Seems music festivals in the US are going the same way as their British counterparts according to Ms Lipton of the Harvard Crimson: http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=524103&disqus_reply=2503736#dsq-alerts.
So what happens next?
Well, many of the small festivals that have sprung up over the past few years, in what seems like a reaction to the large corporation dominated events, are going to have a tough time next year. The sheer amount of these small festivals has meant that they aren't selling out, which has led to several of these festivals being cancelled, Hampshire's Blissfields and Somerset's Sunrise being two of note.
This trend can't be blamed solely on a saturation of the market however. Severe weather conditions, the 'credit crunch', to give it it's snappy title, and general organisational disasters have also been cited as reasons for the sudden wave of cancellations and postponements this year.
I don't know firsthand how 'corporate' these festivals have bocome in America, but watching footage from the AT&T sponsored Bonnaroo this year and the same company's blatant censoring of anti-establishment lyrics sung by Eddie Vedder last year, I have to admit that the future doesn't look too bright.
Back home things don't seem quite so bad. Reading this year was excellent, with a re-united Rage and a re-energised Metallica bookending the headline spots over a weekend of complete wreckage and mayhem. A nice surprise this year was the absence of a sponsor. Piss strength 'session beer' Carling has sponsored the Reading and Leeds festivals since recent memory, and a lack of corporate direction has only allowed organser Mitch Benn put on undoubtedly the best festival of the year.
Would Zack De La Rocha's 10 minute political rant have been televised if they'd played 'Reading Festival, Brought to you by British Petroleum'? Fuck that, they wouldn't have even been invited. We'd see 'safe' headliners like Scouting For Girls, The Kooks, or uh...The Killers... Wait... Hang on... they did get the sound right for The Killers...
Still, if does all go tits up, the festival industry as a whole implodes and even Glastonbury is cancelled, take a trip to a cold, wet field in the middle of Salisbury plain next midsummers night, and experience what I consider the original and best event in the hippie calendar, Stonehenge.
Sunday 21 September 2008
Monday 8 September 2008
Amy Winehouse...
Amy Winehouse is 24, successful, and part of the music industry. What did everyone expect to happen?
I know that tabloids have pages to fill, but is the constant public criticism and finger wagging really going to help a girl like Ms Winehouse? If Amy wants to indulge in 'self destructive' behaviour which is damaging to her career then fair enough, she should be left to do it, and offered help and support if and when she decides she needs it.
As much as we like to think that these celebrities, whom we love to see fall from the dizzying heights we place them, are public property as soon as our beloved red topped newspapers say so, they are still human beings, and as such deserve a degree of respect and dignity regardless of their lifestyle.
Hearing about Amy's Bestival appearance over the weekend, and how angry people seem to get about the constant cancellations and below par performances, what amazes me most is that fans are still buying tickets to these events at all, as if this time it'll be different. Perhaps the realisation her music has suffered so much that no-one is coming to see her anymore will be enough to set her back on track.
And if not, instead of criticizing and banging on about 'wasted talent' and her 'excessive' lifestyle, just listen to 'Back to Black' or 'Frank' and be grateful that she ever released anything at all.
I know that tabloids have pages to fill, but is the constant public criticism and finger wagging really going to help a girl like Ms Winehouse? If Amy wants to indulge in 'self destructive' behaviour which is damaging to her career then fair enough, she should be left to do it, and offered help and support if and when she decides she needs it.
As much as we like to think that these celebrities, whom we love to see fall from the dizzying heights we place them, are public property as soon as our beloved red topped newspapers say so, they are still human beings, and as such deserve a degree of respect and dignity regardless of their lifestyle.
Hearing about Amy's Bestival appearance over the weekend, and how angry people seem to get about the constant cancellations and below par performances, what amazes me most is that fans are still buying tickets to these events at all, as if this time it'll be different. Perhaps the realisation her music has suffered so much that no-one is coming to see her anymore will be enough to set her back on track.
And if not, instead of criticizing and banging on about 'wasted talent' and her 'excessive' lifestyle, just listen to 'Back to Black' or 'Frank' and be grateful that she ever released anything at all.
Saturday 2 August 2008
A Nation in Denial
So we have 100 months left to save the planet.
Even if this is some kind of exaggeration I'm still concerned. What worries me more is that no matter how much rubbish I recycle, how many miles I don't drive my car, how many holidays I don't take every year, all of this will come to nothing except a clear conscience if those with the power, and responsibility I might add, continue to do all but nothing to help.
This country I call home, England, Britain, the United Kingdom, is nothing but a slave to world trends under the illusion that it still has a significant influence on global issues. The British public need to feel like they are important on the larger scale, but we are a nation in denial. As a country we are in desperate need of some perspective. If all we are able to do is stand idly by and watch the world fall apart around us then so be it, but lets not delude ourselves into thinking that we are actually going to make a difference anytime soon.
