300 bands, 19 venues, a music expo, the student music awards and an industry conference crammed into 3 short days. Is it possible? Well according to Sound City, yes. Born in 2008 its grown from strength to strength and this year was set to bring bigger acts from a wider range of genres than ever before. Headliners included, Professor Green, Temper Trap and Alkaline Trio among a host of other local and international acts. Armed with a festival map and a list as long as our arms of bands we wanted to see, we headed down to check out the action.
After a few misses, another attempt with google maps, and some friendly bar staff we managed to find our first venue, a little later than we'd hoped, to catch the Mystery Jets, woo an audience back to optimism and a belief in love at first sight. The band was tight and sounded as harmonic as ever, and the crowd, loved every minute of it. We're not sure the venue itself was a real life music venue in its everyday existence, in fact, we're pretty certain it was a dressed up car garage, but, we'll give it to them, it worked.
Other highlights for us were Alkaline Trio, performing the last date of their European tour at the O2 academy and GhostPoet who played an intimate gig at a great boutique theatre style music venue called The Kazimier, performing tracks like 'Survive It' from his latest album Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam. If anyone had any doubt about this artist's skill and talent, they were forgotten by the time he finished with his infectious hit Cash and Carry Me Home.
Overall the festival was a mixture of chaos and good fun, if map reading isn’t your forte you may find yourself wandering aimlessly through the back alleys of Liverpool, but once you found where you wanted to be, you're sure to have a good night.
Arriving at the campsite on Friday we were greeted by a new look Bearded Theory, with more stages and more space across the scenic gardens of Kedlestone Hall. The festival grounds were dotted with models of giant cyborg rabbits and dancing robots and it was immediately clear, even very early in the weekend, that Bearded Theory was going to be a bigger event this year.
Throughout the weekend the dance tent was jumping with the younger and more beat minded festival goers. Serenaded by DJs including System 7, Zubzub, The Ashan Project and Banco De Gaia and entertained by some truly incredible and at times highly trippy visualisations, the dance tent was at much appreciated alternative for many at times over the weekend.
The other stages brought some of the best live acts in the world, young, old, new and established, everyone was represented at Bearded Theory 2012.
One of the first acts I came across was an old favourite of mine at the small, intimate Water's Edge stage. Over the last few years Jemma Johnson's name has become synonymous with top class festival performances. This talented young lady charms crowds wherever she goes and Bearded Theory this year was no exception. A stunning set of covers and originals that went further to cementing Jemma's place as a real rising star on the UK music scene.
Also entertaining crowds on Friday daytime was the 360 on the second stage, Tornado Town. A ska outfit who after many years of playing together appear to be gaining the recognition that they clearly deserve. A high octane, high energy, fun and skilled performance that set the crowd up perfectly for the party to come.
The first big name headliner of the weekend came in the shape of Doctor and the Medics. As the set began a cyberman took to the stage, with a mop. He then proceeded to use that mop to knock over model daleks, before picking them back up and placing them where they had previously been. An odd introduction, but somehow one you couldn't take your eyes off. Then the Doctor and his trusty Medics took to the stage, looking just as fabulous as they ever did. Dressed in a full length faux fur coat, the Doctor led his band through a series of rock and roll covers that had every crowd member bouncing along. Finishing, as expected, with their smash hit Spirit in the Sky, Doctor and the Medics did exactly what was expected of them, and they did it with style.
Everyone knows the feeling, you're watching a band who you've heard of, then they play a song you love and you have that "oh they did this song" moment. I have never had that sensation as many times as when watching Terrorvision on Friday night. I have always been a fan of Terrorvision, but I never realised how much. A full set of top class tunes back to back, performed with aplomb by their incredibly charismatic frontman Tony Wright made this the stand out set of the day and one of the best of the weekend. After breaking up for a number of years early in the millennium and going through a few reshuffles, Terrorvision are back and are firing on all cylinders.
The came the much anticipated headliner, the "one way or the other" performance. Unfortunately for all in attendance, it went the other. When the Levellers fiddle player gained an injury Adam Ant heroically stepped in to save the day. He then proceeded to produce one of the worst performances of the weekend. Perhaps hindered by taking to the stage after Terrovision's sublime performance, Adam's vocals seemed constantly flat and his performance and times touched on desperate. I am not one to revel in disparaging comments and I shall not change that now. To me I feel the performance can be summed up in one moment. Twenty minutes into the set, a man dressed in full Adam Ant costume and make up walked sullenly away from the arena and did not return.
