A beautiful day in Nottingham and hundreds of musicians and music fans alike dawned on the city for a day full of head banging sets, pints of beer and discovering up and coming artists.

One of the best things about this festival is the variety of up and coming musicians who flood the city from Australia and New Orleans, to Manchester and Nottingham itself to put on a show for music fans.

Some of the best acts I caught this year included:

Adam French – I caught the end of his set at Rock City Basement and his voice is heavenly! He’s got great stage presence and his vocals really do give you goosebumps!

Rothwell – Perhaps one of the loveliest people ever, and so talented. She brings something fun and energetic to the stage. I caught up with her before her performance at Stealth, hear what she had to say below.

Vistas – I discovered these guys a while ago on Spotify’s New Music Friday playlist and was keen to catch their set, and it did not disappoint. The four piece from Edinburgh bought lots of energy to the Bodega stage and wowed the crowd. These guys are going to do big things.

Kawala – I discovered this band on the day and took me by surprise. The crowd really seemed to love them and they bought something fun to the stage while still delivering stunning vocals and harmonies. A great band to add to your summer playlist.

I caught up with Daniel after their set and asked him to sum it up in three words, they were: “Nottinghamish, sweaty and freaking amazing” – not quite three words and creating his own vocabulary but I’ll let him off.

Pale Waves – This band mean business. Taking the second headlining spot on the main rock city stage they came out and delivered. The lead vocals from Heather Baron-Gracie were seemingly effortless and she channelled her inner Michael Jackson throughout the set with some killer dance moves.

The Nectars – They came from New Orleans to party with the crowd in Rock City Basement and it certainly looked like they were having a good time. Lead singer Jess has a powerful voice and sends out Paramore vibes, one to look out for.

Cassia – Three guys from Macclesfield that took to the Rescue Rooms stage and had a really good time. They fuse together their British sound with Caribbean and African influences to create a unique and upbeat style.

I caught up with them before their set this is what they had to say:

Have you played Dot to Dot before? 

Yes, we came last year and played in The Black Cherry Lounge (in Rock City).

You’ve moved up a venue then

Yeah we’re really excited.

Where do you get your inspiration from?

We listen to a lot of Caribbean stuff. Vampire Weekend we’re really into them and we listen to a lot of Western African music too.

Is there anyone else that you’re excited to catch today?

We saw quite a few yesterday (In Bristol). Giant Rooks, they’re over from Germany. we supported them in Germany, they’re really good you should definitely go and watch them. I kind of want to see The Horrors too because we haven’t had a chance to see them yet.

You create all your own music, what’s your favourite part of the whole process?

Finishing them. Yeah when you finish them and release they’re decent. Playing is good as well, but I like writing as well that’s fun. It depends really if your;re struggling creatively it can be quite difficult.

100 Time Over now has over a million stream on Spotify, how important do you think that platform is?

It’s big quite big for us bringing new fans getting noticed. The play listing hasn’t been crazy but it’s sick. It’s just how it is now isn’t it, people don’t like to buy anymore. It’s a great way for new people to listen to your music.

You’ve just been signed to Distiller Records, how’s that been? A debut album in the pipeline?

It’s really good. We’re really happy with that. Got some very big plans which will all be revealed very soon. We can’t say too much. We’re still just trying to write songs and see how it goes.