V 2008 - the inthenews.co.uk review
V 2008 - the inthenews.co.uk review
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Monday, 18, Aug 2008 05:32
inthenews.co.uk's Lewis Bazley and Rob Wheatley reveal the highpoints of two gloriously sunny days deep in the Essex countryside.
Attending V is always a risky proposition. Yes, the lineup's typically excellent - if catering to the masses far more than its summer rivals - its two-day duration means you don't necessarily need to use up your holiday time and its relatively diminutive stature is usually a plus-point, especially when it comes to zipping between stages and tents while trying your best to avoid whatever TMF-friendly sugar might be blasting from the main speakers.
But it's also patently a festival for people who don't really like festivals. For a start, its roster of bands rarely contains the diversity or rising stars found in Glastonbury, nor the fan-pleasing high-profile bookings of Reading (would Metallica ever play V??). Its name alone is representative of a massive global corporation and the wealth of advertising hoardings show that we're not really in unbranded Hop Farm territory here.
And though the massive floor tarpaulins that guard against rivers of mud are something to be glad of when you arrive home relatively fresh, they only go to show that this is a clean and clinical festival, solely about the music and lacking in the character of Glastonbury or the vigour of Reading.
The commercial drenching of the event is impossible to ignore and you can't escape the fact that monetary gain might have been prized over audience enjoyment with far too many people in attendance for an event in which the arenas close come 23:00, destroying the sense of camaraderie that might surface with an all-nighter. And more annoyingly - there's queues for. well, everything. Though the free shuttle bus between train station and festival site is a superb idea, it's there that the convenience ends, as thousands are left queuing for close to an hour to merely enter the arena in the morning, meaning the first bands on play to next to no-one and the audience are p****d off for a good hour.
As for the beer tokens. two queues are not better than one, in anyone's language.
But, and it's a big but, V is always saved from ignominy by the excellence of its performers, with singalongs a plenty, much-heralded headline sets from bands long out-of-action and a welcome showcase for stars of yesteryear. Though the show in 2008 was unsurprisingly stolen by best live band in the WorldTM Muse, inthenews.co.uk's Lewis Bazley and Rob Wheatley reveal the highpoints of V 2008.
Saturday August 16th
The Futureheads get things off to an energetic start with Barry Hyde giving his all to enliven the early afternoon crowd as Beginning of the Twist crashes through Essex and a storming Hounds of Love encourage "oh-ohs" which ring like a battle cry across the park. It's a pity their best song remains a cover.
Beth Rowley has impressively big vocals for one so dainty, but there's something a bit dinner party about her smoky jazz and the increased age of the audience is noticeable - she could be one to watch, but the songs will have to improve.
The Hold Steady blow these correspondents away - To read the inthenews.co.uk review, click here while Maximo Park are initially frenetic, rattling through Girls Who Play Guitars, Graffiti and The Coast Is Always Changing but after lacklustre new effort The Kids Are Sick Again, the subdued onstage dynamic seems to translate to the audience and it's the quietest Paul Smith's been in years.
Lostprophets guitarist Lee Gaze might have missed the majority of the Welsh rockers' Stafford set (due to his wife going into labour) but even his newfound resemblance to Bryan Adams while onstage in Chelmsford does not diminish the power of an impassioned performance from the Brigend boys, with initial sound problems swiftly solved and a main stage field doing as they were told as Ian Watkins orders them to "scream your heart out" Rooftops.
Will Young enters the fray on the Virgin Mobile Union stage to Beatlemania-esque screams and proceeds to gurn and camp it for the cameras until they (and a unbelievably irritating audience member called Nicola) go away, when he suddenly realises he has a gig to play. Leave Right Now is superb, but you can not help but wish that the Pop Idol winner - who has earned respect and can do much better - would put more into what remains a very ABC performance.
The Bartender and the Thief provides a rollicking start to a similarly by-the-numbers set from Stereophonics and with six songs from debut album Word Gets Around included to huge acclaim, it seems Kelly Jones has realised that the 'Phonics have weakened as their career has progressed. New effort You're My Star reveals the extent to which his lyrical powers have faded and Mr Writer remains as boorish and lumpen as ever. They came on, they played their greatest hits, the crowd sang along and they left - the CD would probably have sufficed.
The gulf in class between the 'Phonics and headliners Muse, however, is immeasurable with the Devon trio putting in an incredible and exhausting performance. It's a stunning spectacle of light, sound and three immensely talented musicians who create music incalculably louder and more intricate than the sum of their parts and leave you desperate for a good lie-down.
To read the inthenews.co.uk review of Muse, click here
Sunday August 17th
Taio Cruz's set kicks off with a superbly-rendered instrumental crack at Kanye West's Flashing Lights before the 24-year-old make his entrance to a booming Daft Punk cover, dropping polished pop perfection on Drive Me Crazy, a ferocious and intense She's Like A Star and inspiring anthem I Can Be, seemingly tailor-made to soundtrack sporting montages. Come On Girl provides a hit finish to a surprisingly excellent set with the absence of guest vocalist Luciana covered with a brief Thriller interlude and the performer/producer has stolen the show.
To read the inthenews.co.uk interview with Taio Cruz, click here
Delays open with a wall of noise reminiscent of My Bloody Valentine, with swirling soundscapes and a dizzying Greg Gilbert helping to command the crowd, even with the set largely composed of material from third album Everything's the Rush.
And just as The Love Guru inspired the New York Times to suggest a new vocabulary might be needed to truly convey the horror of its sheer rubbishness, Alphabeat are so joyous, gleeful and loveable that you feel words are insufficient to describe just how enjoyable the Danes are in action. It's a stellar show, and with the 80s synth-pop of Boyfriend, singalong splendour on 10,000 Nights and Fascination heralded by an M83-esque introduction, this is a sextet that deserved a higher spot on the bill.
To read the inthenews.co.uk interview with Alphabeat, click here
The same can't really be said for the Courteneers who provide a perfectly serviceable but undeniably generic meshing of Manchester sounds while the tiresome faux-rock of OneRepublic makes you shake your head at the record buying public's championing of such dreck. Lenny Kravitz, meanwhile, might have rarely made good on his staggering talent, but his groovy bar room blues is perfect for a sunny Sunday lying on the grass in Essex, even raising a smile with funky covers of Another Brick in the Wall and Billie Jean.
Travis arrive early due to the withdrawal of Sam Sparro and the loving reception provided for Writing To Reach You and Turn proves Britain still loves this band, even if it's a been a while since Fran Healy created anything of note.
Even if he did, however, it would pale in comparison to the diamonds in the current rough of the indie scene, with Kings of Leon the shiniest of all.
They don't say much, they rattle through the songs and they have infuriating habit of playing their best songs at 75 per cent pace but. well, they're probably the best band in the world
To read the inthenews.co.uk review of Kings of Leon's masterly V performance, click here
Lewis Bazley and Rob Wheatley
Get a taste of Kings of Leon's new album, Only By The Night, below: