Three Shows, One Hot Summer: July at Full Volume

Oh, what a busy summer we’ve had! Three huge shows back‑to‑back — Bristol Sounds, Bristol Pride, and Bristol Harbour festival— made July both fantastic and brutal with this summer’s heat. These events are our signature portfolio at King Sound, and we couldn’t be more grateful to our clients for their ongoing loyalty and trust. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at what made each event so cool this year:

1. BRISTOL SOUNDS (25–29  June)

Held once again at the stunning Lloyds Amphitheatre on Bristol’s Harbourside, this year marked the 11th edition of Bristol Sounds.

This is their official promo capturing the spirit and scale of the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYF97jf7QCI

And here’s a couple of our owns video capturing the great atmosphere! We’re very proud of providing top class audio, crew and stage management for this amazing event — massive thanks to the team and partners who made it happen:

  • Supergrass kicked us off on June 25 with a rip‑roaring performance of their full debut album I Should Coco, celebrating its 30th anniversary — a nostalgic treat for indie‑rock fans.

  • Kaiser Chiefs, true festival veterans, brought high-energy classics like I Predict A Riot and Ruby with their unmistakable stage charisma.

  • Texas and The Fratellis drew strong crowds mid‑week and Saturday respectively, delivering sing-alongs and electric guitar moments that lit up the Harbourside.

  • Olly Murs closed out on Sunday with an upbeat, feel-good pop set — boosted by support from Lucy Spraggan— leaving everyone dancing and smiling.

The mix of iconic headliners, from 90s indie with Supergrass and Fratellis to pop charisma with Olly Murs, truly catered to all tastes. The Harbourside venue, combined with well‑organised logistics — dedicated wristbands, staggered door times, and accessible transport — made it a seamless experience. Food trucks, vibrant support acts, and that unmistakable Bristol energy sealed the vibe!

2. PRIDE 2025 (12 July)

Pride remains one of the true highlights of the summer for King Sound.

What sets it apart year after year is its vibrant, inclusive atmosphere — colourful stages, drag performances, and immersive art installations all come together to create a joyful celebration of diversity and unity. Add to that a dynamic mix of live music, Circus and of course Cabaret performances, and a crowd that radiates belonging and liberation.

And of course, technical finesse is key: King Sound’s staging, lighting, and PA systems ensure every act — from headline names to emerging local talent — delivers a flawless performance. We provide full technical production for the event across five stages including our 15m Orbit stage for the main arena, our XXL trailer stage on the Cabaret an Alustage truss stage on New Music and another Stagemobil LR stage on the dance area. We deployed L-Acoustics systems across all four outside stages with K2, Kara II and Kiva II all on duty. It’s a pretty big show these days with 38,000 through the gate and one in, one out queuing to access the 25,000 capacity site most of the day.!

This year, crazy July temperatures made rigging a real challenge and we resorted to some early starts and the odd overnight shift to get everything set in time. We are on-site for 10 days for this one day show and our hard working crews really earned their money showing some super human skills to counter mother nature’s efforts to cook us all. In the end Pride day went without a hitch and this inclusive, celibrationary, quirky and very ‘Bristol’ event lived up to reputation of being a true highlight of the year.

3. BRISTOL HARBOUR FESTIVAL (18-20 July)

Our third flagship show this summer, Harbourfest, once again transformed the waterfront into a buzzing festival arena — a tradition we've proudly continued for 26 years. We now are the sole technical supplier for the event with six areas benefitting from our sound, staging and lighting production.

Highlights included:

  • Eclectic line-up spanning folk, rock, electronic, and world-music acts — something fresh for every audience segment.

  • Waterfront atmosphere with food vendors, craft stalls, and interactive zones giving the event a carnival-like, family-friendly charm.

  • Seamless transitions between stages thanks to King Sound’s staging efficiency, which kept things flowing without the usual bottlenecks.

Despite the intense July heat, feedback was overwhelmingly positive — great atmosphere, smooth logistics, and performances that felt fresh and well-curated.

Summing up:

July felt like a marathon — packed, hot, and exhilarating. But with our trademark attention to detail, smart scheduling helped manage the heat and energy levels, technical excellence delivered crisp sound and seamless transitions, and engaging production turned each show into an unforgettable experience for both clients and audiences.

