Green man review. Had another incredible time. It’s probably the perfect festival for old man mahoney in terms of size.
This year they had a lineup on the main stage making Thursday pretty much a full day. Arrived and saw John Mouse who was great fun. It’s just two guys on synths and him, kinda Tim ten yen meets Eddie Argos. Need to check out his recorded work as some of his tunes were catchy as fuck.
Watched Mandrake Handshake, a band who seem to play a lot of the venues I frequent in TCOTU. I’ve never been impressed by what I’ve heard and the same be said about them as a live act. Watched 20 mins but they annoyed me too much.
Mandrake handshake being shit worked out a treat as for some reason Dele Sosimi was on an hour earlier than scheduled (he originally clashed with stuff I wanted to see) Dele used to play keys for Fela Kuti. He and his band put on a masterclass in afrobeat. Brilliant set
Next up was a Welsh act I’ve been excited to see Papur Wal. They only sing in Welsh so the likelihood of them playing TCOTU is probably slim for now. This is a lazy as fuck description, but they do sound like those early SFA eps + gorkys. Really love their record, catchy as fuck. Was good to hear those songs performed live even if the performance was nothing too exciting
El Goodo followed. The smaller outdoor stage was dedicated to welsh bands only on Thursday and the only people other than me and the swede watching appeared to be Welsh. I’d seen El Goodo a couple of times in the mid 2000s support SFA and really enjoyed them + their debut was wonderful. They split up the other year and had reformed just to do green man. I was expecting to enjoy hearing them again but it was actually really fucking good, my god they have some perfectly crafted 60s flavoured pop tunes. Due a revisit of their back catalogue. Brilliant set
Yves Tumor was up on the main stage. I remember seeing the video prior to the last album and being excited as fuck for the record but unfortunately it left me really cold. Was kinda the same live, he comes across as a total star but I just couldn’t connect properly with his set, I think the vocal effect he uses causes a real disconnect from the tunes. Not bad, but opted to go catch something else after half hour
Saw a bit of JP recommended hip hop in the chai wallahs tent which is basically the party tent. Was rammo so stood outside but seemed a lot of fun
Ended the first night with Pop Blom in the big tent. I do like this band, nothing they do is spectacular but it’s just some good fashioned indie rock. The guitarists backing vocals were far too high in the mix + they had an hour long set which I think I’d have preferred just 40 mins of their best tunes. Still, nice finish to what is essentially the bonus day of bands
Friday started on the main stage with Dactyl Terra. A welsh 3 piece smelly 70s rock sounding type thing. Reminded me of the black angels meets the 22-20s. Nothing I’ll ever bother with again but it was fine. The Bug Club seemed to enjoy them, they must have similar taste to me because I swear I saw them at the front for almost everything I saw all weekend.
Next I wanted to see Brian Destiny which features a member or 2 from the fat whites but they had cancelled. They was replaced by band based in Brighton called CEIL. Was nothing else that appealed so I gave them a go, not bad. You could tell the guitarist loved Dinosaur Jr. kinda a bit Wolf Alice perhaps, nothing too memorable but filled the time and I enjoyed the load guitars + they had one song which was great so need to look that up
Went over to the new band tent to see Tenderhost, I’d not heard of these until doing some digging into the lineup, the one song I heard on YouTube was jazz meets post punk meets tom waits. The singer looks like a right bellend but I was impressed. They was a bit like BCNR in their approach. One to keep an eye on for sure
Went to see melin melyn next, who were on last year but clashed. Was expecting another slice of welsh pop like papur wal and el goodo had provided yesterday. They certainly delivered that, pure welsh pop wizardry. However I never expected just how entertaining they’d be. Reminded me of seeing Eels live in how silly it was. They performed covers of Ian Dury and Neil Diamond which brought huge singalongs + there was a funny moment where the singer mid-song pointed to the sky and said “what the fuck!” So everyone turned around and a fucking spitfire flew about 15 feet over our heads
dangerously low, to which he pretended was part of their set. A real highlight, will definitely catch him/them next time there’s a TCOTU gig
There was a couple of major clashes on the lineup which meant I’d have to miss a couple of acts I wanted to see (was going to give dry cleaning a miss!) but there is a rough trade tent where they have bands play short 15 minute sets that are recorded for green mans YouTube. it was a real godsend as 2 of the acts played in earlier in the day so I could catch everything.
First was Zam-Rock gods Witch who have “reformed”. Really it’s just 2 of them with a bunch of white French musicians but still. Great to get to see them in a tent with about 100 people. The singer gave me a cowbell mid-song to which I hit completely out of time
he had to stop me and clap me into the beat. But still, the Jesus abyss have now collaborated with the Beatles of Zambia!
