s originators, kids pushed open a huge circle and let it be: limbs swinging to the 808s, shadowboxing their inhibitions – but they also banished the mindless and robotic collisions of a normal rap mosh pit. You felt safe in arguably the most dangerous place in the crowd. With pyro flaring behind him, Future’s set didn’t just bring the heat – it was a visceral reminder of how a live rap show should feel: wild, unruly and utterly alive. (KSW)
The crowd chanted, “Tyla, we wanna party!” – and party we did at the South African pop princess’ Polish debut. Bringing amapiano straight from Johannesburg to Gdynia, she owned the Open’er main stage with dancers in tow replicating the same moves that set dancefloors ablaze back home. Tyla slunk across the stage, swishing her hair and hips with effortless cool, before breaking into the Bacardi dance she made viral. She was clearly on a mission to provide energy under the Polish sun, and Tyla did just that.
It felt like the crowd was transported to 3025 during J Balvin’s set. Inflatable cars floated above the stage while supercomputer-like graphics scrawled across the screens behind him, the Colombian reggaeton legend rocking a pair of glasses only Marty McFly could also pull off. The otherworldly visuals perfectly matched the out-of-this-world energy pulsing through the crowd. Self-proclaimed salsa specialists swung their friends around, tangoing under the stars to the fiery Latin pop pouring out from the Tent stage. Though many didn’t speak Spanish, Balvin indicated “we’re all Latino” in spirit, uniting the masses while delivering his fiery rhythms that lit up the night. (KSW)
At 1am, as Future put on his grand, dramatic and at times somewhat gothic performance on the main stage, Caribou’s Dan Snaith padded onstage before a packed audience in the Alter tent, dressed down in a white t-shirt, cream trousers and a pair of blue socks. You felt like you were in the dance whizz’s living room as he and his four-piece band jammed through ‘Volume’, his louche, discofied take on electro pioneers M|A|R|R|S’ influential 1987 hit ‘Pump Up The Volume’. Ever-zen, Snaith didn’t even bat an eye when a drone sauntered through the air, whizzed around the stage and headed back into the audience. (JB)
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It’s unusual for Sault, the elusive group headed by Little Simz’s past collaborator InFlo, to take the stage. So when All Points East revealed that they would be leading the opening day of this year’s festival (August 15), the excitement spread immediately. Even though they hinted at a global tour in 2023, their only live appearances to date were at London’s Drumsheds, where they delivered a sold-out extravaganza. This night, then, promised an experience no one wanted to miss.
The line-up throughout the day was stacked with strong names like Kirk Franklin, Sasha Keable, Nao, Ms Dynamite, and others. Sadly, every one of these sets was squeezed into a messy three-hour stretch, creating painful overlaps all across the park. After 6 pm, only Main Stage East stayed active, leaving festival-goers with a single option: to watch the headline run of Sault, Cleo Sol, and Chronixx. The latter two, both tied to the mysterious group, each had their slots as well as time performing with the collective.
Nothing quite sets us up for Sault’s epic five-hour showing, which proves both overwhelming and tangled. Dancers and a choir appeared cloaked in burnt ochre robes, resembling travelers from a fictional desert world, surrounded by sand, dunes, and golden-lined rocks. The production had serious funding – a full orchestra with piano, strings, harp, and guitars filled the soundscape, and in the middle of the crowd sat a dusty pyramid that most people ignored. Whispers carried through the audience about the spectacle’s grandeur, with one nearby voice remarking, “Doesn’t InFlo still owe Little Simz £1million?”
The pyramid stage design during Sault’s All Points East 2025 set. Photo credit: Jennifer McCord
Whatever meaning this grand production was meant to communicate was hard to grasp. The leading figures, who looked like InFlo and Sol, seemed to be chasing something, yet it was never clear exactly what. Perhaps it was freedom, since the lead vocalist echoed the refrain of ‘Free’, with additional nods to self-discovery and healing, but the storyline stayed muddy and difficult to follow.
