London's summer festival market can feel overwhelming. Rarely a weekend passes between June and September without an open-air party taking place at one of the city's many parks, and it can be difficult to differentiate between the oversold, the overpriced and the ones that genuinely merit the effort.

Now into its fourth year, Waterworks easily sits among the best. The festival has got there by focusing on excellent stage production, a dedication to sound quality and, what's quickly becoming its defining characteristic, a programme filled with tantalising back-to-backs. This year's edition, which took place at Gunnersbury Park, reinforced all of these qualities, but it was the sheer quantity of back-to-backs–many of which were out-of-the-box pairings–that defined the festival.

The conditions were perfect, too: temperatures hovered around 20 degrees and the beaming sun was the ideal backdrop for one last summer knees-up. By prioritising the essentials, Waterworks continues to impress year after year.

Here are six tracks that captured the vibe of Waterworks 2024.

01

Jamz Supernova & Tash LC at Water Tower

DJ Satelite - "Hu, Hu, Hu"

As soon as I arrived I headed straight to the circular outdoor stage Water Tower, where Jamz Supernova and Tash LC were laying down a set of sun-kissed party vibes to match the conditions. "Hello, hello Waterworks. Are we feeling good, are we feeling sexy?" quipped Tash on the mic, while donning a Jamiroquai-style green hat. The pair flitted between Afro house, amapiano and so much more—including the infectiously danceable "Hu, Hu, Hu" from kuduro pioneer DJ Satelite–and set a glorious tone for a day of cross-genre experimentation.

02

NIKS at Orbit

Junior Sanchez & Christian Smith - "Slave Beat"

Playing at Orbit, an open-air stage with a disco ball-adorned structure in the middle, NIKS crafted a set of pumping UK garage, sexy New York house and a sprinkling of Detroit techno. There was a slickness to her mixing–as she shifted from the moody tech house of Azaad's "Be My Love" to the bumping bassline of Burnski's "Go"–that conveyed a DJ fully at ease. The infectious grooves of Junior Sanchez & Christian Smith's "Slave Beat" went down particularly well in the warm afternoon sun.

03

Bakey & Breaka feat. SGT Pokes at Water Tower

Wen - "Swerv (El-B Remix)"

Back at Water Tower, Bakey and Breaka ran the gamut of bassy UK flavours, maintaining the buoyant energy cultivated earlier by Jamz Supernova and Tash LC. The emergence of SGT Pokes onstage only heightened the fervour. "Sorry I'm a little bit late, London," cracked the legendary dubstep MC. "Don't hold it against me, yeah?" He swiftly commanded the attention of the crowd with quick-fire ad-libs and clever bars. "Shake 'em, shake 'em," he demanded, whipping the front rows into a frenzy. There were bumping garage basslines and moody wobbles galore, perhaps best encapsulated by El-B's remix of "Swerv" by Wen.

04

Darwin & Mia Koden at Commune

11th Hour - "Foolish"

Delving further down the dubstep wormhole, I headed to Commune for Darwin and Mia Koden. The small tent on the edge of the site was heaving, though sound bleed from nearby stages didn't exactly complement the spacious dub stylings that characterised the set's opening section. When they upped the tempo, veering towards tougher dubstep and various strains of bass, the crowd responded in kind, twisting vigorously to tracks like "Foolish" by 11th Hour. Partially hidden behind a dense row of foliage, the DJs shared hugs in-between blends as the energy hit boiling point.

05

Batu & Leon Vynehall at Pressure

Metrist - "Bputch"

Arguably the biggest curveball back-to-back of the day—at least on paper—took place at Pressure, a stage constructed out of shipping containers and lined with hypnotic red strobe lights. Batu and Leon Vynehall might not have been the most obvious pairing, but both artists dug deep in their record bags, opting for genre-fluid selections spanning grime, UK garage, left-field techno, Metrist's "Bputch" and the '10s deep house Leon Vynehall made his name with (he also took the opportunity to test-run some head-turning new material). Their synergy behind the decks was clear for all to see, and I'd be surprised if Waterworks was the last time they get booked together.

06

Objekt & Or:la at Hi-Hat

Bassbin Twins - "Woppa"

Given the short set times (most were 60 or 90 minutes), it sometimes felt like DJs were just finding their groove, only to have to wrap up a few minutes later. As such, the most rewarding sets did away with patient build-ups and meticulous pre-planning in favour of something more visceral. Objekt and Or:la's closing set at Hi-Hat was probably the best example. When tracks like Sansibar's "Connect" and Marcel Dettmann's "Cycling Bits" rang out early doors, it was clear they were going straight for the jugular. This intensity was maintained for the full 90 minutes, and probably best captured by the raucous nu skool breaks of "Woppa" by Bassbin Twins. Chaotic in the best way, this back-to-back felt like a fitting finale to a festival determined to squeeze every last drop of joy out of summer.