I’m still alive and I will be updating this properly soon, I’ve been sent loads of lovely bands to listen to and the like. Unfortunately having a tiny laptop issue in that I don’t have it because it’s very much broken. It’s at…the laptop repair place and it shall be back with me soon and then I shall be back here. 
Sorrysorrysorry. Back soon.
Posted in Life
I write lovely long posts about how fantastic a festival is and it gets cancelled. *Sigh* That’ll teach me eh?
The following is the statement released by the organisers on their website, on Facebook and via email.
Blissfields 2008 is Called Off
Due to lower than expected ticket sales, we have made the decision to call off Blissfields Festival this year.
We are truly sorry to those of you who have bought tickets, as well as all those who were ready to buy in the coming weeks. Thank you all for your support this year and we hope you will be with us in years to come, as we believe in what we do and want to continue supporting great music through our activities. You will all get a full refund including booking fee. Please bear with us over the period this takes to happen. You will get back all of your money, we promise!
We are devastated to be in this position and could not have foreseen it, as we had planned an amazing weekend, and have had a very positive response from everyone we have talked to including the press, who have seen the quality we were offering this year. With such low sales, not only are the financial burdens for ourselves incredibly high but we would also not have been able to put on an event with the atmosphere and passion that we wanted our festival goers to have. After all the planning, such a drop in quality for you was not an option and the only decision open to us after seeking much advice was to can it off and minimise the pain to everyone involved. This was not a decision taken lightly and has involved much heartache and tears from us and the volunteers who put this event together. We cannot fault in any way the organisational capabilities of all involved and know that with the right sales in tickets we could have put on a joyous event this July!
Blissfields has always been family-friendly and run by people who care about putting on a great event without major financial or commercial backing. For many reasons as below, this year has proven to be very difficult to make happen.
* The economy is so obviously hurting most people and even those still going to festivals may well have cut down on the number they are attending; anecdotal evidence whilst talking to people would seem to indicate this. One major festival cancelling this year already has cited this as the major cause, and we understand there may be more.
* The weather has not helped and we understand how it can be difficult to plan a weekend when it might mean spending it in the pouring rain. Images of last year’s washed-out events and some already this year, do not help.
* This year in particular, there may just be too much choice and those who love festivals have nine major events on the same weekend as us in the south of England alone.Our festival was done very much for love, which is why we plan to come back next year and put on an event that fans will really appreciate. As always, it will reflect the cost of putting on an event of this type, which is not cheap but we’ll do our best to make it very affordable like this year. All the bands and agents suppliers and stalls have been so positive and encouraging and want to see us continue, we hope you do to!
We are all hurting at the moment and have a lot of work still to do due to this decision and therefore cannot look too far into the future. We will let you know of our plans to continue with Blissfields festival in due course.
Once again we would like to offer our sincere apologies to you all and thank you so much for choosing our event out of so many wonderful music festivals.
Best wishes and we hope you are able to have a great alternate weekend at one of the other amazing festivals that are going on this summer,
Paul and Mel Bliss and all at Blissfields
We are sorry if anyone close to the organisation is hearing for the first time from this message but the news has got away from us as we have tried to contact everyone individually.
In 2007, a weekend camping ticket to Blissfields was £20. In 2008, the same ticket cost £60. The festival was planned to be 5 times bigger with a better line-up and so it was understandable but tripling the price of something is off-putting for many, even when it can be justified. A lot of people I know have in previous years gone to a big festival such as Glastonbury or Reading then had a nice cheap weekend at Blissfields, £60 meant that that wasn’t feasible this year (hence why a few of us were stewarding!) and nobody wanted Blissfields as their only festival.
It’s a shame but here’s to Blissfields 2009 when hopefully it will return in all it’s glory!
What: Latitude Festival
Where: Henham Park, Southwold, Suffolk
When: 17th - 20th July
Price: £130 for a weekend camping ticket
Latitude quite appeals to me as a festival purely because I quite like that when you see the published line-up they focus on not only the music but also poetry and comedy and literature. Although I’d always go to a festival for the music I’m quite jealous of the comedy arena at Latitude.
This year the comedy line-up includes Bill Bailey, Ross Noble, Frankie Boyle, Russell Howard (oh, I want to see him so much!!), Phill Jupitus, other people you can see on various panel comedy shows plus lots of people that I haven’t heard of but I expect are very funny.
In regards to the music, you can see Death Cab for Cutie, Sigur Rós, Interpol, Franz Ferdinand, British Sea Power, Martha Wainwright, Crystal Castles, Foals, Elbow and Blondie.
