So yesterday was the now annual SUMDAY Festival at the Westgarth organised by those wonderful folk at The Kids Are Solid Gold.

So what went well? Best band of the day were STANLEY ODD. A Scottish hip hop/rap band!!! I know, I know, jings crivens help ma bob make some noise and swing your kilt. Throw your cabers in the air like you just don’t care!! Actually they were fantastic. Mixing humour with politics in broad Scottish accents. Their left wing rhetoric was both intelligent and very funny.

Best surprise were TRAMPOLENE a bunch of rock n rollers from Swansea. They had the sound of the early Manics mixed with the raw energy of the Vines and the Stooges. The Dylan Thomasesque introduction to the final tune was brilliant. If I was 15 I would be writing TRAMPOLENE on my school bag and telling everyone who’d listen that I’d just seen the future of rock n roll!!!!

Notable mentions go to DINNERNANNY who despite the name are actually very good. Mixing Grandaddy covers with songs of their own. They had accordions and noise making skulls, sounding like Arcade Fire with Junior Elvis on vocals.

OUR IMAGINARY FRIENDS may or or may not have contained a member of O’MESSY LIFE but they did contain their knack of playing left field tunes with dead pan lyrics in the style of the Brilliant Corners and My Life Story.

MATTHEW & ME had a singer who sounded like him from the the Temper Trap but don’t let that put you off. Thoughtful indie tunes that seemed to get better and better as they played.

A great way to spend a bank holiday Sunday. Big thanks to Andy and Phil at TKASG and all the staff at the Westgarth. Some great events coming up with TKASG notably the return of Catfish and the Bottlemen and the launch of the future anthem of Teesside by Cattle & Cane. But be quick if you want tickets as these shows look likely to sell out. (See link below)

LINKS:

TKASG: http://www.thekidsaresolidgold.co.uk/

By peter on May 10, 2014