The line-up was promising; a large part of it could have been targeted straight at my about-a-decade-ago self.
Arrived early afternoon in glorious sunshine. Saw a bit of This Town Needs Guns; they were quite winning in that somewhat mathy, hint of emo-y Dismemberment Plan-ish indie-rock way.
Then the Walkmen, rocking hard and gratifyingly intense, enjoyable; with the exception of a couple of songs (this is probably the comment of a casual listener, but "The Rat" still seems head and shoulders above anything else they've recorded), they've always kind of eluded me, but I liked them last time I saw them live too.
After that, Mercury Rev; for me, it's always been about Deserter's Songs, and they didn't disappoint, doing its three flat out classics, "Holes", "Opus 40" and "Goddess On A Hiway", and drawing their set almost entirely from it and All Is Dream. Frontman Jonathan Donahue came across like a real hippie, striking grasshopper poses and declaiming positivity, but the music came through clearly, with a bit of a psychedelic streak jagging through their baroque, orchestrated pop tunes.
Saw the top and tail of Bright Eyes - enough to appreciate how far he's come since the sparse, wracked self-examination of "Something Vague" and Fevers and Mirrors...based on the bits I saw, he's more in the vein of an alt-country troubadour/rock star a la Ryan Adams nowaday, and pretty good at it.
Then the National, for whom we managed to get close to the front, dusk arriving, and they were good as expected - there wasn't a song they could have played that I wouldn't have wanted to hear, and - across the last three records in particular - their output is so even that even my favourites are only songs that I like just a little bit more than all of their others. Matt Berninger was charismatic and slightly awkward-seeming in that dapper way of his and sounded better than the last time I saw them; the band was tight; it was good.
And after them, Portishead, who were easily the act that I was the most excited about, and whose set turned out to be the clear highlight, not only of the festival but of the live music year so far. By this point we were basically right in front, in the centre, and so perfectly placed, with dark fully fallen, for immersion in a set that mixed touchstone moments from those first two indelible records with cuts from 2008's unexpected, astonishing Third. I must admit that I had a funny feeling somewhere in my stomach standing there waiting for Beth Gibbons to start singing as the set began, a mix of anticipation and nervousness that she might no longer have it after all this time - but she sounded great, as did all of the music and sounds they conjured up, jagged guitars, heavy beats, and floating keyboards and samples all integral as they nailed, gloriously, one song after another. I'm not sure I've ever really thought of Portishead as one of my absolute favourite artists, but they do occupy a special place in my heart, and this set was brilliant.
Then, finally, caught a bit of the Flaming Lips, but wasn't especially enthused by that point - like their Festival Hall set a while back, seemed more about spectacle than music. And then mass exodus, shuttle bus, train, home.
Good venue (Werribee), well spaced and located stages and other amenities, decent vibe helped immeasurably by the perfect festival weather, singificantly brought down about the absurdly long queues.
(w/ C and her friends Sachini and Mikaela; also briefly saw David + Justine, CStCW and Nenad)
[No connection to the last 'Harvest Festival' I went to, a few years back!]
Arrived early afternoon in glorious sunshine. Saw a bit of This Town Needs Guns; they were quite winning in that somewhat mathy, hint of emo-y Dismemberment Plan-ish indie-rock way.
Then the Walkmen, rocking hard and gratifyingly intense, enjoyable; with the exception of a couple of songs (this is probably the comment of a casual listener, but "The Rat" still seems head and shoulders above anything else they've recorded), they've always kind of eluded me, but I liked them last time I saw them live too.
After that, Mercury Rev; for me, it's always been about Deserter's Songs, and they didn't disappoint, doing its three flat out classics, "Holes", "Opus 40" and "Goddess On A Hiway", and drawing their set almost entirely from it and All Is Dream. Frontman Jonathan Donahue came across like a real hippie, striking grasshopper poses and declaiming positivity, but the music came through clearly, with a bit of a psychedelic streak jagging through their baroque, orchestrated pop tunes.
Saw the top and tail of Bright Eyes - enough to appreciate how far he's come since the sparse, wracked self-examination of "Something Vague" and Fevers and Mirrors...based on the bits I saw, he's more in the vein of an alt-country troubadour/rock star a la Ryan Adams nowaday, and pretty good at it.
Then the National, for whom we managed to get close to the front, dusk arriving, and they were good as expected - there wasn't a song they could have played that I wouldn't have wanted to hear, and - across the last three records in particular - their output is so even that even my favourites are only songs that I like just a little bit more than all of their others. Matt Berninger was charismatic and slightly awkward-seeming in that dapper way of his and sounded better than the last time I saw them; the band was tight; it was good.
And after them, Portishead, who were easily the act that I was the most excited about, and whose set turned out to be the clear highlight, not only of the festival but of the live music year so far. By this point we were basically right in front, in the centre, and so perfectly placed, with dark fully fallen, for immersion in a set that mixed touchstone moments from those first two indelible records with cuts from 2008's unexpected, astonishing Third. I must admit that I had a funny feeling somewhere in my stomach standing there waiting for Beth Gibbons to start singing as the set began, a mix of anticipation and nervousness that she might no longer have it after all this time - but she sounded great, as did all of the music and sounds they conjured up, jagged guitars, heavy beats, and floating keyboards and samples all integral as they nailed, gloriously, one song after another. I'm not sure I've ever really thought of Portishead as one of my absolute favourite artists, but they do occupy a special place in my heart, and this set was brilliant.
Then, finally, caught a bit of the Flaming Lips, but wasn't especially enthused by that point - like their Festival Hall set a while back, seemed more about spectacle than music. And then mass exodus, shuttle bus, train, home.
Good venue (Werribee), well spaced and located stages and other amenities, decent vibe helped immeasurably by the perfect festival weather, singificantly brought down about the absurdly long queues.
(w/ C and her friends Sachini and Mikaela; also briefly saw David + Justine, CStCW and Nenad)
[No connection to the last 'Harvest Festival' I went to, a few years back!]
