2000trees 2026 review
- Char
- Jul 19
- 8 min read
Four days, a very sunburnt community and countless hidden gems. Welcome back to 2000trees
After another year of amazing live music, 2000Trees refused to let anything dampen the weekend, including temperatures hitting a scorching 36 degrees. If anything, it reinforced why this festival has become the gold standard for alternative music in the UK.
The summertime vibe:
Whether you're watching a future arena headliner tearing apart The Cave, catching a secret set in the Forest or squeezing into the Axiom Stage with a cold pint in hand, everybody wants everybody else to have the best weekend possible.
From sharing suncream to spraying others down with water pistols or weed sprayers (yes, that was a thing this year!), people were looking out for each other to make sure it was the best long weekend for everyone.
That community spirit has been 2000tree's biggest selling point since the festival started, but this year it felt even stronger; maybe it was the relentless heat or the stacked line-up, but whatever the reason, the atmosphere was electric from the first band on Wednesday afternoon to the final act of Saturday night.
The beauty of Trees has never been simply booking huge bands but prides itself on spotting tomorrow's festival headliners before others catch on. This was a sentiment heard in the crowds throughout the entire festival: "I'd not heard of them before, but they were AMAZING"
The Forest Stage once again proved why it's become one of the most iconic settings in British festivals, while The Cave remained gloriously chaotic, sweaty and loud enough to be heard whilst ordering your lunch from the food vendors.
A festival for everyone
There aren't many festivals that we can truly say are for everyone, but 2000trees is an exception. Family camping and child entertainment is available throughout the day, from play areas to dedicated entertainers on the tent stages; there's plenty for little ones to do. If they are feeling brave enough, the crowd also encourage kids to crowd surf, making sure they are passed to the front safely.
There are tons of food options, so even the fussiest of eaters have plenty to choose from. The bars offer a decent range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, with other vendors also supplying soft drinks alongside the free water points dotted around the site.
Accessibility at 2000trees '26:
Overall, 2000trees does a great job for access customers once you are on site; however, getting to the site can be a challenge. The car park is situated up a very steep hill, followed by a walk up another fairly steep hill to the campsite. We know this is not the festival's fault, but something to keep in mind if you have mobility issues. Make sure you have someone with you to help carry belongings and take it slow!
The access campsite is the first one you come to and is situated in a great spot to enter the arena.
The queue to pick up access wristbands became an issue; although separate from the main line, it still led to long waits. Three staff checking people into access around one computer per customer whilst two others were only handling VIP did leave people standing in the heat for longer than I would expect.
If you only need facilities access, you will have access to the showers, toilets and designated bar queues. These were kept as clean as possible, and other people respected these, even when there were long lines for the regular toilets, which meant we never saw a queue for disabled toilets.
The medical tent had pretty much anything you could need, even if it was a break in front of a fan or suncream.
The viewing platforms were in good locations and of good size, never seeming to be at full capacity.
The only let-down was the availability of access camping and car park spaces in comparison to the number of access tickets. We understand that not everyone will need these, but there should be more available for people who haven't booked their ticket on release day.
WHO WE LOVED – DAILY BREAKDOWN OF OUR HIGHLIGHTS
Wednesday
BLACKGOLD - Forest stage
For a very different environment, playing in a log cabin amongst the trees, BLACKGOLD's juxtaposed sound went down well with the crowd, including some old-school hip hop, which gave summer vibes. As usual for BLACKGOLD, the rap bars were flawless, along with sung vocals.
Lake Malice - Word stage
Eccentric techno-cross-rock instantly got the crowd on their feet, with Alice’s vocals producing beautiful harmonies alongside harsh screams. Lake Malice are a band that are comfortable in their skin and their unique sound. They are happy to get political on stage, discussing the label they’ve been given as left-wing, with one song in particular: “put your middle finger up!”.
Alice got a large mosh pit going during the set, with crowds spilling outside the tent; it’s obvious they are built for bigger stages.
PUP - Forest stage
Bringing full-on punk energy, including a speech reminding people how fucked up the world is, including politicians. Reminding the fans to look after themselves and people around them before crashing into another fan favourite as the crowd surfers became continuous across the barricade. The forest was full of fans chanting the lyrics back to the band, proving just why PUP have stayed a staple on the alternative scene.
Thursday
Goo - Marshall stage
York-based alt-rock band Goo brought the upbeat electronic energy to the Marshall tent; you could see them turning people who hadn’t seen them before into new fans as the full crowd danced and cheered along. With unstoppable riffs and relentless stage presence, Goo were one of the acts many people were left talking about.