For those who didn't want to stay for Adam Ant's performance, a phenomenal performance was happening at Tornado Town. Karl Phillips and the Midnight Ramblers bring something very different to the stage. A mix of rock, hip hop, dubstep and various other styles fronted by Karl's full throttle rap style. A man who does not mind offending a few people, Karl is an outspoken, brash and cocky individual, but that works perfectly with the style of the band. After a lot of unsurity at the beginning of the set, the band won over the crowd within a few songs and by the end of the performance the packed out tent was begging for more.
Saturday started slowly with a plethora of fairly generic, fairly average acts. There came a point where doubts started to fester about whether the momentum of Friday night would be lost. And then Cara Dillon happened. I have been a big Cara Dillon fan since the first folk festival I saw her at some years ago now and she is still going from strength to strength in terms of performance. The purest voice that has ever existed in music, Cara's first note brought silence across Kedlestone Hall, a respectful and awe-filled silence that remained for her whole set. With her very talented band, who had their own moments with some foot tapping jigs and reels. With possibly the best performance of the weekend, Cara Dillon single handedly changed the complexion of Saturday and from that point onwards it was one of the best festival days I have ever seen.
The soft, flowing folk sounds of Cara Dillon were echoed through the next two main stage acts. Show of Hands brought a beautiful set of strings and vocal harmonies, even with the unpleasantly grey weather that was a feature of the festival, the band still warmed the hearts of all festival goers with their mesmerising songs. Following Show of Hands was the legends that are The Popes. Folk standards, their own classic tunes, a smörgåsbord of folk instruments and an infectious charm and energy helped The Popes end a stunning three act line up and set the stage perfectly for the night's festivities.
Highlights from the other stages on Saturday came in the shape of power folksters Pronghorn, who whirled the crowd into a frenzy and ended their set with half of the audience on stage. Also outstanding were the Boot Hill All Stars, who presented some very original covers ranging from metal to pop, their versions of them ranged from folk, to punk, to ska. An effotrlessly entertaining performance and a chance for a good dance for all in attendance. 3 Daft Monkeys are the reason for Bearded Theory's existence, so their placement on the smaller Water's Edge stage was probably their choice. The intimate setting was perfect for the leftfield folk band but the volume issues that came with the stage were clearly an issue to the audience. Shouts of "turn it up" were heard throughout the set. Regardless of this, it was still a lovely performance.
Taking the crowd home through the rest of Saturday on the main stage were Dr. Feelgood and the Damned. Two classic acts, neither of which have lost a step. If anything it's possible that Dr. Feelgood have gained one. A virtuosic performance from the musicians, an unsurprisingly charismatic and energetic set, true wonder in musical form. The Damned were clearly highly anticipated by the packed out crowd, but unlike Adam Ant the night before, they did not disappoint. A stunning set of classic tunes to close out a spectacular day of live music.
Sunday's at festivals are traditionally a slower day, designed for those with two day hangovers. Bearded Theory understood this and built the day's music accordingly. Starting off the day in the Tornado Tent were Wheatus. Everybody went, because it was Wheatus, nobody was expecting to be amazed and nobody was, but a solid set from a band that are a cause of nostalgia for many.
The day stayed pretty chilled until the arrival of the Urban Voodoo Machine. Truly one of the most insane bands I have ever seen, in one of the most beautiful ways. With a beautiful young burlesque styled lady playing a tuba, a giant green drummer (playing one of two drum kits, the other was often played by another member to great effect) and a spectacularly dark front man, the band put on the live performance of the weekend. Stepping close to cabaret at times, but always keeping the quality of their music up, Urban Voodoo Machine were my personal find of the festival. Having not heard them before, I shall be attending many more of their shows in the future.
One of my favourite bands in the world played the main stage on Sunday. To many, Chumbawamba are famous for only one song, to those who know them better, they are one of the best folk bands on the planet. Chumbawamba produced their trademark minimalist performance. Many of their tracks are entirely a capella, or using small amounts of percussion. The sparse and slight use of a trumpet is a beautiful touch, adding to the flowing harmonies of the five voices that at times sound like 20. Political statement, social commentary and rebellion has always been close to the band's heart and their songs continue to reflect this, in their words "because they still have to." The stand out performance of Sunday and many who turned up expecting to hear Tubthumping, which they didn't, became Chumbawamba fans on the spot.