I'm not saying we should stop any efforts to save this planet, in fact we should be doing a hell of a lot more. But like the housemate who buys all the food while all the others eat it, all we can do is continue what we are doing, stepping it up where we can, and hope and pray that sometime soon someone has an attack of conscience and starts taking responsibility, lest we all starve to death.
Even if this is some kind of exaggeration I'm still concerned. What worries me more is that no matter how much rubbish I recycle, how many miles I don't drive my car, how many holidays I don't take every year, all of this will come to nothing except a clear conscience if those with the power, and responsibility I might add, continue to do all but nothing to help.
This country I call home, England, Britain, the United Kingdom, is nothing but a slave to world trends under the illusion that it still has a significant influence on global issues. The British public need to feel like they are important on the larger scale, but we are a nation in denial. As a country we are in desperate need of some perspective. If all we are able to do is stand idly by and watch the world fall apart around us then so be it, but lets not delude ourselves into thinking that we are actually going to make a difference anytime soon.
I'm not saying we should stop any efforts to save this planet, in fact we should be doing a hell of a lot more. But like the housemate who buys all the food while all the others eat it, all we can do is continue what we are doing, stepping it up where we can, and hope and pray that sometime soon someone has an attack of conscience and starts taking responsibility, lest we all starve to death.
Some kind of ranter... (...and the point is...?)
Sometimes, in the society we live in today, we are pushed into doing things that we probably wouldn't do if we had the choice. I, for example, wouldn't be attending university if I thought I could pay the bills as a journalist without a degree. Maybe I haven't been trying hard enough, or maybe I'm simply not a good enough writer, but the fact remains that I'm doing something I promised myself I would never do. Then again, I thought I'd be touring the United States with my band at 19, so perhaps my younger self was a little optimistic in thinking that I could do anything I wanted to do without following the rules set by our government today. Excuse me for believing it's still 1965 and people are rewarded for their hard work, passion and originality as opposed to their ability to do whatever is asked of them by those in power, leaving all morals and integrity by the wayside.
Don't get me wrong, there are those who have got where they want to be in life with their conscience intact. And those people are to be applauded, be it the surgeon saving lives, or the rock star raising millions for charity. All I'm saying is that these people are few and far between.
When I started my university course last autumn, all I saw was a large group of 18/19 year olds, all thoroughly unprepared for what life is going to throw at them, and all believing that what they learn in the proceeding three or four years will take them through the rest or their lives. And perhaps, for a very lucky few, it will. But for most of us, sooner or later life is sure to come around when you least expect it, and I guarantee that no matter how many lecture notes you took, classes you attended, or exams you passed, the kick up the backside you receive will be just as hard, if not harder, than everyone else's.
Sounds pretty bleak? Life is what we make of it, but it is also this life which will be the making of us all. The sooner we realise that we will not all be earning over 40 grand a year by the time we're thirty, and that there is a chance that your hard work will never be rewarded, we can at least get on with the business of living our lives the best we can manage.
We might even start enjoying ourselves.
Don't get me wrong, there are those who have got where they want to be in life with their conscience intact. And those people are to be applauded, be it the surgeon saving lives, or the rock star raising millions for charity. All I'm saying is that these people are few and far between.
When I started my university course last autumn, all I saw was a large group of 18/19 year olds, all thoroughly unprepared for what life is going to throw at them, and all believing that what they learn in the proceeding three or four years will take them through the rest or their lives. And perhaps, for a very lucky few, it will. But for most of us, sooner or later life is sure to come around when you least expect it, and I guarantee that no matter how many lecture notes you took, classes you attended, or exams you passed, the kick up the backside you receive will be just as hard, if not harder, than everyone else's.
Sounds pretty bleak? Life is what we make of it, but it is also this life which will be the making of us all. The sooner we realise that we will not all be earning over 40 grand a year by the time we're thirty, and that there is a chance that your hard work will never be rewarded, we can at least get on with the business of living our lives the best we can manage.
We might even start enjoying ourselves.
Saturday 21 June 2008
Solstice Solace...
30,000 hippies, druids, old school acid heads, 20-something students and other curious wierdos from all walks of life and nationalities descended upon the 5,000 year old stone circle during the night. Their reasons for seeing out the solstice in the middle of the Salisbury Plains one cold, wet midsummers morning in June varied as much as their haircuts, political stances and drug consumptions.
You can hark on all you like about millennia long tradition and the inherent spirituality of the place. I won't argue with you for an instant. However, any eastern philosopher will tell you one does not find the buddha at the top of the mountain, you bring it with you. In this case along with three litres of scrumpy, a big bag of grass, a hip flask of cheap whiskey, and 5 grams of the best mexican red cap mushrooms it's possible to find in the suburbs of Bournemouth.
Ok, you may not find anything approaching enlightenment, but I guarantee it'll be one hell of a party...
