Buzz were on site at Green Man all weekend long to witness Wales’ favourite festival in all its glory. Walking around the 240-acre Crickhowell site, the festival now in its 20th year, means a number of things are immediately clear if you, like me, are a first-time Green Man-goer. I’ve been to a number of music festivals in my life, both the independent and large-scale kind.

Here’s the thing: like anything, Green Man is only as good as its people. The Green Man Festival – Happy Campers! Facebook group sees campers sharing tips, from where to find a certain kind of dumpling to where to find the mushroom guy who poses wearing a MILF (mushrooms I’d love to forage) shirt. I’m in awe of you Ralph! Overall, it’s the people that make this event what it is, from the stewards and volunteers to managing director and owner Fiona Stewart.

Development Manager of the festival’s charitable arm, Green Man Trust, Joana Rodrigues, leads the festival’s charity responsibilities. Green Man runs four charitable aims – including working with Oasis Cardiff, training refugees and asylum seekers to become stewards, and also fronting a store by the Babbling Tongues stage, where they sell food and share stories with a desire for a sense of belonging within a community. 

Speaking to Fiona Stewart, she enthuses over the Pride march taking place at GM22: it’s a first not only for the festival but any festival. “An idea leaves an impact and Green Man is the sum of all those ideas,” she told Buzz earlier this month. 

When it comes to the music, the sound made from each stage manages to stay within its designated area, for the most part, probably thanks to the sloping landscapes of the Brecon Beacons engulfing the festival. Nestled within the site are 10 distinct areas, ranging from the science of Einstein’s Garden – home to the omni tent and various experiments – to the secluded feel of the Walled Garden, an outdoor stage hidden away behind traders and an abundance of trees that cocoon acts and their audiences in.

Bess Atwell’s late Friday set is a standout as the rain stays away for the Brighton-based singer-songwriter to perform her heartfelt, melancholy words of shopping at her local Co-op, unable to return home without singing a pop song that she heard playing over the store speakers. Atwell jokes onstage having played the same stage in 2019: “I was told this is the stage you play on the way up and on the way down.”

Previous up-and-comers Wet Leg, Phoebe Bridgers, The War On Drugs and Mount Kimbie have graced the festival’s stages over the years, making it the ideal place to take the training wheels off. I can’t tell you how many artists I heard this year say Green Man 2022 was their favourite show they’ve ever played. Three of my favourite acts of the weekend – Leeds’ English Teacher, Brighton’s Keg and the intersectional, wide-spread M(h)aol – all played to packed crowds on their own stages.

Meanwhile, backstage in the Rising tent, Artist Liaison Misha J gushes, “This stage is about new bands coming through and having a go at festival life. We see all the young guns come up and doing their thing. In a year or so we’ll see them at Glastonbury or Isle Of Wight – we’ve seen them from babies!” 

The enthusiasm is apparent through each tent and over every purposely deserted cable backstage. Managers, lighting, sound – from the banjo open mic stage to the record store where we interviewed promoted merch-stand worker and vegan bullfighter Dave, you get a real sense of connection and stillness. And if not… you can always hug a chicken or play a song through a tomato.

The estimated 25,000 attendees are respectful of Green Man’s ethical vision: there are repurposed cups, compost toilets and hydrogen, solar or hydrotreated vegetable oil power (HVO). Not only that but this year saw the inclusion of female urinals, an overall success for easy, little-wait, no-fuss peeing – it’s hard to argue that this might just be the greatest festival when its organisers are actively making peeing easier for everyone. 

Glanusk Park, Brecon Beacons, Thurs 18-Sun 21 Aug

words EMMA WAY