The Great Escape Festival 2012

Bobbysix.com had a couple of roving reporters at The Great Escape Festival in Brighton last weekend. Here's their review: 

The Great Escape this year was fortunate to be gifted with some unexpectedly decent weather and this surely made everyone’s weekend a great deal more enjoyable, especially as, from the look of it, many people spent a lot of their time queuing. For any of the hyped bands at the festival this year, like Mystery Jets, Django Django, The Black Belles and Grimes, there was almost no chance of getting near the venue without being there enormously early and most people were stuck outside with a “one in, one out” door policy.

This was probably not the main experience for everyone as there was so much on offer and the best part of the festival was the opportunity to meander around Brighton’s bustling and sunny (this weekend) streets, browsing the many venues and stumbling across new acts. My favourite example was wandering into a half-empty Green Door Store on a whim to find IO Echo starting their set. I had never heard of them before yet I’m really excited by their music now. They have a new-wave influence with an electronic twist and the two guitarists have a loud, almost metal style beefing up the sound. The enigmatic singer (below) reminded me a lot of Siouxsie Sioux crossed with Florence Welch (in a good way) and her graceful movement was complemented by some cool Geisha projections behind them (briefly blocked by my head).

The Great Escape is an uplifting experience, especially for slightly jaded people like me who are concerned with the future (and present) of music. Simon Cowell’s slow assassination of the medium and the fear of illegal downloads seemed to be absent in Brighton this weekend, with hundreds of young and promising bands playing - and loving - music. You could see thirty bands and still feel like you had barely scratched the surface of what was on offer. It’s even more difficult to find your way to gigs you have planned to go to as you are more than likely to get distracted by something happening on the way, like Saturday night when we were sidetracked on the way to Michachu and The Shapes by a Rockabilly gathering at the Dorset.

We just managed to make to Micachu and The Shapes, who had packed The Haunt out, but luckily there was no queue outside and we saw one of the best sets of the weekend. There is always something so impressive about their almost DIY approach, with obscure percussion instruments, glitchy beats and rhythms and odd melodies that somehow all come together to make something far more approachable and enjoyable than my description would have you believe. It has also been a long time since I last saw them live and they have definitely matured as a band. They sounded amazing, playing newer material with more ambient and discordant moments suggesting the new album, expected at the end of July, is something to look forward to.

The Great Escape was far more civilised than spending four days in a field and offers more chance of escaping the rain, not to mention that bands always sound better indoors than at a festival where a lot of the sound escapes in the air. So be sure to check out next year's event and find some new bands and inspiration.

Review by Dom Erskine and Tanja Stocklin.

Hatcham Social at The Great Escape, Brighton

Dom Erskine was at Brighton's Great Escape Festival for Bobbysix.com. Hatcham Social at the Green Door Store was one of his highlights:

It is an unusual feeling to see a band like this at three in the afternoon, especially on a day so unusually bright and warm, but that is what sums up the experience of The Great Escape. The sun shone in through the window into the normally dark and dungeon-like venue and the set started with a few songs from their 2009 debut, You Dig The Tunnel, I’ll Hide The Soil. They played through them with typical energy and attitude, possibly helped by the early start on a typical Brighton dirty weekend.

The set picked up with renditions of their new material. Taken from the recently released album About Girls, these new songs have a poppy, brighter feeling to them without losing any of the character for which the band are so well liked. Not to take anything away from the older material, but the new tracks sounded a better fit live, probably benefitting from my own sense of excitement at hearing them live for the first time. There was a more classic Rock n Roll sound to some the set. I Look Like a God When You Dance With Me (video above) was reminiscent of Roy Orbison (and a touch of the Pixies). This is a band whose hooks and choruses burrow into your sub-conscious, sticking with you long after your ears stop ringing.

