September is fast approaching, and my second year of Uni will soon begin. I can't wait! As much as I have enjoyed the summer, there has been far too little to do these last few weeks, and I can't to throw myself back into my busy life as a student in Southampton (not sarcasm intended!). I really can't wait to be studying music again, to be playing with the uni bands again and to have new things to practice and to push my playing. One of the things that I love about Southampton is that there is so much going on, there are always gigs and shows going on in plenty of the local venues, and not not band nights. I've been to a fair few open mic nights and comedy nights that have also been really good. I love going to support local acts be it music or comedy and its certainly something that I didn't do enough of last year.
But aside from all that, I have actually had a really nice summer, I've spent a lot of time focusing on the techniques I learnt from Kev, Pete and Pat over the last year. I've spent a lot of time listening to my own playing, and trying to hear what they hear when they listen to me play. Over time I have discovered the importance of listening to tracks, trying to pick out as much as I can about the track, the feel, tempo, style and homing in particularly on the rhythm section, listening to the relationship between the bass and the drums, as that is the foundation of almost any pop/rock track.
Things I've learnt
I'm going to take a moment to think about the last year and the things I've learned, especially in the summer months. The big thing that I have learnt this year, that has completely changed the way I play, is the importance of coordination and control when playing. This mainly applies to the relationship between your hands and your feet, insuring that they are completely in sync or anything that you play is going to sound untidy. This is something that has been pointed out about my playing a number of times by various people and it is often something that I have just brushed off as rubbish. However, this year I actually sat down, and listened to my own playing, and I immediately understood exactly what they were talking about. It was Pete who really explained what was happening, and it was mostly across beat 1 of every bar. My kick was always either slightly before or after my hi-hat on beat one. This is a much bigger problem that it sounds because not only does it mean that I was flaming my playing, (which sounds very untidy) but it also meant that when ever I was playing with a group, the bassist and I were never quite in time, which is a huge problem. Of course, coordination and control doesn't just apply to your feet, you need to be able to have full control over your hands as well ensuring that they keep a steady beat, as the groove is the most crucial part of drumming! I addressed this issues by practising the same beat again and again to a click and really listening to my kick, hearing when it was even just slightly out of time. This really helped me to control my playing properly and has allowed me to be more creative with my playing as I have more control.
Accents and Dynamics
Something else that I have learned this year and have been practising over the last few weeks in the importance of dynamics and accents in drumming. This is what gives your playing personality, accents especially make your playing stand out. Dynamics and accents are what allow drummers to play musically. With good control over your accents, as a drummer, you can create any musical illusion that you want. For example, something that I have learned recently using accents is that you can create a ¾ poly rhythm just by using accents and playing the same rhythm on both hands. You can do this play playing single stroke semi quavers in 4/4 time accenting every 3rd semi quaver. If you accent the beats with your hi-hats you can hear how the accent then gets thrown all over the place, even though you are still only playing 4/4 semi quavers! This sounds really cool and is great when used around the kit. The way I practice my accents is my practising my tap strokes over and over, and then accenting by throwing in gentle down strokes. If your tap strokes are quiet enough, your down strokes should stand out really with out you having to put in any effort. But remember, the quiet notes are the most important, with out them, there is nothing to accent!
Networking
I can not stress the enough just how important networking is. Its does not matter how amazing you are at playing, if nobody knows it your not going to go anywhere! It is crucial for professional musicians to promote themselves as much as possible. This will probably mean, as I have discovered, doing plenty of unpaid favours for people, like recording the drums for their uni project. Although you don't get paid for these kind of jobs, they are really good to do because it build your experience and knowledge up, and believe it or not, people remember you if you turn up on time, do a good job, work hard and be easy to get on with. Its by doing those kind of things that you start to build up a network and a reputation. The more people you know, and more significantly, the more people that know you, the more likely you are to get work.
