30th edition of the festival and first time for me there, so I was so excited to be part of this 'world away' from civilization during a whole weekend.
Because of my work I couldn't be there until Friday and after mounting the tent I went directly to see Shura and the live performance of her debut EP, released last month. All my preconceptions of her live show went directly to the garbage, because I was hypnotized by as she develops the show, alternating her hits '2Shy', 'Indecision' and 'White Light' with unreleased songs, that have nothing to envy to the previous.
After that, I focus myself to see Ought, the real winners of this edition, compared the small tents, who played songs from their debut, "More Than Any Other Day", and their upcoming album, "Sun Coming Down". They broke the barrier sound when they finished their set with 'Gemini', leaving people wanting more and more, so perfect to continue with Courtney Barnett, who started with 'Nobody Really Cares...' to war up the crowd. She was more concentrated in that everything went well before the public, better than have a pose. As expected, 'Depreston', 'Elevator Operator' following it, which it meant at that time a dedicated public who danced and sang the last and exploded cartridge from her...'Pedestrian At Best'.
Time to regain strength, and hat better way than listening to Father John Misty before loosing the forces dancing under the spell of Fat White Family. Here it doesn't matter if they play one or another song, for them it's important to create an atmosphere where unexpected movements, words, dances...may take place in the forty five minutes they are on the stage, having the feeling that a hurricane razed your mind.
Leaving me seduced by the idea of seeing Bastille, I enfiladed the way to the main stage to know if I could endure the sweet fragance of the commercial music. I couldn't. Two songs after they played 'Things We Lost In The Fire', I guide myself to enjoy the psychedelic of Goat. Dressed with their property clothes and masks, they gave us a visual and musical show, carrying ourselves to the 60's through songs like 'Let It Bleed', 'Goatman' and their most acclaimed song 'Run To Your Mama'.
As I am Spanish, I have a date with John Talabot, but the tents's sound was horrible when the bass sounded. You could only hear bass and more bass, so I decided to move outside before see the star of the night, Jamie xx. People waited for him, but they were wrong. They expected a set with only song from his debut album "Colours", but it's not the idea Jamie has on his head, so after opened with 'I Know There's Gonna Be (Good Times)', people were slowly disappearing which it made more pleasant to dance.
On Saturday, after breakfast and collect the tent, the objective was waking me up, so Slaves did it through 'The Hunter', 'Sockets', 'Hey', 'Wow!!!7AM' or 'Cheer Up London'. A it is characteristic, they unloaded all of their energy on the stage and Isaac felt reflexive and comfortable so he didn't hesitate to get off the stage to sing and dance with the crowd. I had never sweated so much before. I took out this part of my head because see Benjamin Booker was a must. Going from less to more, 'Always Waiting' started the set, with Benjamin and his mates very confortable on the stage, moving themselves around the stage. It's incredible especially songs like 'Violent Shiver' and 'Have You Seen My Son' how he feels every word of them, closing his eyes...just an artist.
Viet Cong have debuted last year with their eponymous album, and the look like they are a veteran band with twenty years on their backs. 'Silhouettes', 'March Of Progress' and 'Continental Shelf' have nothing to do when they become mentally insane when the reinvent 'Death' during approx. 15 minutes with a no-end instrumental loop.
Time to take a rest with The Macabees, surprising myself with their powerful set, improving each song they played, mostly of their recent album "Marks To Prove It". I stayed there until Dead Souls started. I didn't listen nothing of them before, I didn't it, because I read they were a Joy Division's cover band, and that was. Taking their name of one of their songs, they carried out a good live version, although I wanted to see the singer closer to Ian Curtis and his choreography. The explosion came with 'She's Lost Control' and 'Love Will Tear Us Apart'.
Time to see Tame Impala and enjoy with their psychedelic style, with a visual and sonorous 'Intro' to make way to 'Let It Happen', and the consequently general delirium, got it again when 'Elephant' sounded. They played songs from their three albums who made everyone the happiest person in the world at this time until the end of 'Apocalypse Dreams', what supposed the end of their set. Sad for that I looked for consolation in Four Tet, but the bad sound of Costello ruined his beautiful beats. Leaving the enclosure where Pukkelpop takes place, and it happened in the Best Kept Secret Festival, Alt-J did my way back better playing 'Breezeblocks'.
