Marc Ellerby (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} burnt_jamb) wrote,@ 2006-08-03 11:05:00 |
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Round Up:
I never did really give my guide to Truck did I? Well it was all types of fun. The thing about Truck is that it only holds about 5000 people and those 5000 people are all like minded and "not nobbish." The thing is, I've been going to Reading Festival for the past 5 years(?) and that holds, what? 80,000 people and you notice it, you can't move for diddly shit anywhere and there's a handful of morons (with giant elbows that bash the shit out of your (ex)girlfriend and give her migraines for the rest of the day, thus making her miss most of the stuff she wanted to see) that do spoil it for the rest of us. It was good for 5 years but I guess last year I got a bit tired of people blowing stuff up and yelling "bollocks" at stupid o' clock in the morning, so when we trecked to Oxford and finally got to Steventon it's a complete different world away. It's so quiet, it's in a country village, out the way from anywhere. When we got there I thought we wouldn't get a camping spot, but this is only 5000 people we're talking about and half of them live in Oxford so will drive home anyway, so to my utter surprise we had uber amounts of decent places to camp.
Also! There were about 5,000 people carrying the program (which was free! none of this £7 for band times malarky bullshit) around with them with my art on it. It was a totally overwhelming experience and I guess that set the tone for the rest of the weekend.
Band wise? Well, a lot of Oxford bands sound the same and as I was hanging with Tara for the most part we had to see a lot of Oxford bands (I however wanted to see Skullthrash!) and I didn't much care for the little bands. I liked Mai Mayo Mai though Craig, so don't worry!
So I guess this is a quick run down of what I saw...
Saturday
The Walk Off
Loud, trance, shouting, Mike Patton sort of noise that is either a) well shit or b) well genius. They have a guy in a bear suit running around while this alcoholic screams into a battered mic, his eyes looking like they're about to turn upwards back into his skull and never to return. I have no idea if I liked this or not.
Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly
Big up the Southend massive. Sam is well emo. He also has some guy playing trumpet, which was nice. (On another note, did I miss the memo about trumpets being well in this year, GCWCF were like the third act I saw with trumpets all weekend?) His songs are harmless enough, although they'll never send me crying in the bath. He had this massive rant about the BNP at the end of his set, which was actually quite effective, if only because he said "fuck" after every fucking other fucking word. Fuck.
Brakes
Wow! Like the Pixies, but a tiny bit like British Sea Power (that's a given, considering frontman Eamon used to be their keyboardist) and all types of indie rock driven goodness, this band really surprised me with their awesome hooks and equally excellent vocals. Featuring "those two" from Electric Soft Parade, the music ability on offer is outstanding, they even jokingly bought the sun out (oh yeah, the weather was a wash out up until Brakes started playing, it did mean however I got to wear my Polar Opposites wellies!)
Battles
Don't get me wrong, they were good. Quite good. But everything seemed a bit...forced. It was excellent to bop to, but their songs and sound sorta drifted in and out of excellence, there was a lot of repetition and a sense of "get on with it." I was possibly expecting more to be honest and judging from the group of Oxford types at the front all coked up and bumming each other I should of maybe listened to their stuff before hand? I dunno, I thought it was going to be like when I saw !!! for the first time, only in a barn.
Forward Russia
While dancing (rather quite excellently) I figured out that FR are probably one of the few bands doing what I want I want a band to do in this Country. This is the closest I can think of to what I would consider a "Marc band." Angular guitar lines that squeals and slices and then destroys, going off in a trillion different direction. A girl member (who counts in the background) A lead singer who spasms and gyrates his self along stage, limbs going off in different directions. The lyrics are pompous "Facts based on Einstein and his followers, this had to work, he was an educated man!" and they have the best. song. ever in Twelve. So yeah, they pretty much rocked my fucking knees off. However there were three girls at the front barrier, probably about 15? all chanting "Russia! Russia! Russia!" over and over. I called them "special needs" which didn't go down too well. They also didn't like it when people were dancing because they were trying to smoke. Obviously.
The Futureheads/
Ahhh, The Futureheads. This was the fourth time I've seen them and probably about the 2nd or 3rd best time. The new stuff? Well the new stuff is new, so I don't know it that well. It's not as catchy, poppy, punky or melody driven as the old stuff, but then that is the point isn't it? Why travel the same road twice? They were good, the crowd as always were excellent (a joint point and sing and fake dancing with a random in front of us) but no encore left us wanting more and more importantly they didn't play "First Day." Shame/10
I'll write about Sunday another day I gots comics to draw.