My Plans for the New Academic Year
So in this new academic year, I plan to make the most of the time I have as a student, I have now got a part time job in a local pub so I can save up some money so that should take up a lot of my weekend. I'm going to get back into my routine of practising 2 hours a day and I'm going to do my best to get involved with every musical project that I can. I am also going to get into the habit of going to more local gigs and seeing more local talent, as well as making far more time for my lovely and very tolerant girlfriend! If I can, I'll be writing in my blog twice a week and I'll be desperately trying to keep up with our ever changing music scene, both locally and nationally (I'm not ready for globally yet). Hope you enjoy reading about my crazy adventures to come!
Friday, 27 August 2010
Wednesday, 25 August 2010
My New Project
I've titled this entry as “My New Project”, but this isn't really my project, and although it is new for me, the group have been together for over a year. However, the project is new to me and I'm quite excited about it, its a project that will need a lot of work and it will need to be pushed hard but its a project that I think has potential.
So what is this new project? Well before I explain what the project is, It is important that I explain how I got involved in it. The reason for this is that for as long as I have been studying music and the music industry, everyone as always said to me that networking is the most important thing which is something that kind of went over my head a bit, I thought that really when put into practice the only thing that matters is that you are the good at what you do. Boy was I wrong about that! Of course it is important that when you are asked to do a job that you do it right and play to your best, but I have discovered that you are far more likely to get work in the music industry if you are hardworking, committed and if you take advantage of every opportunity.
About 8 months ago, I received an email from my course leader (an email that everybody got). The email was forwarded from a 3rd year student on the record production course asking if their were any drummers available to lay down some drum tracks for his project. I replied as soon as I got the email, very eager for some recording experience. Although (in my opinion) I didn't play that well on the recording the guy seemed pleased with it. One of the guys recording me was Steve, another 3rd year. I got on well with Steve and he seemed to think I wasn't a bad drummer. After the session I didn't see Steve at all, until I went to do unpaid work experience at Bliss Fields. Steve was the stage manager on the stage I was working on so we spent the weekend back stage loading and unloading the stage. It was there that Steve told me he needed a drummer for a one off gig in Bournemouth the following weekend. So I took the gig, there was no rehearsal, I was just given a CD and told that I needed to learn the set from it. After listening to the CD I felt that the music had great potential, the gig went a lot better than expected and I was asked to stay on as a permanent drummer. The reason I am telling this long winded story is that I think it is important to take every opportunity presented to you, regardless of how trivial it may seem.
The Project
So I am now working for a singer/songwriter Lauren Bannon, she is signed to Midtone Records. But most of my work is with her boyfriend and guitarist Kristian Pearce, as he is the main song writer and I rehearse with him. Its hard to describe the style of music that they play, it is not typical singer/songwriter style, there are some elements of indie rock, blues and swing in their music. Lauren has quite a deep voice with a really full and round tone which works really well with Kris's guitar playing. As they haven't had a drummer before, I have had to write my own drum parts for them. I try my best to write to the song, but I have to remember that it is their music, not mine, I'm just trying to add to their sound. Often, Kris will tell me to change things if its not quite how he wanted it to sound, this does mean that we have to have a good working relationship because I am there to add to his music, and if he wants it different then I have to respect that.
We've had two gigs so far and we've got our next one on the 6th September, so ill write about how that goes! Im not sure what will happen with this group, I'm hoping that it will go somewhere good and I'll get plenty of work. Although its not down to me in slightest, I would like to re-record the EP, with a bigger band, I would add another guitar, I would like Sander (the bassist) to play electric bass on some tracks, and double bass on others to give variety, I would also like to add a keyboard player to pad the sound out a bit. A string player would sound great too, on the EP on the myspace there is a cello on most of the tracks, unfortunately he left the group, but the cello sounds really good. You can check out Lauren Bannon at www.myspace.com/laurenbannon, none of the records on here have me on them as I joined the group after the recordings were done. If you see her playing at a venue near you I would encourage you to show, would be worth your while! Ill give more up dates as things progress!
