SOUTHSEA FEST: The Editor’s View

The Deads

Here is the first of our reports from Southsea Fest, but keep checking back for other people’s views of the day and some brilliant photos of the goings on

 

 

Many people mark down Bestival as the end of the summer festival calendar, but for those of us who dwell on the South Coast (and, indeed for many others too), there’s a one day event that really caps the summer off. Southsea Fest has been running for a few years now and, much like this writers waistline, it grows ever bigger. This was my first experience of it though, but after a day of being roasted alive, crushed, being told there was no more beer and missing more bands than I laid eyes on, I wouldn’t miss it again for the world!
By the time I arrived, collected my wristband and headed back out to the street the party was in full swing, bumping into one of Call Upon The Author’s favourite artists, Loz Bridge, I discovered he had been added at the last minute to the Gang Bang stage. Looking in we saw that The Deads were about to take to the stage, these Portsmouth garage rockers disappeared a few years ago, but are now back in force and played a blistering set that was as compelling as it was fun. Never more so than when the band poised themselves to launch into a new number only to realise that they couldn’t remember how it went!

Kill Kasper

Popping out for a few minutes we made our way to The Loft, but despite the joys of Villiers Terrace we left very quickly due to the baking heat in the venue, heading instead to The Wedgewood Rooms to catch another of our favourite, the almighty Kill Kasper. The Kolonel had been laid low with a particularly vicious strain of swine/man flu, but summoned all his strength to hit the stage and blast out some good honest old-fashioned rock! With the closing chords of Scenesters still ringing in our ears we dashed back to Little Johnny Russells to catch Loz Bridge, only to find him tidying his keyboard away, thankfully it wasn’t in vain as Hold Fast were next to the stage, playing possibly their most ferocious set to date, the band threw out their music so hard and fast that they shaved ten minutes off of their set time. Jumping down into the audience, Roberta didn’t miss a beat while the band rocked out and decimated the crammed in audience with old favourites like Lie and newer tracks such as Jaws.
It was across the road to see The Strange Death of Liberal England next and we were thwarted once again, though this time not by poor timing (by this stage, at about 4.30pm, most stages were running late to a varying degree) but by a queue, the venue was full to bursting, but from the street the band sounded great, as did The B Of The Bang who were playing on the stage we had just left.
Off it was then to The Fat Fox, for a quiet sit down, we caught just a snippet of Nat Jenkins, whose songs didn’t do enough to capture the attention. Back on the street we decided to go walkabout and see where we ended up, which was the Magic Bean Café, hosting a poetry/acoustic stage, this was a lovely little find and the only venue selling cake! Abi Lanigan was performing and rapidly became our favourite find of the day with some great song writing, (more of that later). As we stood outside and shared a beer with Abi’s bass player Ryan, we caught up with Alex from festival headliners Official Secrets Act who appeared to be having so much fun that he’d lost his socks. Meanwhile, back in the café Le Plat Du Jour played a strong set of laid back, fuzzy post rock musings.

Gabby Young

Back to The Wedgewood Rooms and Dan Smith was sat alone on stage with his keyboard, pouring out some intriguing tunes and leading us to make a mental note to check out more. For the second time in the day we poked our head into the Awesome Noise stage next door too, only to find that once again there was nobody playing. Were they hiding from us? We popped into another stage at The Wine Vaults, bumping into Greg from Melodramas who excitedly shared the bands new ventures with us (again, more on that ata a later date).
Back at The Loft, which had thankfully cooled down somewhat, we just missed Logan (Son of Robert) Plant’s band Sons Of Albion but we were just in time for Gabby Young & Other Animals. Built around Gabby’s powerful voice this set was a little treat from the Hong Kong Gardeners Club who were running the stage (if you haven’t checked these two ladies and their brilliant nights out, then you really should make the effort). For some reason Young & her animals even brought a puppy with them, which seemed to perk up the slightly flagging staff at the stage.
Across the road, and back to where our day had started, we caught the festivals only internationals, the brilliantly scuzzy LoveLikeFire, who were so great that we decided, on the spot to end our evening on that high, disappearing into the night in pursuit of Chinese food, while the rest of the festival goers delighted in the likes of The Joy Formidable and James Yuill.

many thanks to Emma van Kooperen for the photographs.

