zap! bang! Magazine

• Bestival 2011 Review

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  50,000 revellers descended on the Isle of Wight’s lush Robin Hill Country Park for the biggest-ever Bestival with an impressive line-up of acts old and new ranging from Bjork, The Cure and Brian Wilson right through to the emerging talents of Ghost Poet, Nero and Lone. A few adjustments to the site layout, a big investment in sound quality and a variety of spaces to lose yourself in ensured a wealth of fun while the dire weather predicted held off for a surprisingly dry event that brought a smile to all.

  
  Thursday
  Arriving on Thursday at near midnight, Bestival was already throbbing with activity. The packed campsites were nearly full and squeezing into the black area proved a testing exercise. A space found, a quick glance at the map to get some bearings revealed the changes that had been made to make the increase in size manageable. Stages had been firmly placed among the campsites to take the pressure off the main arena with Arcadia’s Afterburner stage moved from the furthest westerly point to the south east corner of the site where it bellowed out the flames in perfect time to bass until the small hours. Meanwhile a Psychedelic Worm stage emerged in the Wishing Tree field along with the nearby addition of a Swamp Shack and freestyle sports park providing more attractions to campers who wanted to roll to the entertainment in their sleeping bags. The Grassy Hill area provided a fresh spot for music over the weekend where the Red Bull Music Academy stage with its up-and-coming and hipster electronic acts proved very popular.

  A wealth of fun.

  It was there the first act of the weekend – Pearson Sound – was seen (though there had been acts throughout the day on the bandstand for the first foot passengers lugging their supplies for the weekend through the gate as well as in the Big Top and at the Psychedelic Worm later in the day). The producer also known as Ramadanman was delighting the early party monsters with his deep house grooves while in the Big Top the veteran American DJ and producer Arthur Baker (the man behind New Order’s “Confusion” and Afrika Bambaata’s “Planet Rock”) was proving he can still get down and party by pumping out 4/4 beats, testing the booming soundsystem and lasers. A 2am curfew ensured Bestivallers weren’t worn out before they could even get started, and Friday proved to be full of musical treats.

  Friday
  Waking up to warm sunshine, and the knowledge that Friday had been predicted to be the only opportunity to soak up the rays before cloud and rain hit, there was every incentive to get out into Bestival as soon as possible. Basking in the sunshine of the campsite soon evolved into laying in the sun while feeling the bass of the Red Bull stage vibrate through the ground as we sat listening to a live show from Benji Boko who signalled the start of his set with the Countdown theme and went on to rip through classics of hip hop and bassline to endear him to a new army of fans as well as ensure we headed to The Beach Boys legend Brian Wilson with smiles on our faces at the main stage. There the 69-year-old was already well on his way to enlarging the grins on every single member of the audience who were loving every minute. A flurry of golden classics including “Good Vibrations”, “Barbara Ann” and “I Get Around” saw fever pitch reached and a cover of Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode” including a behind the head guitar solo were sublime but the finale of “Surfin’ U.S.A.” capped off what would be one of the performances of the weekend, made all the better with the sun glistening in the sky.

  One legendary act followed another.

  One legendary act followed another two when Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Flavor Flav, donning his trademark clock around his neck, stepped onto the main stage to lay down the old skool hip hop accompanied by their political messages demanding we “fight the power” to help everyone become equal. Once more the crowd responded to the lyrics of hits “Fear of a Black Planet”, “He Got Game” and “Fight the Power” by throwing their hands in the air and body popping gleefully. Chuck D and Flavor Flav lapped up the atmosphere, bouncing around the stage and spitting rhymes into their microphones. They gave DJ Lord the chance to shine with a turntablist session featuring two decks playing Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” which caused an look of awe from onlookers and when the rapping pair held their fists in the air to symbolise freedom, it was a united Bestival front.

  The afternoon’s back-to-back pairing of Brian Wilson and Public Enemy, so different in styles, somehow combined for a classic combination that will not be forgotten in Bestival history – quite simply inspired programming. Next up was a turn to the dancefloor over in Rizlab where Friendly Fires were teaming up with DJs for live collaborations. First was Lone, who has won fans for teaming the old skool 1990s rave sound with fresh sensibilities. Tonight he kicked off with Outlanders’ “The Vamp” before turning his attention to his own tunes including the blissful “Angel Brain”. The appearance of Ed Macfarlane on stage providing his vocal talents was disappointing though, as was his contribution to the Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs and A Guy Called Gerald’s sets (the latter had brought Normski along to rap amongst the crowd to amusing effect), which was a shame as there was a lot of promise in the idea behind the sonic experiment, however there seemed to have been a lack chemistry between them. Still, the Rizlab felt the pumping bass with a weaving queue all night but we made our way across the site taking in the epic post rock of Mogwai and energetic, laser-fuelled headline set of Pendulum en route to the Afterburner Stage in the far corner of Bestival.

