Glastonblog 1
The Glastonbury music festival was excellent fun and it was great to spend time with the Cat in the Hat marshaling crew once again.
Thanks to Diane, Gavin, Tracey, Ruth, Rob, Mel, Colin, Karlis, Alan, Rick, Richard, Paul, Emily, Simon, Sy, Joshua, Rachel, Mandy, Andy, Harold, Nicky, Joe, Clive and a few other friends whose names are escaping me for the moment for being yourselves and being a part of the fun. We got drunk around the campfire and saw some of the same bands but 2/3’s of them were working this year. Like last year I was paying for my entry, forgoing backstage privileges by not working and going as a punter.
This blog is mostly about the how the days went and what bands I saw.
The acts I didn't stay to watch (they were crap/I was on my way to see a better band/I wandered into them by accident whilst shopping) have their comments in brackets, all the others I recommend you check out.
There are photos too, not many of bands as they tend to come out blurry on my camera, I’ll be posting the good ones on my Facebook and Myspace pages shortly.
Tuesday-Wednesday
Not only was I going down to meet with friends, I took one with me. Tracey was itching to go and knowing how bad the queues to get in were last year, booked some hotel accommodation near Weston-Super-Mare.
We spent a sunny evening in WSM where a pint of Gem and a steak went down nicely, the pier looked sturdy but a little sad even without the formerly gaudy arcade at it’s end.
I phoned ahead to check with my sister and to forestall any possible confusion about Tracey - no we're not a couple, yes we're sharing a tent just as friends. She joined me for some of the gigs and shopping too.
We set of at 10 and queued along the A39 for a few hours in the baking sun. We had plenty of water and I’d made a special traffic jam mix tape but finally feeling too hot, I chanced the back country roads south of Street and Glastonbury town to get some air in the car and shorten our wait, resisting the urge to rally car around the corners. Thankfully Diane and Gavin arrived at the gate to help us and we pitched around 2.30pm.
We set things up and sat in the shade for a long while, chilling. Had a little wander and found the excellent pizza place that was there last year, for dinner. I went to the stone circle and watched the sunset, then to the campfire and it’s stories with an excellent red before bed.
Thursday
Time for a wander. Trash City and the new Shangri-La area, Arcadia, weren’t open so shopping ensued. In all I bagged a jacket, trousers, shirt, t-shirt, shades, hat, ring, shaker and a present for Mari at good prices (what eats your money is buying food and drink - take some of your own and do eat it!); Tracey got me a new chair and cup as belated birthday presents which came in handy.
I checked the stages out and took some nice pictures of clouds as they were building in the heat. Mid-evening a thunderstorm sent us to our tents and as the rain subsided, we watched it strike and rumble it’s way north. The camp dried quickly but some of the paths became sticky enough to require wellies.
News of Michael Jackson’s death arrived, this was checked using people’s IPhones to make sure it wasn’t a Glastonbury rumour. Contrary to press reports of heartfelt tributes, concocted by journalists who never leave the confines of the pyramid backstage area, the general mood was first one of surprise and then of dark jokes - some too dark to repeat. Thru the festival I heard one tribute song played badly by a dodgy band on an unlisted stage and an aside from comedy rock band Spinal Tap.
Perhaps the best tributes came from the many artists like Nick Cave who dedicated a song to Farrah Fawcett and neglected to mention the moon-walking Michael (or hell-surfing, depending on your opinion).
Friday
Boots were needed early but another hot sunny day was quickly drying all but the worst areas of mud and I later changed back into Crocs.
I wandered down to watch the Mandibles fun swing/jazz stylings, they played a version of the Shadow’s ‘Ghostriders’ and occasioned four dancing girls in short sailor suits.
Passing by Yr Ods (poor pop, sung in Welsh), the Maccabees (tight but boring) and Team Waterpolo (ok songs played badly) on my way to the mellow Seattle folk of the Fleet Foxes whose gentle songs and sweet harmonies were a perfect tonic for the blazing sunshine.
Over to Avalon for Orkestra Del Sol and their bouncy Balkan via Scotland folk with before I headed to the Pyramid for Neil Young who was aging noisily. Neil played long versions of his classic songs and did what every guitarist does when they’re happy, go for lots of feedback and solos.
After he finished, Bloc Party (becoming poppy and average) were ending on the Other stage so I decided to grab some food and head for Shangri-La before most of the trendy punters realised that it was there. It had been transformed into an amazing space, a tunnel complex behind the central stage hid a dozen different subterranean bars with different music and themes, the tunnels themselves peppered with amusing signs and artifacts.
After a good look around I walked up to the stone circle to chill and watch the bats swooping overhead, so close I could have touched them. Finally the campfire beckoned and soon after, sleep.
Saturday
Woke up in the late morning to another scorcher and caught some of The Broken Family Band (Arctic Monkey wannabees), then The Low Anthem who impressed with their folky Americana which was subtly dark. On my way to the John Peel Stage I caught a song from Rolf Harris (suffering from heat and age) and Metric (average Canadian indie pop) . The Big Pink was my destination, their swirling noise and keyboards reminiscent at times of My Bloody Valentine, they also played a cover of Smashing Pumpkins ‘Mayonaise’.
