Overhead, the Albatross

Overhead, the Albatross are one of Dublin's hardest working bands and their debut album, Learning to Growl, has been heaped in critical praise. As they took to the main stage on Saturday afternoon, the torrential downpour added to their cinematic sound, making for a dramatic and thrilling performance. With screeching violins and a thunderous rhythm section, the instrumental act burned through songs such as Indie Rose as if their very lives depended on it. It was a shame they did not get the crowds that they deserved (nice one, Mother Nature), but this was a performance filled with energy driven by energy and passion. – LB

Little Scream

Overhead, the Albatross are a tough act for anyone to follow and Montreal act Little Scream did their best to distract the crowd from the rafty weather. Laurel Sprengelmeyer and her band brought as much jaunt and pep that anyone could to try to get a party started. Their blend of funk and blues managed to put a bounce in the step of a few wellington boots. On another day Little Scream would have been the perfect remedy to a hangover but sadly they just had one too many elements to conquer this time round. – LB

Steve Davis

The six-time world champion swapped the snooker cue for the decks in a two-hour electro set at Charleville castle. When he's not sharking his way around a table Steve Davis has a penchant for spinning an array of interesting and alternative underground tunes, so much so that his Phoenix fm show is dubbed the Interesting Alternative Show. Doing laps around the decks is his pal Kavus Torabi, who co-presents the radio show but lends himself much more valuably to visual media. He essentially cartwheels about the decks playing the air guitar equivalent of every instrument and occasionally dips in to match Steve's tune selections.

The only real way to follow this display is if he were to crack out the cues for an aul’ game of pool, and he only went and did it. There’s a small stage in the main arena facing the stoic facade of Charleville castle that is devoted entirely to the pool. Here Steve Davis takes on members of the public in a bid to pioneer outdoor novelty pool as a viable sport. Comedian Andrea Farrell steals a frame from the Ginger Magician despite being audibly roasted throughout by the MC.

Between rounds of pool he has a pint with Jim Carroll in the Banter lounge and demurely rejects the audience appraisal — "Don't clap please just throw money at the stage". He discusses the scene but continuously hassles Jim to tell us more about himself. On the whole, Steve provides a day's worth of entertainment. – EL

Hare Squead

Hare Squead, a brashy threesome from Dublin, have an abundance of energy that is dangerously contagious. Fusing together the classic blend of pop, R&B and hip-hop, they succeeded in being one of the first acts on Saturday to get people moving and, dare I say it, revelling. By throwing themselves around stage and down into the crowd, they did everything in their power to inject some fun into the day and it bloody worked; they've an undeniable pulling power. A new song got an airing – Good Vibes sees them leaning into a clubbier sound and proved Hare Squead have a way to grab your attention. – LB

Sea Pinks

A clean, beachy sound envelopes the centre stage for Belfast-hailed Sea Pinks. It breaks through the dreary undertones of a rainy day and captures a distinctly refreshing input to the Saturday. Floating stratocaster riffs fill the tent with sounds reminiscent of a coconut island, the audience subtly reminded that they are on their holidays after all. Sea Pinks fill a neat niche in the Irish musical landscape of bringing devoutly laid-back punk pop to an undernourished scene. They like their occasional shout-outs – "This one's for the guy with the legs," they say, and half-way back in the audience a man holding the bottom half of a mannequin in the air waves them around appreciatively. Good vibrations all round. – EL

Jurassic 5

Building on fun laid down by Hare Squead, hip-hop gods Jurassic 5 took over and showed everyone how it's done. This was almost a paint-by-numbers guide to West Coast rap as they revisited hits from their 1998 self-titled album and 2000's Concrete Jungle. Whipping out some choreographed dance moves and inviting the crowd to join in and shout out requests, it almost felt a team-building exercise for everyone at Castlepalooza. While it may have felt like the group were going through the motions and, as one gig-goer said, "a Sesame Street introduction to Jurassic 5", they provided enough good vibes to leave everyone feeling warm and fuzzy and you can't ask for more than that, can you? – LB