Knowing that I would most likely be flat broke by the time September rolled around, I got my ticket for
Electric Picnic way back in March. I experienced the Picnic for the first time last year and was determined to make it back this year, no matter how circumstances conspired to have me stranded in Dublin.
Unfortunately, because of work, by the time I down to Stradbally and set up for the weekend, I'd managed to miss
Lykke Li,
The Temper Trap and a few others. There was nobody else I particularly wanted to see, so I spent most of Friday just wandering around and getting my bearings for the weekend.
On Saturday, I kicked things off with
The xx. The London four-piece's debut album has already nestled itself among my favourites of this year but I was doubtful of their ability to cut it live after hearing reports that they 'lacked presence' on stage.
While its true that the band essentially stood still for the entirety of the set and banter was kept to a minimum, I really didn't think this detracted from their performance. If anything, cracking jokes and leaping around the stage would have jarred with the tone of their music. The chemistry between vocalists Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim was just as apparent as on record and, even if on a superficial level there wasn't much to see, I couldn't pry my eyes from the stage.
Next up was
Marina and the Diamonds, who, you may have noticed, I've been ferociously championing on this site. I've forced my obsession with this woman upon everyone and anyone over the past few months so, if she'd failed to deliver, I might have had some explaining to do.
Thankfully a stonking performance from Marina got me off the hook and helped her to win over a number of new fans. Prowling the stage in an outfit she repeatedly warned us could lead to 'camel toe', La Diamond performed a number of tracks likely to feature on her forthcoming debut album, including 'Obsessions', 'I Am Not a Robot' and 'Mowgli's Road'. She seemed a little surprised by the crowd's enthusiasm and promised us 'Emeralds' she'd be back in November for a couple of gigs.
The cancellations of Bat for Lashes an ESG led to a re-shuffle in my Saturday evening schedule but I managed to find some worthy substitutes. I'd be lying if I said my memories of
The Whitest Boy Alive and
2 Many DJ's weren't a tad hazy but I remember enjoying both sets.
Klaxons, meanwhile, offered a glimpse of an intriguing change of musical direction. There was a drastic difference between new tracks and the songs from their Mercury-winning debut and they seem to have ditched the 'nu-rave' clothing and glowsticks, even if their hardcore fans at the front didn't seem as willing to let go...
Irish act
Villagers kicked off my Sunday morning in a wonderful fashion. Conor O' Brien's new vehicle have been the subject of much hype since emerging last year and it's completely justified. Backed my some fantastic musicians, Conor's soaring voice filled the Crawdaddy tent and lifted spirits during one of the soggiest periods of the weekend.
Next on my hitlist were
Simian Mobile Disco, who had the misfortune of preceding Florence and the Machine in the Electric Arena. The duo tried to keep things interesting with some emphatic knob-twiddling and an impressive light show but the set never quite seemed to take off. The fact that the front few rows were made up of hardcore Flo fans, eager to get a good spot, probably didn't help their case.
Having been blown away by
Florence and the Machine at Oxegen, my expectations for their set this time around were fairly high. If anything, they raised their game even higher. Flame-haired singer Florence Welsh seems to be growing in confidence at a ferocious rate and she wears it well. Her movement was mesmerising, the set-list was spot on and her vocal delivery was nothing short of roof-raising. I honestly can't remember seeing an audience left so stunned by a performance.
I solved the dilemma of choosing between
Royksopp and
Passion Pit by catching half of each of their gigs. In some respects, this might have been a mistake because I wound up some distance away from the stage on both occasions. That said, both bands delivered strong sets. Royksopp expertly tailored their material for a live setting and used a combination of clever visuals and props (including a life-sized robot for 'The Girl and The Robot') to elevate their performance.
Passion Pit, meanwhile, overcame technical glitches to deliver a set that was, by all accounts, a drastic improvement on previous gigs they've played on these shores. Singles 'Sleephead' and 'The Reeling' induced mild hysteria in the crowd and Michael Angelekos's bizarre falsetto was fascinating to behold.
The last performance of the weekend I caught was
Basement Jaxx, whose hit-heavy back-catalogue helped them provide a cheesy but highly danceable big finish. Their set may not have been one of the memorable of the weekend but at least they were one of the few acts to avoid being swallowed by the Main Stage.
I've heard a few gripes about this year's Picnic being less fun as previous years but, honestly, I think maybe the mucky conditions impeded some people's enjoyment of the weekend. In terms of this year's line-up, the organisers certainly can not be faulted and you can bet your smelly wellies I'll be back for more of the same next year.
[All images: Heineken Music]
Ms Marina and the Diamonds made a surprise return today with a new track, Fear and Loathing. Serving as an introduction to a new 'character' (Marina strenuously denies it's an alter-ego), the video depicts the first part of Marina's transition into Electra Heart.
Two new tracks from Marina & The Failures, I mean Marina & The Diamonds, have surfaced. Living Dead and Sex Yeah were initially thought to be demos from last year's The Family Jewels but, if Marina's self-sympathetic tweets are anything to go by, they are more likely demos of tracks from the follow-up album due later this year.
Marina and the Diamonds has served up probably her most conventional video to date for her latest single, 'Oh No!'.