So what is this new project? Well before I explain what the project is, It is important that I explain how I got involved in it. The reason for this is that for as long as I have been studying music and the music industry, everyone as always said to me that networking is the most important thing which is something that kind of went over my head a bit, I thought that really when put into practice the only thing that matters is that you are the good at what you do. Boy was I wrong about that! Of course it is important that when you are asked to do a job that you do it right and play to your best, but I have discovered that you are far more likely to get work in the music industry if you are hardworking, committed and if you take advantage of every opportunity.
About 8 months ago, I received an email from my course leader (an email that everybody got). The email was forwarded from a 3rd year student on the record production course asking if their were any drummers available to lay down some drum tracks for his project. I replied as soon as I got the email, very eager for some recording experience. Although (in my opinion) I didn't play that well on the recording the guy seemed pleased with it. One of the guys recording me was Steve, another 3rd year. I got on well with Steve and he seemed to think I wasn't a bad drummer. After the session I didn't see Steve at all, until I went to do unpaid work experience at Bliss Fields. Steve was the stage manager on the stage I was working on so we spent the weekend back stage loading and unloading the stage. It was there that Steve told me he needed a drummer for a one off gig in Bournemouth the following weekend. So I took the gig, there was no rehearsal, I was just given a CD and told that I needed to learn the set from it. After listening to the CD I felt that the music had great potential, the gig went a lot better than expected and I was asked to stay on as a permanent drummer. The reason I am telling this long winded story is that I think it is important to take every opportunity presented to you, regardless of how trivial it may seem.
The Project
So I am now working for a singer/songwriter Lauren Bannon, she is signed to Midtone Records. But most of my work is with her boyfriend and guitarist Kristian Pearce, as he is the main song writer and I rehearse with him. Its hard to describe the style of music that they play, it is not typical singer/songwriter style, there are some elements of indie rock, blues and swing in their music. Lauren has quite a deep voice with a really full and round tone which works really well with Kris's guitar playing. As they haven't had a drummer before, I have had to write my own drum parts for them. I try my best to write to the song, but I have to remember that it is their music, not mine, I'm just trying to add to their sound. Often, Kris will tell me to change things if its not quite how he wanted it to sound, this does mean that we have to have a good working relationship because I am there to add to his music, and if he wants it different then I have to respect that.
We've had two gigs so far and we've got our next one on the 6th September, so ill write about how that goes! Im not sure what will happen with this group, I'm hoping that it will go somewhere good and I'll get plenty of work. Although its not down to me in slightest, I would like to re-record the EP, with a bigger band, I would add another guitar, I would like Sander (the bassist) to play electric bass on some tracks, and double bass on others to give variety, I would also like to add a keyboard player to pad the sound out a bit. A string player would sound great too, on the EP on the myspace there is a cello on most of the tracks, unfortunately he left the group, but the cello sounds really good. You can check out Lauren Bannon at www.myspace.com/laurenbannon, none of the records on here have me on them as I joined the group after the recordings were done. If you see her playing at a venue near you I would encourage you to show, would be worth your while! Ill give more up dates as things progress!
Sunday, 22 August 2010
Brotherhood of drummers
After spending a week at Drumtech (which I will talk about another day) I have been thinking a lot about the sense of community that I get when Im with or around other drummers. And I feel that this is not just common interest, there is something about the way that drummers are with each other that is different from any other musicians. I have noticed over the years that as soon as somebody tells me that they're a drummer, there is an instant connection and the conversation quickly flows between everything from favourite drummers and artists right through to comparing stick grips and snare drum heads. And this is one of my favourite things about being a drummer because it makes me feel almost like I belong to a big family that stretches across the globe! And I'd like to think that all drummers feel the same. So I think it is important to look at why drummers have such a community, what is it about drummers that makes us different.
