POST CATEGORY : Festivals

Oxegen 2011 – Sunday – Ocean Colour Scene, Manic Street Preachers, Alex Metric and Primal Scream

Sunday was by far the weakest lineup of the weekend but still had a lot to offer. Over at the Heineken Green Spheres tent a sizable crowd was gathering for 90’s indie rock stalwarts Ocean Colour Scene. They have always had a big following in this country and the crowd enjoyed it, clapping and singing along perfusely as they ran through fan favourites like ‘Riverboat Song’ and ‘Profit and Peace’. It just all seemed a little tired and jaded, perhaps old father time is catching up with them.

There was a distinctly ’90s fervor to Sunday’s proceedings with the Manic Street Preachers next over on The Main Stage. This slot summed up everything I hate about the Main Stage at Oxegen. The Manics arrived on stage opening with ‘You Love Us’, ‘Your Love Alone Is Not Enough’, ‘(Its Not War) Just the End of Love’ and ‘Everything Must Go’ before launching into a set full of classics. It was met with indifference from the majority of the crowd who seemed disinterested. For their part The Manics sounded exceptional and would have been much better suited to a later slot somewhere else.

It was a completely different story for Alex Metric who had drawn the largest crowd of the weekend into The Electric Ballroom and this time they were fully in tune with the storm being brewed from behind his turntables. Metric had the audacity to drop his Sabotage Remix, sending the place into a air-punching-frenzy, the highlight of the day.

How many bands can get away with playing a full album, a 20 year album in fact, at a festival? Probably just Primal Scream especially when it’s Screamadelica. The crowds may have been elsewhere but the atmosphere inside the Heinken tent was wonderful, warm and loved up. We were immediately treated to fully fleshed out versions of ‘Higher Than The Sun’ and ‘Moving On Up’ with mesmerizing gospel backing. It was clear Bobby Gillespie was as unworried about the numbers as the crowd was, spending the set strutting and swaggering, a superb frontman.

While it kind of waned a little during the middle finishing off with ‘Come Together’ and ‘Loaded’ almost lifted the roof off the Heineken tent with just enough time for ‘Country Girl’, ‘Jailbird’ and ‘Rocks’. Freed from the constraints of Screamadelica they seemed more comfortable in their rock persona sending people home happy in the cool night air. A joyous climax to a surprisingly amazing weekend.

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Oxegen 2011 – Saturday – Cashier No.9, Kitty, Daisy & Lewis, Miles Kane & Arctic Monkeys

After an impressive but sparse Friday, Saturday had a lot to live up to but spirits were raised as Punchestown basked in glorious sunshine, a rare occurrence in recent years.

Away from the sunshine was Belfast 5-piece Cashier No.9 who were wooing  punters in the Heineken Green Energy tent with their brand of shimmering indie. The set which opened with EP title track ‘Goldstar’ was cheerful and charming and also included ‘Oh Pity’ and latest single ‘Lost at Sea’. A really enjoyable set and there’s little doubt these guys are ones to keep and eye on.

Over on the Main Stage fellow Northerners Two Door Cinema Club drew the biggest crowd of the weekend so far. The Bangor trio’s cheery and energetic indie-pop perfect complementing the mood of the crowd, buoyed by the sun, they lapped up tracks like ‘Something Good Can Work’ and ‘Undercover Martyn’. It was a performance full of energy and confidence as they continue to grow in stature, they seemed perfectly at home with the Main Stage billing. They also announced we can expect an album in early 2012.

London trio Kitty, Daisy & Lewis have already carved out a niche as fine purveyors of genre-hopping retro sounding music. A sound molded from a mixture of R&B, Swing, Country and Western, Rockabilly, Blues and Rock ‘n’ Roll filled the 2FM Hotpress Academy. A wonderfully charming set full of feel good, toe-tapping infectious rhythm.

