This weekend’s festival hurtles towards us, and we’re feeling as much passion and excitement as ever to see fields come alive with people and music, as they have done for so many years now. But amongst the anticipation, we have an important message—and a heartfelt ask.
Since 1998, we’ve brought people together in the hills to celebrate music, community and the land. Completely independent and without compromise, with no funding towards festival running costs, we’ve grown organically from just a few hundred people in a field to thousands.
We’ve introduced countless festival-goers to music you rarely get to hear in Scotland—let alone in a field in the hills. We’ve given many bands their first taste of a stage and seen artists grow from teenage start-ups to established acts, playing on stages across the UK and beyond. As the first eclectic music festival of our kind in Scotland, we believe we’ve inspired many that followed.
We’ve witnessed countless unforgettable, life-changing moments. People have met their partners here, married here, children have been conceived here—and ashes scattered. Often, three generations of the same family attend together, celebrating life, music and planet in our magical glen.
Through foot and mouth, through COVID—we’ve kept going. But in the last couple of years we’ve faced our biggest challenge yet. The cost of living crisis is hitting us all, and the live music scene is suffering. The cost of putting on Knockengorroch now averages £320,000, with rising expenses across the board—from infrastructure to artist fees, to visas for international performers.
Funds are low. Costs are high. And if we can’t make it through 2025 with something left to put towards next year, then the future of the festival is uncertain.
That’s why we’ve launched a fundraiser to help meet the costs of this year’s event. If we can reach our goal of £25,000—or even exceed it—it will help us get through this year with a chance to begin planning for 2026.
Rest assured: everyone will be paid this year. We wouldn’t promise a festival if we couldn’t deliver it. But we can’t continue on zero—or less than zero.
It feels strange to ask for more than just buying a ticket, but this is where we are. If Knockengorroch means something to you—if you’ve had unforgettable experiences on this land—we ask you, please, to give whatever you can. Every contribution, no matter the size, will help.
