One Out Festival 2023 review: The Land of Original Nuttah remixes

If there’s one thing we learnt at One Out Festival on Saturday, it’s that it’s not only the land of Original Nuttah remixes but equally, the land of bucket hats. From the roaring thumps of each sound system to the blaring sun, One Out Festival certainly erased any feelings of mid-September slump as festival-goers fluttered across the site with huge smiles beaming across their faces.

Saturday's line-up was stacked with sets from industry giants Harriet Jaxxon, JAGUAR, Flava D, SCHAK, Mike Skinner and more. It was refreshing to step foot onto a festival site filled with such a solid unit of female DJs and artists who are dominating the dance scene right now. As you made your way around the festival site, sporadic signs with the words #saveourscene were spotted around the field. There was a genuine sense of community and love for the dance scene at One Out Festival on Saturday. 

A staggered crowd filled the Big Top tent for Harriet Jaxxon’s set with Connec MC who were spinning heavyweight drum and bass selects from the get-go. Although a certified queen of D&B, the DJ had plenty of tricks up her sleeve and sampled a range of tracks into her own signature spin, with remixes of Beyoncé’s Crazy in Love, High Contrast’s Reminding Me, and Shy FX and UK Apachi's Original Nuttah (to list a few). Whilst Jaxxon spun out absolute carnage on the decks, MC Connec was just as captivating, hustling the crowd to get them to live up to every second of this experience. As the drops got filthier you could hear audible gasps of appreciation from the audience. 

The transition from Jaxxon’s set at Big Top back into the blaring sun for JAGUAR on the main stage was an odd one to adjust to, to say the least. After spending an hour in a hot box of sweating bodies, stepping into some fresh daylight was a prompt reminder that the day had in fact, only just begun. Dropping tropical house vibes with some flirtatious garage numbers, JAGUAR’s set did not disappoint and was definitely one for lovers of conventional dance-pop bangers as she spun insane remixes of Beyoncé Pure Honey, and Charli XCX’s Baby.

Replacing JAGUAR on the main stage with a remix of Modjo’s Lady (Hear Me Tonight) was none other than electronic DJ and producer SCHAK. As you made your way from venue to venue the dissonant sounds of electronica, drum and bass and everything in between merged into one. Introducing Big Top with bassy house vibes, Flava D’s first mix was a dub-heavy rendition of Calvin Harris & Disciple's 2015 release How Deep is Your Love. Flava D’s set was a prominent reminder that there was plenty of drum and bass to sink your teeth into at the event, with Texas bringing plenty of heat too. “If it weren’t for you we would not be here. We love you. Thank you for coming,” Texas shouted into the audience earnestly, followed up by an immediate uproar of cheers. 

The sound quality at One Out Festival was incredible too. If you weren’t wearing inner ears that day, you would’ve definitely come out of there wishing you had. As the day progressed, the heat got stuffier and hundreds of fluorescent fans waved frantically around the site. The occasional umbrella hat was spotted too, (because it’s important to stay protected from the sun, whilst also looking iconic). At this point, the vibes were completely immaculate, with crowds singing to their heart's content, and MC’s never missing a single beat.

The Yard’s Homebase van setup was already packed out for Mike Skinner’s set before he had even arrived, with the van practically bouncing up and down alongside the pulsating bass waves that were pumping out of the stereos. Introducing his mix with his 2022 release Who’s Got The Bag (21st June) Skinner got straight to the point and played a plethora of old-school classics from both his own discography (You’re Fit but You Know It, Has It Come to This?), to a genre-fluid mix of garage, drill, dubstep and grime flavours. Spinning into tracks like Central Cee’s Doja, The Ends’ Are You Really From the Ends?, the Thong Song, a Pink Pantheress remix and so much more, Skinner effortlessly showed off his eclectic musical palette at One Out. As his set came to an end he jokingly outro’d himself as Daniel Bedingfield and his fellow DJ as Elon Musk before rapping Blinded by the Lights and later exiting the Homebase van to sing along and shake the hands of his fans. 

One Out Festival was definitely an experience to remember. Effortlessly resurrecting the euphoria of the summer, the day was filled with tropical house tunes, blaring sunshine and speedy bar queues – what more could you ask for!