Tag Archives: music

Bestival 2012, Isle of Wight

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I’m not sure I am quite cool enough for festivals like Bestival, I certainly don’t have the stamina to make it through a whole five days unwashed and living off a few hours sleep. Not any more anyway, not as a sophisticated 24 year old. Wandering round the dusty fields among hundreds of inebriated teenagers, I felt like I should be scraping them off the grass and guiding them back to their tents, even if that is where their stashes of cheap beer are kept. In fact my younger brother was in attendance at this huge Isle of Wight jamboree along with a large group of friends, none of whom I was allowed to meet, well not without bribing him with free food.

Bestival is not the easiest location to travel to, but the island site is idyllic and spacious, ideal for a music festival. We arrived on Saturday (I was desperately sad to have missed Django Django on Friday), once inside the fencing I was totally amazed and overwhelmed by the raucous energy, the endless groups of giggling friends and most alarming… the eccentric wildlife costumes that almost everyone was wearing. I arrived un-costumed, without even theme-specific nail art to justify my embarrassingly bland clothes choice. After the long drive, we were already in hysterics, and putting up our £20 neon pink tent provided further fun when the pop up function flew into the air and into our faces… this easy to use temporary accommodation in fact provided very well for us for our one night of camping, being roomy and weather resistant. Thanks must go to Sports Direct.

It was difficult to navigate our way round at night, music blaring from every quarter. The main stage glowed in the centre, and we watched some of the energetic ‘Two Door Cinema Club’ who managed to really motivate the swaying crowds playing songs from their recently released new album and a few older favourites. Every year festival food seems to improve and Bestival 2012 secured some of London’s most popular eateries: hugely popular Meat Liquor had a stall, Byron were selling their deliciously juicy burgers, and even Wagamama made an appearance.

We were ridiculously lucky with the weather, most of Sunday morning was spent sunbathing and munching on breakfast treats from the Breakfast club bus. The bands seemed to thrive in the heat, Rizzle Kicks consumed the stage with their hilarious, infectious set and Krafty Kuts was a brilliantly wild DJ act to dance crazily to in the roller disco arena – their sound is expansive and atmospheric and fully involved the audience. I really enjoyed some of the other entertainment too, in particular the dance lessons marquee and the Bollywood themed area.

Venturing into the woods and we found further thrills. A special mention must go to the Dukesbox band, a unique little group who play and sing from an enlarged jukebox, following the requests of their audience and providing renditions of popular numbers with gumption and humour. Better still they are actually very talented musicians, and bring something special to every cover. The perfect entertainment for a wedding or big party.

Stevie Wonder provided the climactic finish we had all been hoping for… taking to the stage unusually punctually, he gave a staggering performance. Dressed in a vibrant red outfit, he looked valiant and impressive. Performing hit after hit, the audience danced, jumped, sang and smiled. Almost every one of the 46,000 attendees (the most ever) turned up at the main stage to see the star of soul and it felt like a once in a lifetime moment. Favourites ‘Don’t you worry bout a thing’, ‘For once in your life’ and ‘Superstition’ were especially electric… not a note off-key not a beat missed, Stevie is still as magical as his very first record and it seems age has only bettered him. It helps too that his punchy band support him with charm and charisma and give the melody a dynamic vitality.

Bestival is now one of the largest of the new festivals, offering a range of exciting events and exhibits for festival goers to enjoy, though it is definitely geared more towards the younger and hipper generations. For me it was Stevie’s wondrous set and inspiring musical talent that made this epic journey so worth the effort. I will never forget seeing this unbelievable legend in the flesh, and Bestival will struggle to match this headliner next year.

http://www.bestival.net/

Thoroughly Modern Milly travelled to Bestival with Wightlink on its 35-minute ferry service from Lymington to Yarmouth, one of three routes. Car ferries also operate from Portsmouth–Fishbourne (40 minutes) and there is a foot passenger catamaran service between Portsmouth Harbour and Ryde Pier Head (approx 20 minutes).

Call 0871 376 1000 or visit www.wightlink.co.uk for details.

Wightlink sells ferry-inclusive packages for the Isle of Wight Festival (June) and Bestival (September).

Hop Farm Festival 2012

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Hop Farm is a happy festival. Couples cuddle, kids play and music lovers unite for three days of listening, watching, eating, camping and dressing to impress.

We were blessed with predominantly sunny weather this year for the 5th annual festival in Kent. The line-up wasn’t perhaps as thrilling as previous years and yet the positive mood and joyful vibe were enough to ensure everyone had an awesome time.

