It has been a long time since I last visited a proper music festival. I have always hated camping. An attachment to home comforts – colour TV, hi-fi stereo, designer sofa, electricity, running water – exposes me for the materialistic 80s brat that I am. So it was with a degree of apprehension that I migrated north to the Lake District for a summer weekend of music.
Many of this year’s festivals have struggled to shift tickets but Kendal Calling had no such worries. The boutique event sold out well in advance and upon arrival it was immediately obvious why. Showcasing acts like Blondie, Chase & Status, The Cribs and Frank Turner against a backdrop of beautiful rolling hills – and the occasional lake – certainly makes for sunny faces.
We pitched our tent with surprising ease and headed for the arena just in time to catch hip-hop old-timers House Of Pain break into ‘that’ song. So we jumped around a bit, investigated what the modern music festival has to offer – posh pizzas apparently – and then checked out headliners Chase & Status. We found the Londoners on hot form, whipping up the masses into a Friday night party. Yes.
Easy Star All-Stars set the beaming Saturday mood with dub and reggae renditions of classics from The Beatles, Radiohead and Pink Floyd. It was certainly a very pleasant way to start an afternoon before the festival’s stand-out act, angular rock outfit Young Knives, took to the stage. I am reliably informed it was frontman Henry Dartnall’s first-ever topless gig. The three-piece didn’t let that phase them as they stomped through favourites from ‘Terra Firma‘ to ‘Weekends & Bleak Days‘ – complete with the appropriate sing-along line “hot summer, hot hot summer!”
After a few complimentary shots of Lucozade – thank you sunburnt Lucozade man – we headed over to watch the fittingly energetic punk outfit The Minx bound around the stage to rapturous applause. There was just enough time to scoff a gourmet kangaroo (!) burger before seeing Japanese Popstars take over from where Chase & Status left off the previous evening. An incredibly striking aspect of the weekend was the energetic crowds. Though we did our best to keep up we headed for our nylon home sometime after one am with the party still in full swing.
Drawing from a distant memory I somehow had the impression that the final day of a festival has the potential to be an anti-climax. Not so at Kendal Calling. After taking in some festival art and expert hula-hoop performances we decided to plonk ourselves at the main stage for Lancashire Hotpots’ northern humour and Frank Turner’s folk punk. Neither disappointed but the top act of the day was Cougar favourite Blondie. Not looking a day over 26 – ok, maybe a day or two over – Debbie Harry belted out hits including ‘Hanging on the Telephone’ and ‘One Way or Another’ to give this charming festival the rousing send-off it deserved.
Cougar Microbes attended Kendal Calling 2011 as part of Lucozade‘s Play Festivals campaign. Make sure to check back as we bring you more events through the summer.
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Post by Kenny.
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