Popped along to the final night of the free music festival which featured over 30 groups and was headlined by The Men They Couldn't Hang on Friday and Ska founder and legend Prince Buster, still performing at 70, on Saturday.
The Sunday bill included the likes of Go Audio, Yoav and Beth Rowley in the afternoon before The Automatic rocked it up with an excllent 45 minute set in the rain at 6pm just before I arrived.
I was thoroughly looking forward to seeing GLASVEGAS who are being championed in many quarters and have a great sound about them but it was hardly an enthralling show with little or no interation with the audience apart from "look at those f*ckers on that ride going up and down" by the lead singer seeing the adjoining fair between songs. Maybe the fact he walked on stage pretentiously holding a glass or red wine put me off slightly but, probably, it had more to do with them curtailing their 50 minute set to just 25 minutes.
In that time, the songs they showcased all sounded really good, a guitar heavy Aztec Camera?, with the novel sight of a female drummer standing up with just two drums beating and a couple of symbals. Had to laugh at one tune ending - "Here we f*cking go" about 25 times - not enough to match Super Furry Animals The Man Don't Give A F*ck but a good attempt! A decent group, a great sound but suspect they have limited shelf life.
YOUNG KNIVES were nothing if not entertaining. A group with a great set of tunes who played along with the audience and who sounded great. Not sure they have the look but, fair does, they're up to taking the piss out of themselves. Loved their show and their songs.
ASH are 90's legends and rounded off the evening with a blistering 60 minute set packed with many of their hits - Burn Baby Burn, Orpheus, A Life Less Ordinary, Shining Light, Girl From Mars, Oh Yeah amongst many other - with Tim Wheeler (the happiest rock star alive??) laughing, joking, bouncing and rockign all the way through (so bouncy and energetic was he that every pic I took of him is blurry!), some killer drum beats and a bass player throwing shapes all set as if he was home playing guitar hero on his X-Box! They got the big crowd, despite the iffy weather, bobbing along, jumping and singing throughout. Fanatastic stuff, well done Ash!
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