Next up was Miles Kane, who is probably best known for his role in The Last Shadow Puppets alongside Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys. This boys got skills, confidence, swagger and supreme stage presence. He swaggered through a set of whirlwind of ’60s psych-soul swathed in twangs and spooky feedback and pulse-raising rock’n’roll riffs, including ‘Inhaler’, ‘Rearrange’, ‘My Fantasy’ and ‘Quicksand’ while the live ‘Kingcrawler’ almost makes the neck hairs stand on end. As the set progressed, for the first time all weekend the symbiotic relationship between artist and crowd was exploited to the full as each goes for it, pushing the other further and further. Kane’s blistering show is Saturday’s high point so far but there is still the small matter of a certain band from Sheffield to come.

For me Saturday’s main attraction was always going to be Arctic Monkeys who somehow I had never seen live. Four great albums in and they have solidified into one of the most formidable bands on the planet, surely they couldn’t let me down? They were in no mood to mess around launching into ferocious performances of ‘Brianstorm’, ‘Still Take You Home’ and ‘This House Is A Circus’. As the rolled through their set much like The Strokes the previous night, it is real drilled home how good they really are.

The new material sounded fantastic even if some of the momentum ebbed away somewhat as the rump of the crowd seemed unfamiliar with tracks like ‘Brick By Brick’, ‘Suck It And See’, ‘She’s Thunderstorms’ and to a lesser extent ‘Library Pictures’.  ‘Don’t Sit Down Because I’ve Moved Your Chair’ in particular was glorious with Turner’s voice sounding fantastic. 

The punters played their part too and when ‘When The Sun Goes Down’ and ‘I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor’ got an airing all hell broke loose throughout the crowd. ‘Teddy Picker’, ‘Florescent Adolescent’ and ‘Crying Lightening’ sounded great too before Miles Kane joined them on stage to close a memorable set with ‘505’. The performance was a glorious success if a little distant at times, the next time they announce their own Irish dates I’m there.

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Oxegen 2011 – Friday – Tame Impala, Shit Robot, The Strokes & Leftfield

 

What a weekend! On paper it was one of the most uninspiring Oxegen lineups for sometime yet it turned out to be a fantastic weekend with some stunning performances, helped in no small way by the sunshine on Saturday and Sunday. On Friday it seemed like a re-run of the usual script, rain and lots of it. Thankfully this wasn’t the case. One of the big talking points was the eerily small crowd on Friday which left many shows deserted making it difficult for bands and punters to build on.

Whatever the case people were there to enjoy themselves. It was hard to know what to expect from House of Pain to be honest. They entertained the crowd buoyed by the appearance of sunshine before inevitably finishing up with ‘Jump Around’, sending punters into a rapturous frenzy of flailing limps and ‘jumping around’.

Next up Aussie psychedelic rockers Tame Impala over at the 2FM Hotpress Academy. No gimmicks just a short but fine set of warm fuzzy psychedelia running through tracks from their stunning debut album, Innerspeaker. They are far more ‘spaced out’ live than on record, memorable renditions of  ‘Solitude Is Bliss’, ‘Desire Be Desire Go’ and ‘Why Won’t You Make Up Your Mind’ in particular. It is a shame they were on so early and would be better suited to a different setting, their own headline show would have the potential to be something really special.

Getting ready for Shit Robot in the Electric Ballroom was a bizarre, it was creepy, ghoulish even, to see the place so deserted. The dance arena is normally jammed not matter what. The real shame was more people should have witnessed Shit Robot’s set, the sound, set and show was amazing. He deserved better.

The piece de resistance for the evening was The Strokes. The new album Angles may have received a mixed reception but it proved they are still relevant musical force today. Testament to this was the growing throng assembling at the Vodafone Stage even as the dark clouds descended. We were repaid quickly as The Strokes, in no mood to mess around, launched headlong into a set full of their biggest hits, along with material from their latest album.

Casablancas struts his stuff in a leather jacket and sunglasses (resembling a young Joey Ramone), then it finally dawns on you how great a band The Strokes are as they launch into hit after hit. ‘New York City Cops’, ‘Someday’, ‘Juicebox’ and ‘Reptilia’ are all stunning and when ‘Last Nite’ kicks in and all hell breaks loose. As they leave the stage it seems as though only minutes have passed since they had begun, which tells its own story. The Strokes return was a massive triumph eclipsing their disastrous show in 2004 and it will take something special to top that.

