Scheduled at an earlier than deserved slot, Cork DJ Toby Kaar played to the Castlepalooza crowd as they slowly emerged from the campsites, having set up their tents and set themselves into festival mode. Fresh off the success of his debut EP Gumbrielle, he played a high-energy set that would have suited a late-night audience rather than a 9pm crowd. With tracks like Snapdragon bringing it to 90, Kaar is a great first act to set the tone for the weekend. Luckily for everyone, he will be playing the Dingle Gin Courtyard again at 2am Saturday night so if you need to dance recklessly, Toby is your man.
Before hitting up the main stage under his significantly more well-renowned moniker Caribou, Daniel Snaith roused the dormant energy of everyone at the Centre stage tent. Still bright out but unavoidably dreary, the space is transformed by the massive disco that Daphni delivers. Bright piano refrains lead the bopping and revitalises the hooley spirit, making the set feel like the soundtrack to a particularly good episode of Charlie’s Angels. The crowd go for it more than is expected of a pre-9pm gig, and the sound gradually transforms into heavier house jams. There’s a kind of melodic interlude that takes the form of a Hawaiian holiday, but he maintains the aura of a very savage house party. Full-force grooving finishes the slot and paves the way neatly for his later appearance on the main stage.
Minor Victories are one of those exciting groups that come around so rarely that if catch them live, it's a really special affair. This ambient supergroup consisting of Slowdive's Rachel Goswell, Editors' Justin Lockey and Mogwai's Stuart Braithwaite, make music as dreamy and haunting as you'd expect. With the rain drizzling down, Breaking My Light brought a glorious mix of excitement and impending doom; a combination that each of the artists brings from their own musical backgrounds and magnifies in the shape of Minor Victories. Friday night's line-up was fairly dance heavy so this trio soothed everyone into a mesmerised state.
Polica are cold and ethereal between livelier sets on the centre stage, but it makes for a welcome intermission to heavy energy expending. The acoustics from the tent don’t suit their sound unfortunately, with some fuzzy amplification somewhat dulling Channy Leaneagh’s vocals. Still, the set up of two drummers, a bass and a synth creates one of the more musically interesting gigs so far. The many-layered melodies get a heaving response from the crowd who show their appreciation by flinging LED-lit balloons around the place in a festival edition of “keepy uppy”. The momentum builds well and they command attention easily, ultimately cresting a spooky undertone. “Anyone seen any ghosts tonight?” Channy asks, and a few people in the crowd confirm that they’ve spotted a few, safe in the knowledge that Charleville castle is definitely very haunted. They end strong and suddenly, somehow overcoming the sound quality limitations to bring a bit of rapture into the space.
There are no more than 17 people at Romare and they may as well have struck oil. It is unquestionably the strongest show the centre stage tent has hosted, despite simultaneous headliner Caribou stealing away almost every single palooza attendee. Romare visibly does not care, he throws a banging session for the dozen people there; it's fit for a full house but comes across with the intimacy of a basement rave. Romare weaves between serene and ferocious, relapsing into echoed refrains and making everyone wait for the momentum swings. A monochrome screen backdrop is the only accompaniment, which matches the fairy lights that an audience member is wearing. The tent vaguely resembles a pixie disco, absorbed and immersed in sound. Dealing out subdued anthems causes the crowd to grow incrementally more numerous and mesmerised, leading up to a savage finish. Romare essentially steals Friday from anyone else.
Caribou's Dan Snaith had a fairly packed Friday nights with one set as Daphni earlier in the evening and then headlining the main stage later in the night but he took it all in his stride as he was seen casually wandering around the crowd during the evening, posing for photos and having the chats with whoever recognised him. Caribou is a firm favourite for most Irish festival fans and the set did not disappoint. With massive tunes like Can't Do Without You, Odessa, Our Love and All I Ever Need, his set was a consistent string of hits with each one whipping the crowd further into a frenzy. A couple of people have said that it's one of the best sets they've ever seen from the man, with one man proclaiming that it's the best set that he's seen since 2003. A bold claim but he's not far off the mark.