After months of repeatedly surfacing on Youtube and promptly disappearing, the fabled Clock Opera remix of Marina and the Diamonds' 'I Am Not A Robot' has finally been given a legitimate airing over on Neon Gold.
The Marina and the Diamonds juggernaut continues to gather momentum and, truthfully, I think she's on the cusp of a point of success where we can happily decree that she has 'made it'. I guess the best barometer for this will be how 'I Am Not A Robot' performs when re-released in a few weeks' time.
Usually I try to confine my remix festish to 'Stuck On Repeat' posts but, every now and again, a remix comes along that justifies a post all of its own.
It's no secret that I am an embarrassingly avid Marina & The Diamonds fan and, as such, I'm delighted that Eimear and I have been given the chance to DJ at next Thursday's Listen | Love, which is serving as an album launch of sorts for her debut album, 'The Family Jewels'.
We already have a video for the radio-edit of Marina and the Diamonds' 'Hollywood' , and one for the stripped down 'acoustic' version, but this new one to accompany the Gonzales mix is probably pick of the bunch.
Marina & the Diamonds has given a rather emphatic "up yours" to those who have accused her of selling her soul to bubblegum pop with forthcoming single 'Hollywood', by recording this gorgeous 'stripped down' version of the track.
I'm currently getting ready for some Stephen's Day silliness and my preparations are being soundtracked by a Marina & the Diamonds track on loop. Shocking, right?
I unwittingly jumped the gun a bit when I posted the video for Marina & The Diamonds' 'Hollywood (Infected Your Brain)' after some brat had leaked it.
Apologies for being something of a Marinaphile but I just stumbled across the cover art and track-listing for 'The Family Jewels'.
Crikey, what a week. After graduation taking up the best part of Monday and Tuesday, I spent the latter half of the week chasing Marina & The Diamonds around the country.
Marina was first up to perform and once again delivered a performance worthy of several hundred 'amazings'. Although the audience were obviously not as familiar with her music as those in attendance at The Academy the night before, she gave just as much on stage and no doubt recruited a few more additions to her ever expanding collection of precious stones.
Next came Swedish-American indie-pop purveyors Miike Snow, who arrived on-stage sporting white face masks. I'd gathered from reviews of their shows that they generally play relatively short sets and enjoy toying around with the songs for a live setting so was pleasantly surprised that I got to hear most of my favourite tracks including 'Burial', 'Animal', 'Black & Blue' and especially 'Silvia'.
Headliners Digitalism performed their set in a separate space. Even if some of the crowd were a bit 'over-enthusiastic' when the German dance act took to the stage, it didn't stop us busting a move to tracks like the indisputably epic 'Pogo', all the while illuminated by some excellent visuals.
Cue the fanfare.
My cyber-mates at Heineken Music have come up with the goods once again. They've only gone and organised a special gig featuring elecro titans Digitalism with support from blog-favourite Marina & The Diamonds.
In other Marina news, Mowgli's Road has been confirmed as her first major release. The song's been floating around for a while but Marina reckons it's been one of the tour favourites and that it'll lend itself to an amazing video. The song is being tweaked for the release but you can hear the original version here:
As I mentioned in the mammoth Electric Picnic post, Marina of 'and the Diamonds' fame has promised to return to these shores in November. A single is due out in October (I have my suspicions it might be 'Mowgli's Road') but, in the meantime, she's tinkering away on her album, 'The Family Jewels'.
On Saturday, I kicked things off with The xx. The London four-piece's debut album has already nestled itself among my favourites of this year but I was doubtful of their ability to cut it live after hearing reports that they 'lacked presence' on stage.
Next up was Marina and the Diamonds, who, you may have noticed, I've been ferociously championing on this site. I've forced my obsession with this woman upon everyone and anyone over the past few months so, if she'd failed to deliver, I might have had some explaining to do.
Klaxons, meanwhile, offered a glimpse of an intriguing change of musical direction. There was a drastic difference between new tracks and the songs from their Mercury-winning debut and they seem to have ditched the 'nu-rave' clothing and glowsticks, even if their hardcore fans at the front didn't seem as willing to let go...
Having been blown away by Florence and the Machine at Oxegen, my expectations for their set this time around were fairly high. If anything, they raised their game even higher. Flame-haired singer Florence Welsh seems to be growing in confidence at a ferocious rate and she wears it well. Her movement was mesmerising, the set-list was spot on and her vocal delivery was nothing short of roof-raising. I honestly can't remember seeing an audience left so stunned by a performance.
The last performance of the weekend I caught was Basement Jaxx, whose hit-heavy back-catalogue helped them provide a cheesy but highly danceable big finish. Their set may not have been one of the memorable of the weekend but at least they were one of the few acts to avoid being swallowed by the Main Stage.
Sorry to do two Marina and the Diamonds posts in a row but I'm delighted that two of my favourite songs of hers have been uploaded by some brat and I wanted to share 'em.
Marina and the Diamonds has confirmed that her forthcoming album, The Family Jewels, won't be hitting shelves until early 2010. Obviously, I'd love to hear it sooner than that but I'm sure she and her team know what they're doing and are busy brewing up some killer tracks to add to her arsenal.
The video for 'I Am Not A Robot' by Marina & The Diamonds has finally materialised. It's essentially a montage of Marina modelling some extravagant body paint designs, but I think the starkness of it really suits the song.