SOUTHSEA FEST PREVIEW: The Gang Bang Stage

SINGLES CORNER! 01/06/2009

HOLD FAST – Lie
myspace.com/holdfast

Ooh, Holdfast have got a little heavier (well, on record at least). This features some really beefy guitar courtesy of Adam, that really juxtaposes nicely against Roberta’s vocals. As always Toby & Ben propel the band along at pace and the whole here is possibly their most accomplished track yet. If you like White Lies or The Joy Formidable, there’s plenty to enjoy here!

THE KRAK – Estate Dwelling
Not On Your Radio

It sounds at first like you’re going to get a Red Hot Chili Peppers track, but as soon as the vocals kick in this is a quintessentially British tune, what the Kooks might write if they’d grown up in a working class environment. Tom Lattimer’s vocals have an element of Mike Skinner about them too, he sounds like an urban poet while the band as a whole show here that they have a knack for a catchy chorus!

HAFDIS HULD – Kongulo
Snow Angel

For anyone who heard Hafdis’ last album, this will come as a bit of a shock, being a lot less cutesy than her previous work. Not that it lacks the charm of the lady herself. It’s a nicely put together song and the subject of Alain Robert, the man who climbs skyscrapers barehanded (Kongulo is Icelandic for spider) is an interesting one. A nice track to whet the appetite for Ms Huld’s next album then.

WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS – Roll Up Your Sleeves
Fat Cat

More mainstream than their last single this track sounds like a more rocking Snow Patrol getting jiggy with Maximo Park. But in a good way… Yet again the Jetpacks lads have thrown their stuff together and created an anthemic track. With singles like these, the album is all set to be awesome!

NEWSFLASH: Holdfast hit on novel way to release single.

Call Upon The Author favourites Hold Fast (www.myspace.com/holdfast) have hit ona  unique way of releasing new single Lie/Victoria. The double A side disc is only available when the band play live. Fair enough I hear you cry, but this is nothing new. Perhaps not, but the band are also givin g it away in return for a ‘donation’, asking people to pay what they think the band deserve. It’s a tried and tested formula for downloads, but a much more rare one for physical copies of songs.

Look for a review of the single very soon!

NEWSFLASH: Holdfast announce two exciting new support slots!

Call Upon The Author favourites Holdfast have announced two very exciting new support slots in the coming months.

On May 14th they’ll be heading up to London’s Luminaire to support Polly Scattergood. Polly is garnering rave reviews in the press and a huge following. This will be at one of The Luminaire’s ever popular Mish Mash nights, blending the best touring artists with young up and comers. Fans from Portsmouth can get in touch with the band via their myspace (below) to book a seat on a chartered bus to take them to and from the Big Smoke for the gig too!

On June 10th the band support The Joy Formidable at The Joiners in Southampton. The Joy Formidable follow the same lineage as White Lies harking back to the sounds of 80’s alt rockers (a sound that Holdfast evoke so well and so naturally).

Fopr those with nothing to do tomorrow night, the band will be playing a set at Waster in Portsmouth’s Envy nightclub too, so strap on your dancing shoes and head down to check out one of the most exciting young acts on the south coast!

