Longitude Day Two: Major Lazer, Annie Mac, Diplo, MØ, RTJ & A$AP Ferg

Ok, cards on the table: I wasn’t particularly looking forward to day two of Longitude. That apprehension was mainly down to two things: first, apart from three or four acts, the line-up, wasn’t exactly my cup of tea. Secondly, with Stormzy, Diplo and Major Lazer on the bill, this was probably a day for 'the young team’.

I’m pretty sure, at 33, I was the oldest person on the bus on the way to Marlay Park. My plus one, at 28, wasn’t far behind either. “But fuck it,” I thought, as we awkwardly joined the heaving queue of youngsters. Perhaps it was the distant rattle of bass, or the buzz of the crowd, but I was suddenly up for it. “I’ve partied hard in Ibiza, I can do this,” I convinced myself. And so we got the pints in, rolled up the proverbial sleeves and made our way to the Main Stage where MØ was just about to start.

Openers ‘Don’t Wanna Dance’ and ‘Walk This Way’ were delivered with effortless style and charisma. The largest cheers were reserved for MØ’s Major Lazer collaboration ‘Lean On’ and the anthemic ‘Final Song’. The Danish singer is the archetypal modern female pop star: oozing confidence, slightly left of centre and more concerned with setting trends than following them. Her bass-heavy set proved the perfect ignition for day two at Marlay Park.

Other media duties limited us to a distant view of Stormzy’s Main Stage set. The UK grime kingpin attracted a whoppeing crowd, with fans sprinting to witness hits ‘Shut Up’ and ‘Know Me From’. Despite clashing with Diplo, the 22-year-old affirmed the healthy appetite for irreverent grime music amongst Irish youth.

With media duties finished, we made our way to catch Diplo. As expected, everybody else was doing the same, and the “Tent Full” signs soon went up. Demand to see the chart maestro was so high that organisers were forced to completely close access across the Jeff Bridges Bridge. On occasion, the bottleneck between the two arenas made tent-hopping a challenge – but that’s what happens when the ‘house full’ signs are being put up.

A fleeting glimpse is all we got of New York rapper A$AP Ferg. But it was enough to confirm previous opinions that, as far as the music is concerned, Ferg has become the most important voice in the revered A$AP Mob. Amid the mosh pits and general mayhem typified by ‘Hungry Ham’, ‘Tatted Angel’ was a real standout.

Over on the Main Stage, BBC Radio 1’s Annie Mac got the absolute best from the behemoth sound system. It’s easy to see why the Dubliner has become a regular on the festival circuit as techno, house, gospel, dub step and African rhythms all combined without the merest hint of a lull. Mac’s set was bolstered further by the impressive visuals that split her pulsating image between a smaller wide screen in front of the DJ booth and a giant screen behind. Impressive stuff.
Perhaps it’s due to his inspirational involvement in Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign, but seeing Killer Mike’s monstrous frame in the flesh felt a little surreal at first. Yes RTJ would’ve suited the Friday Kendrick crowd a little more, but what can you do? They still brought their A-game and the dynamic of El-P, DJ Trackstar and Killer Mike forms a formidable proposition: tracks like ‘Nobody Speak’, ‘Close Your Eyes (And Count to Fuck)’ and ‘Lie, Cheat, Steal’ all landed killer blows.

Before we would finally get to see Diplo, we dashed off to catch the second half of The 2 Bears DJ set. Raf Rundell and Joe Goddard (of Hot Chip fame) excelled with a set of feel-good house music, mixed with a few original tracks of their own. The collective embrace of ‘The Bear Hug’ was an obvious high point.

As expected, Major Lazer’s debut Irish show attracted the largest crowd of the day to the Main stage. And it was quite the spectacle too: a master-class in put-your-hands-in-the-air hype, as Diplo, Walshy Fire and Jillionaire jumped and danced their way through what sounded like a one-hour snapshot of a decade of chart music. Yes, the set lacked substance, but I’d be in a tiny minority of people who cared.

And so, the ‘young team’ came and made Longitude Saturday their own. It was wild, crazy and hard work at times, but we left feeling the better for it…

• Johnny Keegan