Youth rules at adult-free festival

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Bombay Bicycle Club and Poppy and the Jezebels at the Underage Festival

By Lizo Mzimba
Entertainment correspondent, BBC News

The fans celebrate the absence of adults

They came, they saw, they moshed.

That's one of the reasons The Underage Festival is fast becoming a regular fixture on the summer festival circuit.

But it is the event's rigidly enforced age restrictions that marks it out as something special for its 14 to 18-year-old audience.

Launched last year by Sam Kilcoyne (who is only 16 himself) the alcohol-free, teens-only festival was hailed as a great success.

As a result, capacity for this year's bash - which featured acts like Foals, Dizzee Rascal and Gallows - was increased from 2,500 to 7,500.

Compared to many festivals, there was a wonderfully relaxed feel, and many of the fans felt a sense of ownership, that it was their special event.

Like their fans, Pull In Emergency have to balance music and schoolwork.

I met one group who'd come from Scotland for the experience. They thought the journey was more than worth it.

As for the bands, they tended to feel the same.

Pop group Poppy and the Jezebels even set up a tuck shop - giving away goodie bags of badges and sweets to the festival-goers.

Like many of the acts, they were young enough to be punters at the event - which made the day feel like a quick glimpse into the future of music.

Fans in their late teens are particularly discerning or, to put it another way, they don't put up with rubbish.

And they don't particularly care if a performer is 14 or 40, just as long as they put on a good show.

For young bands in particular, events like the Underage Festival are ideal for building up a loyal following.

In a few years time, it could well be seen as a launching pad for the most successful bands around.