Down Stokes 2025 • Festivals • DIY Magazine

A bold entrance into a saturated space of multi-venue festivals in Bristol, Down Stokes aims to make a unique mark, crafting an experience for lovers of psychedelic rock. Now into its third year, it’s easy to feel how the event - organised by local promoters Velvet Echoes and Extra Terrestrial - has grown.

Walking down Stokes Croft into Attic Bar, the venue opens up into an instantly welcoming space, glowing with neon lights as Pocket Sun take to the stage. Thursday acts as a three-act preview to the festival proper across the weekend. Second on are Magic Shoppe. Hailing from Boston, MA, the band’s shoegaze style blends crushing guitars with a peppering of psychedelia, while their driving basslines have the crowd moving from the off. It’s easy to be struck by the floating bridges with distinctive textures, crafted distortion creating boding waves of energy that rush over those in attendance.

Next up, Mild Orange are a joyfully cathartic explosion of indie. The New Zealand quintet weave a gentle feeling of hope through their songs, during the first show of what lead singer Josh Mehrtens describes as a “mammoth 25 date tour”. The group ooze a gentle kindness which is solidified when he introduces a new song making its live debut, written about his wife’s love for horses. They even slip in a cover of Haddaway’s ‘What is Love’, and as the room empties at the end of the night you can almost see the small piece of joy each person carries home with them.

Come Saturday, with the festival now in full swing, Bristol is spoilt for choice. Over at the newly-refurbished The Croft, the Swedish powerhouse Maidavale have taken to the stage. Having last been in Bristol supporting experimental seven-piece GOAT, tonight they fill this room with just as much energy as they did the O2 Academy. Their heavy psych rock blends together a perfect mix of gentleness and heavy riffs, with a touch of vocoder and synth. From upstairs, the sound of Guzzlers bellow below, riffs crawling up the stairs of Cafe Kino. Some bands take a few songs to draw you in but these do it instantly.

Heavy Lungs’ reputation precedes them. They command the room with such ease, the crowd eagerly watching lead singer Danny Nedelko’s every move. It’s clear why they’re so loved; their brand of post-punk is electric. Following in the footsteps of close pals IDLES, the band are unapologetic in their intensity but still dripping in charisma. Their delivery feels almost humorous, their lack of pretension selling their message so well.

With more and more brass sections popping up in punk, tonight Opus Kink do a great job showing why this is exactly what they're meant to do, as their effortless fusion feels fresh. The Brighton sextet whip up a frenzy, with the Attic bar at its busiest so far. With punchy vocal delivery, the band deliver a performance that feels one off, requesting red lighting as they roll into a bass-driven number in which its guitars imitate sirens, painting pictures not with words but with sound.

Despite it being rainy this Sunday evening, the crowd show up in full force for Down Stokes' final night as it gets under way at the beautiful Trinity Church. Welsh creative duo The Bug Club - joined by Tom Rees on drums - are the kind of band it's impossible not to dance to. Opening their set with some “newies”, the audience comes to life when they move into some fan favourites, their dual vocals and minimal arrangements working to create a full, vibrant sound. Though simple, the driving basslines and pop-rock riffs are the perfect base for their playful lyricism, and the band have such a lighthearted nature, a fun energy that’s intoxicating.

Torontonians Wine Lips close out the weekend. Backed by punky delivery, their psych garage is an immediate slap to the face, while their appearance begs the question of if they were expecting better from the British weather, as each take to the stage in a unique pair of sunglasses. Guitar necks swing as riffs ring though the former church, it's striking how unbelievably tight they are. A perfect event to explore psychedelic music and find new bands to obsess over.