Link to Latitude line-up poster
Also playing are Godwits who are sort of vaguely local to me. The brother of their violinist went to my sixth form. Simple things like this keep me entertained.
http://www.latitudefestival.co.uk/home/
WMA Blondie - Call Me | Website / MySpace
MP3 Death Cab for Cutie - We Looked Like Giants | Website / MySpace
MP3 Godwits - Winter Coats | Website / MySpace
Posted in Festivals, Music | Tags: Death Cab for Cutie, Metronomy, Sigur Rós, Foals, Elbow, Interpol, Franz Ferdinand, British Sea Power, Martha Power, Crystal Castles, Nada Surf, Blondie, Godwits
[Breaking up festival analysis so we don't all go a bit mad]
After months of reading And Before The First Kiss, I have finally got round to listening to The Field Mice properly. I finally understand what Colin has been obsessing over for so long. I’m now obsessed with them myself. I am beyond obsessed. ‘For Keeps’ has been played far too much over the past few days.
Posted in Music | Tags: The Field Mice
Ah the mother of all festivals that I’m not yet man (or rather, woman) enough to attempt. It’s the rain that puts me off, I just don’t think I can face the inevitable mud of Glasto…I get scared just thinking about it.
What: Glastonbury
Where: Worthy Farm, Somerset
When: 27th - 29th July
Price: £155 for a weekend ticket
Glastonbury has already hit the headlines a fair bit this year after the controversial booking of Jay-Z as a headliner, many people not thinking him suitable for a festival that’s become synonymous with boys who play guitars. Good on them for being a bit different and not featuring the exact same bands as every other festival year after year.
While usually there’s a huge rush for tickets and many are left disappointed, they still haven’t sold out so if you want to go, you can! You’ll have to go through the registration process that prevents ticket touting, you can read all about that over at http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk.
Also headlining are Kings of Leon and The Verve. [Kings of Leon are a band that have somehow completely passed me by for years by the way, I couldn't even name a song so if anybody has any recommendations, throw them this way!]
The site continues to grow, it has been expanded by another 40-50 acres this year. Who knows when it will end…
Over the weekend you’ll be able to find The Fratellis, Amy Winehouse, Leonard Cohen, Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly, Kate Nash, Massive Attack, Ben Folds, Vampire Weekend, Foals, Elbow, Black Kids, Mark Ronson, Newton Faulkner, Martha Wainwright, CSS, MGMT, Lightspeed Champion, Emmy the Great, Stars, The National, Seth Lakeman and so so so much more. It’s safe to say that you’d be hard pushed to not find something you like.
Link to Glastonbury line-up poster
Or if like me, you can’t face the crowds and the mud, there will be the usual coverage over at the BBC. They tend to have highlights of the day on BBC2 in the evening with various other stages being shown on BBC Interactive allowing you to choose what acts you watch.
http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk
MP3 The Verve - Sonnet | Website / MySpace
MP3 Jay-Z vs. The Verve - Brush the Bitter Sweet Dirt Off Your Shoulder
Posted in Festivals, Music | Tags: MP3, Lightspeed Champion, Festival, Leonard Cohen, Glastonbury, Kings of Leon, The Verve, Jay-Z, The Fratellis, Amy Winehouse, Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly, Kate Nash, Massive Attack, Ben Folds, Vampire Weekend, Foals, Elbow, Black Kids, Mark Ronson, Newton Faulkner, Martha Wainwright, CSS, MGMT, Emmy the Great, Stars, The National, Seth Lakeman, Mashup
Here we go…the reason that my bank balance is horribly low and looks set to remain that way for some time to come…
What: Festival Internacional de Benicassim
Where: Benicassim, between Valencia and Barcelona on the Costa Azahar
When: 17th - 21st July
Price: €170 for 4 days, with 9 days of camping (14th - 22nd), there are also 3 day and 1 day tickets available. If you’re an ebaying sort (I personally can’t cope with it), then you can find 4 day tickets for under £100!
A lot of Brits are unhappy with the line-up of the Spanish festival this year. It was always going to be difficult in 2008 considering the weekend also plays host to both Summercase in Barcelona/Madrid and Latitude back over here. Not only does that draw potential festival-goers elsewhere but it also results in a battle for the bands.
Over the past few years Benicassim has gradually built a bigger British fanbase and with the Arctic Monkeys and Muse both appearing last year you could almost be forgiven for thinking it was becoming Reading-by-the-sea, as many were beginning to.
This year the line-up boasts some fairly fantastic names, with Leonard Cohen taking the spot occupied by Muse last year. For a while there were negotiations as to whether he would be able to perform, supposedly to do with getting from Benicassim to his next performance in Nice, which many have taken as Cohen wanting more money than initially offered. This speculation has resulted in further anger at the apparently lacklustre line-up as more of the budget would have been spent on Cohen, leaving less to be spent on other bands.