Eagles of Death Metal played some thumping modern indie-rock on the Pyramid before Spinal Tap, the Tap were roundly cheered (unlike Download where they were apparently booed!), and were joined by Jamie Cullum on keyboards for ‘Short and Sweet’ and Jarvis Cocker on bass for ‘Big Bottom’! Excellent fun.
I next checked out Rokia Traore (talented but weak),Crosby, Stills & Nash (aging gently) and Baaba Maal (average funky Afro-beat), Bruce Springsteen (E-street band good but Boss a huge bore) before heading to the Other stage to see Franz Ferdinand who played it cool and tight but I didn’t stay, the last band of the day I wanted to see was The Wonder Stuff, and I’m glad I did. Of all the bands of the festival weekend they were the most up for it, playing with power and passion, belting through all their old hits and making them sound fresh again.
Stone circle, campfire and bed.
Sunday
The sky started to cloud over during the day and spat light droplets of rain most of the afternoon, not enough to dampen the ground our need cover from, it kept the day a little cooler.
As the wind shifted, Status Quo (as you’d expect) became audible and I trotted over to the Acoustic stage, passing by Linda Lewis (lounge act stylings) until it was time for The Penguin Café Orchestra. They took a long time to set up so played a slightly hurried set but good none the less. I hung around to see Imelda May’s engaging rockabilly, she has a big Irish voice but maybe a little old school (or undereducated) for psychobilly.
Teddy Thompson (yearning, whining, boring) was on the way to Bat for Lashes who got stronger as their set progressed and left a gently haunting presence which led to Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds crashing in with ‘Tupelo’ even as dark clouds and spots of rain gathered to threaten another downpour. The weather held and he followed with the usual classics, ending with a raucously extended ‘Stagger Lee’.
Even as he was finishing, Blur fans were piling into the Pyramid field and it when they started it was completely rammed. They played ‘She’s so high’ which was good but next lurched into ‘Girls and boys’ which got the festival trendys jumping and squawking, I knew it was time to leave and went to see The Prodigy. They were full of energy, different mixes and the light show was spectacular. My dancing feet finally gave up me and I watched Gong (skillful but lacking passion) finish up in the Glade.
Monday-Home
To avoid the queues back out and baking in the car we packed slowly, taking plenty of breaks from the hot sun and feasting on Tracey‘s banana cake, nut bars and fruit. Late afternoon we decamped and thence joined a slowly moving stream of traffic, after one stop for fuel and the toilet on the M5 we made it back around 9.30.
It felt great to be back home with Eliza and the Mog and have a shower; I'm back.
Thanks to Diane, Gavin, Tracey, Ruth, Rob, Mel, Colin, Karlis, Alan, Rick, Richard, Paul, Emily, Simon, Sy, Joshua, Rachel, Mandy, Andy, Harold, Nicky, Joe, Clive and a few other friends whose names are escaping me for the moment for being yourselves and being a part of the fun. We got drunk around the campfire and saw some of the same bands but 2/3’s of them were working this year. Like last year I was paying for my entry, forgoing backstage privileges by not working and going as a punter.
This blog is mostly about the how the days went and what bands I saw.
The acts I didn't stay to watch (they were crap/I was on my way to see a better band/I wandered into them by accident whilst shopping) have their comments in brackets, all the others I recommend you check out.
There are photos too, not many of bands as they tend to come out blurry on my camera, I’ll be posting the good ones on my Facebook and Myspace pages shortly.
Tuesday-Wednesday
Not only was I going down to meet with friends, I took one with me. Tracey was itching to go and knowing how bad the queues to get in were last year, booked some hotel accommodation near Weston-Super-Mare.
We spent a sunny evening in WSM where a pint of Gem and a steak went down nicely, the pier looked sturdy but a little sad even without the formerly gaudy arcade at it’s end.
I phoned ahead to check with my sister and to forestall any possible confusion about Tracey - no we're not a couple, yes we're sharing a tent just as friends. She joined me for some of the gigs and shopping too.
We set of at 10 and queued along the A39 for a few hours in the baking sun. We had plenty of water and I’d made a special traffic jam mix tape but finally feeling too hot, I chanced the back country roads south of Street and Glastonbury town to get some air in the car and shorten our wait, resisting the urge to rally car around the corners. Thankfully Diane and Gavin arrived at the gate to help us and we pitched around 2.30pm.
We set things up and sat in the shade for a long while, chilling. Had a little wander and found the excellent pizza place that was there last year, for dinner. I went to the stone circle and watched the sunset, then to the campfire and it’s stories with an excellent red before bed.
Thursday
Time for a wander. Trash City and the new Shangri-La area, Arcadia, weren’t open so shopping ensued. In all I bagged a jacket, trousers, shirt, t-shirt, shades, hat, ring, shaker and a present for Mari at good prices (what eats your money is buying food and drink - take some of your own and do eat it!); Tracey got me a new chair and cup as belated birthday presents which came in handy.
