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  • MUSIC FOCUS: Yellowcard; Kids In Glass Houses; Underoath; Charlotte Sands; Creeper; Boston Manor; Trash Boat; The Menzingers; Maggie Lindemann; Enter Shikari; Trophy Eyes; Holding Absence; VUKOVI.
  • ACTIVITY FOCUS: Analyse lyrics from our favourite Slam Dunk bands and craft an exam-appropriate, two-part response to essay question.

I HOPE THIS MESSAGE FINDS YOU WELL

For the Slam Dunk community, there is NOTHING more important than the universe we have constructed together. It’s a place where Jimmy Eat World songs play on loop, everyone watches One Tree Hill, and the things we don’t care about float away on the summer breeze.

Listen to this playlist and you’ll spot a thread that connects all the bands billed for Slam Dunk 2023.

Firstly, they’re joined by their shared view of the things going on outside of the Slam Dunk scene. For much of the time, sadly, we’re not living at pop-punk/alt-rock’s best one-day festival. Rather, we’re in the wild, wrestling with the reality that we’ve, “been having a horrible time”; that, “the fan blades on the ceiling spin, but the air is never cold”; that, “Real life’s become boring”; that we feel, “broken”. When Henry Cox sings that he: “Heard (his) neighbour kill his own dog,” we grimace because that’s exactly the kind of thing that makes us feel like we’re: “living in hell”, that we’re: “stuck in hell”, that “this is hell”… You get the point!

News: Slam Dunk Festival reveal final acts for 2023 lineup – Backseat Mafia

Thus, we start dreaming of Slam Dunk. We are LIONS and: “Lions aren’t meant for cages”! “We need to find some comfort”! Too much of the world as we know it offers us: “Bad entertainment / And (we) don’t need it.” We don’t want to spend any more of our time staring at: “The stagnant water that fills Tring Quarry” or “living in a burning house.” If it’s true that: “in the dark, we do our worst,” then let’s get out of the dark, let’s get: “far away from here.” Let’s: “live outside of all of this.”

And, certainly, when our friends sing ‘Born To Run’, let’s make sure to “resist.” Unless, of course, we’re going to be running as fast as we can towards the Slam Dunk site. “Gimme direction, gimme direction,” demand the brilliant Boston Manor. Okay, well, just head towards Hatfield or Leeds train station; from there you’ll find your way easily enough! Just make sure you’re ready to have the time of your life. Especially if you feel like you’ve been living, “inside of (a) cocoon.” There are NO cocoons at Slam Dunk!

Okay, we’re, “all packed to go,” right? Good! It’s: “Time to mobilize / Time to open eyes!” It’s time to: “light up the sky!” It’s time to “live a little!” At Slam Dunk, we’re out of our cages and able to feel like we’re: “gold… (like) we’re nothing short of invincible, invincible, invincible.” Surrounded by people like us, people with, “tattoos of all the bands you loved in high school”, we’ll remember that the world is good and that we belong in it. Our love for this music and this place is: “NOT a phase” – not for any of us. At Slam Dunk, we’re ourselves. We’re “alive!”

See you at the end of the month!

ACTIVITY

Explore the significance of community and shared ideals for those attending the Slam Dunk festival.

Aim to write two paragraphs (between 350 and 400 words each). You should analyse at least 3 quotes within each paragraph.

  • Paragraph 1:
  • START SOMETHING LIKE THIS:
  • The idea of community is clearly significant for the Slam Dunk crowd. Their desire to be part of that community is highlighted by the despondent feelings they experience when living outside of the Slam Dunk environment.
  • NOW, EXPLORE AT LEAST 3 QUOTES THAT SHOW THE DESPONDENT FEELINGS AND THUS MOTIVATE THAT DESIRE TO BE AT SLAM DUNK.
  • You might begin your close analysis with the line: ‘This is shown when the article states…’ etc.
  • Paragraph 2:
  • START SOMETHING LIKE THIS:
  • Later in the article, the significance of community is underlined by how positive the writer feels about being in a place surrounded by people motivated by, and interested in, similar ideals.
  • NOW, EXPLORE AT LEAST 3 QUOTES THAT SHOW THE POSITIVE FEELINGS ASSOCIATED WITH SLAM DUNK.
  • You might begin your close analysis with the line: ‘This is demonstrated by the focus on the lyric…’ etc.

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Now, have a look at this PVRIS class.