The place was full and the atmosphere was friendly, with smiles on the faces of band and audience, even at the end of the set when, during NY Girl, a fusebox-related mishap left the band momentarily without vocals and bass. Tim Burgess said they have “the coolest drummer in the world.” This is true but the word "drummer" in that sentence could easily be replaced with any other band member.

With the music industry so saturated with "indie” groups and palatable dub step starlets, it is hard for any band to make it - or just make a living - so Hatcham Social deserve admiration for even approaching music as they do. Their newest album being released through a pledge campaign shows a perseverance to make their own music, and do it their way.

I would urge you to check out their new record and go see them live. I did, and it was brilliant.

Review by Dom Erskine. Keep it Bobbysix as they'll be more reaction from The Great Escape in the next few days.

The Temper Trap return to Brighton's Great Escape festival this year

We don't like to blow our own trumpets at Bobbysix.com (we actually really do), but we've been raving about The Temper Trap for years now. In fact, for longer than they have even been called The Temper Trap. Our love for the Melbourne band is almost as big as our love for the beautiful city of Brighton, so imagine how excited we were to hear that the two are coming together for The Great Escape Festival this year. The boys too, are really up for it, saying, “We can't wait to play The Great Escape again - being part of the event in 2009 was incredible and 2012 is going to be even better. We'll be playing songs from our new album, its set to be a very special show”.

The Great Escape 2012 is well on the way to bursting point as a whopping 141 artists were today added to the line-up taking this year’s edition to an unparalleled level of showmanship. The news comes at the same time as a decision from Arts Council England to support the festival with a £38,000 grant. The award is intended to help the festival to deliver local collaborations, education and development and to promote international diversity and collaboration between artists.

Other excellent artists set to make the trip down to Europe’s leading festival for new music include Jack White signings The Black Belles on their first UK trip, while Supergrass alumnus Gaz Coombes will be performing his brilliant new work. We Are Augustines, St Lucia, Body Language, Devin, The Front Bottoms, Cloud Nothings and more will also play, while, fresh out of SXSW, Haim, Pond and Wild Belles will be doing their thing. A few more established acts like S.C.U.M, We Are Scientists, We Were Promised Jetpacks and Kids in Glass Houses will be there too.

You can check out the full programme by day and venue, as well as getting yorself some tickets, at www.escapegreat.com today. The festival will hit Brighton this May and you can still just about get the early bird price before the deadline. So don't delay.

Sufjan Stevens at The Great Escape, Brighton

Undoubtedly one of the main draws of the Great Escape this year, Sufjan Stevens played to a long-since sold out Dome on the final night of the festival. Andy James went along for the crazy ride:

SUFJAN STEVENS
Brighton Dome, May 14th 2011

Stevens used American artist Royal Robertson as his muse for 2010’s Age of Adz and live it makes a lot more sense than the first time you put the LP on. Relatively unknown in mainstream circles, Robertson was a paranoid schizophrenic and self-proclaimed prophet to boot. He died near penniless back in 1997 but left behind a mountain of drawings - many of which have since been animated and are used as the visual backdrop for the tour.

Robertson’s work is well worth a Google of anyone’s time. A good reference point would be the child-like doodling of Bobby Six favourite Daniel Johnston - albeit with three-eyed monsters, spaceships, and laser guns ramped up several notches.

Clad in a day-glo space outfit Sufjan channels Robertson’s apocalyptic visions through the performance which he describes as a battle between inner and outer space. It’s in danger of all ending up a bit Spinal Tap - but the gig is superb. Seriously. If L. Ron Hubbard wandered in sporting a Great Escape wristband he’d probably say "fuck it" and chuck in the towel on the spot.

Stevens and his ten-piece backing band play Age of Adz pretty much in its entirety - without resorting to any material from breakthrough albums Illinois or Michigan in the main set.

Think prime Flaming Lips - but with an even greater audio-visual assault on the senses. No one in the audience is moving an inch for two-and-a-half hours - not even for the excellent Dark Star ale on tap in the Dome’s bar.

