_____On June 30th, the year became officially half over, and to mark this truly momentous occasion, I have compiled a list of my favourite five songs of the year so far. Narrowing down the list to five was a lot harder than I thought it would be, eventually having to leave out hits from Biffy Clyro, Hot Chip, and Vampire Weekend to name but a few.
_____Obviously there are some you'll agree with, and some you won't, so feel free to offer your opinions, criticisms, or simply ridicule any of the choices I've made below.
No.5 Crystal Castles - Celestica
_____Probably not my absolute favourite off the album, but it offers something different to the Crystal Castles chaos we've gotten so used to.
No.4 Gorillaz - On Melancholy Hill
_____Released from an album which received widely mixed reactions, its beautifully soothing sound clearly sets it aside from the rest, but even had it been shoved between Feel Good Inc. and Dirty Harry on Demon Days, in my opinion there's no arguing it couldn't have pulled its weight.
No.3 Foals - Miami
_____A stroke of genius from the Oxford genii coupled with a wonderfully trans-genius video has lifted Miami to the previously thought un-re-reachable heights of Cassius and Hummer.
No.2 Marina And The Diamonds - Oh No!
_____Hollywood probably did more for this Welsh-Greek goddess in terms of exposure or whatever, but this, her latest single, this is special.
No.1 The Chemical Brothers - Swoon
_____Having lived in Daft Punk's shadow for what must seem like an eternity, it seems the English pair have finally discovered to secret to their success; the loop button. In its full-length awesomeness.
_____“It can’t rain as much as last year”. Arriving on the Thursday evening to a field of damp campers all looking worriedly skywards, this is what I told myself. But I don’t want to talk about that.
_____This here is a cross between my personal reaction to my first ever Oxegen and an amateur music blogger’s review of the event. As usual with this type of weekend, the Friday came first. It rained. I had already been to a music festival, but I only knew two other people at it, so Oxegen differed greatly in terms of the campsite atmosphere. Drinking was less of a chore, and a lot of the time we arrived late to sets. Such as our first set, The Coronas. I don’t have them on my iPod, but sure you hear enough of them on the radio to know a few of their songs anyways. They pulled a fairly decent crowd, and the reaction received by San Diego Song was even more impressive than I anticipated. Although I wouldn’t have cared much if we hadn’t gone to see them, I’m glad we did, if anything just to reward their genuine gratitude towards the people who came to see them with a slightly bigger crowd. ___Next came Vampire Weekend and Stereophonics, two bands I was really excited for. Both played strong sets, and both frontmen looked inappropriately slick. Unfortunately, we had to leave the latter prematurely, meaning I missed Dakota, but Have A Nice Day and A Thousand Trees ensured my Friday ended on a high note, and with an Arcade Fire set at Leeds to look forward to all the more.
_____Following the Friday came a Saturday. It rained again, but heavier and for longer this time. Saturday originally stood out as the strongest day music wise, and it certainly lived up to my expectations. Two Door Cinema Club and Biffy Clyro were two of my favourite sets of the festival. Ellie Goulding was extremely agreeable also, partly due to the fact she played in a dry tent, but mostly down to the energy and heart she gave each and every one of her songs. We had planned to go to 3Oh!3 next, but both very sober and very wet, we decided it best just to get back to the tent, but accidentally we stumbled into 3Oh!3’s set on the way, so stuck it out, and I must admit, although painfully cliché, it was a thoroughly enjoyable gig. Starstrukk, Don’t Trust Me, and new song My First Kiss were all absolutely fantastic, and credit to them, they got the biggest shout of the weekend with their questionably authentic compliments to the crowd. ___Our evening that day comprised of two of the best bands of the weekend, and probably the worst. Gossip’s atrociously homogenous set upset my ears, and indeed my principles, that my body punished me through swelling my glands to such an extent that I could not move my head in any direction more than 30 degrees. This meant I couldn’t bop with our groovy section of the crowd during a brilliant Hot Chip set, and nor could I scream aloud to the phenomenal Muse. Because boy did I want to scream.
_____Their setlist was practically perfect, Feeling Good wasn’t too missed, and Bliss more than made up for New Born’s absence. I was quite disappointed with the crowd, this video far from proving otherwise, but I guess at a festival you’re never going to get a concentrated crowd of fans like you would at a gig. Because if they played that a gig, the place would have exploded. Their godlike status was only reinforced when the rain subsided almost on cue for when they came out. It did start again for a bit halfway through, but you'd swear they planned that way, their lasers looking all the more awesome through the rain.
_____The weekend ended unsurprisingly on a Sunday. What was surprising, was that it didn’t rain! For this reason, everyone was in a good mood. The day wasn’t great for the music, I missed We Are Scientists and 30 Seconds To Mars whilst enjoying the sun, but Jamie T was really worth watching, set closer Sticks n’ Stones one of my songs of the weekend. My weekend finished not with Prodigy as I had originally thought, but with Mumford and Sons, a band I liked, but never loved like many people I know, but I’m happy to say that the rumours are true; they are truly superb live.
_____So looking back, I’m definitely glad I went to Oxegen, despite the rain. I think it’s not as much about the music as Leeds, the stage line-ups lack structure (Doves into Black Eyed Peas, The Temper Trap into 30 Seconds To Mars) and apart from the headliners, the sets are generally much shorter, cementing my opinion that Oxegen sometimes veers towards quantity over quality, although that’s obviously not to say there isn’t good line-ups each year. But this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as festivals aren’t all about the music, the social aspect plays a huge part, and Oxegen is great in that respect. However, I still maintain at 250 euro for a weekend camping, it’s horrendously over-priced.