Amazingly there was more to come, still time to catch Leftfield in Heineken Green Energy tent. Straight from the off it is obvious this was the setting for them (inside, unlike Electric Picnic last year). The bass was simply outrageous, you could feel it rattling and reverberating throughout your whole body. It is no wonder they were once proclaimed ‘loudest live act in the world’. Extraordinary renditions of ‘Afro-Lelt’, ‘Song of Life’ and ‘Storm 3000’ blow the cobwebs off the old Leftism tunes.

Unfortunately that was it, I begrudgingly had to leave before the finish. One day down, Saturday and Sunday had a lot to live up to.

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Oxegen ’11 Preview

This weekend (8th – 10th of July) Oxegen rolls into Punchestown for the festivals annual appearance in Kildare.

Normally what it lacks in class it makes up with quality acts but this year I’m not so sure. Apart from other issues, I feel this is one of the most uninspiring Oxegen lineups for sometime and I don’t know if I can bring myself to shell out the cash for a ticket.

Now that bit is over I’m sure plenty of you have no such dilemma and can’t wait for the festival to kick off. Whether or not I make an appearance is irrelevant and there’s still quite a lot music worth catching over the 3 days (full stage times etc over on State.ie.

Here’s some personal selections for the weekend and feel free to post your own recommendations in the comments below, it is always greatly appreciated.

Friday:

Tame Impala (17:50 2FM Hotpress Academy Stage)

Australian psychedelic rockers Tame Impala’s stunning debut album, Innerspeaker stole many hearts last year. Expect a dazzling dose of warm fuzzy psychedelia brimming with feel good vibes, raw fuzzed up hooks and riffs. This is just the thing to set the weekend in motion.

Tame Impala – Desire Be Desire Go via Tim Bretantrum

The Strokes (21:30, Vodafone Stage)

What to say about The Strokes that hasn’t already been said? Ten years ago they helped rescue guitar music from the doldrums. A decade on, following a lengthy hiatus they returned with Angles, a record which proved the are still relevant musical force today. This should be one of the highlights of the weekend with a set full with old favourites, ‘Last Nite’ & ‘Take it or Leave It’ and new, ‘Under Cover of Darkness’ & ‘Machu Picchu’.

The last time I saw them (2004?) they were awful, Casablancas was a state but hopefully both he and the band have got their house in order.

The Strokes – Machu Picchu via smithblogsatalanta

Leftfield (23:30 Heineken Green Spheres)

Dance pioneers Leftfield (albeit minus Paul Daley) return to our shores for yet another show. These guys revolutionised dance music throughout the 90′s, pushing it to new and daring levels with two seminal albums Leftism and Rhythm & Stealth. Their show at Electric Picnic last year was disappointing with much of the atmosphere being lost in the cold night air.

Hopefully playing in a tent will suit them better along with a bit more from the Rhythm & Stealth era , perhaps the once proclaimed ‘loudest live act in the world’ can win me over again.

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Other recommendations: Maverick Sabre (18:00), The Shit Robot Show (20:15), Tiga (21:15 ) – all in Red Bull Electric Ballroom.

Saturday:

Cashier No.9 (15.55 Heineken Green Spheres)

Belfast 5-piece Cashier No.9 have been a mainstay of the Irish music scene for a number of years now. 2011 is fast becoming ‘their year’ with the release of the scintillating Goldstar EP and their debut album, To The Death Of Fun to rave reviews. Gloriously catchy, infectious and shimmering indie ahoy.

 Cashier No.9 – Goldstar via SnipeLondon

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Glastonbury ’11: Bits n’ Bobs

Glastonbury is over and done with for another two years, but thanks to the brilliant BBC coverage we were all able to enjoy a lot of the weekend’s action from the comfort of our respective couches.

Much of the weekend’s antics isn’t online yet but here are some of the highlights from across the weekend…

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The legend that is Jimmy Cliff

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More feel good vibes from Primal Scream

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The Kills ripping it up

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The Horrors new album really can’t come quick enough

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Elbow doing what they do best

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Old masters The Chemical Brothers tearing it up.