All of this was made possible by our incredible crew and, above all, by the continued partnership and confidence of our clients. Here’s to many more summers like this one — though maybe a little cooler next time!

Need pro audio, staging, lighting or festival support? King Sound Reinforcement are one of the few companies around with the capabilities to help. We specialise in being a ‘one stop shop’ for multi stage events — with a vast array of equipment to call on, our own transport fleet and decades of experience. We’ve proven time and time again we can do it!


Get in touch: kingsr.com – or drop us a line via Instagram @kingsoundreinforcement.

New StageMobil XXL stage — just in time for Christmas!

Great news for King Sound just in time for Christmas! We’ve wrapping up 2022 with another big purchase to upgrade our hire equipment stock. Meet our brand new StageMobil XXL mobile stage!

We’ve recently placed an order and expect it to arrive in time spring. We are taking bookings now for Summer ‘23 and beyond!

Stagemobil exclusively specialises in mobile event systems and have been leaders in in the field since 1997. We’re always looking to expand our staging portfolio and, having hired in one of these excellent units for many events in 2022, we have taken the decision to invest in our own.

Why it’s particularly special?

Well, conventional stage systems are familiar to most people. Typically, they require a great deal of time and energy to build, not so with Stagemobil — the principal difference is that this stage can be towed to site then constructed within 30 minutes, with a maximum of 2 people involved in the process.

This extremely short set-up time helps to significantly save the costs whereas simple handling saves the additional use of on site plant and minimises background noise during assembly and dismantling.

With 10 m x 6 m of stage area and a clearance of 4.60 m, the XXL Mobile Staging creates an impressive space for imposing and sophisticated stage design. Due to the extensibility with side wings for rigging PA or branding, this mobile stage generates a genuine rock ‘n‘ roll feeling at any festival!

The weight of the mobile platform (3500 kg) eliminates the need for additional ballasting which is another nice bonus when it comes to impact on-site, cutting transport requirements and boosting sustainability. Despite its impressive size it can be operated quickly and easily – disassembly is as quick as set-up so, once any technical equipment is removed, a clear site can be only minutes away!

This stage is perfect for bands, festivals and events where a quick set-up is needed. With the sound wings on the XXL stage you can fly 500KG of audio per side.

QUICK FACTS:

  • Dimensions (as the trailer):  L 11,70 m x W 2,54 m x H 3,95 m

  • Dimensions (as the stage):  W 10 m x D 6,10 m x H 6,30 m x Clearance H 4,60 m

  • Height of stage floor: 1,20 — 1,40 m

  • Floor capacity: 350 kg/m2

  • Roof capacity: 1.050 kg

Come check it out, we’re confident it will be one of our most popular stages. Of course we are also able to equip the stage with high end sound and lighting options and provide any crew needed to deliver your next event.

Happy Holidays and see you at hire.kingsr.com soon!

New PA Towers from ALC truss

Check out our new PA Towers from ALC truss as our founder and MD, Paul King is sharing some cool features of these powerful structures in this new video! They join our existing rigging stock of ALC S60 10m towers. Exquisitely designed product from an excellent Belgian company. Available to hire from today!

King Sound Reinforcement Invests in a 15m Orbit Stage!

King Sound Reinforcement Invests in a 15m Orbit Stage!

The classic Orbit stage has long been a popular choice for festivals and large scale events. 15M wide and up to 15M deep, the Orbit’s curved roof not only looks fantastic it is also a safe and well proven design that’s well loved for its fine acoustic properties (orchestras love them!). Able to support loads of up to 6 tonnes, the roof has the capacity to keep up with modern production demands. 

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Bristol Pride '17!

Bristol Pride '17!

Well, that was intense! As usual we provided full site electrics, sound and stage for the popular Cabaret stage, full sound and lighting production package for main stage and illumination for the Lloyds Amphitheatre building.

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Bristol Sounds 2017

Bristol Sounds 2017

Many thanks to Crosstown Concerts for another fantastic week at Lloyds Ampitheatre. The eclectic line up included Benobo, Manic Street PreachersCraig DavidBritish Sea Power and the wonderful Bristol Sounds - Haçienda Classical. We did sound and provided many crew - who helped 'grease the wheels' in many areas of production and who's duties included a particularly arduous overnight stage build for Hacienda.

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