Homelands (England)

I have been to homelands for the last 2 years now and have had a variable experience of the festival scene. There are various tents from various clubs reflecting a huge choice of dance music from Drum n Bass to tribal Trance. The cost is around £45 a ticket plus with Ticketmaster (I hate them) plus booking fee. Getting to Winchester by car is simple and the directions are labelled on route, parking the car was easy as well. There is a big walk up the hill then you find the bowl where tents and fair ground attractions await you. The first year was perfect, good music, good atmosphere, and great ... more

Music festivals, on the whole, have three stereotypical factors year in, year out - excellent music, an audience that knows how to party,and mud. This one was no exception. Homelands may not be Glastonbury or Reading, but to dance music fans it is the nadir of this generation's culture. The rain started at about 4.30p.m, and boy, did it rain! The crowd didn't care, though, as tents were packed right through to the 6a.m end. On a personal note, Lisa Lashes played the best set I've heard in years in the Slinky tent, Scott Bond kept that up, Ferry Corsten blew the crowd away with a flamenco ... more

.......depends largely on the weather! Last year was gorgeous; as a regular festival goer, I was delighted by the novelty of just being there for one day, no unnecessary camping. The sun was out, the music was banging, the atmosphere was reminiscent of a summers day on the beaches of my youth - with a few added ingredients! This year, however, the whole event was very, very different. The line up was better, the site was familiar to me, but the weather stank. Rain all day the day before meant that the site (in a king of 'bowl' in the countryside) was waterlogged before a single raving reveller ... more

I went to homelands last year and it was better than anything i had been to before, gorgoeus sunshine, great atmosphere and great music. This year however great atmosphere, great music and lots of mud. When i first got there i remember the ground being quite sturdy and the rain being refreshing. Come two in the morning there was mud up to your knees and nowhere to sit down and recouperate. Apart from the mud it was a great laugh with music to cater for every dance taste, my mate came just to watch public enemy but now has changed his views only hip hop to a bit julesy and tong. THe atmosphere ... more

I know that Homelands is no more but still feel that it is necessary to review it for my own sense of satisfaction. Homelands was an amazing festival, it kick started the festival season and was always set to be a good one (regardless of weather). I went in 2001, 2003 and even when it changed to Hi-Fi in 2006. The setting of the festival was perfect. Once you had walked up the big hill, not really sure where exactly it was leading you, you reached the top and looked down on the numerous tents and fairground rides that were awaiting you in the bowl, with tree's all around you and not a road or ... more