Belladrum, Saturday 12 August 2006

Stereoglo

AS I WALKED towards the Garden Stage early on Saturday afternoon a bagpipe version of ‘Caledonia’ came floating towards me. Given that a heavy rain shower had just started to fall, this seemed a particularly apt tune to hear. After all, what type of weather would you associate more with Scotland?

But this probably isn’t the country Dougie Maclean had in mind when he was sitting on a French beach feeling homesick all those years ago. No, this is New Scotland, where you can get your hands on a Latte or a Mocha even at a music festival in the heart of the Highlands.

Some things, however, are constant, and I can confirm that the rain’s just as wet as it ever was. Clouds and silver linings – the ‘Press & Journal’ had given away free ponchos, and the persistent rainfall turned this into a stroke of marketing genius.

‘Caledonia’, by the way, was being played by the Dangleberries, a group from Galloway who mix pipes and drums with electric guitars. Their choice of material is quite eclectic, and they treated the crowd to ‘We Will Rock You’ and Black Sabbath’s ‘Paranoid’ as well as some more traditional tunes. Before going off the stage they promised that they would make a reappearance at the bar. True to their word, they struck up again later in the afternoon, much to the delight of those stuck in the lengthy queue.

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King Creosote’s music is often described as neo-folk, but his performance at Tartan Heart saw him choosing to focus on his rockier side

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Skye-based band Stereoglo were forced to take a step down at Tartan Heart this year. At last year’s festival they got to play the main stage after beating off competition from 200 other unsigned bands to win the slot. They didn’t seem to take it as an insult to be in the Hothouse tent, however, and pulled in a large crowd to see them put in a tight performance that belied the fact that they have been gigging for little over a year.

An unexpected treat in the Grass Roots tent was Hobotalk, a Scottish group with a passion for America of old. Their gentle folk-tinged pop songs saw them gaining a number of admirers, and their final song, ‘Letter From a Friend’, went down particularly well. This slides towards a rousing climax, with lead singer Marc Piley asking, “Is America dying”? Judging by Hobotalk’s performance, there’s still life in Uncle Sam yet, and that’s no bad thing.

They were followed on stage by Tom Morton. I called a friend to ask if he’d like to join me. “Who’s on?”, he asked. “Tom Morton” I replied. “From Radio Scotland? I didn’t know he played, what’s his music like?” I couldn’t answer him because I had never heard the music of Tom Morton before. But now that I have… Well, his music is exactly like you’d imagine it to be. Backed by his son on double bass, his songs cover subjects like why he doesn’t like the Beatles and the feelings of isolation caused by living in Shetland.

It’s all very amiable, though I must admit to finding his between song banter a little grating. I hate hearing broadcasters speaking like they’re broadcasting when they’re not on air. Maybe it’s just me, but it somehow makes them come across as somewhat robotic.

More invigorating was the performance by Vincent Vincent & The Villains. The London-based quartet had the Hothouse tent jumping to their retro rock ‘n’ roll sound. If you get the chance in the future, I would thoroughly recommend checking them out.

A heavy downpour then sent me fleeing into the Seedlings Stage for cover, and I stumbled into the set by Mouse Eat Mouse. Later in the evening I mentioned them to another Tartan Heart attendee who told me that he wasn’t keen on them because he felt that politics and religion should be kept separate from music.

I don’t feel the same way, but must admit that I found Mouse Eat Mouse pretty tedious. The lyrics to their songs, delivered in spoken-word style, sounded as if they’d been stolen from the journal of a seventeen year old with a subscription to ‘New Internationalist’. In one song, for instance, judges were dismissed as “pseudo law priests”. As soon as the rain let up, many in the audience ran for freedom, and I wasn’t far behind them.

One band who had no trouble keeping hold of their audience were The View. The Dundonian quartet had driven through the night from Liverpool to get to Belladrum, but they bounced onto the stage full of energy. Cocky performances, catchy tunes and tales of everyday life in the provinces have worked a treat for the Arctic Monkeys, and The View seem likely to follow in their footsteps.

Another delight in the Hothouse was the Tiny Dancers. The Sheffield band aren’t (yet) quite as hyped as The View, but they won over a number of new fans with their 60’s influenced sound, particularly with their current single, the immensely clapable “Bonfires of the Night”.

On the Garden Stage, Arlo Guthrie had a few tales to tell as well as playing some of what he called “the old tunes”. The son of Woody Guthrie, the man many credit as the founder of American folk music and huge influence on Bob Dylan, even reminisced about the first time he met the young Mr Zimmerman before launching into ‘Mr Tambourine Man’.

King Creosote’s music is often described as neo-folk, but his performance at Tartan Heart saw him choosing to focus on his rockier side. He’s grown hugely in popularity over the last year or so, and his performance was one of the most eagerly anticipated of the whole festival. The rapturous reception he received seemed to really spur him and his backing band on. In fact, the best way to describe his reaction was like that of a bairn in a sweetie shop. He was so pleased that he even ended his set with ‘The Happy Song’, a song by The Aliens (the band fronted by his brother Gordon).

I’d have thought English folk music wouldn’t have gone down particularly well at a festival in Scotland, but Bellowhead got the crowd dancing to their traditional jigs, albeit aided by a funky brass section, when they played on the Garden Stage.

Stephen Fretwell was given a glowing introduction in the Grass Roots tent, being called one of the finest songwriters in Britain. Tracks such as the tender ‘Run’ and ‘Emily’ demonstrated that this wasn’t an idle boast, and this, combined with Fretwell’s easy going manner and fantastic voice, endeared him to the crowd. With a packed schedule, no time was allowed for encores, which was immensely disappointing given the band that followed him onto the stage.

Grandabob, were described in the programme as the “White Stripes of electronic music”, at least according to the new lord of Loch Ness, Fat Boy Slim. I appreciate promotional material has a tendency to bend the truth a little, but in this case, I can only imagine that Fat Boy Slim was talking about someone else or had recently received a heavy blow to the head, as their music was incredibly bland and moved very few members of the audience to tap their feet, let alone dance.

Something of an anti-climax to my first visit to Tartan Heart then, but after witnessing so many excellent performances, both from bands that I knew and bands I’d never heard of before, I’m pretty sure I’ll be back again next year.

© Bruce Munro, 2006

Link

• Tartan Heart Festival