Upcote Farm, Cheltenham
8-11 July 2026
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2000trees 2026 review
Those that know, know. 2000trees Festival has gained a special place in the hearts of regular attendees and once again we headed to Upcote Farm near Cheltenham for four days of glorious musical goodness.
Last year, a heatwave tempered the enjoyment for many, but the qualities of the event still shone through. That’s ok though because that couldn’t happen again this year… could it?
The slow build of worry, fear and acceptance was tangible on social media as the forecasts solidified and we all understood that the festival would for the second consecutive year be dubbed by many as 2000degrees!
WEDNESDAY
The Wednesday of 2000trees may just be the best day of the year every year. With early attendees getting the chance to soak up intimate performances in the Word tent and on the iconic Forest Stage.
Setting up camp during a heatwave isn’t our idea of fun but that’s ok because we know we won’t be spending long in our tent! Indeed, we take the opportunity to get straight into the woods as Split Dogs get the prestige of kicking off the 2026 edition of 2000trees with a raucous set.
Music lovers are spoilt at this fabulous festival, and it’s been said before that 2000trees is a marathon and not a sprint. Dubbing ourselves Full Pelt however does push us to attempt this marathon at a sprint pace and despite the devilish heat we manage to clock up sixty-six sets across the weekend. So, strap in for our big overview!
This opening day often spotlights acts from previous years that are treated as returning heroes and on this day the likes of Karen Dio, SOAPBOX, BLACKGOLD, VENUS GRRRLS and Split Chain all get that classic Trees reception.
It feels like every year we find ourselves saying we didn’t see a bad set and this year follows that pattern. If you are astute enough, you’ll clock the sheer volume of artists who heap praise on the festival during their performances, and you can tell that comes from a place of love rather than the clichéd “you’re the best show of the tour” head pat.
What you therefore get is artists ensuring that their show is special. Early on you again sense this from Love Rarely, Bruise Control and especially the energetic Hyphen whose set is one of the rowdiest of the weekend.
As the evening sets in, more and more early attendees join in the fun and each set lives up to the hype. SPRINTS who took home our Album of the Year award last year bring ‘All That Is Over’ to the beautiful Forest setting and it feels like a match made in heaven. Equally, the platform given to Lake Malice who headline the Word tent is seized with both hands by a passionate band who have fans spilling out the tent.
2000trees sets itself apart from other events in various ways but the willingness to repeat bands across the weekend is a big one. The Dirty Nil and today’s headline band PUP will both appear again this weekend, so what we get on night one are unique performances that ensure fans are kept on their toes.
The Dirty Nil opt for a set purely consisting of covers which starts with Metallica, Cheap Trick and The Police and concludes with Nirvana, AC/DC and Thin Lizzy! PUP on the other hand choose tonight to deliver their album, ‘The Dream Is Over’ in full, which results in many a lost voice amongst the audience.
THURSDAY
It’s often said that the atmosphere is what makes the event affectionately dubbed Trees so special. We should know. We’ve said it. Often. It’s sounds corny or even contrived but it really does feel like one big family.
Part of this is the dedicated audience getting to track the progress of bands that they discover at the festival in smaller slots as they rise through the ranks. Buds. are an example of this as they open the main stage on Thursday. Party bags are issued to attendees and its all very small family gathering like despite being the main stage of a well-established medium sized festival.
This is again something that many artists touch upon from their vantage point on stage. Like Goldilocks herself is assessing the scale of the event – it isn’t too big, it isn’t too small, it’s just right!
The festival doesn’t change for changes sake. What works, works well and you’ll find a lot of food vendors and stalls in the same spots year on year. Shout out to Happy Bangers whose simple yet effective hotdogs have provided Full Pelt with our daily brunch every day for as long as the memory serves.
One change this year is the evolution of the Neu Stage into the Marshall Stage. The legendary amplifier brand has been supporting the festival for a number of years but step things up a notch this year with a refurbished stage and interactive installations including artist led screen printing and more.