Comradeship
Comradeship is a very strong word, but I genuinely feel that this applies to drummers. Comradeship certainly applies to musicians that have been playing as part of a group or a band for many years, and have built up an understanding, but with drummers there is comradeship there without even knowing each other directly. In order to illustrate what I mean, Im going to use Buddy Rich as an example. There are next to no drummers who will not have herd of Buddy Rich, and he has influenced almost every drummer in some way. This is not uncommon, there will be few guitarists who won't have herd of Steve Vai or Jimmy Page. What I think is different about the way people look at Buddy Rich is that he is far more of a role model for so many people. He was always encouraging towards young drummers and he really brought drumming to life for so many people. The Comradeship that I have been talking about comes in when I look at the memorial show that was put on for Rich after his death and the drummers that featured on it, Neil Peart, Dave Weckl, Dennis Chambers, Gregg Bissonette the list goes on. They all put on incredible performances along with the Buddy Rich band, but it wasn't just the amazing performances, it was something that Bissonette said that really struck me, “It is a great honour to be able to be here to pay tribute to the greatest influence for me, Buddy Rich”. That statement really highlights what I'm trying to say, all of these great players are putting on brilliant performances, and playing their hearts out to pay tribute to a man that was a huge influence for all of them. And I get a slight feeling of loss with all of these players, they all shared some kind of a connection with Rich, even if what just that of listening to him and being inspired. There was a sense of loss with all of them and that is what I mean by comradeship, all of them turned up to show their respect to someone that was not at all related to them, but because they all share something in drums, that someone becomes family.
Sharing
Something else that I love about drummers is that we love to share. Im not talking equipment, as very few of us are prepared to lend out our precious cymbals and snare drums, but I'm talking about playing techniques and styles, ideas about tuning and drum sound, techniques for the stage and the studio, anything excuse for drummers to talk and share their ideas they will take it. This is something that I feel is fairly exclusive to drummers, that may be because I've not researched enough about other instrumentalists but I do know an awful lot of guitarists, bassists and singers, and the connection isn't quite the same. So many times I've had other drummers come up to me and ask about my snare drum sound and I've explained about how I tune it, what head I use and what the drum is made of. And there have been plenty more times when I have seen somebody do something that I've not seen before, maybe a certain lick, or fill that I have not herd before and I've had them explain it to me. And more often than not drummers are eager to share these sorts of things.
The best example I can think of drummers sharing is Drum Clinics. This is something that seems to happen all the time, I am forever seeing drummers going on tour with clinics, far more than I see guitarists or bassists doing clinic tours, again, this may be because I am neither. But when I see Steve Gadd do a clinic tour, it sells out everywhere because drummers know that he is great and will travel to hear him play, to take advice to ask questions and to be around other drummers. That is something that I really don't see as much with other musicians.
Influence
In Gregg Bissonette's DVD, he uses the phase “one of my favourite drummers” about 400 times! Each time about a different drummer. I feel like this is significant because pretty much everyone has their favourite players and they always love to talk about why they like them so much. For example, one of my favourite drummers has always been David Silveria. Partly because I am a big Korn fan, but mostly because I love listening to his solid funk grooves played on a deep, clinical sounding rock kit, that worked perfectly underneath Korn's funk metal sound. And listening to Siveria play makes me feel like I know him a little bit, just from knowing his sound and style. And I think that that is something that all drummers feel about their favourite drummers. This again adds to the comradeship and brotherhood of being a drummer.
Conclusion
It is important to think about other drummers, and to take advice and influence from them. It is also important to share you ideas with other people, so that they can try them out for themselves and learn themselves. I love that I feel like apart of a family when I'm around other drummers, that makes such a difference to me and makes me love the face that I am a drummer and that I can feel a part of something like that. It is my hope that anybody reading this, that may not have looked at drumming like that, might start to see what I am talking about when they are around other musicians and particularly drummers, because music is such a sharing thing, and should always be kept that way. Don't keep anything to yourself!