  Mr B The Gentleman Ryhmer’s brand of chap hop made for an amusing aside.

  There we saw Mr B The Gentleman Rhymer cover “Move Any Mountain”, “Ebeneezer Goode” and “I Like to Move It” armed with a true Englishman’s demeanour, voice and – er – banjolele. His brand of chap hop made for an amusing aside, particularly after the more serious hip hop of Public Enemy earlier, before there was some serious beats from the electro duo Filthy Dukes, chilled house newcomer Maya Jane Coles and the mash-up of Jaguar Skills. The Afterburner stage fires burned bright tonight before the jagged French electro of Boys Noize cut through the night with a closing set in the Big Top to end the day.

  Saturday
  Fears Saturday would bring the rain were soon banished when we unzipped our tents to find blue sky in amongst the white cloud. It led to another morning of enjoying the weather on the campsite, readying ourselves for the typically crazy sights of a Saturday at Bestival when the fancy dress comes into play. This weekend it was the turn of the pop stars, rock stars and divas with Katy Perry’s cupcake breasts and blue hair a clear favourite with the ladies while guys went for Slash, Adam Ant or the easy option of an animal-themed jumpsuit. Some groups went all out for the impressive with a group of construction men manoeuvring a giant robot around as the Beastie Boys, a team of Red Hot Chili Peppers and a questionable Tina Turner duo. Indeed, cross-dressing seemed to be encouraged but the guys should learn what underwear is acceptable for future Bestivals when wearing such short skirts.

  Katy Perry’s cupcake breasts and blue hair a clear favourite with the ladies.

  The far-side element of Bestival aside, Saturday was another stormer of a day as Oneman got the Red Bull crowd bopping to basslines (and conveniently the first stage we hit) while chart-toppers Nero blasted the dubstep into the Big Top masses, helping dismiss any residual drowsiness from the crowd. The throbbing subs were exchanged for feel-good disco when the Village People took to the main stage as their near-cabaret show took in their hits “In the Navy” and “Go West”, but the best was saved for last as the Construction Worker informed thousands of eager dancers how to do the moves to “Y.M.C.A.” and there was elation as they got to take part in one of the largest renditions of the gay anthem. Though the Village People were a novelty act compared to Brian Wilson and Public Enemy the previous afternoon, there was no doubting their ability to bring the Bestival crowd together all the same. Turntable legend Grandmaster Flash got behind the decks later to potentially teach DJ Lord a thing or two, however his shameless self-promotion as being the first DJ to be entered into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as well as a high opinion of himself, detracted from his hard-earned status among dance fans while the reliance on cheesy tunes such as “I Want You Back” and “Ice Ice Baby” meant his set was badly dated with little innovation.

  Far better were the forward-thinking Caravan artist October who laid down the dubby techno and welcomed in the evening. Over on the main stage Crystal Castles emerged for the most festival-friendly set they may ever have performed as Alice Glass managed to remain away from the crowd beyond a short spurt above their heads as they opted for their more melodic offerings such as “Celestica” and “Year of Silence” despite opening with barnstormers and “Reckless” and “Baptism”. Perhaps a lukewarm response from the onlookers had put them off getting into their flow or the increasingly large gusts of wind were zapping the atmosphere among the doomsayers who expected rain any second, but it was an oddly muted experience from the otherwise lively Canadian duo. There was no sign of lethargy in the Big Top later when Carte Blanche took to the stage for pumping electro from the partnership between Englishman Riton and Ed Banger’s late Parisian DJ Mehdi. Rollerskated dancers zoomed around to the beats as the pair got an overwhelming reaction to their live set, though we would sadly learn this week that DJ Mehdi had died in a freak accident. This impressive set, possibly Mehdi’s last, will serve as a fitting testament to a much-loved DJ who is sure to be remembered fondly by all who saw him on stage. Carte Blanche were followed by a tidy set by Fake Blood who proved far more fun than the two-and-a-half hours of The Cure that featured all their hits including “Lovecats” and “Close to Me”, but struggled to keep a field engaged throughout their bloated time slot.