I never did really give my guide to Truck did I? Well it was all types of fun. The thing about Truck is that it only holds about 5000 people and those 5000 people are all like minded and "not nobbish." The thing is, I've been going to Reading Festival for the past 5 years(?) and that holds, what? 80,000 people and you notice it, you can't move for diddly shit anywhere and there's a handful of morons (with giant elbows that bash the shit out of your (ex)girlfriend and give her migraines for the rest of the day, thus making her miss most of the stuff she wanted to see) that do spoil it for the rest of us. It was good for 5 years but I guess last year I got a bit tired of people blowing stuff up and yelling "bollocks" at stupid o' clock in the morning, so when we trecked to Oxford and finally got to Steventon it's a complete different world away. It's so quiet, it's in a country village, out the way from anywhere. When we got there I thought we wouldn't get a camping spot, but this is only 5000 people we're talking about and half of them live in Oxford so will drive home anyway, so to my utter surprise we had uber amounts of decent places to camp.
Also! There were about 5,000 people carrying the program (which was free! none of this £7 for band times malarky bullshit) around with them with my art on it. It was a totally overwhelming experience and I guess that set the tone for the rest of the weekend.
Band wise? Well, a lot of Oxford bands sound the same and as I was hanging with Tara for the most part we had to see a lot of Oxford bands (I however wanted to see Skullthrash!) and I didn't much care for the little bands. I liked Mai Mayo Mai though Craig, so don't worry!
So I guess this is a quick run down of what I saw...
Saturday
The Walk Off
Loud, trance, shouting, Mike Patton sort of noise that is either a) well shit or b) well genius. They have a guy in a bear suit running around while this alcoholic screams into a battered mic, his eyes looking like they're about to turn upwards back into his skull and never to return. I have no idea if I liked this or not.
Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly
Big up the Southend massive. Sam is well emo. He also has some guy playing trumpet, which was nice. (On another note, did I miss the memo about trumpets being well in this year, GCWCF were like the third act I saw with trumpets all weekend?) His songs are harmless enough, although they'll never send me crying in the bath. He had this massive rant about the BNP at the end of his set, which was actually quite effective, if only because he said "fuck" after every fucking other fucking word. Fuck.
Brakes
Wow! Like the Pixies, but a tiny bit like British Sea Power (that's a given, considering frontman Eamon used to be their keyboardist) and all types of indie rock driven goodness, this band really surprised me with their awesome hooks and equally excellent vocals. Featuring "those two" from Electric Soft Parade, the music ability on offer is outstanding, they even jokingly bought the sun out (oh yeah, the weather was a wash out up until Brakes started playing, it did mean however I got to wear my Polar Opposites wellies!)
Battles
Don't get me wrong, they were good. Quite good. But everything seemed a bit...forced. It was excellent to bop to, but their songs and sound sorta drifted in and out of excellence, there was a lot of repetition and a sense of "get on with it." I was possibly expecting more to be honest and judging from the group of Oxford types at the front all coked up and bumming each other I should of maybe listened to their stuff before hand? I dunno, I thought it was going to be like when I saw !!! for the first time, only in a barn.
Forward Russia
While dancing (rather quite excellently) I figured out that FR are probably one of the few bands doing what I want I want a band to do in this Country. This is the closest I can think of to what I would consider a "Marc band." Angular guitar lines that squeals and slices and then destroys, going off in a trillion different direction. A girl member (who counts in the background) A lead singer who spasms and gyrates his self along stage, limbs going off in different directions. The lyrics are pompous "Facts based on Einstein and his followers, this had to work, he was an educated man!" and they have the best. song. ever in Twelve. So yeah, they pretty much rocked my fucking knees off. However there were three girls at the front barrier, probably about 15? all chanting "Russia! Russia! Russia!" over and over. I called them "special needs" which didn't go down too well. They also didn't like it when people were dancing because they were trying to smoke. Obviously.
The Futureheads/
Ahhh, The Futureheads. This was the fourth time I've seen them and probably about the 2nd or 3rd best time. The new stuff? Well the new stuff is new, so I don't know it that well. It's not as catchy, poppy, punky or melody driven as the old stuff, but then that is the point isn't it? Why travel the same road twice? They were good, the crowd as always were excellent (a joint point and sing and fake dancing with a random in front of us) but no encore left us wanting more and more importantly they didn't play "First Day." Shame/10
I'll write about Sunday another day I gots comics to draw.