Then came the close down for the evening, in the shape of three performances which managed to be both full of energy and wonderfully chilled out at the same time. Ska legends The Selector came first, all the classic tracks of the 2-Tone days sounded as good now as they did then, a great performance. Following on were the unpigeonholeable band that is Kissmet. Mixing bangra, hip hop, rock, folk, ska and many more styles than I can mention, Kissmet were possibly the most intriguing band of the weekend. The mixtures didn't always work, but even when they didn't, they still kind of did. Then came the official end to the weekend, in the shape of Reggae dance act Dreadzone. Just the most blissfully chilled out way to end a festival weekend, they sent everyone off with massive smiles on their faces, tunes in their hearts and high expectations already forming for next year's festival.
The first festival on the official calender, Bearded Theory has to set the tone for the year. Based on this weekend's events, it's going to be a real challenge for anyone to wrestle the Best Independent Festival honours away from the Bearded crew this year. A spectacular beginning to the summer, even with all the rain.
Set in the spacious grounds of Croft Farm, the lakes and Malvern Hills provided an idyllic and breathtaking back drop. The lake also provided a second purpose of being used for water sports for those who dared to brave the cold waters.
With the last few weeks of torrential rain across the UK, a very muddy and messy festival was expected, fortunately the weather held out for the entire weekend, with even a break in the clouds to allow summers rays to shine down.
The atmosphere of the festival was something I’ve not experienced before; friendly would be an understatement to describe the festival goers, staff and numerous dogs.
The Garden Tent, The Roots and The Blossom Stage all had their own unique blend of styling, atmosphere and music. The children’s area was a hit for both children and parents, with music sessions, arts & crafts, horse rides and entertainers, such as the two stilt walkers who seemed to amuse more than just the children.
Gloucestershire’s biggest band in history EMF took the stage on Saturday evening for their first gig of the year; they delighted festival goers both old and young by performing Schubert Dip, their acclaimed multi-million selling debut album, in its entirety.
Straight after EMF’s electric performance, Reef performed pretty much instantly keeping the crowd dancing and singing along to their best known hits "Place Your Hands", "Come Back Brighter" and "Consideration" The bands vivacious energy kept on right up until the end of their set.
Among those two, festival folks were also able to indulge in music from the likes of Top Loader, 3 Daft Monkeys, Miles and Erica of The Wonder Stuff , Avert Francis and Chesney Hawkes.
In spite of still being a small event, the organisers managed to pack a huge amount of festivities into the two days. This was “the one and only” way to start the summer festival season.
As I made my way to the daffodil on Friday evening for my first event after arriving in Cheltenham there was a quite atmosphere in the town. I walked down the promenade and past the Montpellier gardens where the heart of the festival was based, I saw a lot of people passing who were dressed up for the occasion. Whilst passing I could hear the Ray Charles numbers ringing from the big top which was being broadcast live on bbc radio 2. Minutes down the road I found the daffodil where the main event that was being held there was ‘Zara Mcfarlane. After the atmosphere being particularly quiet as I entered the main room the place was buzzing with people, wining a dining with plenty of staff serving them. There was a live band playing there was a great atmosphere but quite unique not one that I had experienced much of before. As the sound of groups of people engaging in conversation hummed round the room accompanied by the jazzy sounds of the house band. The venue was very swanky and suited the occasion well. High ceilings, chandeliers along with the general vibe and architecture of the venue, it suited the general impression I got from what I had seen of the town. I had entered at a good time as the dinner had passed people had moved onto desert and wine, the music from the band was creating anticipation for the main act, some of the music they played included famous jazz numbers from famous such as Miles davis and Dave Brubeck.
After the short interval and a few words about the band and the general evening Zara stepped out on to the stage, the way the room was set out and the size of the venue instantly made it a very intimate occasion between her and the audience. She kicked off her show with a well no number ‘night and day’ a well known song from the late Ella Fitzgerald however adding her on twist on it which was interesting and impressive. The reason I had wanted to see her is because in the preview to the festival they had compared her to Jill Scott who I am a fan of and I can see why there was definitely similarities in her manner, performance and especially vocals. Her voice was elegant and soft however echoing through the room powerfully, which is often hard to find. Another thing that stood out for me was the effectively time intervals the backing band and her vocals which worked very smoothly together. The room is now silent as she has everybody complete attention, as they seemed to be mesmerized, all in all a very calm and elegant but powerful performance.
Another gig I attended was Marcus Miller this was the following day, entering the busy bustle of the big top there was great anticipation for him to come on which is no surprise as a musician of his caliber and reputation. The big top was filled and there was a great applause when he entered the stage, there was a lot more hype surrounding this show in comparison to others I had seen. The funky rhythm and blues that echoed from the speakers had everyone heads bopping, of course as it is all seated there wasn’t much dancing however you could tell that people wanted to. Alongside him in his backing band he had men playing instruments such as the sax, trumpet, piano, drums and guitar each one glimmering with their own style which I was impressed with, they show seemed to differentiate in the way they all had character and all appeared as individuals playing together rather than just seen as one backing band. Maurice Brown on the trumpet and Alex Haan on the sax particularly impressed me with their stage presence, timing and skill of the instruments. Marcus performed brilliantly as a front man in a very calm and laid back manner ripping funky licks from his guitar and his solos were heavily applauded.
That following evening I went to see Candi Staton’s show, a performer of her reputation had the whole of the Jazz arena animated and the que outside grew early and quickly I noticed. Introduced by her two backing singers however took their time over it created a good atmosphere and forced anticipation upon the audience. Their was a mixed crowd as she is well known performer from many generations switching from blues to more country music Candi’s voice boomed stopping every now and again to tell querky stories mainly about love lives and relationships and men and women which to me seemed to go on a bit much however she was running the show and getting laughs to. Half an hour into the act she introduced Paloma Faith onto the stage this took everyone by surprise as this was not scheduled and Paloma was playing in the big top on the Monday however Paloma being the young and up and coming star of the festival invited candi to play as her special guest and they seemed to have a genuine connection and appreciation of each other and their work, which was definitely good to see the younger and older generations stars of the genre performing together. She was encouraging people to join in and get out of their seats which was the first I had seen but nothing short of a surprise however it seemed to be that it wasn’t what some people expected as a lot of people made their way to the exits through the duration of the show, nonetheless was great to see a music legend such as her perform, one of the ultimate divas.
On whole this was a very different experience for me however that is why I enjoyed it, having an appreciation for jazz music however only on a small scale it was enjoyable to attend. The general atmosphere was very glamorous in the evenings with Cheltenham home to some prestigious restaurants and bars however a brilliant occasion for all the family from what I saw and even if you are not the biggest fan of jazz an pleasant weekend away.
So the infamous Camden Crawl had a top Saturday to kick start the festival with Alabama 3, The Big Pink and The Futureheads headlining the bill. The festival is a steal at £65 for the weekend, giving you two days of roaming more than 50 of Camden’s clubs, pubs and other venues enjoying the best in upcoming music. There is something for everyone at the Crawl with karaoke and spoken-word included amongst all the live music performance.
The day kicked off in hardcore style with Bo Ningen giving it their all on the Redbull outdoor stage. The Japanese band played an energetic set ending in an eclipse of schreeching guitars and piercing vocals. Moving on and inside to The Abbey Tavern I was met with a crown packed to the doors for Peace. The Birmingham band played a quality set including debut track ‘BBlood’ and ‘Follow Baby’ which was a highlight. They bring a sound that could be considered new indie, with tracks drawing on bands such as Foals and Friendly Fires. The set was well received and there was a great atmosphere in the intimate venue.
They are certainly one to watch in the next few weeks with a gig at London’s 02 Academy Brixton (May 18th).
Following Peace, Sauna Youth played a small taster set before their 10.15 slot at the Barfly. Cramped into a corner of St Michaels Church the band – despite the loss of their sampler – gave a great performance that would surely tempt people to choose them over some of the bigger names in the late night slot.
Through the day I witnessed some superb new bands perform, with atheist band Hymns expanding their two-piece sound with two band members for performance in the Underworld. Sex Hands at The Black Cap were also a highlight, performing in the early evening, setting the bar for the much anticipated bands of the coming night.
I followed a huge surge of people eager for the headliners into Koko, and the venue was already reaching its capacity. Koko is an incredible venue and definitely stepped up the atmosphere compared to the more intimate venues earlier in the day. The Big Pink stepped out for their second appearance at Camden Crawl, and performed a lively set going hard with their synth-pop/electro-rock style. They pulled out tracks from their latest album ‘Future This’ mixed with Fan favourites like ‘Dominos’ that really flicked the switch on the crowd, and left everyone very excited for the evenings main act.
The Futureheads arrived with a purely acoustic set up, and gave an experimental set including more than a few songs performed acapella. They went with the raw style of their new album ‘Rant’, belting out tracks true to their hometown of Sunderland. Their were mixed reactions from the crowd who were met with an unexpected set that frontman Ross Millard explained was different in the wake of ‘Rant’. They ended the set with the most anticipated tune of the evening, their cover of Kate Bush’s ‘Hounds Of Love’. The day ended on a high, and there were too many highlights to count from the Camden Crawl. An all over great day of music, a highly recommended festival if you love music and a good time!