Comradeship
Comradeship is a very strong word, but I genuinely feel that this applies to drummers. Comradeship certainly applies to musicians that have been playing as part of a group or a band for many years, and have built up an understanding, but with drummers there is comradeship there without even knowing each other directly. In order to illustrate what I mean, Im going to use Buddy Rich as an example. There are next to no drummers who will not have herd of Buddy Rich, and he has influenced almost every drummer in some way. This is not uncommon, there will be few guitarists who won't have herd of Steve Vai or Jimmy Page. What I think is different about the way people look at Buddy Rich is that he is far more of a role model for so many people. He was always encouraging towards young drummers and he really brought drumming to life for so many people. The Comradeship that I have been talking about comes in when I look at the memorial show that was put on for Rich after his death and the drummers that featured on it, Neil Peart, Dave Weckl, Dennis Chambers, Gregg Bissonette the list goes on. They all put on incredible performances along with the Buddy Rich band, but it wasn't just the amazing performances, it was something that Bissonette said that really struck me, “It is a great honour to be able to be here to pay tribute to the greatest influence for me, Buddy Rich”. That statement really highlights what I'm trying to say, all of these great players are putting on brilliant performances, and playing their hearts out to pay tribute to a man that was a huge influence for all of them. And I get a slight feeling of loss with all of these players, they all shared some kind of a connection with Rich, even if what just that of listening to him and being inspired. There was a sense of loss with all of them and that is what I mean by comradeship, all of them turned up to show their respect to someone that was not at all related to them, but because they all share something in drums, that someone becomes family.
Sharing
Something else that I love about drummers is that we love to share. Im not talking equipment, as very few of us are prepared to lend out our precious cymbals and snare drums, but I'm talking about playing techniques and styles, ideas about tuning and drum sound, techniques for the stage and the studio, anything excuse for drummers to talk and share their ideas they will take it. This is something that I feel is fairly exclusive to drummers, that may be because I've not researched enough about other instrumentalists but I do know an awful lot of guitarists, bassists and singers, and the connection isn't quite the same. So many times I've had other drummers come up to me and ask about my snare drum sound and I've explained about how I tune it, what head I use and what the drum is made of. And there have been plenty more times when I have seen somebody do something that I've not seen before, maybe a certain lick, or fill that I have not herd before and I've had them explain it to me. And more often than not drummers are eager to share these sorts of things.
The best example I can think of drummers sharing is Drum Clinics. This is something that seems to happen all the time, I am forever seeing drummers going on tour with clinics, far more than I see guitarists or bassists doing clinic tours, again, this may be because I am neither. But when I see Steve Gadd do a clinic tour, it sells out everywhere because drummers know that he is great and will travel to hear him play, to take advice to ask questions and to be around other drummers. That is something that I really don't see as much with other musicians.
Influence
In Gregg Bissonette's DVD, he uses the phase “one of my favourite drummers” about 400 times! Each time about a different drummer. I feel like this is significant because pretty much everyone has their favourite players and they always love to talk about why they like them so much. For example, one of my favourite drummers has always been David Silveria. Partly because I am a big Korn fan, but mostly because I love listening to his solid funk grooves played on a deep, clinical sounding rock kit, that worked perfectly underneath Korn's funk metal sound. And listening to Siveria play makes me feel like I know him a little bit, just from knowing his sound and style. And I think that that is something that all drummers feel about their favourite drummers. This again adds to the comradeship and brotherhood of being a drummer.
Conclusion
It is important to think about other drummers, and to take advice and influence from them. It is also important to share you ideas with other people, so that they can try them out for themselves and learn themselves. I love that I feel like apart of a family when I'm around other drummers, that makes such a difference to me and makes me love the face that I am a drummer and that I can feel a part of something like that. It is my hope that anybody reading this, that may not have looked at drumming like that, might start to see what I am talking about when they are around other musicians and particularly drummers, because music is such a sharing thing, and should always be kept that way. Don't keep anything to yourself!
Friday, 20 August 2010
Bliss Fields
Many weekends ago, I did some unpaid work experience as a stage hand and Bliss Fields Festival 2010. Bliss Fields is a very young festival and also a very small one, I'd certainly never herd of it before I was given the opportunity to work there, but never the less, I jumped at the chance for some experience for any experience in the live music industry. And this turned out to be a well worth while decision as I will go on to explain later in this article.