I checked the stages out and took some nice pictures of clouds as they were building in the heat. Mid-evening a thunderstorm sent us to our tents and as the rain subsided, we watched it strike and rumble it’s way north. The camp dried quickly but some of the paths became sticky enough to require wellies.
News of Michael Jackson’s death arrived, this was checked using people’s IPhones to make sure it wasn’t a Glastonbury rumour. Contrary to press reports of heartfelt tributes, concocted by journalists who never leave the confines of the pyramid backstage area, the general mood was first one of surprise and then of dark jokes - some too dark to repeat. Thru the festival I heard one tribute song played badly by a dodgy band on an unlisted stage and an aside from comedy rock band Spinal Tap.
Perhaps the best tributes came from the many artists like Nick Cave who dedicated a song to Farrah Fawcett and neglected to mention the moon-walking Michael (or hell-surfing, depending on your opinion).
Friday
Boots were needed early but another hot sunny day was quickly drying all but the worst areas of mud and I later changed back into Crocs.
I wandered down to watch the Mandibles fun swing/jazz stylings, they played a version of the Shadow’s ‘Ghostriders’ and occasioned four dancing girls in short sailor suits.
Passing by Yr Ods (poor pop, sung in Welsh), the Maccabees (tight but boring) and Team Waterpolo (ok songs played badly) on my way to the mellow Seattle folk of the Fleet Foxes whose gentle songs and sweet harmonies were a perfect tonic for the blazing sunshine.
Over to Avalon for Orkestra Del Sol and their bouncy Balkan via Scotland folk with before I headed to the Pyramid for Neil Young who was aging noisily. Neil played long versions of his classic songs and did what every guitarist does when they’re happy, go for lots of feedback and solos.
After he finished, Bloc Party (becoming poppy and average) were ending on the Other stage so I decided to grab some food and head for Shangri-La before most of the trendy punters realised that it was there. It had been transformed into an amazing space, a tunnel complex behind the central stage hid a dozen different subterranean bars with different music and themes, the tunnels themselves peppered with amusing signs and artifacts.
After a good look around I walked up to the stone circle to chill and watch the bats swooping overhead, so close I could have touched them. Finally the campfire beckoned and soon after, sleep.
Saturday
Woke up in the late morning to another scorcher and caught some of The Broken Family Band (Arctic Monkey wannabees), then The Low Anthem who impressed with their folky Americana which was subtly dark. On my way to the John Peel Stage I caught a song from Rolf Harris (suffering from heat and age) and Metric (average Canadian indie pop) . The Big Pink was my destination, their swirling noise and keyboards reminiscent at times of My Bloody Valentine, they also played a cover of Smashing Pumpkins ‘Mayonaise’.
Eagles of Death Metal played some thumping modern indie-rock on the Pyramid before Spinal Tap, the Tap were roundly cheered (unlike Download where they were apparently booed!), and were joined by Jamie Cullum on keyboards for ‘Short and Sweet’ and Jarvis Cocker on bass for ‘Big Bottom’! Excellent fun.
I next checked out Rokia Traore (talented but weak),Crosby, Stills & Nash (aging gently) and Baaba Maal (average funky Afro-beat), Bruce Springsteen (E-street band good but Boss a huge bore) before heading to the Other stage to see Franz Ferdinand who played it cool and tight but I didn’t stay, the last band of the day I wanted to see was The Wonder Stuff, and I’m glad I did. Of all the bands of the festival weekend they were the most up for it, playing with power and passion, belting through all their old hits and making them sound fresh again.
Stone circle, campfire and bed.
Sunday
The sky started to cloud over during the day and spat light droplets of rain most of the afternoon, not enough to dampen the ground our need cover from, it kept the day a little cooler.
As the wind shifted, Status Quo (as you’d expect) became audible and I trotted over to the Acoustic stage, passing by Linda Lewis (lounge act stylings) until it was time for The Penguin Café Orchestra. They took a long time to set up so played a slightly hurried set but good none the less. I hung around to see Imelda May’s engaging rockabilly, she has a big Irish voice but maybe a little old school (or undereducated) for psychobilly.
Teddy Thompson (yearning, whining, boring) was on the way to Bat for Lashes who got stronger as their set progressed and left a gently haunting presence which led to Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds crashing in with ‘Tupelo’ even as dark clouds and spots of rain gathered to threaten another downpour. The weather held and he followed with the usual classics, ending with a raucously extended ‘Stagger Lee’.
Even as he was finishing, Blur fans were piling into the Pyramid field and it when they started it was completely rammed. They played ‘She’s so high’ which was good but next lurched into ‘Girls and boys’ which got the festival trendys jumping and squawking, I knew it was time to leave and went to see The Prodigy. They were full of energy, different mixes and the light show was spectacular. My dancing feet finally gave up me and I watched Gong (skillful but lacking passion) finish up in the Glade.
Monday-Home
To avoid the queues back out and baking in the car we packed slowly, taking plenty of breaks from the hot sun and feasting on Tracey‘s banana cake, nut bars and fruit. Late afternoon we decamped and thence joined a slowly moving stream of traffic, after one stop for fuel and the toilet on the M5 we made it back around 9.30.
It felt great to be back home with Eliza and the Mog and have a shower; I'm back.