The free, 12-day live festival at King Cross’ Coal Drops Yard celebrates local and international musical talent, showcasing a variety of acts including Brazilian, choir, soul, and classical music.
With festival prices skyrocketing in recent years, and with many long-running festivals going bust, it’s a joy to see a vibrant, multifaceted, and free festival like Kings Cross Summer Sounds. A music festival that celebrates music in all its forms, there’s much more to do that just watch others perform. You can perform yourself! At drum circles workshops, capoeira classes, and queer tango sessions. Impressive for a free festival to offer so much.
The line-up, while not containing names that would sell-out the O2, offers much musical variation and talent, as well as giving audiences an opportunity to see some of London’s rising talent. Charles, a rising star in UK funk, plays the evening of Monday the 19th to show off some exciting cross-generational takes on funk and soul; Lily Moore, playing on the 16th, has been compared to Winehouse and Adele for her deep, soulful voice and her quintessentially British takes on timeless soul; on the 21st, award-winning violinist Fenella Humphreys will be presenting a rework of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons with a diversely modern interpretation.
Beyond British talent, the female-led Olayá promise a lively flute and percussion set inspired by bandas de pifanos, Alvorada pump up the jam with instrumental Brazilian music of the choro tradition, and The Green Room Collective, consisting of members from immigrant and refugee backgrounds, explore themes of displacement, home, and movement.
If you wanted to pick out a few highlights, then YolanDa Brown, Kabantu, and Secret Night Gang would be your go-to’s. YolanDa Brown is an accomplished saxophonist and composer, earning an OBE last year for her services in music, who, beyond her work in broadcasting and organising, offers a unique and exciting blend of reggae, jazz, and soul, which she jokingly terms “posh reggae. Kabantu are an African-inspired folk collective from Manchester whose globalised musical blends offer something new in the world of British folk. Secret Night Gang’s hip-hop, jazz, and soul fusion make for a lovely set in the summer, bringing a carefree and joyful air to the Coal Drops Yard. Many know them for their track ‘The Sun’, which featured in GTA5 radio.
There’s much to enjoy here at Kings Cross Summer Sounds. We wont see Coal Drops Yard be this lively for quite some time. Make the most of the weather and save some money while you’re at it.