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Kanye or Kan-nay?

Hey Tumblr, it’s been a while.

As a music fan and festival goer it always astounds me to see the sheer amount of negativity that surrounds lineup announcements, especially at a festival as vast as Glastonbury. With the announcement of Kanye West headlining the pyramid stage on Saturday night the usual torrents of "OMFGZ IM SELLING MY TICKET" began with more vehemence than usual, and a petition to get him axed from the bill (SERIOUSLY?!). Now, don't get me wrong I feel disappointments when a festival lineup doesn't include mainly acts that I LOVE but seriously people, be reasonable. With a festival lineup as huge as Glastonbury I can hardly even begin to comprehend how difficult it is to get bookings that make everyone happy and to be honest I think Emily Evis & team do a pretty damn good job of it. The headliners are always spanning genres (Metallica & Arcade Fire anyone?) and it's not as if the other stages (of which there are plenty to choose from) close during the headliner -in 2013 I wasn't overly taken with The Rolling Stones so spent the entire time at The Other Stage dancing like a loon to Chase & Status- so you're not being pulled kicking and screaming to the main stage to see an act you're not bothered by because of a lack of ‘other options’- this is ESPECIALLY true of Glastonbury, there's so much more than just the music. I always thought of festivals as an amazing opportunity to check out artists that you wouldn't necessarily buy a ticket for a stand alone concert, Kanye West is my case & point. I'm sure most of the people there (me included) wouldn't go out a buy a ticket for a Kanye solo gig BUT I'm also sure he'll pick up some new fans along the way. Anyway, If you purchase a ticket to a festival with a secret lineup and can't deal with the disappointment that it's not every act you wanted then maybe you should be thinking about trying other festivals- as a tiny country, the UK is very lucky to have so many killer festivals- or start rethinking the reasons you're going in the first place, there are so many more great festivals that don't sell out until after their announcements, they also tend to be geared towards certain genres so you know that although the acts may not be your cup of tea they'll at least be in your genre preference.

So please, if you were lucky enough to nab yourself a Glastonbury ticket this year just go with it. No matter if you love or loathe Kanye when you add in the atmosphere it's sure to be a great night, if you don't fancy a Kanye filled Saturday go and explore, find a new favorite band on another stage or just chill the heck out! Kanye or no Kanye it'll be a great weekend and I for one have all my fingers and toes crossed that I'll get there somehow. And I will be watching Kanye, even if I end up leaving halfway through. Peace, love & music ️ xo

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Bastille, Plymouth Pavilions 03/03/2014

All photos from https://www.facebook.com/PlymouthPavilions I do not in any way shape or form claim credit for these.

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Angel Haze, photos from Plymouth Pavilions 03/03/2014

All photos from https://www.facebook.com/PlymouthPavilions I do not in any way shape or form claim credit for these.

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Brother & Bones photos from Plymouth Pavilion 03/03/2014

All photo credit to http://www.matthollowayphotography.co.uk/

(I am in no way shape or form claiming to have taken these, my skills with a camera aren’t quite up to this!)

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Brother & Bones photos from Plymouth Pavilion 03/03/2014

All photo credit to http://www.matthollowayphotography.co.uk/

(I am in no way shape or form claiming to have taken these, my skills with a camera aren’t quite up to this!)

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Bastille + Support, Plymouth Pavilions, 03/03/2014

On purchasing these tickets 6 months (ish) ago I wasn't fully prepared for how much I would end up looking forwards to this evening. Bastille's fan base seems to have exploded since I first found them, as I found out when I tried to see them at Glastonbury- couldn't even entertain the thought of getting in the tent, so this gig was long overdue.

This gig was always going to be a winner with me as the first support group was *drum roll* Brother & Bones (for whom I have already confessed my love previously). At the end of the day I was hoping Bastille would be great but even if they were a bit rubbish I would have been happy to have been there just to see Brother & Bones.

