Jun25Written by:Rev Jules
6/25/2007
Sound Waves has been watching the BBC coverage of Glastonbury with matchsticks propping open it's eyelids. Is it just your truly, or is this the dullest show on Earth?
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On Friday night, one note popsters Arctic Monkeys played the Pyramid Stage of Glastonbury and were so dull they had to bring on fellow scallywag Dizzee Rascal to liven things up, which he didn't really. On Saturday night, The Killers upped the pace in dullness thanks to a performance by Brandon Flowers who decided to impersonate Damien Rice doing Freddie Mercury at an Elvis convention. The fact that they sounded like they played the same song repeatedly for the entire length of their set didn't help matters. On Sunday night, The Who went all out by being as exciting to watch as a group of labourers mixing cement by the side of the road. Am I missing something ?
Putting aside the obvious humiliation of running around in the rain for three days on farmland awash with mud, why would you then subject yourself to some of the absolute worst music on earth? I don't understand this festival, just as I don't understand the appeal of that dull little prog rocker DJ John Peel who now has a stage named after him at the very same Glastonbury or the music of Mark E. Smith for that matter or why Elvis Costello, who can't sing a note to save his life, keeps on recording jazz records. Nor do I understand why 'Later with Jools Holland' keeps on be talked about in reverential, hushed tones as being at the forefront of music television when they limit soul legend Smokey Robinson to thirty seconds at the piano talking about his life and music then allow Damien Rice free reign to wail his tuneless dirges throughout the same programme, not to mention the fact that Tom Jones seems to have a cut on every 'Later With' DVD that the BBC puts out.
Dont' get me wrong, the BBC makes the best music programmes on Earth. 'Seven Ages of Rock' has been wonderful to watch, 'Jazz Britannia', 'Folk Britannia' and 'Folk Hibernia' were all excellent, their annual coverage of the Cambridge Folk Festival is second to none, 'Never Mind The Buzzcocks' continues to be a laugh and they pulled out all the stops for both LiveAid and Live8 but, man, Glastonbury, what a sad excuse for entertainment. To paraphrase the punky girl in 'Four Weddings and a Funeral', I think it's dull as sh*t.
Tags:10 comment(s) so far...
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? Elvis Costello! Can't sing a note!! Wash your mouth out...
By stephen on
6/25/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? "dull little prog rocker DJ John Peel"
John Peel didn't like prog rock. He was one of the first DJ's in England to play punk on the radio, so fed was he of the bloated mid-70's rock music scene. Naming the 'new band' tent after him is fitting as he encouraged unsigned bands relentlessly for over forty years. He was genuinely passionate about music and usually didn't bother ranting on about music that didn't matter anymore.
By Peejay on
6/25/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? Had to be there I guess....
By Norman Schwarzkopf on
6/25/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? Thanks for the all the comments, they are very welcome regardless of whether they are positive or negative, just to reply
a) I cringe every time I hear someone play that record Elvis did with Burt Baccarach.
b) I hate to tell you but Peel was indeed a fan of prog rock and even booked both Pink Floyd and Captain Beefheart on the Peel Sessions. Now, correct me if I'm wrong but John Peel axed his own 'festive 50' because it seemed to be comprised almost entirely of white boys with guitars, not very cutting edge that. I can't understand why we don't lionise the Beep in Ireland to a similar degree but then we also prefer to support English football teams over our own too.
c) I didn't have to be at Live Aid to enjoy it on the telly.
By Rev Jules on
6/25/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? Pink Floyd, Tomorrow, The Pretty Things, Zappa and dozens of others, but that was during the Perfumed Garden/Top Gear period when that music (more psych than prog) was still relatively fresh and un-mined.
To call him a "prog rocker" in the Genesis sense is a bit off the mark.
Personally I think he was very important for the English music scene, there aren't enough tents in the world.
By Peejay on
6/25/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? Pink Floyd, Tomorrow, The Pretty Things, Zappa and dozens of others, but that was during the Perfumed Garden/Top Gear period when that music (more psych than prog) was still relatively fresh and un-mined.
To call him a "prog rocker" in the Genesis sense is a bit off the mark.
Personally I think he was very important for the English music scene, there aren't enough tents in the world.
By Peejay on
6/25/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? have any of you been to glastonbury? i went two years ago and it was the best festival i've ever been at...class....
i didnt want to watch coldplay so i went to see taj mahal and roots manuva instead...
plus saw brian wilson, van morrisson and primal scream in an afternoon..
By PARTON on
6/25/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? have any of you been to glastonbury? i went two years ago and it was the best festival i've ever been at...class....
i didnt want to watch coldplay so i went to see taj mahal and roots manuva instead...
plus saw brian wilson, van morrisson and primal scream in an afternoon..
By PARTON on
6/25/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? I don't think the Beebs choice of presenters helped either, feeling the need to praise every single act they showed no matter how inept the performance. Probably hoping it would help them in attracting the musicians to their own radio/tellybox shows.
By Idiot Kid on
6/26/2007 |
Re: Glastonbury: Sorry Am I Missing Summat? I think you have missed summat. You havent been there for a start!
Ive been 6 times, and the last twice, didnt see a single band on either of the two main stages.
Glastonbury isn't strictly a music festival and thats something that organisors in Ireland have never seemed to figure out.
Thats what youre missing.
By kavobaggins on
6/28/2007 |