_____So, to wrap up, it was good. There weren’t any striking low-lights, but plenty of high ones: some quality drunk-people-watching, getting beautifully overchanged by a chipper, a superb Muse setlist, and a terrifically sunny Sunday. Oh the wristbands are cool too. I imagine I’ll be back.
_____It’s finally here, boys and gals, Oxegen 2010! Seeing as that is the case, I don’t really have the time to write a big spiel on who I feel you should see, who you shouldn’t, and how guilty you should feel if you go to see Black Eyed Peas over Muse, so instead, I’ve just lashed together my Oxegen HitList. ___Here are ten songs I believe cannot afford to be missed live at a festival, although if I could give you one other tip, it’d be to spend as little time at your tent during the day, and see as many bands as possible, and I guarantee you your favourite song of the festival will come from the most likely of sources. Like seriously, mine was a Kaiser Chiefs one last summer…
_____So, in chronological order according to stage times…
Vampire Weekend - A-Punk
You cannot beat that first album.
Stereophonics - Dakota
One of the best signings by Oxegen this year.
Arcade Fire - Rebellion (Lies)
How fucking excited are you?
Two Door Cinema Club - I Can Talk
Seeing as they have moved to main stage and you no longer have to miss Biffy to see them…
Biffy Clyro - Living Is A Problem Because Everything Dies
The Captain and Mountains were purpose built for festivals, but this is flawless.
Muse - Plug In Baby
I swear to God, if you go to Black Eyed Peas…
We Are Scientists - After Hours
The two nicest guys in music. And the drummer from Razorlight
Jamie T - Sticks n’ Stones
He’s a featherweight champion.
30 Seconds To Mars - From Yesterday
Even if you don’t like them, stick around, get a good spot for Prodigy, be proved wrong.
_____This time last year, had you stood on an appropriately populated street corner and called aloud for some fashionable bands which you could talk about at fashionable parties in order to seem fashionable, I doubt anyone would pay attention to you, as urban centres tend to be very hostile and unsociable places these days. Had you then located an internet café in which to ask the internet for assistance, you’d probably be living a lot more than one year ago, as the development of broadband has almost completely decimated the internet café business. However, had you then whipped out your iPhone like you should have done in the first place and Asked Jeeves it, your handheld screen would most likely have filled up with in-your-face indie bands such as The xx, Foals; dig a little deeper and you’d find the more modest Bombay Bicycle Club, Bat For Lashes, etc. And then you’d go off your fashionable party where fashionable people would view you as at least a mildly fashionable with a good taste in music. Congratulations. ___But what is to be observed here, is that all these are British bands. British bands have dominated the indie/indie rock music scene for the past few years, and in all honesty, deservedly so; Australia’s been to busy being a year behind the trend with excuses like Empire Of The Sun, and with most of America laughing as Europe lapped up what they rejected in Kings Of Leon, a woeful Foo Fighter’s single was about all they bothered to contribute. This time right now, on the other hand, is quite a different story. The Drums are spearheading a revival of American indie-rock which has given rise to new delights like Surfer Blood, the musical renewal lended further momentum as Vampire Weekend kicked back into gear earlier this year. All the same, I will now urge you not to listen to your wi-fi connection, and don’t convert to Barack’s battalion of new generation indie bands, as in my opinion, those across the water are doing it today better than ever, Mystery Jets’ latest album the truest of examples.
_____That there is the opening track from a third album which I simply could not imagine how it might live up to the standards of Twenty One, the affair I had with it early last summer having transformed into a long-term love. And as a track, it perfectly illustrates how Mystery Jets are in a peculiar class of their own when it comes to premium indie music, a genre which has received more criticism than Nu Wave did in the years before its demise. Too many similar bands are too obsessed with hairstyles and too busy synthesising everything in sight, so much so that they have, amidst the chaotic apathy, misplaced their testosterone! ___Accidentally stumble into Crystallised down a dark alley, and it’d probably hastily throw the contents of its handbag at you before menstruating as it scurried awkwardly away; Forever And Ever Amen sounds exactly like the type who gets drunk off two glasses of Chardonnay at the New Year’s soirée. Mystery Jets, however, are a different story altogether. Although the vocalist has quite a delicate voice, this is more than accounted for with whole-hearted riffs and belting choruses. Waiting On A Miracle, although sounding strangely alike Olivia Newton John’s 80’s hit Physical, is inspiringly good, while title track Serotonin just screams single somewhere down the line. ___That’s not to say I argue with the band’s first choice of single, Dreaming Of Another World ranks alongside Flash A Hungry Smile as my favourite tracks on the album; it wouldn’t have had to share the honour if it weren’t for the latter’s brilliant lyric heard at 0:59.
_____Lyrics such as that are perhaps the reason why Mystery Jets are so goddamn loveable. It’s exactly that cheeky yet undeniably adorable aspect to their sound that sets them apart from the likes of The xx, who practically mumble in their songs. You can’t help get the sense the words in Show Me The Light actually mean something to the singer, that there’s a story behind the superb album closer Lorna Doone. Mystery Jets possess a genuineness in their music that is just lacking in much of the other indie music you hear talked about at those fashionably dull parties. ___I said I wasn’t sure if Serotonin could match their previous record, if anything they wrote could sound anything like Hideaway, Young Love, Two Doors Down, and practically every song on that album, and I’m afraid I don’t think they’ve quite managed it. They’ve come awfully close though.
