Far Out Magazine's review of Bristol's Forwards 2026 festival describes a day dominated by heavy rain that dampened the atmosphere before a run of standout performances turned things around. Despite the washout weather threatening to undo the festival's usual sun-soaked reputation, sets from Viagra Boys, Amyl and The Sniffers and headliner Little Simz were praised as career-best, with Little Simz singled out as delivering one of the finest headline sets the reviewer has seen from her.

Highlights included a surprise duet between Viagra Boys' Seb Murphy and Amyl and The Sniffers' Amy Taylor on 'In Spite Of Ourselves', described as a first-ever collaboration between the two acts, while Princess Nokia battled poor weather and technical issues earlier in the day. The reviewer also criticised persistent chatter ("yapping") among festival-goers as a recurring flaw of day festivals, noting it undercut otherwise excellent performances.