As it turns out, Bastille weren't even a little bit rubbish.

So the night started off on a high note, Brother & Bones were on great form and I'm sure will have picked up new fans during their set which was fast, punchy and full of all the greatness they showed at the Falmouth gig on Saturday (See previous post)- half an hour really wasn't long enough! I personally preferred them in the smaller venue of the Falmouth Pavilion, I think that may just be my personal preference however as I always think smaller venues feel a bit more personal and you feel a little more connected to the act (Plus the woman stood next to me in Plymouth looked like she'd swallowed a lemon, not a fan of my singing and dancing it seemed!)

Now, I always seem to have issue with the second support act- which in this case was Angel Haze. Her set, although short, seemed incredibly disjointed to the rest of the evening. It personally isn't my cup of tea, and this seemed to be the sentiment muttered round all the people I was in hearing distance of. Her rapping, which I'm sure is good and full of insightful lyrics (I don't have a lot of prior knowledge to compare her to) was- at risk of sounding like my mother- just noise. Whether there were sound issues, I don't know, but you couldn't make out anything she was saying. The only understandable elements were the prerecorded vocals (Such as Sia on Battle Cry, which is a song I unexpectedly quite like, thanks for that Radio 1) and I'm pretty sure from previous experiences I've had of the genre you should be able to understand at least some parts! She also spent a lot of her set off of the stage down by the front barrier, which is great if you're at the barrier, but being a bit further back left most people just staring at the drummer and couple of other guys on stage, would have been nice to have seen a bit more of her. From what I did she she definitely seemed to know how to handle herself on stage. As disjointed as it was, there was still enough of a beat to have a dance to and, really, isn't that one of the most important aspects?

Now I get to Bastille, what a wonderful set they performed, playing a good mix of huge hitters (Bad Blood, Things We Lost in the Fire among others) and new material hinting at what I'm sure will be a stellar new album with its fill of radio friendly sing along hits when it's finally released. The stage lighting at points was a little frenetic, even making me feel a little woozy at one point with green flashing lights all over the stage pointed directly at the audience flashing like crazy (A nightmare for any undiagnosed epileptics!) but other than that it really set the mood, the screening and lighting generally added to the vocals and performance really setting the tone of the songs and taking nothing away. As the drummer from the group is originally from Derriford (just outside of Plymouth) this was somewhat of a homecoming gig for him which the crowd lapped up completely, every mention of him being a local guy led to cheers and screams from the audience adding to what was already an electric atmosphere. I don't think I've ever seen the Pavilions so crowded and such a responsive audience, Dan Smith had every person, old and young, male and female eating right out his hands which was a great thing to see for a group that just seemed to drop straight from obscurity to easily having the fan base and talent to fill out an arena. Even the people who seemed skeptical of Angel Haze seemed to be won over (I know I was) when she joined them on stage to perform the new collaboration- Weapon. I don't think there is any doubt that the right group won Best British breakthrough Act at the Brits recently, if last night is anything to go by they're at the top of their game and look to be staying there and winning awards for many years to come. Could this collaboration with Angel Haze and new material be hinting at a change of direction for Bastille on the new album? I guess we'll have to wait and see!

All in all, a fantastic show was put on by all and all of the acts came out to show they'd be around for a long while yet.

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Brother & Bones photos from Princess Pavilion, Falmouth 01/03/2014

The second half of the photo set. all photo credit to http://www.matthollowayphotography.co.uk/

(I am in no way shape or form claiming to have taken these, my skills with a camera aren't quite up to this!)

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Brother & Bones photos from Princess Pavilions, Falmouth. 01/03/2014.

It would be great if more bands would do this, it's great to have images like this to look back on.

All photos by http://www.matthollowayphotography.co.uk/

(I am in no way shape or form claiming to have taken these, My skills with a camera aren't quite up to this!)

