Green Man Festival Review 2009
Glanusk Park Estate, Brecon Beacons, August 21st – 23rd
Nestled within the rolling hills of the Brecon Beacons, Green Man is a serene festival in every respect. With a line-up spanning folk, indie, rock, and psychedelia and an atmosphere of calm and warmth pervading the site, the festival strikes a wonderful balance between arts festival and idyllic family holiday.
Despite the appeal of each of the main stage’s high calibre headliners, they all disappoint to some extent. The disparity between potential and actuality was greatest with Animal Collective. The Marylanders were unable to recreate the scope of their fantastic Merriweather Post Pavillian with their performance distinctly self-conscious and bordering on the dull. Jarvis Cocker played an entertaining set peppered with his acerbic wit, but the majority of his songs were derivative and a long, long way from the quality of Pulp. Finally Wilco, who are clearly at the top of their game, delivered an accomplished set albeit too quiet, too clinical to ignite the crowd.
Saturday evening was much more entertaining with Vetiver on the Far Out stage splitting their set between mellow Country laments dripping in close-harmonies to more uptempo rollicking tunes. Shortly after, over on the main stage, Bon Iver adapts the fragility of his For Emma album to the festival stage successfully harnessing its emotive qualities whilst broadening its sonic range.
On Sunday afternoon, Jeremy Dyson delivered a typically macabre story within the Literature tent from his new short story collection, The Cranes That Build the Cranes. The non-performing member of The League of Gentleman was both charming and witty but it was the quality of his material that stood out. The story captivated the audience despite the occasional barrage of power chords swirling from a nearby stage.
Dirty Three were quite simply stunning, delivering the set of the festival. Their tempestuous violin-lead instrumentals ebbed and flowed through their superb back catalogue. The inimitable Warren Ellis even surpassed Jarvis in terms of humorous between song banter.
Other highlights of the weekend included Brooklyn-based blues-grunge duo She Keeps Bees fronted by the charming Jessica Larrabee; Beach House’s set of dream-like pop added a Lynchian twist to Saturday afternoon, and Bristol’s Zun Zun Egui whose melting pot of musical styles and admirable energy exploded on to the stage, giving the finger to the more middle of the road folk acts.
After the dramatic burning of the Green Man on the Sunday night, Finders Keepers founder and DJ Andy Votel delivered a typically obscure yet danceable sub-genre set into the early hours. With his cuts consistently sharp and tracks kept short to maximise impact, his globe-spanning set communicated an unrivalled passion for music. Reeling within the psychedelic confines of the Far Out tent, it was impossible to imagine that in just a few hours the rain would be falling and us revellers would be trudging back to a once distant, mundane reality.