The other theory is that the organisers want to decrease the British audience because sadly we don’t have the best of reputations. (Well deserved really considering the amounts of people threatening to chuck stuff at Mika…) I don’t understand that by the way. There’s never going to be a festival where you like everything, just don’t watch Mika if you don’t like him. Sure, he’s an odd choice in the line-up but there are other things to do while he plays and what’s throwing things at him going to show apart from the fact that you’re a complete moron? *Sigh* I’ll be the first to admit that I have a short temper but things like that make me really angry.
That aside, I’m looking forward to seeing Leonard Cohen, Morrissey, Justice, Death Cab for Cutie, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Babyshambles, Spiritualized, Hot Chip, Metronomy, The Rumble Strips, Vincent Vincent & the Villains, Sigur Rós and Lightspeed Champion (SO happy that Dev’s playing!). On top of that there’s a good 5 or so bands that I’ve listened to before and might watch and that’s before I even listen to the acts I haven’t heard of and all the bands that I’ll end up randomly seeing.
Link to Benicassim line-up poster
If you want a big diverse festival mixed in with your summer holiday (hurrah for no rain and mud!!) then Benicassim is brilliant. You get access to the campsite for 9 days so it really is like a holiday, the town is on the beach and there’s a waterpark close to the festival site. But please don’t come if you’re going to be a twat and throw things at Mika and Leonard Cohen. Or anybody else for that matter. Some of us bruise easily.
WMA Leonard Cohen - Alexandra Leaving | Website / MySpace
MP3 The Smiths - Asleep | Website / MySpace
- Okay, so that was a cheeky bit of cheating but I prefer The Smiths to Morrissey’s solo work, sorry.
MP3 The Brian Jonestown Massacre - You Look Great When I’m High | Website / MySpace
MP3 Babyshambles - La Belle et la Bête | Website / MySpace
MP3 Spiritualized - Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space | Website / MySpace
Posted in Festivals, Life, Music | Tags: The Rumble Strips, Lightspeed Champion, Morrissey, The Arctic Monkeys, Festival, Benicassim, Summercase, Muse, Leonard Cohen, Babyshambles, Mika, Death Cab for Cutie, Hot Chip, Metronomy, Vincent Vincent & the Villians, Spiritualized, Justice, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Sigur Rós, Dev Hynes
BLISSFIELDS HAS NOW BEEN CANCELLED. SEE THIS POST FOR MORE DETAILS.
—
As festival season begins, I return to All Flowers in Time, clear out most of my old posts and begin afresh by giving you the details of all the best festivals this summer both in the UK and abroad.
We begin with what will be the first festival of my summer…
What: Blissfields
Where: Matterley Bowl, Winchester, Hampshire
When: 4th-6th July 2008
Price: £60 for the whole weekend with camping, day tickets are also available for £30/35.
After winning Best Small Festival at the UK Festival Awards for Blissfields 7 (quite right too!), not to mention also being listed among the best festivals in a number of national newspapers, Blissfields 8 will see a move to a new venue. Previously held at Bradley Farm, restrictions meant that Blissfields was unable to host more than 1000 festival-goers on the site. This year it will be held at Matterley Bowl near Winchester, previous home to Homelands and Hi-Fi festival allowing for it to cater for a hugely increased number of 5000.
The increased capacity has also resulted in a higher profile line-up compared to previous years with The Wonder Stuff, The Whip and Roni Size headlining. Across the 3 days a huge variety of acts can be found, including Noah and the Whale, The Rumble Strips, The Pan I Am, Robots in Disguise, Maps, Peggy Sue and the Pirates, Delays and Johnny Flynn, all of them appearing on either The Punch Bowl or The Manor (that’s the main stage and stage 2 to you and me!)
Stage Thrice will be housing local showcases turning Friday over to the lovely people of The Winchester Massive. Later in the evening Stage Thrice will be turning into a dance area after The Lounge became an unplanned dance tent last year - resulting in some highly amusing/drunken photos for me - meaning that the festivities will be going on for even longer.
Link to Blissfields line-up poster
Food and drink are reasonably priced (cheap in fact, compared to what you usually expect from festivals) and of fantastic standard. Very good falafel and vodka jelly shots if memory serves…Huge variety at any rate and you can read all about what there will be available here.
I shall be there, stewarding to pay my way through the weekend. 
(I’m as poor as poor can be, you’ll understand why when I write the next festival post. *Sigh*) Last year I went a couple of weeks after finishing my A Levels and had an absolutely brilliant weekend that I can do nothing but recommend. If I have half as much fun this year, it’ll still be beyond excellent. I hear that tickets have been selling well due to the good weather we had last week so do the clever thing and buy your ticket right this minute.
MP3 Maps - To The Sky | Website / MySpace
MP3 Johnny Flynn - Leftovers | Website / MySpace
Oh, such an (un)productive day. I’ve listened to the entire Shine Mix though and managed to work out what every track is except one.