www.myspace.com/holdfast

www.myspace.com/pollyscattergood

www.myspace.com/thejoyformidable

THE DAWN CHORUS AND FRIENDS – Live @ The Cellars At Eastney 17/04/09

We at Call Upon The Author have a great deal of time for Stiff Promotions, not only do they consistently put on top gigs, but they have a great reputation for looking after their performers too, so it was with utmost anticipation that we trekked to The Cellars At Eastney. Tonight’s bill sees The Dawn Chorus return from their short tour around the UK with The B Of The Bang in tow. they’ve invited some friends too, Holdfast and CM Arnold and the Delta Breaks, who are first on stage tonight. It’s front man Clym’s birthday and this seems to have fortified him with enough strength to bellow his vocals at the audience as his band play punchy blues rock and propel their vocalist to levels of energy not seen since the days of The Deads. This is good stuff indeed and a great way to start the night. Holdfast are next up, winners of The News’ Guide Award, they showed their quality with a truly beautiful set. Singer Roberta’s vocals wafted over some superbly crafted songs, this girl is the complete package, a talented musician with a truly haunting voice and enough charisma to spare. Bassist Ben and Toby on drums kept the tracks pumping with an often frenzied beat whilst guitarist Adam, the previously missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle, provided the lynchpin to their sound. These guys (and gal) were previously a band I really admired, but after tonight they’ve leapt into my absolute favourites! The B Of The Bang, old friends to this site already, were up next. It was a different set from these guys tonight, almost subdued by their standards, but in no way lacking the emotional punch they always pack. ‘Lung’ was particularly haunting with the slightly more sparse arrangement, and when Roberta joined Wit to sing ‘Dolores’ the hairs stood up on the back of this writer’s neck! Finally the returning Dawn Chorus took to the stage. I was a little apprehensive after seeing them at the Jelly Maid showcase, but tonight they showed just how foolish I can be! This was a superb set, bright and bubbly and sounding utterly lovely. In fact, on tonight’s evidence the band should  go down an absolute treat on their forthcoming festival appearances! Track after track from their brilliant debut album soared through the venue, leaving the audiences beaming and toes everywhere tapping. Vocalist Kyle Evans sounded like he was having the time of his life and judging by the way the band were playing he wasn’t the only one. With the chiming trumpet of ‘The Big Adventure (Part Two)’ filling this listener’s head and sound tracking the whole of the weekend, I have spent the last couple of days wondering if this is the best line-up I’ll see on stage this year? It’ll certainly be tough to stop it!

Check out Stiff Promotions at: www.stiffpromotions.co.uk

Check out The Dawn Chorus at: www.myspace.com/thedawnchorusuk

Check out The B Of The Bang at: www.myspace.com/thebofthebang

Checkout Holdfast at: www.myspace.com/holdfast

Check out CM Arnold and The Delta Breaks at: www.myspace.com/cmarnoldandthedeltabreaks

NEWSFLASH: Top Portsmouth Bands to play Eastney Cellars on Friday 17th April

Fresh off the road from their debut UK tour, Jelly Maid record’s The Dawn Chorus return home to Portsmouth to wrap their heartfelt tunes around the intimate interior of The Cellars at Eastney. Having stockpiled praise from a number of sources in 2008, from the likes of Clash Magazine, who wrote about their “Beautifully Melancholic Songwriting” to Rock Sound lauding the band’s debut release as “A Country-Pop classic waiting to happen” these guys are certainly earning the praise. Indeed just a month ago they headlined their record label’s inaugural showcase event in a packed to the brims Wedgewood Rooms!Their debut release, The Big Adventure, is a disc designed to actually be listened to. Here is a band who crafted an album of songs that actually fit together and flow, rather than throwing eleven random songs onto a disc. In the live arena they have a fearsome reputation for providing heart rending music that envelops the audience and takes it on a journey. Coming on like the UK’s answer to The Shins there really is something unique about these guys.

Support comes from two of Portsmouth’s best loved bands The B of the Bang and Holdfast. The B Of The Bang too, have just returned from tour, supporting their lasbel mates up and down the country, providing audiences with the rare site of the same line up for consecutive gigs. No doubt now that they’re home front man Wit will have some surprises in store as his ever changing collective take to the stage! Holdfast, winners at the 2008 Guide Awards, take to the stage with a set of vice like tightness, centred around the surprisingly powerful vocals of petite vocalist Roberta and built on rock solid rhythms to present a set of post-punk/electro pop exquisiteness! 

The Dawn Chorus are at The Cellars At Eastney on Friday 17^th April 2009.