Atmosphere
If I am completely honest, I went to this festival with low expectations. I was going by myself, none of my friends or family had ever herd of this festival, and I was beginning to wonder if this wasn't going to be a bunch of country acts, playing under a small gazebo, in somebodies back garden!. OK that was a bit a bit of an exaggeration but I was very pleasantly surprised by the festival. There was a wide range of performers and styles with some incredible talent and the commitment to the music was clear from every one of them. The atmosphere at Bliss Fields was relaxed and cheerful, everyone was just there to chill and listen to music, everyone was supportive of every band on the second stage as well as on the main. Having a capacity of only 1,200 meant that the whole site was had more breathing space, less people running between stages, less adverts and less queuing for the toilet. This actually makes a big difference when you compare it to bigger festivals, where you have to fight to find room for your tent, there are adverts and flyers thrown in your face everywhere you go and there are thousands of people everywhere you turn. A lot of people would argue that this gives the bigger festivals their atmosphere but it is so much nicer to go to a smaller festival where you can just listen to the music without having all the sponsor ship and brand names pasted all over the place.
Music
Bliss Fields gave a huge variety of music from heavy metal to acoustic folk right through to instrumental alternative rock. Because I was working on the second stage, I didn't really hear many of the acts from the main stage but the acts on the second stage were fantastic. Headlining the Friday night was Beans On Toast. Beans on Toast is one man, his guitar and his impressive backing band. BOT' filled the tent when he came on, and his set was filled with witty lyrics, upbeat, country songs and plenty on banter with the audience. Instantly BOT engages the audience with his light hearted, slightly tipsy spirit and quickly puts everyone in a good mood. These are the kind of acts that are great to see live, its so easy to relax and enjoy the music along with everyone else, even if you don't know the songs. I would certainly pay to see Beans On Toast again.
On the Saturday, the second stage tent was completely packed with a great atmosphere, which was surprising considering Stereo MC's were headlining the main stage. Giving the task of competing with Stereo MC's on the second stage was the 4 piece group Polly and the Billets Doux. The group already have a large following which was clear by the way they packed out the second stage despite the major act of the weekend being on the main stage. The band have got some great upbeat songs with a country/blues feel and really know how to get a room moving. The drummer in particular was really impressive (although that may just be because I am a drummer myself).
Subsource are a band that I have to mention. Working back stage, we weren't quite sure what to expect with this group. Like many other bands had done, Subsource had sent us details of everything they needed in order to play their set. We knew we were going to have our work cut out with this group, purely from the amount of equipment they needed to use, not to mention the bottle of rum that we didn't have! When they arrived however, we could see how professional they were, they we quick to load in and move equipment onto the stage, and no complains about the lack of rum! Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties that I couldn't even begin to explain or understand it took 45minutes for Subsource to get all of their equipment set up and running. But once they finally did get running, we could see why it was worth the wait. The band are a live dance act with actual musicians rather than laptops and create an incredible atmosphere. Their set was filled with fast, electrical groves and plenty of energy from start to finish. The only thing that would've improved their set would be if it had been later on in the day and they could've had a light show to go with their music. But overall they were incredibly tight and the atmosphere in the tent for their set was amazing.
Some of the other top acts of the weekend included ska punk act Dub Pistols, Six Nation State, 2 piece rockers Science of 8 Limbs and Turbowolf. I would also like to make special mention of Headstone Down. These guys were really nice to us and really easy to work with, they are an up and coming metal band with plenty of promise and I hope to see them again and I would like to see them do well. They had a brilliant crowd considering the festival seemed to mostly consist of hippy's and folk lovers, they were tight and energetic and put on a great show. A fantastic way to open the second stage up.