Saint Agnes - Main stage
There’s no doubt that St Dane’s deserve a slot on the main stage. Singer Kitty has incredible crowd control, starting the set with a wall of death for the first song. The band are electric on stage, each member putting their all into the performance. They were one of the festival's hit acts, and they did not leave the crowd disappointed with their flawless performance. We can definitely see bigger things to come for them very soon
Mariachi Bronx - Main stage
“We are making history being the first band to play as a mariachi band before playing as a punk band later on”
In the blistering heat, Mariachi Bronx brought a large chunk of the festival's crowd to the open field, the heat fitting the mariachi mood. Just as people were starting to have an afternoon, they brought a cheery, upbeat vibe change with crystal clear instrumentals and harmonising vocals.
Lemonsucker - Marshal stage
Oldschool punk performance energy, with the guitarist jumping into the crowd for the first track followed by the singer for the second. Their songs included catchy hooks and hard riffs, which brought the crowd's energy up high. They are one of the top picks for the day.
Native James - Forest stage
Brought one of the biggest Forest crowds of the weekend with heavier nu-metal sounds; he had the crowd in the palm of his hand, ordering pits at the front and constant headbanging. Native James brings a slightly unique sound to the burst in nu-metal, including harsher screams and stronger drums
Not being afraid to hold back on his political views, “Free Palestine”
Fuck forage! Chant started by him followed by “he’s a pussyhole” met by laughs from the crowd “we is a pussyhole though ain’t he!”
After this, he summons a wall of death, which was instantly gtranyed.
Delilaha bon - The Cave
Delilah is a case of don't judge a book by its cover; her girly look comes with heavily feminist charged lyrics. Her set was emotionally charged with political lyrics screamed back by the crowd. In a time where more artists are using their voice to stand up for injustice, it's amazing to see a female artist rise in the ranks.
"Fuck Jeffrey Epstein and fuck the paedophile president Trump!"
Friday
Grandmas House - Axiom stage
The full female band from Bristol blended indie melodies with post-punk instrumentals for a standout set. Singer Yasmin has a very unique raspy singing style that adds to their grungy and individual sound. Acknowledging that many of the fans were sitting in the tent, they did not take this personally after stating they wish they could sit also, and despite many people lacking energy, the crowd still received them well
This is the point heatstroke hit! As the temperature in the tent was almost as hot as outside, we ventured to a hotel for a cold shower, nap and a big meal to recover. After this, cameras were left behind for the rest of the day but we made it back to the sight for a few more acts and carried on enjoying the festival.
The Wildhearts - The cave
Taking things back for some old-style rock and roll, The Wildhearts pulled out some classic guitar solos and headbanging rhythms. Crowds were squirting water to keep other fans cool, and multiple children on parents' shoulders had their fists in the air showing that the next generation is still ready to carry rock and roll into the future. The set was emotionally charged with Ginger Wildheart giving a heartfelt speech to the crowd at the end of their set.
Tropic Gold - Marshal stage
Bringing a mix of melodic vocals and well-held screams, singer Jacob knew how to keep the crowd engaged whilst bringing a new take on a classic alt rock emo sound. The tent was overflowing by the time they came to the stage, with the crowd erupting to the party atmosphere they created
Arcane Roots - Axiom stage
Roots’s return unsurprisingly brought one of the biggest crowds of the day, spilling out the sides of the tent with fans densely packed inside
Andrew’s voice still as flawless as ever, the melodic tones of the new tracks still fit the sound of their old material but differed just enough to make it clear this is a new chapter for the band. It certainly is great to see Roots back!
Funeral For A Friend - Main stage
This was the set that the elder emos were waiting for, and they were not left disappointed! Lucas Woodland stepping in for vocals did not change the atmosphere or impact that the classic Funeral For a Friend songs held on the crowd; it was an evening wrapped up with singalongs, arms around eachother and nostalgia.
Saturday
Frozemode - Main stage
A fresh take on London rap, frozemode blend rap with heavy riffs and drum patterns for incredibly catchy tracks. The trio each bring their own chaotic style to the stage; this is a group to keep your eye on. They ended the set by the members joining the mosh pit, embracing their fans. Frozemode are a band that fit across many genres and deserve a spot higher up the bill.
Mouth Culture - Main stage
Drew a much larger crowd of dedicated fans ready to get stuck into the music from the first chord. Singer Jack threw all his energy into the performance, encouraged crowd surfers and pits. Despite this somehow being the first time playing a main stage, we can see these returning as a headliner.
Neck Deep - Main stage
Closing 2000trees for 2026, they were one of the best acts of the weekend, bringing full-force pop-punk energy to the packed-out main stage. Pits were constant, crowdsurfers flowed over the crowd like water, and the volume of the audience singing was on par with the band's volume. Nech Deep proved why they are still one of the top acts in the scene with their own electric energy whilst not missing a single beat.