This sun-soaked Thursday we catch impressive sets in this tent from newcomer Ashaine White and two Full Pelt favourites Youth Killed It and snake eyes. Marshall don’t just make amps, they back talent and across the weekend this stage welcomes some of the best on offer.
Thursday does find us darting between the different stages a lot but at 2000trees if you are that way inclined then you absolutely can. The Axiom treats us to Tooth and Coach Party and The Cave allows us to catch two acts with big momentum behind them Bleech 9:3 and the incomparable Delilah Bon.
This year more than ever, it’s a blessing that most stages are good sized tents. We endure the unrelenting sunshine on the main stage however for an engaging Melanie Baker, a blistering Saint Agnes, a good time guaranteed Mariachi El Bronx and perhaps the most puzzling set of the weekend for us from The Skinner Brothers. No longer generic indie guitar wannabees, now perhaps looking to cash in on the popularity of masked rockers. Quite the transformation and one that might take a little while for us to get our heads around.
Thankfully we get to seek some shelter from the sun back in the Forest today also with a delightful run of young upstarts DeadWax, the ferocious Native James and another of our favourites The Virginmarys. The duo are in top form and deliver a superbly crafted set that gives the fans what they want but ensures that stunning new album, ‘The House Beyond the Fires’, remains very much in the limelight.
Now, it wasn’t just the weather warnings that gave fans and organisers a shock ahead of the event this year. Alkaline Trio had been set to headline tonight as part of a European tour however just six days before the event the Trio had to pull their dates for health reasons (get well soon Matt!).
This presented an enormous challenge for organisers but one that they were able to overcome, no doubt helped by the goodwill the festival has earned. Step up Don Broco on six days’ notice to again top the bill.
With a fresh album in the bag, the band are able to deliver something different to their previous headlining slot whilst ensuring that their undeniable energy producing machine is still turned to the maximum.
The band have bangers for the days and new tracks like ‘Nightmare Tripping’ and ‘True Believers’ are already in that terrain. Fair play to the band for stepping in, stepping up and ensuring that Thursday night is party night at 2000trees 2026!
Of course, another special feature of 2000trees is what happens once the main stages conclude. There is still plenty to do into the early hours such as the legendary silent disco, special live sets in the forest using that technology or the campsite busking stages.
Thursday night we head to Camp Turner (one of many named camps that helps build that special atmosphere at Trees) to again catch Ashaine White who delivers a beautiful acoustic set that delights those lucky enough to be nearby.
FRIDAY
Somehow, we are now halfway through the festival and Friday is set to be a hot one in every sense. The temperature rises and the talent on offer just continues to soar. We begin our day with (deep breath), IOTA, Prodigal, Guillotine, Bratakus, Grandmas House, God Complex and Knives who again all clearly understand the task.
A funny moment makes us smile during Knives as a big cheer occurs when a small cloud dares cover the sun. Only for it to quickly disappear after only the briefest respite, much to the chagrin of attendees.
Despite the continued unrelenting heat, we head back to the main stage for Higher Power and House of Protection (complete with Jordan Fish cameo) who both manage to eek energy reserves from the crowd with fun sets.
Call Me Amour then pick up on this challenge in the Marshall tent and won’t take lethargy standing still. The band pull out all stops to engage the crowd who duly oblige and ensure the set is one of the best of the weekend.
The Scratch, Free Throw and Militarie Gun all then follow back-to-back and evoke varying emotions but all in a good way. It’s then the home straight for the day as a much-changed Mallory Knox return with a set of crowd-pleasers and Sunny Day Real Estate offer a rare UK appearance.
We then rush over to the Axiom for the return of Arcane Roots after eight years away. A true Trees band, the tent is packed as the Trees family look to welcome back one of their own. The atmospheric assault that is Arcane Roots sounds even bigger than ever and the crowd eat up every big riff and every soaring chorus. Some sets you just know will live forever in the memory and this was one of those.