Side one:
Side two:
It’s by no means perfect. I’ve always much preferred side one to side two. I wouldn’t have put the two Oasis tracks so close together, or even on the same side probably. But this is true nostalgia for me. Still love it.
So all that remains is to discover what the elusive ‘Side one: Track 3′ is and I can finally put the whole thing together in digital format. Hurrah. In the hopes that some nice reader will have a clue what it is I’ve managed to piece together what I think the lyrics are as best I can.
And we love you so come on, come on, come on
And we love you so come on, come on, come onSome people say live for today, while others cloud their thoughts in blue,
Some are bitter in their worlds, always hiding from the truth,
Running for cover, with one another, paint the town red, have a few,
The rumours that they spread ain’t true,
Love or hate us, we love you
And we love you so come on, come on, come on
And we love you so come on, come on, come on
While others cry and waste away, take my time and think things through,
I walk my path my own sweet way, I do what I do the way I choose,
Running for shelter, helter skelter…(missing lyrics)
The writing on the wall ain’t true,
Love or hate us, we love you
And we love you so come on, come on, come on
[Instrumental]
And we love you so come on come on come on (repeat lots and fade)
Posted in Life, Music | Tags: Ash, Ben Folds Five, Blur, Dodgy, Elastica, Folk Implosion, Garbage, Gin Blossoms, Green Day, Jesus Jones, Joyride, Manic Streets Preachers, Mansun, Oasis, Presidents of the United States of America, Pulp, Rocket from the Crypt, Salt, Shine Mix, Sleeper, Space, Suede, Supergrass, The Cranberries, The Wonder Stuff
Once upon a time, over a decade ago now, a very young girl became addicted to a mixtape that one of her dad’s colleagues had made him. It was called the Shine Mix and it became a firm favourite for all car journeys and Saturday afternoon kitchen dancing. Many years later that young girl is suddenly very close to being 19 and the tape has taken up near permanent residence in her stereo. The box was lost years ago, taking with it all the track names. Cars now only provide for CDs and MP3 players and the Shine Mix is becoming redundant…
Which brings about my project of the moment. Now officially a university dropout (until I restart somewhere else in September at any rate) and not being able to face getting a job yet, I feel I need a project. I’m remaking the Shine Mix, exactly as it was, so I can have it on my MP3 player and have a CD of it to play in my own car.
Luckily, some of the songs on it are such classics that I automatically know what they are. Some others I have employed the oh so useful technique of googling the lyrics…which has been working pretty well. However a couple of tracks are managing to evade me and the all-powerful Google. So I thought I’d open them up to the blog community and see if any of the wonderful folk reading this have a clue what they are.
The reward at the end of it will be that I’ll zip up a copy of the Shine Mix available for download. Which will be just lovely won’t it? Yes, it will.
More later on this afternoon, for now I need to go listen to the tape and finish compiling the track list as best I can.
Mega overdue, I know.
On December 9th I traipsed from my termtime home of Egham into London - Hammersmith to be precise - to see the unveiling of Edward Larrikin’s new project, The Pan I Am at the Lyric Theatre. Described as “An evening of Music and Poetry featuring Ed Larrikin’s Pan I Am” presented by Blue Flowers, I was a bit hesitant (I’ve never really got into poetry readings…) and so when I was booking my tickets I enlisted Co-Presenter to come with me.
Luckily for us, it turned out to be amazing.
Line-up:
The Pan I Am
Jock Scot
Patrick Wolf
Charlie Waller (of Rumble Strips fame)
Polar Bear
Johnny Flynn (of Johnny Flynn and the Sussex Wit)
Barnaby Tidman
Anyway, Johnny Flynn read a really good piece of poetry about a shrimp…(Okay, so it was a lot better than it sounds!), Patrick Wolf was as strangely beautiful as ever in his Victorian schoolboy-ish way and we realised that I’m totally in love with Edward Larrikin because I’ll fall for any guy in skinny jeans and a waistcoat. *Sigh*
So Co-Presenter and I had a pretty amazing evening sat in the very front row of the Lyric. Which is another point, I’ve decided that gigs where everybody is sat down are a bit weird. So I’m very much looking forward to seeing The Pan I Am again on New Year’s Eve at the Blue Flowers party.
For your listening pleasure:
The Pan I Am - The Final Ecstasy of Jeremiah Ghost
Check them out on their MySpace. Give Ophelia Aged 6 a listen while you’re there because it was incredible live. In fact, give everything a listen.
Check out their MySpace and if you like them think about buying their debut album Girls and Weather.
Posted in Gigs, Life, Music, Poetry and Prose | Tags: Gig, Johnny Flynn, MP3, Patrick Wolf, The Pan I Am, The Rumble Strips
