“We’d like to thank Buckfast Berry for supporting this festival” is the first thing I hear from a band on Saturday night as I arrive just after the start of Squarehead’s set. They play a sort of pop punk in the same vein as Ash or early Weezer. And while they seem to really enjoy, jumping around as they play, the vocals come out like a teenager being asked to clean his room. The large crowd enjoys it as they bop along to the upbeat fun onstage.
It’s then down to the Workman’s for Ireland’s version of Los Campesinos, Grand Pocket Orchestra. Veterans of the HWCH scene at this stage, GPO bash out a dozen or so songs in their thirty minute set. After the release of a brilliant album ‘The Ice-Cream’ last year, I’m sure they’d be hoping for a more than half-full venue. New material sounds promising though, so hopefully, they will push on from here.
Next up in Workman’s come We Are Losers. Containing Super Extra Bonus Party’s guitarist and the keyboard player who was just on with GPO playing bass, I was expecting big things. I was left reasonably disappointed, however. Their loud punk-rock was, without being bad in any way, nothing that I haven’t heard so many times before.
I hung around for the next band on, Le Galaxie. I didn’t hang around long after they started, however. I have to state that it’s nothing to do with them personally; I just don’t like the style of dance music they play. As soon as the glow sticks entered, I exited.
Unfortunately, I didn’t fare any better for the rest of the night. Neither the middle of the road rock of The Dirty 9s in the Mercantile nor slow acoustic of Eleventy Four seemed appealing, so I called it a night.
Photos: Alan Moore