How then do you close out this eclectic day of musical delights? A big old nostalgia session with Funeral For A Friend of course. A band with renewed vigour thanks to the addition of Lucas Woodland on vocals, the likes of ‘All The Rage’, ‘Rookie of the Year’, ‘Bullet Theory’ and ‘Juneau’ all do exactly what you’d want for the big penultimate night romp. We even get a surprise appearance from tomorrow nights headliner Ben Barlow.
SATURDAY
Somehow, it’s already the final day of the festival. Time simply flies when on the farm and this year has been no different despite the heat (have we mentioned yet that it was quite hot?).
A somewhat chilled-out morning catching sets from Ain’t, Peach, Luxury Apartments and Lakes is punctuated by two fun sets on the main stage. First another of these bands that have worked their way up the bill each year, as CARSICK make their main stage debut with a typically brash performance. Then the madcap Aussie phenom that is Battlesnake draw a massive crowd outside to witness their unique show.
Bicurious, Heart Attack Man, LASTELLE and Pinkshift keep us on the move and each showcases their abilities well. Gallus then bring some Scottish charm as they give us one last trip to the Marshall tent for 2026.
The afternoon and evening however is anything but chilled as we stare down the barrel of an incredible run of favourites spread across all the other stages. First up, Mouth Culture who back up what we saw at Download. We said then that they are going to be massive and we stand by that predication based on their main stage showing today.
As Everything Unfolds then get The Axiom moving with a set of stirring tracks including ‘Ultraviolet’ and ‘On The Inside’; and Marmozets give us a strong contender for set of the weekend on main stage. The band are still weird and wonderful and ‘Captivate You’ provides us with one of those glorious moments when you just have to take it all in and remember why you love music.
A dash back to the Forest comes next for the always brilliant A who showcase their fantastic new album, ‘PRANG’, in amongst fan favourites such as ‘Nothing’ which includes a guest appearance from The Blackout’s Sean Smith.
The XCERTS may be the Trees band. In fact, I don’t think 2000trees can legally occur without the band being represented in some way. This year they hit The Cave and perform their newly released album, ‘i think i want to go home now.’, in full. The performance is so remarkable that singer Murray Macleod is moved to tears and the audience deliver an emotional ovation. A beautiful moment from a beautiful band at this beautiful festival.
How do you top that? Dinosaur Pile-Up at the peak of their powers of course! Complete with an actual dinosaur pile-up in the crowd, and a final run of ‘Sick of Being Down’, ’11:11’, ‘Thrash Metal Cassette’, ‘Big Dogs’ and ‘Back Foot’, which quite frankly should be illegal as it’s unfair for other bands!
But oh, this magnificent final run of bands isn’t over yet and we still have a big pop-punk party to enjoy with Neck Deep. The band begin their set with ‘Can’t Kick Up the Roots’ and the don’t relent for the next hour as they ensure that the festival gets the finale it deserves.
That however isn’t the end of the night. There is a big football match happening which has been the talk of the town and the festival erect a big screen to let fans see the second half of the game.
As another reminder that there’s always something happening at Trees however, we quickly jolt to the Word tent to catch a comedy set from the brutally hilarious Jamali Maddix! We return just in time to see extra time and an historic England victory!
The celebration that ensues then morphs into the final night silent disco and if anybody has anything left then they see 2000trees 2026 off in style.
Having first attended 2000trees ten years ago it has been a pleasure seeing this festival grow. It’s been an organic evolution and despite its growth the event has stayed true to the foundations that it is built upon.
Next year will be the 20th anniversary of the festival and no doubt will see heightened attention coming its way. The question may then be how can the festival ensures that it retains its unique charm when the secret continually is getting out?
But that’s a question for later. Right now though, let’s just bask in the glory of another successful year for the best festival in the UK!
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