Looe Festival, Cornwall -
18th-20th September 2015
FRIDAY
I first came to the Looe Festival
a year ago as a carefree, child free fella on a mission to drink cider and see
bands. Now, 12 months on, I arrive at this tourist and fishing haven with my partner
and 11 month old son in tow for my first experience as a 'family' at a
festival. Negotiating the winding streets and trying not to be too tempted by
the many and varied food stalls we found our way to the beach just in time for
my son to officially record his first festival experience as watching the
legendary Buzzcocks working their
legendary punk rock magic . OK, they're getting on a bit and I'm not sure a
beach is necessarily the right environment for punk to really work in but
there's no denying the timeless value of songs like 'What Do I Get?' and 'Ever
Fallen In Love?'. That said, it was during the latter of these two songs that
the mini-Monger fell asleep so I guess being a critic is in the genes.
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| Lost Dawn - Cornish dandies |
Spinning ourselves around to
check out the BBC Introducing Tent, we are greeted by the hugely exciting Lost Dawn who hail from the Falmouth
scene. The psyche-rock trio have been on my list of bands to check out for a
while now and they didn't disappoint with their mixture of tight bass lines,
punchy beats and wailing blues riffs all infused with a sense of unpredictability.
There were no introductions, no fan fares and the lighting was so bright that
you could almost the bones of the band but these don't need to hide behind
anything or from anything, they just get to be themselves and we get to watch.
Bliss.
Wandering back through the
streets it was a delight to hear guitarists playing away in cafes, bands cranking
it up in pubs and there was even a guy in a red top hat playing a mean penny
whistle at a blistering pace outside a fudge shop. A highlight of these smaller
performances was the excellent Real
Steel performing a loose, funky and infectious steel band set outside the
Cornerstone to an increasing crowd of
massed and dancing onlookers. Some pulled pork and a short walk past a guy play
a sousaphone and we were on our way home - not a bad start to the weekend.
SATURDAY
Looe was packed. The streets were
full of day trippers enjoying the food, the sun and the music onRaikes playing a blinder in the BBC Cornwall Introducing tent. The Liskeard
quartet were doing a fine job of warming up the sun toasted crowd with their
indie leanings and complex, intertwined melodies. Over on the main stage,
though, something altogether more powerful going on as Plymouth based Antimatador were whipping the crowd in
to a frenzy with their mix of Rage Against The Machine power, early Incubus
funk and a liberal smattering of good vibes. They did pause to make a point
about the current Syrian refugee crisis as an introduction to the fiercely
infectious 'Mad As Hell'. There is always a moment at any festival where you
think you might have found a new favourite band and this time, Antimatador
might just have ticked that box.
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| Antimatador in selfie mode |
Back in to the tent for LWM
favourites Sound Of The Sirens. I've
championed this Exeter duo for some time now and I almost thought their moment
had passed and then I walked in to that tent. How two musicians with just an
acoustic guitar and a mandolin get a packed crowd to both listen intently and
jump for their lives is beyond me but they did it. Last year this pair played
to a relatively indifferent Marquee tent but they've worked their socks off
over the past 12 months and it has clearly paid off. Next year, the main stage?
The Dodge Brothers brought their
brand of Bluegrass Americana to the main stage with eagle eyes spotting film
critic Mark Kermode on Double Bass but the eagle eared noting that the
performance was slick, authentic and driven by the excellent Mike Hammond on
guitar, vocals and American drawl. Plenty of banter, audience participation and
impromptu dancing in the audience made for a thoroughly enjoyable set as the
sun set behind the stage and the fishing boats returned from a day's work to
top up the chip shops for the evening rush.
The Retro Gents lived up to their burgeoning reputation as one of
the hottest properties on the Plymouth scene (and beyond) with their unique
brand of indie with a twist of Arctic Monkeys tightness, Reef style groove and
the swagger of Catfish & The Bottlemen. The only thing that let them down
was a slightly bass heavy mix on the PA which left everything sounding a bit
muddy inside the steamy tent. One of my highlights of the 2014 festival was the
discovery of madcap Tankus
The Henge so it was a delight to see the band back for another year. As a
topless Jaz Delorean (yes, really) and his rag tag bunch of troubadours bounded
on to the stage, there was a prickle of anticipation within the crowd and it
was instantaneously satisfied as the band launched in to the kind of
performance that most bands reserve for their finale. The septet have retained
their gypsy pop roots but have added a new level of funk and a slightly
heavier, beefier sound to some of the new songs that only makes for a more
eclectic and impressive show. Not a new discovery but clearly one of the
highlights without a shadow of a doubt.