Primavera Sound ’11 – Day 3

Photo by Alan Moore & taken from State.ie

Before we get started I’d like to thank Johnny Feeney for taking the time to share his Primavera Sound ’11 musings with us. I for one have really enjoyed reading them and it’s made me wanna go to next years festival. Day three, take it away.

Primavera Sound ’11 – Day 3

Saturday and Champions League Final day in Barcelona and the place was buzzing. The site was awash with the colours of the Blaugrana and the odd, brave Man U fan and there was an undercurrent of anticipation in the air you couldn’t escape. But the show must go on.

Yuck opened the ATP stage in fine style in the sun and drew in a large crowd for such an early slot. Their catchy, hook-laden music harks back to the days of early ‘90s grunge with a splash of distortion thrown into the mix. Theirs was a rather short but super-tight set and I would expect bigger and better things from them in the future.

The all-girl group Warpaint (pictured above) weaved their mesmeric, psychedelic indie to dazzling effect. Tunes like ‘Undertow’ and ‘Composure’ sounded fantastic out in the open air of the Llevant stage with the Mediterranean breeze on your back and a beer in your hand. They’re a very good looking band too and held something of a spell over me as I watched. I wasn’t the only one.

tUnE-yArDs gave one of the performances of the festival for me. Utterly unique, tUnE-yArDs (aka Merrill Garbus) came onstage armed primarily with a ukulele whilst providing loops of percussion and tribal backing vocals for herself. Along with her booming voice and ably assisted by a bass player and 2-piece horn section, the results were devastating. Highlights here were ‘Gangsta’ and ‘Bizness’, my two favourite tracks off the excellent new album W H O K I L L. The music varied wildly between lo-fi folk and tribal African beats but was always captivating. She plays Whelan’s on June 17th and is well worth a visit.

With Fleet Foxes, you always know exactly what you’re going to get. Their pastoral folk and beautiful, soaring harmonies went down well on the main stage without setting the world alight. Main stages at festivals are a hard place to grab the attention of a large crowd and with the Champions League final about to take place, a lot of people’s minds were elsewhere.

After watching the mighty Barcelona crush Man Utd, I ran swiftly over to PJ Harvey who had the unenviable task of following the CL Final but she very quickly had the crowd at the main stage rapt. Playing for over an hour and a half, the setlist included almost everything off this year’s exceptional album ‘Let England Shake’ alongside classics such as ‘C’mon Billy’, ‘Down by the Water’ and the brilliant ‘Big Exit’. A remarkable performance by Harvey and a must-see for me at the Electric Picnic in September.

Swans are a new enough discovery for me so I plumped for them over Mogwai and I was not disappointed with my choice. They played intense, dark, multi-layered rock that sounded like music for the apocalypse. Alongside the guitars and drums were lots of rage, haunting bells and sinister strings. I liked this more than I thought I would. Will be digging deeper with these guys.

Putting my last choices into the hands of others, I went to see Darkstar who I didn’t care for much. Dub-heavy electronica, I just found it drone-y and dull. Animal Collective are a band I’ve never “got” on record but I decided to see if there was something live that might shed some new light for me. I now don’t “get” them live either. Not for me, thank you.

And so another successful edition of Primavera Sound ends for me. It’s been a lot of fun and I hope to return next year for what’s turned into something of an annual pilgrimage for me.

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Primavera Sound ’11 – Day 2 

        Photo by Alan Moore & taken from Nialler9

Johnny Feeney picks up where he left off with day two from this years Primavera Sound.

Primavera Sound ’11 – Day 2

Day 2 of Primavera Sound began with the imperious Sufjan Stevens in the Rockdelux Auditori, a large limited-capacity indoor gig used by Primavera to house some of their more intimate shows. Following a very similar tracklist to his widely-acclaimed shows in the Olympia in Dublin, the opening ‘Seven Swans’ kicked things off with a spectacular bang and the show never let off from then drawing in tracks from the new album, ‘The Age of Adz’, and the new EP, All Delighted People. Everything about this was impressive and relentless – Sufjan’s faultless live vocals while navigating various instruments, dazzling visuals and light show, attempted mass singalongs, fluorescent costumes, quirky choreography and energetic full backing band. There was constantly so much going on onstage and it was a real feast for the eyes as well as the ears.

