- Suspicious minds might wonder what the greatest expense was at this year’s edition of Mint Festival, the annual outdoor bash conceived by long-running Leeds institution, Mint Club. Expanding to two days meant a greater spend on DJs, but in order to secure blue skies and balmy temperatures during the last weeks of September in northern England organisers must have paid a handsome backhander to a very important person.
It proved a worthy investment. The festival site's uninspired layout and lack of rides or attractions meant that anyone underwhelmed by the music may have struggled to enjoy themselves had it rained or been overcast. Under sunny rays, though, all you needed was a spot of grass, a couple of beers and some good company.
That said, the glorious weather had its drawbacks. Although generally not a problem across the weekend, a lasting memory from Saturday is half-empty tents. Wandering into the Goodgreef arena for Paul Oakenfold's retrospective set, there was enough room to swing several (big) cats and still have space for a game of cricket. (The man himself, meanwhile, was nowhere to be seen).
It was a similar story elsewhere on site. Only a handful of people caught DeWalta in the System area as afternoon approached early evening. He turned out a set of deep, leftfield house that had all the ingredients to leave you hypnotised, but it lacked that feeling of collective camaraderie that comes with sharing an experience with thousands of others.
Numbers aside, there were some practical issues that also put a slight dampener on things. For example, having to use cashback to buy drink tokens (with a £2 fee added for good measure), rather than simply charging your card directly, seemed confused. Still, it was an improvement on the shocking attitude some workers, particularly security, exhibit towards paying customers at many comparable shindigs. Friendliness goes a long way to softening the blow of blatant oversights.
Gripes over, there were plenty of positives to take from the Saturday. A stellar big room set from Green Velvet showed that he's still got it. Combining classics of his own ("Flash") with more recent fare (Tiga and Audion's "Let’s Go Dancing") in a ferocious, relentless onslaught ensured the host tent was full to bursting with a debauched party atmosphere. Once the festival was over, punters were shuttled back to Leeds city centre to continue the session at one of many cheap afterparty options.
Which brings us to Sunday, which by all accounts was a roaring success in comparison to day one. Though the sun had returned, not everyone with weekend tickets had followed suit, resulting in a reduced number of tents on-site. Seth Troxler Presents joined forces with Barcelona's carnival-themed Elrow, making the most of the best soundsystem at the festival.
The result was special, with a hedonist, carefree atmosphere from the word go. Once Elrow’s obligatory inflatables were distributed (of which there were hundreds, of all shapes, sizes and species), and the confetti and streamers began to fall, the phrase "carnival of carnage" could be heard repeatedly. Cue the arrival of stilt-walkers in all manner of fancy dress and Brazil-On-Leeds became a reality (well, sort of).
It wasn’t all silliness, either. With shrewd-but-swift reorganisation the lineups from two arenas were pulled together and DJs paired off into various unplanned back-to-backs. The highlights included Eats Everything and Cajmere, who veered from electro-edged bangers to dirty, jacking beats, and a somewhat triumphant closing stint from Tuskegee, AKA Seth Troxler and The Martinez Brothers. Their forceful assault of Ibiza-tinged techno had plenty of percussive weight, and I was left with little choice but to stick it out till the end.
Mint Festival was a mixed bag of tricks that was, for the most part, serious fun. I'd imagine that the organisers will take stock of what worked and what didn't, and adjust accordingly for next year. A more intimate venue perhaps? Or a return to just the one day? Whichever direction they take, as long as they retain some of the magic of Sunday they'll be on the right path.