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I See Red- Brother & Bones For All We Know EP

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Brother & Bones + Support, Falmouth- Princess Pavilions 01/03/2014

So on Friday a friend of mine text me and asked if I fancied going to see a gig last night, 'the band are pretty good' she promised.

UNDERSTATEMENT OF THE CENTURY.

Its really great when you manage to find great gigs close to home (by close I mean an hours drive, and for live music in Cornwall, that's close) So off we trundled down to the Princess Pavilion in Falmouth to see Brother & Bones. Now the night started off great right from the offset (other than getting a little lost finding the pavilions) the first support act, Sound of the Sirens, were loads of fun, they not only had great music but were funny to go with it- if they had any nerves about performing in what they said was their biggest venue to date, it didn't show. We managed to nab a spot right by the barrier to watch them and it was well with it, their mix of folky guitar driven girl rock just proved that there's still some credibility to be found from female only groups.

The second support act, Sam Williams & The Flock of Bats, however I personally found a little disappointing. We relinquished our spot at the front for this one and went further to the back to have a little more room to have a dance and a bit of fun- no chance. Every song they played had a really mellow vibe and just seemed to jar against what Sound of the Sirens had played and what I was sure was to come. Everything was so calm in fact that from further back in the room it was difficult to even hear what they were playing, I'm pretty sure the acts aren't meant to be drowned out by the sound of people talking but that's what seemed to happen. It was the sort of music I would put on if I was struggling to sleep.

Now I get to Brother & Bones. I was expecting to like them, but wow- was I blown away. There was so much energy on the stage it was like being hit round to head by a freight train- in the best way possible. Considering I'd done minimal Youtube stalking prior to the gig so had very little knowledge of what they were going to play, it really didn't seem to matter, there were enough catchy choruses and great beats to keep even me singing and dancing the whole way through, I had the best time I've had at a gig for as long as I can remember and I would easily put them up there with one of the best bands I've seen live (and I've seen a fair few in my time!) It didn't hurt that Rich Thomas, the lead singer/acoustic guitar is in my opinion bone achingly attractive (I have a serious weakness for men with long hair, much to my families disdain.) For a group lead by an acoustic I was really impressed, their sound is definitely helped by the fact that they have not only 1 drum kit, but a second drum/percussion section- as well as acoustic guitar, bass and electric guitar which leads to such a distinctive sound that is like nothing you will have ever heard. The vocals were spot on all night, sounding basically note to how the EP's come across. I picked up a couple of the EP's on the way out and have had them pretty much on constant repeat all morning, theres not a bad song anywhere to be found. I've never heard such a polished sound from a band which, for all intents and purposes hasn't hit the big time yet (God knows they should have!)

So it's safe to say, my fan-girl meter flew from 0-100 in their hour or so set and I couldn't recommend going to see them live any more if they come to a venue near you, it's well worth it. Lucky for me I get to see them again tomorrow when they support Bastille, and I can honestly say I'm more excited about seeing them again than seeing Bastille, and that's saying something for a band that was only on the edge of my consciousness last Thursday.

Personal favourite; For all we know EP Track 03, Follow Me Down

http://www.brotherandbones.com/

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Sup Tumblr!

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On the rare days that we get some glorious weather, there's nothing quite like going exploring.

Taken in Lerryn, Cornwall.

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Lunch at Harrods? Ok then.

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This is my distraction from all things productive, It's hard to mind though with a face like that!

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Hit me up if you're going to Glastonbury '13

I'm still totally buzzing, just a hint at the line up though would be lovely Mr&Miss Eavis!

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The 'No Swimming' signs that pop up on Fistral beach always amuse me, I know they're for your own safety, but still. It's a beach.

This is my favorite place in the world, nowhere can compare to the calmness of this beach in the autumn/winter once all the holiday makers have departed and its just surfers and empty beach. Sometimes, I forget how lucky I am to have grown up & live with this on my doorstep.

My own personal heaven.