The Robocobra Quartet played in their next. Their new album I like, but was underwhelmed by, but they did the 3 bangers off the record so was well worth it.
Kae Tempest was on the main stage. Have only seen Kae do an instore gig before which was so powerful that half the audience was in tears by the end. Wasn’t sure if on a big stage that same energy would translate but fuck me it did. I can only think of perhaps Chuck D who commands such attention when they speak/rap. Found myself feeling a bit emotional during the performance.
Left Kae a little bit before the end to get a good spot for Viagra Boys. Originally I had pinned them down as a terrible no substance band like Idles, but that new record is a complete sleazy post punk banger from start to finish. Their set was fucking great, brought some needed chaos to the festival, crowd went metal and the security had a rough time dealing with all the crowdsurfers. A highlight of the weekend
Dry cleaning followed. Was planning on only watching half the set (they do the same set all the time the lazy fucks) but then just as I was ready to take off then played some new material so I stayed until the end. The new stuff sounded promising. I think they has a rough time following after viagra boys tbh.
Swiftly headed to the main stage to see Kraftwerk, missed maybe 20 mins of their set which was fine. The problem was they obviously had a huge crowd and everyone was stood around with their 3D glasses moaning that the 3D didn’t work and then people got bored. About an hour into the set loads of people had moved on and I ended up with a good spot. Was much better than the latitude set they did about 10 years ago, but still, I don’t think their style really suits a huge stage. Their songs don’t have enough bang in them to hold a huge crowd like something like the chemical brothers or orbital can. Still, great to see them as I was a bit too pissed last time
Saturday started with Ichiko Aoba on the main stage. A Japanese language folk artist. Was nice to sit down and listen to tho nothing I’ll probably look into again
Tapir! A band I’ve recently discovered were on in the new bands tent. Totally in love with them, nothing I think that'll excite people hugely on first listen, but man, those songs have really resonated with me. They had an extra member this time who played some keys, a little sax and some backing vocals which worked really well.
Popped over to the main stage for Donny Bennet who wasn’t very good. He does an 80s sax-pop thing which you’d think would contain plenty of humour, but it’s played pretty straight. Having a balding mullet, porn star tash and a few stories before each song isn’t enough when you’re deliberately trying to sound like something that was terrible the first time around.
Headed back to the rising for Alice Low. Probably the real unexpected highlight of the weekend. Alice is a fucking star, just came on with huge energy, the band were on fire and the set seemed to come and go in a blink of an eye. Musically proper Roxy music/glam Bowie meets the rocky horror soundtrack. It was something special, will certainly be along for any future TCOTU shows
Headed to chai wallahs for food and there was dj with a rapper from near me which was good fun. That tent is basically a sure bet for a good time if ever there’s nothing much happening.
Next were the Minyo Crusaders, an 8-piece Japanese jazz-funk band that incorporate a lot of different styles into their set. This was excellent. Lots of crowd involvement, they looked like they was having a blast. A perfect festival band, highly recommend catching them
Went over to the main stage for Katy J Josh T Pearson. I love her new record, it’s got a big mainstream sound the production is flawless and her voice really brings those tunes to life. Unfortunately I had a bit of a crash so opted to listen from the top of the hill and rest. Nice hearing those songs performed live though
BCNR played in the big tent. I’ve not seen them since the singer departed so went in with no real expectations. It was good! For them to have come up with an entirely new set within a few months and take it on tour… far better than it has any right to be. It isn’t perfect, a few of the songs didn’t really go anywhere interesting, but the opener and the closing 2 numbers were great. I think it was a really accepting crowd with a lot of good will towards them, the band seemed really taken back by the response they received + all I kept hearing after from people was how incredible their set was. I wouldn’t go that far.. but they pulled it off & showed that there’s still a future for the band so fair play. I think if people think of them as a new band rather than comparing the new era to what they achieved before then they will be surprised. I’m sure they can make a worthwhile record if they take the time to continue writing and adding new ideas.
Opted to see TORRES play on one of the smaller stages. I don’t know much about her other than hearing a record years ago which I enjoyed parts of. Was good, just a 3 piece band, she rocked harder than I imagined. Might have a dig into her back catalogue
Was initially going to watch a bit of Torres then go see Arab Strap but watched all of Torres so only saw maybe 20 mins of their set. Was worried it’d be too much of a downer for a Saturday night, but from what I saw it was a lot louder and I guess rocking than I imagined. Will have to catch them properly someday.