Energy picked up once Sol and Chronixx emerged early in the performance, both in beige suits and reflective shades, slipping into the first act. Alongside the cloaked ensemble, they played through a range of Sault songs that stretched across all twelve albums. Fans were treated to hidden treasures like the mesmerizing ‘S.O.T.H.’ and emotional ‘Pray For Me’, alongside more recognizable tracks such as ‘I Just Want to Dance’ and ‘Why Why Why Why Why’. For many in the crowd, though, the event played more like a quirky encounter than the immersive artistic showcase Sault seemed to be aiming for.
It took nearly two hours for the night to loosen up, and that turning point came courtesy of Chronixx. His uplifting reggae and radiant spirit shifted the whole space, people skanked along to ‘Smile’ and swayed to ‘Likes’, and suddenly the atmosphere felt celebratory again. Once he exited, Yasiin Bey (fka Mos Def) appeared out of nowhere in a strange yet brilliant surprise. Over chirping bird sounds and glitchy electronic noise, he reshaped ‘Umi Says’, spinning across the stage in a checkered drape, embodying the song’s spirit of liberation with almost comic exaggeration.
Chronixx performing at All Points East on Friday, August 15. Photo credit: The pyramid stage design during Sault’s All Points East 2025 set. Photo credit: Jennifer McCord
After four relentless hours of spectacle, Cleo Sol finally claimed the spotlight for her whole performance. The shift was instant, her gentle voice floated across Victoria Park, drawing hips to sway and couples to curl into each other, the entire air easing at once. She shone in glittering silver cocktail wear, moving gracefully with the poise of someone fully aware of how badly we needed this release. ‘Rose In The Dark’ carried an almost ironic weight as she sang “Hold on a little longer / It’ll be alright”, mirroring exactly what the crowd had been doing throughout the marathon. Closing with ‘Know That You Are Loved’, she stood atop the glowing pyramid while voices from the crowd echoed every lyric back to her, delivering the emotional peak of the evening.
She tried to squeeze in ‘Why Don’t You’ as an encore, but curfew struck, the lights snapped on, and the moment ended abruptly. The intention was clear, to unveil the breadth of Sault’s world through an unconventional showcase, yet the finale, like the beginning, left more questions than answers. For a group as rare on stage as Sault, a little less mystery and a little more music might have made their All Points East appearance truly measure up to the highs of Drumsheds.
Sault played:
‘Glory’
‘Free’
‘Let Me Go’
‘Over’
‘I Just Wanna Dance’
‘Warrior’
‘Faith’
‘Up All Night’
‘Son Shine’
‘Masterpiece’
‘Why Why Why Why Why’
‘Stop Dem’
‘Black Is’
‘Pray For Me’
‘S.O.T.H.’
‘T.H.’
‘W.A.I.’
‘Wildfires’
‘This Generation’
Chronixx played:
‘Big Bad Sound’
‘Here Comes Trouble’
‘Exile’
‘Survivor’
‘Market’
‘Captureland’
‘They Don’t Know’
‘Don’t Be Afraid’
‘Family First’
‘Spanish Town Rockin”
‘Skankin Sweet’
‘Majesty’
‘Sweet Argument’
‘Way You Make Me Feel’
‘Resilient’
‘Eternal Light’
‘Tenement Yard’
‘Saviour’
‘Love Is On A Mountain’
‘Smile Jamaica’
Cleo Sol played:
‘Love Yourself’
‘Rose In The Dark’
‘When I’m In Your Arms’
‘There Will Be No Crying’
‘Things Will Get Better’
‘Reason’
‘Don’t Let Me Fall + Outro’
‘Promises’
‘Sunshine’
‘Don’t Let It Go To Your Head’
‘Blue’ (Unreleased)
‘Know That You Are Loved’
‘Why Don’t You’