And it was.
Doubts surrounding the weather conditions proved well founded as the light drizzle continued to bathe the monument in a refreshing shower for the duration. It doesn't detract from the event so much as sort the men from the boys. In the rain you can rest assured that those thousands of of people dancing, chanting and drumming to the tribal beat are the most deserving, chosen few. Those for whom no absence of music can stop the party. We were the music, and we played all night long.
From the moment we entered the car park we knew that we'd finally found a place that our kind of behaviour was almost acceptable. Apart from Michael Eavis' Glastonbury festival, summer solstice at Stonehenge is a rare opportunity for the masses to gain some kind of insight into an 'alternative' lifestyle shared by only a few thousand. However, fewer still are capable of actually turning their 'strongly held beliefs' into positive action. It's a speculative fact that only an insignificant proportion of those in attendance actually stick by their principals come voting day, and an event with a turnout of nearly 30,000 like minded people is unable to bring those people together in such a way as to make a major positive change in society today.
And here we have the problem with our country. We've gotten far too comfortable with our 9-5 lifestyle, maybe not entirely happy to grant our MP s a 20%-30% pay rise every year, but beset with the opinion that we as individuals are utterly powerless to stop it. And it is those in power who are perfectly happy for this defeatist attitude to continue.
But away from the politics of it all, those of us who enjoy living our lives one day at a time, with nothing in mind except falling in love and not getting arrested, to paraphrase the master, there is no better time and place to simply forget about the modern age's problems and live for the moment, if only for 5 or 6 hours a year.
You can hark on all you like about millennia long tradition and the inherent spirituality of the place. I won't argue with you for an instant. However, any eastern philosopher will tell you one does not find the buddha at the top of the mountain, you bring it with you. In this case along with three litres of scrumpy, a big bag of grass, a hip flask of cheap whiskey, and 5 grams of the best mexican red cap mushrooms it's possible to find in the suburbs of Bournemouth.
Ok, you may not find anything approaching enlightenment, but I guarantee it'll be one hell of a party...
And it was.
Doubts surrounding the weather conditions proved well founded as the light drizzle continued to bathe the monument in a refreshing shower for the duration. It doesn't detract from the event so much as sort the men from the boys. In the rain you can rest assured that those thousands of of people dancing, chanting and drumming to the tribal beat are the most deserving, chosen few. Those for whom no absence of music can stop the party. We were the music, and we played all night long.
From the moment we entered the car park we knew that we'd finally found a place that our kind of behaviour was almost acceptable. Apart from Michael Eavis' Glastonbury festival, summer solstice at Stonehenge is a rare opportunity for the masses to gain some kind of insight into an 'alternative' lifestyle shared by only a few thousand. However, fewer still are capable of actually turning their 'strongly held beliefs' into positive action. It's a speculative fact that only an insignificant proportion of those in attendance actually stick by their principals come voting day, and an event with a turnout of nearly 30,000 like minded people is unable to bring those people together in such a way as to make a major positive change in society today.
And here we have the problem with our country. We've gotten far too comfortable with our 9-5 lifestyle, maybe not entirely happy to grant our MP s a 20%-30% pay rise every year, but beset with the opinion that we as individuals are utterly powerless to stop it. And it is those in power who are perfectly happy for this defeatist attitude to continue.
But away from the politics of it all, those of us who enjoy living our lives one day at a time, with nothing in mind except falling in love and not getting arrested, to paraphrase the master, there is no better time and place to simply forget about the modern age's problems and live for the moment, if only for 5 or 6 hours a year.
Saturday 7 June 2008
Parts 5/6
Spain is nice this time of year. At least, I imagine it is when on holiday here. I'm finding it hard to take in the beauty of the Mediterranean while constantly looking over my shoulder. The cliché of it all; dark glasses, hats, beards, feels like we're in some kind of spy movie. Pierce Brosnan always got to go home after shooting though...
So that was that, I was now Robert Philips, a nice, unassuming 20-something from Winchester, a man who'd never gotten himself into any trouble at all. Steve was a 34 year old Mr Arthur King from Wolverhampton, and Mark transformed himself into Mr Andrew Statham.
So that was that, I was now Robert Philips, a nice, unassuming 20-something from Winchester, a man who'd never gotten himself into any trouble at all. Steve was a 34 year old Mr Arthur King from Wolverhampton, and Mark transformed himself into Mr Andrew Statham.
Monday 2 June 2008
Part 4
We were just a bunch of stoners who'd decided to venture out to the pub for a drink, it was Christmas after all. Ok, so Steve can tend to get a bit lively after a couple of pairs of double vodka red bulls, but it's not like he looks for trouble. None of us did. I mean, we could've let that arsehole go off in the middle of the pub and had nothing more to do with it, but no, we decided to bring the trouble home with us.
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