Lowlands is one of the Netherland’s biggest and most diverse music festivals, bringing together music, art and theatre across three days in Biddinghuizen. Unlike festivals such as Pinkpop, where visitors can choose to attend individual days, Lowlands is a full-weekend experience. The festival welcomes thousands of visitors who stay on site throughout the weekend, making the campsite just as much a part of the experience.
Lowlands offers everything from international artists to acts that are still finding their audience. The lineup moves between genres, creating a festival where you can spend the day discovering rising pop artists before heading to a main stage for a punk-rock performance, and to end the evening dancing to an indie act. On the first day of the festival artists like Adéla, Skye Newman and Amyl and the Sniffers took over the stages.
Romy Liz Rose
The first performance of the day started quietly at the Lima stage, but it didn’t stay that way for long. Romy Liz Rose may still be a relatively small name, but as her angelic voice echoed through the festival grounds, more people stopped to listen. The room quickly filled up as festivalgoers discovered the singer for themselves.
Romy Liz Rose brought songs from her debut album I Am June to life with a warm sound. “Shells” stood out with its soft sound and supporting instruments, while one of the more intimate moments came when she performed with an acoustic guitar, accompanied only by her keyboard player. It was a gentle start to the festival and a reminder that some of Lowlands best discoveries can happen before the biggest crowds arrive.
Skye Newman
Arriving at the Heineken stage, the barricade was already filled with fans who were eagerly awaiting the arrival of Skye Newman. By the time she walked onto the stage, the crowd had filled up, and it quickly became clear why so many people had arrived early to watch her set. Newman carries herself with confidence of someone who already knows exactly what kind of artist she wants to be.
Her powerful voice filled the stage, while her confident presence and connection with the audience gave her the energy of a true pop star. Songs such as “FU & UF” and “Traumatised” showed the strength of her vocals. But it was her warmth towards the crowd that made the performance stand out. Having gone into the set without knowing much about her, I left pleasantly surprised by her performance.
Amyl and the Sniffers
By the time Amyl and the Sniffers took over the Alpha stage, it felt like the festival day had officially started with the energy of the day completely shifting. The punk-rock band arrived with the kind of presence that immediately made the main stage feel like their own. Vocalist Amy Taylor was constantly moving, running and jumping across the stage while taking control of every part of the performance.
At the same time, the bassist and guitarist had their own moments to shine, creating a show that never felt centered on one person alone. In front of the stage, people were jumping and moshing as the band pushed the energy higher. Amyl and the Sniffers brought the kind of chaotic energy that belongs on a festival main stage. There was no question that they had earned their place on the Alpha stage.
Adéla
If there was one artist who gave their performance everything they had at Lowlands, it was Adéla. Her 45-minute set may have been one of the shortest performances of the day, but she made every second count. After a strong opening with the first three songs, Adéla and her dancers left the stage, only for the dancers to return one by one for individual ballet performances. Adéla appeared last in a new outfit with a tutu-inspired look.
The elegant intermission quickly transformed when “DeathByDevotion” began. Her dancers switched to sharper movements that matched the intensity of the song. The crowd was just as enthusiastic with fans at the barricade wearing bright pink shirts reading “The baddest bitches are in Biddinghuizen.” When “Ain’t in LA” started, the crowd immediately erupted. Adéla explains she wrote this song for the big dreamers in the beautiful smaller places in the world. With the song hitting the number 1 charts, it’s a symbol that no dream is ever too big. She closed her set with “Superscar” that had a choreography that allowed her voice to shine. After previously appearing on Dream Academy, Adéla is now proving herself as a solo artist and creating a world of her own.
Rose Gray
Rose Gray may have performed on the smallest stage of Lowlands, but her performance didn’t feel like it. She immediately filled the room with confidence, moving across the stage, crouching down and flipping her hair like she had been performing for a crowd twice its size.
Her outfit added another layer to the performance: a pink top paired with a long shawl that moved with every step. The fabric followed her movements that made even the smallest gestures feel part of the performance. There was something so effortless about the way she owned the stage. Rather than letting the size of the room define her performance, she made the space feel like it belonged to her.
Blood Orange
As the day moved into the evening, Blood Orange brought a completely different atmosphere to the Heineken stage. There was something effortlessly cool about Blood Orange’s presence. His soft voice, the instrumentation and the backing vocals created a dreamy atmosphere that made the crowd stop and listen.
The lighting added to that feeling. From the back of the crowd, the light sometimes looked like stars flashing across the sky. This wasn’t a performance that needed constant movement from the crowd, instead the music invited the audience to settle into the sound. Every element from the performance felt carefully placed which created a show that was beautiful to admire. It was a festival moment where standing in the crowd and simply taking everything in felt like enough.
Parcels
Parcels were the final performance I watched that day, taking over the Alpha main stage with an atmosphere that felt like the perfect ending to my festival experience, but also the perfect start to a beautiful night. The moment “Tieduprightnow” started, the reaction from the crowd was impossible to miss. People weren’t just moving along to the music on their own, groups of friends began dancing together, turning the space into one giant celebration about the power of music.
The ability to make a festival crowd move together is part of what made Parcels such a memorable way to end the day. Everywhere I looked, people were nodding their heads, swaying along or completely letting loose. The band also had a natural chemistry on stage, clearly enjoying themselves as much as the audience was. After a day that moved through so many different sounds and atmospheres, Parcels offered a festival set that was relaxed, joyful and a place where everyone could forget about everything else for a while.
