Niall Munro is organiser of Skye Live, a two-day music festival held in Portree on the Isle of Skye
Can you tell us about Skye Live – is it different from other festivals?
The festival takes place in what is one of the most stunning festival sites around, in a natural amphitheatre known as Am Meall. The festival site, unlike many others, is not in a remote location but placed at the very heart of the village of Portree itself. This year we are also opening up a new space with an additional dance stage, hosted by the Sub Club. We’re very excited to put that together for this year.
The festival line-up includes a whole host of exciting acts on the contemporary live music and dance scene along with some of the most cutting-edge and crossover acts from the Celtic and trad music world, providing festival-goers with a compelling musical experience.
Before Skye Live there was the Isle of Skye music festival – is Skye Live different?
The original Skye festival was an incredible event, and it introduced me to a whole new world of music. There is no link between the two, but Skye Live aims to replicate the buzz and excitement that the Skye festival created, in its own boutique form.
What is the site itself like – did it take a lot of people to build it?
The site has a really magical quality about it, in that it reveals itself gradually as festival-goers make their way up the short woodland walkway into the main arena. The site has a great atmosphere and sense of history associated with it and is very much at the heart of the village. It throws a few logistical hurdles in the way during set-up, but it’s definitely worth the work.
Do local people come along as well as visitors?
Yes, it was always important to stage an event that local people could really identify with and feel proud of, and I feel like we’ve done that. It’s a well-balanced event with around a 50-50 split of locals and people from further afield.
Anything special planned for keeping festival-goers’ energy levels up?
Yes, there will be a real gastro treat awaiting festival-goers as some of Skye’s finest produce will be on offer, with some very talented local chefs serving it up. We want this to be a major part of the experience and one that showcases the fact that Skye has now become a real food destination, and has so much to offer in the way of amazing produce.
What’s it like in Skye in September? Chilly camping out?
Funnily enough, Skye tends to be quite pleasant and mild in September (touch wood), so we’re hoping for a glorious weekend of weather. There will be no sight of the midgies either, which is always a bonus.
Was there any act you were particularly pleased to get to play? And which will you personally be making sure that you see?
To be honest, it’s difficult to give a definitive answer on that one.
There’s so much I’m looking forward to. We’ve been trying to nail Django Django for a while, so it’s great to finally pull that off. Optimo and Joy Orbison doing a back-to-back set is going to be pretty special too. It’s been the same theme musically over the last two years, and it’s worked fantastically well. We love the idea of having traditional, electronic and contemporary music all together, as they’re all very upbeat and vibrant, and generate a real high energy.
Sep 22 and Sep 23, Portree, Skye, weekend tickets £72, day tickets £44 (plus booking fee). skyelive.co.uk
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