  Carte Blanche took to the stage for pumping electro from the partnership between Englishman Riton and Ed Banger’s late Parisian DJ Mehdi.

  Back over at the Afterburner Irish trio The Japanese Popstars took the controls of the fire-breathing stage for an electro DJ set before Bok Bok and Claude Von Stroke stepped up to the decks in Bollywood for a classy couple of post midnight sets, but the night would go to two more legendary acts. The first was Primal Scream who performed their Screamadelica album in full to a Big Top so packed people spilled out the sides and many found themselves watching in front a screen outside in the spitting rain. They didn’t care though: the sight and sound of thousands of gleeful Bestivallers singing “Come Together” in unison was possibly the most glorious moment of the weekend that could have brought a tear to the eye. “Get Your Rocks Off” provided an ideal anthem to close on and led into a house set from Andrew Weatherall which led nicely into LFO’s set of no-holds-barred techno which sounds as fresh now as it did in the early 1990s. “LFO” will always be a favourite but the combination of lively visuals on a giant high definition screen with innovative beats proved a perfect end to the day as a storm hit outside the tented arena. Thankfully the rain stopped in time for the walk back to camp and it would be the only serious hit of rain we would see all weekend.

  Sunday
  The final day of any festival can be a bit trying, and while there had been talk of a full 12-hours of rain at Bestival, only grey cloud and splatterings of rain at nightime had any impact on enjoyment, though it was potentially one of the windiest days ever experienced at the event. A 4am finish to Saturday led to very late start to Sunday with the Red Bull stage again the first port of call for Nosaj Thing’s futuristic deep dub sounds while Macka B’s reggae offered a laidback antidote to the weary limbs of most. Those still up for a boogie would have been well served by Tensnake’s set in Bollywood which included his hit “Coma Cat” from last year among the disco fun while in the Big Top Global Communication blissed-out onlookers thanks to Tom Middleton and Mark Pritchard’s downtempo ambiance visualised by three lasers and a host of hypnotising visuals. Now was an ideal time to reflect on the more quirky elements of the weekend which had included a round of crazy golf, a visit to the Polka Club where gypsy punk and Balkan dubstep brass bands were a daily occurrence, a wander through the ambient forest and the sight of a many playing a bike-mounted piano. Indeed, Bestival had been full of surprises and it was hoped Bjork would cap off a weekend of adventure with her Icelandic charms. She arrived on stage to present her Biophilia project which will be released as an album later this year.

  At the Polka Club gypsy punk and Balkan dubstep brass bands were a daily occurrence.

  Described as “encompassing music, apps, internet, installations, and live shows”, a selection of special instruments had been created for the album including a Tesla coil used on the track “Thunderbolt”. It was suspended above the star for the opening tune after she was introduced by David Attenborough, though her natural sounds were too alternative for the majority of the Bestival crowd and it was difficult to engage with the star when the video screens insisted on not showing her on stage. Granted there was a deeper message about technology vs natural splendour in the creation of music, however it was an experience and message that seemed lost on all but the Bjork faithful, most likely due to a weekend of, to put it Primal Scream’s way, “getting loaded”. The fans will have been satisfied but with a ferry trip looming large that night, a trip to the Big Top was taken to get down to the Detroit techno with Hi-Tek Soul starring Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson – two of the scene’s originators. A remix of “Good Life” round off an adrenaline-pumping back-to-back set and though DJ Shadow’s sphere offered temptation to stay later, a prior booking to get off the Isle of Wight via ferry called time on thoroughly-enjoyable Bestival experience.

  Bestival at its best
  Year-on-year Bestival has increased its size and put together an impressive array of acts. Before this year’s festival it was hard to know where they might fit 50,000 people and keep them all entertained without being packed into an arena too small to cope with their demands to see all they wanted. At the weekend Rob da Bank’s team proved Robin Hill Country Park can accommodate not just a vastly larger group of revellers, but also give them more inventive places to enjoy themselves littered throughout the site. With no Glastonbury next summer, Bestival looks set to be the frontrunning replacement in 2012 for festival lovers who want the popular and the avant-garde – Rob da Bank take note!

  Photography by Freya van Lessen. View the full photoset here.

by Mike Barnard