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| Tankus The Henge - you wouldn't cross them. |
Another day done at the
marvellous Looe Festival, then, and an honourable mention must go to the Steampunk Morris group who were wowing
and terrifying passersby in equal measure as they carried out some traditional
Morris dancing on the harbour side dressed in full Steampunk garb - including
one guy in a black face mask that would make Michael Myers whimper. Nothing a
tasty Pad Thai for the long walk back to the car can't solve though!
SUNDAY
The weather and the mood was far
more subdued today as Looe cranked up for another day of music and what better
sight and sound to rouse the audience from their slumber than The Normals playing their bright and
breezy brand of indie-ska-pop atop their minibus. A Beatles cover got the crowd
bouncing and the only interruption was a few stubborn motorists trying the edge
their way through the crowd amassed on the narrow street. Heading on over to
the BBC Cornwall Introducing tent, we caught the tail end of Cornish quintet Flashes. Strangely, the programme had
these guys listed as 'pop' but anyone expecting bouncy melodies or a Britney
Spears cover would have been quickly corrected by the grungy wall of noise that
these guys create which possibly stunned a few of the still hungover crowd.
Now, Duke Special is a name I
have seen and heard a lot over the years but never actually got around to
actually checking which, as it turns out, is a crying shame. With a stage set
up that comprised a humble piano and a percussive set up that is anything but
humble, these guys set about blending the tones of Tori Amos, the creativity of
Ludovico Einaudi and the moroseness of Tom Waits. Once you get in to the same
headspace that they occupy, these guys are a joy and their stunning version of
'Old Man River' absolutely slayed a crowd that was lapping it up as the sun
started to dip in the sky. Oh, and it's probably the first time I've ever seen
anyone 'play' a cheese grater as an instrument which is not something you say
every day. Burgeoning Cornish folk combo The
Changing Room played to a packed out tent at the other end of the beach
with a harp, an accordion and horns all adding to great tunes that were
slightly let down by a muddy sound mix.
Over on the main stage, the
eagerly anticipated Ferocious Dog took to the stage in a drone of
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| Ferocious Dog - you REALLY wouldn't cross them |
So, another summer falls away and
as the flocks of geese fly over towards warmer climes we are left with
beautiful music ringing in our ears and another three days of memories in our
heads. Looe Music Festival is quickly becoming the perfect book end to the
festival summer season but if I had one message to all the fabulous bands that
come in from outside the Southwest it would be this: don't forget this part of
the world for the rest of the year. There are some avid music fans down here
who have to go without for the Winter before bingeing on music in the Summer so
don't forget about us, OK?
More information: http://www.looemusic.co.uk/
Buzzcocks - https://www.facebook.com/buzzcocksofficial?fref=ts
Lost Dawn - https://www.facebook.com/lostdawnrock?fref=ts
Real Steel - https://www.facebook.com/realsteelband
Raikes - https://www.facebook.com/raikesuk?fref=ts
Antimatador - https://www.facebook.com/AntiMataMusic?fref=ts
Sound Of The Sirens - https://www.facebook.com/SoundoftheSirens?fref=ts
The Dodge Brothers - https://www.facebook.com/The-Dodge-Brothers-166791935082/timeline/
The Retro Gents - https://www.facebook.com/TheRetroGents?fref=ts
Tankus The Henge - https://www.facebook.com/tankusthehenge?fref=ts
Steampunk Morris - https://www.facebook.com/groups/steampunkmorris/?fref=ts
The Normals - https://www.facebook.com/thehomeofthenormals?fref=ts
Flashes - https://www.facebook.com/flashesband?fref=ts
Duke Special - https://www.facebook.com/DukeSpecial?fref=ts
The Changing Room - https://www.facebook.com/thechangingroommusic?fref=ts
Ferocious Dog - https://www.facebook.com/FerociousDog?fref=ts