Avi Buffalo released a beautiful self-titled album of uplifting indie-pop last year and I decided to leave Sufjan Stevens early to catch them. Disappointingly the band decided to use their early slot on the main stage to road test new songs which did not stand up with their earlier work. Only when the band played ‘What’s In It For’ and ‘Remember the Last Time’ from their album did they provoke any kind of reaction out of the crowd. Until then it had plodded along rather aimlessly and they will not have made many new fans.

Tennis followed over on the ATP stage but their brand of twee guitar-pop was a little sickly sweet for me so I ventured over to the Fiery Furnaces who had a far edgier, rockier sound. The band had a classic band make-up of drums, bass and guitar with the suitably fiery Eleanor Friedberger on vocals and played out some no-frills entertaining rock.

It feels like newcomer James Blake has been around for an age after finishing runner-up in the annual ‘buzz-band’ awards, the BBC Sound Of 2011. His dupstep-influenced, bass-heavy, minimal soul has lots of empty spaces but certainly packs a punch. I just felt he would have been better suited to an indoor arena where his sparse sounds would have less chance of escaping into the open air. However, the snapping electronic drums and sparse keyboards and piano really had the onlooking crowd, myself included, entranced. A very interesting prospect, this one.

The National are consistently brilliant and they didn’t fail to deliver another awe-inspiring show here. From the first notes of ‘Start a War’, the National owned the Llevant stage. Highlights included ‘Fake Empire’, ‘England’ and ‘Anyone’s Ghost’ but Sufjan Stevens coming onstage to join the band for ‘Afraid of Everyone’ and later again for ‘Terrible Love’ would have been enough for even the most hardened of hipster’s heart to skip a beat. Truly magical fare, although don’t expect Sufjan to be joining them onstage again for Oxegen in July!

The majestic Low completely filled the ATP stage later, a sight to behold when full as its all encompassing lay-out gives it a real communal feel like a weirdly designed amphitheatre. Low specialise in lush, beautifully arranged, soft rock and gave a spine-tingling performance to an appreciative crowd drawing mostly from their brilliant new album C’mon. It was easy listening at its best and a really beautiful experience.

Thus ended another frenetic evening of music where I somehow contrived to miss (audible sigh) Pulp, Battles, Simian Mobile Disco, Carte Blanche and Field Music amongst others.

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Primavera Sound ’11 – Day 1

The festival season kicks off here in Ireland with Forbidden Fruit this weekend. Elsewhere in Europe things are off and running, not least Primavera Sound which took place Last weekend.

My mate and gig-going accomplice Johnny Feeney, was lucky enough to attend this years festival. Here are his thoughts on day one.

Primavera Sound ’11 – Day 1

Primavera Sound is a lot of people’s idea of alternative music heaven. Set in the idyllic surrounds of Parc Del Forum with the imposing Mediterranean Sea dominating all around, avid festival punters scurry around frantically with barely a pause for breath between internationally renowned and up-and-coming alternative music acts of all styles. With little or no on-site distractions apart from eight music stages, some smaller tents for acoustic performances and one eating area, this place is all about the music.

Toundra kicked off proceedings with a bang on the Pitchfork stage with some fine, mazy, Mogwaiesque, instrumental post-rock and were a nice surprise. Sonny & the Sunsets were a much cheerier bunch, delivering good time rock’n’roll with hand-claps and smiles aplenty. Cults sounded promising on the ATP stage but I only caught a fleeting glance at them and they will have to be checked out at a later stage. Over on the main stage, Of Montreal played funky, glam-rock while putting on an enjoyably flamboyant show complete with bright colours, big wigs, tight-fitting spandex and some shoddy-at-best fake wrestling.

Glasser performed credibly with a stripped back band but, for me at least, fails to really command attention and is a bit more style than substance. The Walkmen were excellent with their brooding but beautiful indie rock. Suave frontman Hamilton Leithauser’s voice is every bit as distinctive live as it is on record and he had the large audience at the Pitchfork stage eating out of the palm of his hand.

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Hard Working Class Heroes 2010

HWCH has become a firm and important fixture on the Irish music calendar, showcasing the talents of over 100 emerging bands and artists from across Ireland. This year saw the welcome inclusion of ‘HWCH and the City’, a selection of free gigs in shops like Oxfam & Tower Records and the ‘HWCH Industry Conference 2010’. I wasn’t able to make either and instead concentrated on the nocturnal offerings – here’s a review, excuse the lack of photos but there’s some videos at the end (kudus to Moon for the KK vid).

Thursday was kicked off in Twisted Pepper with a show from Irish/Swedish duo Kill Krinkle Club. Unfortunately something was awry, it failed to transfer the nuances of their debut record to a live setting. The crowd seemed subdued and the stop start nature of the set didn’t help their cause. If they can iron out those live show wrinkles they may be a force to be reckoned with.

A short walk to the Grand Social for Enemies who blasted out some smashing post-rock and it was much the same from Richter label mates Jogging who’s blisteringly set of raw punk rock was hugely impressive. The evening was polished off  by Nouveaunoise‘s slick, lush and infectious electro beats – a nice touch.

Friday night began in Twisted Pepper where Derry native Conor Mason armed only with his guitar, harmonica, distinctive vocals and of course some beautifully, harmonic and uplifting songs. Hopefully the next time he travels from the maiden city to Dublin more people can be treated to his music – we’ve been promised the full band experience next time.

I caught Sacred Animals & Deaf Joe but the heat in The Mercantile detracted from the gigs so it was difficult to get a feel for things. It sounded interesting enough to check them out another time. Meanwhile, The Lost Brothers triumphed in Twisted Pepper as they performed an intimate set of meticulously crafted, plucky acoustic songs with gorgeous vocal harmonies to a hushed and respectful crowd. They aren’t going to break new musical bounds but they’ve perfected what is a timeless sound.

One of the largest crowd of the festival was in the Button Factory for Multi-instrumentalist R.S.A.G. He’s one of the most unique live performers in the country, nestled behind his drum kit, he and his ‘virtual band’ (on the visuals screen) fall somewhere between Talking Heads and Joy Division. He played most new material which I’m unfamiliar with but the highlight was definitely ‘Stick To Your Line’.

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Preview: Hard Working Class Heroes 2010

Hard Working Class Heroes takes place across Dublin this weekend, 7 – 9 of October. It has become an integral part of Irish music in recent years allowing artists to showcase their talents.

It all takes place across a variety on venues; Andrews Lane Theatre, The Button Factory, The Mercantile, The Grand Social (formerly Pravda), The Sweeney Mongrel, Twisted Pepper and The Workmans Club.

There are always going to be great new discoveries but here’s a quick few personal recommendations of acts not to be missed:

Thursday:

Kill Krinkle Club (Twisted Pepper, 9.10 – 9.40): The Irish-Swedish duo recently released their very enjoyable debut album Abandon full of broody atmospheric electronic/synth-pop.

Mp3: Kill Krinkle Club – Airport Via Nialler9

Nouveaunoise (The Grand Social, 11.30 – 12.00): These guys have a great reputation for a live show, expect lots of lush and infectious electro.

Nouveaunoise – Goni

Friday:

Conor Mason (Twisted Pepper, 7.30 – 8.00): The Derry native released When It’s Over in 2009 yet it’s only recently I’ve discovered the virtues of his soft, sweet and melodic indie/folk.

Conor Mason – Before You Return

The Lost Brothers (Twisted Pepper,10.30 – 11.00 ): Mark McCausland and Oisin Leech released the brilliant Trails of the Lonely (Part I & III) in 2008. It’s full of timeless meticulously crafted acoustic folk songs with beautiful vocal harmonies, expect the same.

The Lost Brothers – Angry at the Sun

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