As we entered the We The People 2011 enclosure on Saturday 4th June the sun was shining, the Gaymers cider was flowing and DJ Dan was providing his usual array of feel-good tunes on the main stage, clapping his hands and grinning at the early-afternoon punters.
The Other Tribe had an unfortunately early slot, but this did not discourage them from giving an impressively energetic performance, and they actually turned out to be my favourite act of the whole festival. Their tribal facepaint and eclectic, rhythmic sound (incorporating cow-bells, bongos and synth) created such a good atmosphere, even though the crowd in the dance tent was much smaller than they deserved. I went to congratulate them later on and to top it all off they also seem like really nice guys!
Dub Mafia were entertaining and got the crowd warmed up for Example on the outdoor stage. Although he is not a favourite of mine, he clearly had a devout following – a simple shout of “Get your bounce on”, and the whole crowd was throbbing.
By 7pm things had really livened up, just in time for notorious OAP DJ Derek to hit the decks and bring out old classics such as Boom Shaka Laka. The half-hour or more waiting time to get to the bar for much needed refreshment at this point could really have been avoided by having another bar at the other side of the enclosure, and the drinks were expensive, but that was no surprise.
There was a huge buzz surrounding the build-up to Annie Mac’s DJ set, which did include some great mixes, but I was a little disappointed with her lack of interaction with the crowd. Chase and Status were headlining on Saturday, which is pretty impressive for a fledgling festival, and they burst onto the stage with the gritty ‘No Problem’, decks adorned with a giant silver ‘C’ and ‘S’, and slick video footage accompanying the performance.
Day two of the festival saw the return of the Brizzle drizzle, but there was still an impressive smattering of flip-flops and straw stetsons to be seen. The crowd was noticeably older than the previous day, which had been dominated by the post-A level rabble.
We had been told that we could not miss Lee Scratch Perry, whose reputation as a forefather of modern reggae precedes him, but I must admit that I found the performance quite awkward and verging on boring. The man himself was a spectacle, emerging wearing an elaborate military jacket, a trucker cap covered in badges, a blinged-up microphone and a bright pink beard, but I felt decidedly uncomfortable watching this ancient man mumbling “let me see you jump” to the crowd, while he himself could barely manage a feeble shuffle. When you can no longer create onstage energy, I’m afraid it is time to call it a day and enjoy the perks of retirement.
Yasmin (sporting some awesome trousers) was very likeable but her set relied too heavily on covers. Beardyman was quite refreshing, blending beat-boxing, lyrical sections, electronic beats, and even a few comic one-liners, and the live camera feed to the screens behind him meant that we got good close-ups of his technical work. Unfortunately the set lost pace as it went on, and would perhaps have worked better in a shorter slot.
The rain really got going at around 7pm, so we listened to Doom from under the shelter of the coffee van. The bad weather pre-empted a very dull set given by Ben UFO DJ, who essentially looked like a 12-year-old messing around with on his decks in his bedroom, trying to create effects that sounded a bit supernatural.
However, when Sub Focus took to the stage the energy was reignited immediately. Despite the wet, and surprisingly light, conditions they were able to make the crowd feel like they were raving in an underground club. Strobe lights, booming bass, co-ordinated light and sound effects and a theremin thrown in for good measure; the production of the entire set was thoroughly impressive, and exactly the pick-me-up that we all needed.
Last but not least was the Sunday headliner, The Streets. Mike Skinner is a very slick performer, and knows how to work the crowd, but is also reassuringly ‘normal’ with his Ralph Lauren polo shirt and cockney charm. After thanking God for the “glorious weather” and dodging a beer-missile thrown by an idiotic audience member, he launched into a lively set that had the crowd singing along and brought the festival to a close on a very good note.
Overall the We The People festival was well-run, with efficient security and generally smooth changeovers, only slipping mildly behind schedule on the Sunday. The concrete arena, normally a Bristol skating venue, was less welcoming than your typical festival field but it was a decent size and actually provided a good outer ring to sit on if you wanted to escape the ‘dancefloor’ in front of the stage. The usual food and drink stalls kept the festival-goers fuelled, and I was impressed by the keen recycling effort that was visibly at work throughout the weekend.
A friendly paramedic informed me that around 4500 people came on Saturday, and around 3500 on Sunday (an understandable dip due to the rain), and the most drastic injury was a dancing-induced dislocated knee- testament to the energy of the crowd! Considering the premise of the event was supposed to be to put music back in the hands of the people of Bristol, I feel that the Bristol-based bands should be given more prime-time slots, but overall the festival was very enjoyable and showed great potential for the future.
Reviewed and written by Rachel Stewart
Reviewed and written by Rachel Stewart
Published on 06 June 2011 by RLS0404
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