Conclusion
Bliss Fields was a great experience for me, I met lots of great people and saw some brilliant acts. I would recommend it to any music lovers, though if you prefer more mainstream acts then you would be better off going to Reading or Glastonbury. But for a small festival, Bliss Fields offers a cheerful and relaxing experience with a huge variety of underground music to go with it.
picture- Headstone Down along with the second stage, stage crew
Atmosphere
If I am completely honest, I went to this festival with low expectations. I was going by myself, none of my friends or family had ever herd of this festival, and I was beginning to wonder if this wasn't going to be a bunch of country acts, playing under a small gazebo, in somebodies back garden!. OK that was a bit a bit of an exaggeration but I was very pleasantly surprised by the festival. There was a wide range of performers and styles with some incredible talent and the commitment to the music was clear from every one of them. The atmosphere at Bliss Fields was relaxed and cheerful, everyone was just there to chill and listen to music, everyone was supportive of every band on the second stage as well as on the main. Having a capacity of only 1,200 meant that the whole site was had more breathing space, less people running between stages, less adverts and less queuing for the toilet. This actually makes a big difference when you compare it to bigger festivals, where you have to fight to find room for your tent, there are adverts and flyers thrown in your face everywhere you go and there are thousands of people everywhere you turn. A lot of people would argue that this gives the bigger festivals their atmosphere but it is so much nicer to go to a smaller festival where you can just listen to the music without having all the sponsor ship and brand names pasted all over the place.
Music
Bliss Fields gave a huge variety of music from heavy metal to acoustic folk right through to instrumental alternative rock. Because I was working on the second stage, I didn't really hear many of the acts from the main stage but the acts on the second stage were fantastic. Headlining the Friday night was Beans On Toast. Beans on Toast is one man, his guitar and his impressive backing band. BOT' filled the tent when he came on, and his set was filled with witty lyrics, upbeat, country songs and plenty on banter with the audience. Instantly BOT engages the audience with his light hearted, slightly tipsy spirit and quickly puts everyone in a good mood. These are the kind of acts that are great to see live, its so easy to relax and enjoy the music along with everyone else, even if you don't know the songs. I would certainly pay to see Beans On Toast again.
On the Saturday, the second stage tent was completely packed with a great atmosphere, which was surprising considering Stereo MC's were headlining the main stage. Giving the task of competing with Stereo MC's on the second stage was the 4 piece group Polly and the Billets Doux. The group already have a large following which was clear by the way they packed out the second stage despite the major act of the weekend being on the main stage. The band have got some great upbeat songs with a country/blues feel and really know how to get a room moving. The drummer in particular was really impressive (although that may just be because I am a drummer myself).
Subsource are a band that I have to mention. Working back stage, we weren't quite sure what to expect with this group. Like many other bands had done, Subsource had sent us details of everything they needed in order to play their set. We knew we were going to have our work cut out with this group, purely from the amount of equipment they needed to use, not to mention the bottle of rum that we didn't have! When they arrived however, we could see how professional they were, they we quick to load in and move equipment onto the stage, and no complains about the lack of rum! Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties that I couldn't even begin to explain or understand it took 45minutes for Subsource to get all of their equipment set up and running. But once they finally did get running, we could see why it was worth the wait. The band are a live dance act with actual musicians rather than laptops and create an incredible atmosphere. Their set was filled with fast, electrical groves and plenty of energy from start to finish. The only thing that would've improved their set would be if it had been later on in the day and they could've had a light show to go with their music. But overall they were incredibly tight and the atmosphere in the tent for their set was amazing.
Some of the other top acts of the weekend included ska punk act Dub Pistols, Six Nation State, 2 piece rockers Science of 8 Limbs and Turbowolf. I would also like to make special mention of Headstone Down. These guys were really nice to us and really easy to work with, they are an up and coming metal band with plenty of promise and I hope to see them again and I would like to see them do well. They had a brilliant crowd considering the festival seemed to mostly consist of hippy's and folk lovers, they were tight and energetic and put on a great show. A fantastic way to open the second stage up.
Conclusion
Bliss Fields was a great experience for me, I met lots of great people and saw some brilliant acts. I would recommend it to any music lovers, though if you prefer more mainstream acts then you would be better off going to Reading or Glastonbury. But for a small festival, Bliss Fields offers a cheerful and relaxing experience with a huge variety of underground music to go with it.
picture- Headstone Down along with the second stage, stage crew
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