Walked over to the main stage to catch a bit of Beech House. They’re boring as fuck & I think most of green man agreed as everyone left to head to the big tent for Bicep who drew in a absolutely huge crowd. Was absolutely knackered by now, but the second they came on it was so banging it injected life back into old man mahoney. I lasted an hour but it was so packed in there I opted to get out and go catch up with the nugget STEVE DAVIS who was on at the same time
I went from a tent with a good 10,000 people in to a stage of a similar size with 50 people watching
worst of all, I’ve seen Utopia strong twice before and I couldn’t figure out what the 4th instrument I was hearing was. Turned out they hadn’t started on time and were just soundchecking and I could hear what the dj was playing over the top
Once they started they had maybe 60 people watching and someone just kept shouting “STEEEEVE DAVIS!!!” from the distance
did their usual 20 minute long pieces, though the first one involved the guitarist shredding for shoot 8 mins… though nobody told him there was no guitar in the mix
A strange and funny way to end the day
Sunday
Kicked the day off with KEG. Fun live act, so much energy. I doubt they’ll ever release anything too memorable but they’re a band that will always be worth catching
Saw Bingo Fury do a short set in the rough trade tent. Not been impressed by their recorded output so far but they worked better in a live setting. Nothing too memorable but I’m glad I caught them
Uhal Thomas & the Pain provided a great dose of classic soul on one of the smaller stages. Personally I’d like the band to play a bit harder and funkier, it’s too straight up soul for my taste but they do it well plus Uhal is entertaining throughout. Went down well with the crowd
Next up there was “special guests” on the main stage. I never get any phone signal at green man so decided to go down to see who they had, I expended it to be gruff Rhys but on the way there we saw Johnathon Ross walking about so thought perhaps it’d be something really big… it was Gruff Rhys
I lasted a couple of tunes until he played Colonise the Moon which is a really fucking boring SFA b-side which he insists on playing at every gig so I decided to fuck off
I’m glad I did as I managed to see the full set from The Wedding Present who were added last minute. I’d only ever seen an acoustic set from them before and I enjoyed them live more than I thought I would. Also they had a big dad-pit of about 40 old blokes going mad, presumably absolutely fucked by the end of the set. They did a great Low cover plus despite me not being that well versed in their back catalogue plenty of tunes I recognised.
Had a bit of a nightmare for the next about 90 mins. Went down to the new bands tent to see a French post punk band Unschooling only to find out they wasn’t playing so watched a band soundcheck for nothing.
Charlotte Adigery & Bolis Pupil playing the same time as parquet courts was the big nightmare clash of the weekend. Though I saw Charlotte and pupil were playing in the rough trade tent so decided to get there a band early to make sure we’d get in. Watched a 4 piece folk act who I was dreading but was actually alright. After them I found out that Adigery had been stuck at customs for 4 hours so wouldn’t be performing the earlier set. So 2 acts in a row id gone to see who had pulled out, tho it wasn’t as if I’d missed anything I was desperate to see so wasn’t the end of the world
Sunday finished with a bang. First up Ty Segall, who I’ve had some shit experiences seeing live reminded me of why I loved him in the first place. They were given a full 90 set which was perfect. Started off with 5 acoustic numbers before bringing the full band on and rocking the fuck out. It was great and I’m fully back on the Ty-train after 3 shows of utter disappointment
Parquet Courts headlined, I’d not seen them for a good few years & at that last show I’d found slightly underwhelming + the last record just didn’t do much for me, so whilst I was looking forward to it part of me probably wasn’t as excited as I should have been. They came on I was reminded how much I fucking love this band. The set was banging, crowd went metal, did most the big hits you’d expect (tho no total football) & basically delivered the most essential set of the entire weekend. I guess I’d had a 3 years of not listening to them very much but damn, they are the premier American indie-rock band aren’t they? Gonna do nothing but listen to parquet courts for the next few weeks. Annoyed I didn’t bother with their Brixton academy show the other month, I’d pay to see them in a arena right now.
Finished the night off with the traditional burning/fireworks display then headed into chai wallahs for K.O.G, a great mix of African music that was performed like it was on speed. An absolute party
Incredible festival, tbh I think I’ll continue to go to this over Glastonbury in future. It’s just so easy to get a good spot to see each band, no fighting through crowds, no big queues, no walking miles to go from stage to stage. Plus it’s mostly people 30-50 so it’s pretty chilled which suits me perfectly
) so the crowd felt a little defeated during his set, especially as it wasn't as constantly upbeat as the Ezra Collective. That said, it was still awesome. They did a rendition of the Zelda theme tune plus a tune composed by the keyboard player Brandon Coleman which was a synth-funk banger. Ended with fists of fury. Also, the standup bass player did a solo which was fucking mental, I assume he had pedal boards but it was like nothing I've ever heard. Just a 90 min set, but considering the heat & the late start time I think that was enough. 