The set is packed with highlights but album title track Age of Adz stands out along with closer Impossible Soul. The latter is pure pop opera with multiple twists and turns taking you from electronica to stripped-back folk via a healthy slab of disco. Weighing in at 25 minutes it doesn’t overstay its welcome by a second.

Highly recommended - catch this tour if you can.

Review and photographs by Andy James

Cloud Control own Thursday's Great Escape

Brighton on a sunny Thursday played host to the annual Great Escape, where loads of bands descend on the city for three days of madness. Early on, Australia's PVT sure sounded great from where BobbySix.com was positioned. Sadly we were positioned at the back of the long line that snaked from the doors of the Prince Albert. It was an early reminder of the age-old Great Escape queuing issue. Because gigs take place in many different venues across the city, it is important to get your timing right or you might end up missing out. Still, not getting to catch the angular Aussies meant we instead got to dash to The Komedia to see the otherworldly weirdness of Cascauder and the mellow Dutch folk of I Am Oak (below), who would later reprise their tender and charming show at the rather lovely Unitarian Church.

Following an afternoon break in the schedule during which Frank Turner performed at a local record store, it was time for the Aussies to shine. Sydney's Seekae twiddled with knobs and bashed drums to mesmerising effect, while Cloud Control brought their feel-good vibe to The Corn Exchange. Keyboardist/vocalist Heidi Lenffer (pictured, top) was especially captivating with her hip-swinging, tambourine-shaking style. Their indie-pop tunes filled the large room impessively, suggesting they are ready for the step up that seems certain to happen.

Latest NME darlings, Flats (below), proved why no-one should pay attention to anything the NME says anymore. Their lazy indie clatter was messy as hell and delivered with an entirely undeserved swagger. Their school report would read must try harder, although they are clearly too cool to, like, make an effort to actually be good.

Hooray then, for Ireland's Villagers, who played their gentle brand of acoustic folk to a packed out yet completely silent audience in the Unitarian Church. Singer/guitarist Conor J. O'Brien occasionally sang completely unaccomanied by any instrument for long sections and their songs at times kinda landed somewhere near Damien Rice at his must humble and stripped back. Okay, so when you have listened to maybe three Villagers tunes, you've kinda heard all you need to, but still, it was a lovely experience and the perfect remedy for anyone who was unlucky enough to stumble upon Flats.

Next, the queues began to grow as Warpaint brought their cool, but kinda safe, all-girl indie-rock-pop to The Corn Exchange, while Gang Gang Dance had The Pavilion Theatre at bursting point.

And so the evening ended as the day had begun; with BobbySix.com lining up fruitlessly, this time outside Jam, hoping and failing to catch a bit of Talking Pictures.

Still, it's usually easy enough to find alternatives should your gig of choice be inaccessible, and it is credit to the festival that they can attract so many diverse acts from all over the world. Talking of which, keep your eyes peeled for our Sufjan Stevens review, appearing here soon.

Review by Rob Townsend.

Discover your new favourite band at The Great Escape.

This Thursday to Saturday, the Great Escape Festival takes over Brighton, in the South of England. Tickets are still available so do yourself a favour and grab one today to enable yourself to whizz from from cool venue to cool venue to check the fuck out of amazing acts from all over the world.

As you will know, we are quite Aussie-focused here at BobbySix.com, so are excited to see The Jezebels, The Holidays, Cloud Control, Little Red and PVT. Meanwhile, big names from elsewhere like Friendly Fires and Sufjan Stevens are also getting our pulses racing.

The very best thing about TGE though, aside from the beautiful punters and the amazing atmosphere that it brings to the city, is that it affords music fans the opportunity to stumble upon bands of whom they have little knowledge. You never know, you might just discover your new favourite group there this year. Like, for instance, Dutch indiefolk act I Am Oak (pictured above), who play on Thursday at 9pm at the Unitarian Church. Check their sweet sounds below:

Words by Rob Townsend