We arrived late afternoon on Friday and after parking my friend’s dinky convertible, we started the epic walk to the campsite. Both of us were laden with pillows, tent equipment, clothes and fake eyelashes – I felt like a donkey, and must have burned several thousand calories trekking with all the baggage. Luckily I had just enough energy to flirt with a couple of security guards and they carried our bags for the final leg, helping us find a suitable spare clod of grass for our miniature tent. The final gasps of breath were used to blow up two air beds and construct our accommodation, a tall order for a pair of girly girls. A bottle of white wine later and we were on our way, following the pumping beat and the distant melodies coming from the main stage.

This year Hop Farm had a variety of vintage stalls and before I even had the chance to see a band I was in the midst of second hand silk shirts, floaty dresses, scarves and headbands… all the festival gear you could possible need. There was the usual face painting artists, a bohemian couple with their wishing tree and other hippie areas.

For me musically there were a few real highlights, most blend into a haze of beery, sunny relaxation.

For the headliners, well I’ve seen Bobby D before and I’m sad to say that this year his voice sounded wearier, his attitude sulkier and his performance less memorable. Noone can deny his obvious musical genius though and a virtuosic harmonica solo made his presence worth watching. Peter Gabriel and the New Red Blood Orchestra made quite an impression… this artist certainly pushes boundaries, his filmic set filled the field, a mysterious and exciting style of music that I felt really suited Hop Farm’s ambience.

I am always appreciative of Hop Farm’s petite scale, after gobbling our Breakfast Club burritos in the morning we wandered with glitter only partially distracting our vision. Discovering new artists is such a joy for me and here we fell in love with the talented ‘The Tallest Man on Earth’ and the veteran ‘Taj Mahal’ and sang along to great bands like Athlete and Damien Rice who both gave heartfelt melancholic renditions of their repertoire on stage. A mention must also go to Sir Bruce Forsyth, who at the age of 84 gave one of the most spirited and smiling performances of the weekend, tap dancing and singing tremendously, obviously overjoyed by the audience’s warm welcome.

To avoid the traffic queues home on Sunday, we left before Suede, the final headliner. But we went out with a bang, standing at the very front for Kool and the Gang and grooving enthusiastically to the infectiously fabulous musical show on stage. These hip guys dance with charisma and masses of sex appeal… the crowd went wild, flinging themselves energetically towards the stage, arms flailing desperately towards the attention loving performers.

On the way home to the Euro football final, we reminisced about the spectacular weekend we had enjoyed at Hop Farm. As ever this festival presents its visitors with great music, delicious food and an unbeatable atmosphere. I can’t wait to see what 2013 will bring to this special event.

Visit the Hop Farm website here.

THOROUGHLY MODERN MAN: Carmen, The King’s Head

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The King’s Head is rapidly becoming my favourite fringe venue.  As a pub theatre it works perfectly with the warm and welcoming atmosphere of the front bar leading into the snugly intimate theatre behind.  This company makes full and innovative use of the entire venue, resulting in a production that sits on the cutting edge of the modern classical music scene; this is fringe opera at its finest.

The collaborative effort of director Rodula Gaitanou and librettist Ben Cooper, assisted by input from the actors themselves, has brought about an entirely fresh take on this classic opera.  With the story set in North London and centring round a gang of thieves, the audience could not help but feel very much part of the action.  Christina Gill’s Carmen was at all times technically sound yet emotionally aware; a balance that is difficult to strike for any actor.  Her chemistry with Jose (Christopher Diffey) was a highlight of all the interactions that took place, most notably the opera’s tragic denouement, which left me feeling appropriately uncomfortable.  As a pairing their voices complimented each other splendidly, frequently producing effective moments of raw emotion.  It was the duos that appeared to be the highlight of the show’s casting, as Mercedes (Olivia Barry) and Frasquita (Fleur de Bray) captured a much-needed comic essence.  These ladies really took their chance to shine in their extended duet scene in the second act, receiving an uproarious reception from the audience with their carefully timed gags.

The expansive orchestral score was beautifully reduced to accompaniment by piano and Spanish guitar.  Musical Director Elspeth Wilkes set at the helm playing the piano with remarkable technical skill and sensitivity, which was complimented soothingly by Rosie Hopkins’ fine guitar playing.

OperaUpClose continues to live up to its Whatsonstage and Olivier award billing with this daring production.  This was highbrow opera revitalised by a refreshing reinterpretation at absolutely no cost to the quality of performance.  If this is the direction we are heading in then opera buffs everywhere ought to be very excited indeed.

Continues until 12 May: book tickets here.

Written by a Thoroughly Modern Man, Mark McCloskey.