All Points East 2025: Chase and Status, Dimension and Nia Archives
It’s that time of year again… no, it’s not quite Christmas, though the unpredictability of the British summer is as such, it can feel like it’s over before it’s barely begun. But no, we still have a few weeks left to cling on to before it’s “back to school”, which means it’s time for all of London’s partygoers to descend on Victoria Park for All Points East. While the festival still holds a prominent place in the capital’s summer calendar, it now has some strong competition, with great line-ups also popping up across the city in the likes of Gunnersbury Park and South Facing in Crystal Palace. But it still probably clinches it for its carefully curated artist selection that impressively cut across genres while melding together veteran and emerging artists on the same roster. There was a slightly wobbly start when things kicked off on Friday with Sault, Cleo Sol and Chronixx, the avant-garde nature of the performances not quite landing with all critics, yet anticipation remained high for the first of the festival’s Saturdays, with drum and bass juggernauts Chase and Status poised to take the sixth APE by storm.
Arriving mid-afternoon to catch some of the warm-up acts, the sun wasn’t quite blazing, but neither were the heavens open as they had been earlier in the season for Jamie XX’s takeover of the East London park, so a buzz was palpable in the air, the lack of umbrellas and macs already feeling a blessing for a whole day out in the elements. One can usually have a stab at the genre and era of the headliner playing by the demographic of the arrivals flowing through the gates, but considering the electronic duo’s rise to prominence dating back to the early 2000s, there was a far more eclectic age range in attendance, the younger generation having clearly discovered their own love for d’n’b along with many other now-retro millennial mainstays. Certainly, this writer felt old when baffled by some of the dominating fashion trends that had totally passed her by (cut-off shorts and cowboy boots, Jessica Simpson circa 2009 style, anyone?).
To get us in the mood for what was to come, there was a solid line-up of the genre’s foremost artists, handpicked by Chase and Status as part of their RTRN II Dance takeover. Early doors, there was a chance to catch jungle aficionado Nia Archives filling up the Cupra North Arena (or the sweaty blue top tent, as seems easier to identify it by), providing a welcome escape into the darkness that more aptly matches a throbbing bassline – though the place was so packed out, it was harder to make the most of her set than back in June when she’d played the same venue. Then it was a barnstormer of back-to-back artists on the main East Stage, giving little room to roam as widely as on other APE days, with Joy Orbison and Sammy Virji having to be passed over so as not to miss the action.
If the crowd were hoping to keep a bit of a lid on things until dusk, Robert Etheridge aka Dimension had other ideas, already delivering some mega bassy tracks impossible to not dance to, with the likes of DJ Turn It Up, Ready to Fly and the euphoric Desire from his 2021 chart-topping album Organ creating a dust storm of the dried out grounds under frenzied feet.
Next up were Welsh brothers Overmono, channelling raving vibes across the early evening via their brand of techno meets garage, overlaid with sprinklings of hypnotic vocals, on Is U, Stayinnit and So U Kno. They even brought out rapper Kwengface for a live rendition of Freedom 2 before ending on the title track of their 2023 album, Good Lies, the hooky words of Norwegian act Smerz seeing them off stage.
Then it was the hour for what all had been limbering up for – and they did not disappoint. With the stage well and truly simmering, and the entire park chomping at the bit to crank the party up a notch, London-hailing Saul Milton and Will Kennard lit up their hometown with their signature, genre-defining sound. The tone was well and truly set with Stefflon Don featuring Selecta, and from there, not a pair of feet stood still. Moving through their back catalogue, there wasn’t a duff moment, but undeniable highlights were the filthy basslined Baddadan, IRAH, Flowdan and Trigga there to drive the gargantuan track home, last year’s earth-tremoring Stormzy collab Backbone, plus Disconnect, with Becky Hill’s unmatched vocals taking everyone up to a communal ecstasy, the line “Disconnect / From everything that’s on your mind” playing out like a summoning to lose oneself in the music and the moment.
Retro numbers, such as 2008’s dubstep classic Eastern Jam and 2011’s Blind Faith, brought that sweet nostalgia many might have been craving, transporting one back to their youth, yet the strength of the more recent material made clear this was not only a call back to the past but that the duo have truly stayed the distance, reworking their classic d’n’b sound into fresh and contemporary shapes that continue to define the dance music scene via artists of the moment from across pop, hip hop, traversing both mainstream and darker leanings.
A special treat was Tom Grennan appearing to perform 2017’s All Goes Wrong live, a track that introduced his now-renowned soaring voice to the world. And if the night hadn’t already peaked, a blast of fireworks really blew the lid off. Anyone who says the rave scene is dying off, as a new party-averse generation rises, only needed to be in the vicinity of Victoria Park Saturday night to have tangible, ground-rumbling proof it’s alive and well – and got people skanking out within an inch of their lives to the very last beat.
Sarah Bradbury
Photos: Tae Fukushima
For further information and future events, visit Chase and Status’ website here.
Watch the video for Baddadan here:
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