Virgin Festival 2006
Date: September 9-10, 2006 Surrounded by the World In some respects, the Virgin Festival's inaugural step into Canada felt as shakily organized as my trip to attend it; and I can say that despite the fact that I was an hour and a half out of Ottawa before I realized that I had forgotten the concert tickets at home. Massive Attack, perhaps the most exciting act on the bill, given their scarce touring, dropped out of their Sunday headlining slot mere days before the event. While the organizers found a decent replacement in Broken Social Scene, scheduling issues plagued both days of the festival, cutting into the headlining slots and making it difficult to navigate the two stages. Nonetheless, it was a very fun weekend, with some proven favourites coming through with excellent sets and some previously unseen bands living up to my hopes. * * * Saturday The first band that I saw on Saturday was Wintersleep, who had impressed me at Bluesfest. Once again, they made the most of a short set, rewarding those who showed up early to the second stage. Drummer Loel Campbell, celebrating his twenty-third birthday, didn't dominate as strongly on this occasion but he was still fun to watch, particularly on the set's zenith, "Nerves Normal, Breathe Normal." The band worked very well together, sounding heavier than on album and earning a strong crowd reaction. Some exploration of the festival grounds meant that I sacrificed the early portion of David Ford's set. Without really giving him a fair chance, though, I still appreciated the few songs that I heard. His stage presence kept people at attention, despite the stripped-down approach of his solo set. Ford stepped above that sound on the notable "State of the Union," looping various instruments and building a layered song, an increasingly popular live technique that he put to good use. The festival stacked the middle portion of the day with my two most-seen artists. First up was Buck 65, who I was seeing for the eleventh time. I have yet to see him deliver a poor performance or repeat a show; and this day was no exception. Given 45 minutes in which to work, he was less rushed than on his half-hour Canada Day set, taking the time to interject a few stories between songs. While almost all of these were funny ("by the pillars of Hercules" and "never shave"), he also related the fact that the boat carrying him and several artists to the island had started sinking on the way, which had him frazzled. Any nerves did not detract from the performance, though, as Buck, working without a band, was as charismatic and entertaining as ever. If "Old-Time Stuff" lived up to his description of "impossible," seeing a few stumbles, it was little detriment to a set that included "Dang!," "Roses and Bluejays," the always stirring "463," and a version of "Wicked and Weird" that was the best I have heard. Most promising was the new material, especially the hilarious "Spread 'Em," leaving me hoping that the next album will be out soon. I stayed at the side stage to catch a few songs from Amon Tobin, who kicked up a noisy set from behind the turntables. Perhaps the vibe didn't fit my mood at that point in the afternoon; but I didn't really connect with what I heard before shifting to the main stage. The second of the well-proven acts was The Dears, playing the tenth concert that I have seen from them. Much like their May visit to Ottawa for the Tulip Festival, their set leaned heavily on Gang of Losers. While that earlier concert had been a preview for the album, this show came shortly after its release; and a familiarity with the songs increased their impact. From the powerful "Death or Life We Want You" and "Hate Then Love" to the delicate "You and I Are a Gang of Losers," the set echoed the album, proving that The Dears can triumph without the sprawling epics that centred their past offerings. "Fear Made the World Go Round" already feels like a classic, while older songs "Never Destroy Us" and "22: The Death of All Romance" retained their potency. The latter typified the show's great sound, with Murray Lightburn and Natalia Yanchak coming across very clear on vocals and the full band sounding great throughout. The Dears seemed to be having a lot of fun on stage, delivering a grand set worthy of the festival setting and leaving the crowd buzzing. After a break in the action, the next band that I saw was Eagles of Death Metal on the second stage. They came through exactly as expected, with a loose, fun set of sleaze rock. Jesse Hughes was the perfect frontman for the group, egging on a small but spirited crowd. Not owning anything by the band, I didn't recognize the songs but I still enjoyed the band's sound and energy. Knowing that the main stage had been running behind schedule, I left later than I had planned from the Eagles of Death Metal, although I still only caught half of their set. Considering how long it took for Gnarls Barkley to get going, though, I definitely could have seen more before making my move. When Gnarls Barkley did come out, the entire band was dressed in karate uniforms, Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse in red, the eleven-piece backing squad in white. Although I had been greatly looking forward to this set, it came across somewhat flat, especially in the early going. Despite the long changeover time, the mix seemed quite muddy. It was definitely Cee-Lo's show to carry and, while he demonstrated a solid effort, I wasn't always feeling the result. However, I did think that they ended on a strong streak, with a reworked "Transformer" standing as a highlight. Kid Koala, who had been on Buck 65's ill-fated boat earlier in the day, was originally slated to play two sets but he instead made his debut after Gnarls Barkley. He was really just filling the break required to set up The Flaming Lips' elaborate staging, which greatly limited his time. A DJ set is often an exercise in gradually building to a few peak moments. I'm not sure if Kid Koala is more consistently engaging with his sets than most DJs or if the short schedule meant that he had to cut straight to his best material; but either way, he delivered a very interesting performance. When he ended with a neat three-turntable working of "Moon River," I'm sure that I wasn't the only one wishing that I could have seen more from the affable DJ. With the curfew looming, though, it was obvious that Koala could not have played longer. In fact, after equipment problems dragged the changeover time even longer, it was 10:30 before The Flaming Lips got underway. When they did, it was with all of the spectacle expected from a Lips show: Wayne Coyne rolling over the crowd in a bubble, a stage lined with Santa Clauses and miniskirt-clad aliens, several oddities being looped on a large video screen, and a sea of balloons and confetti. The theatrics were well appreciated by the most enthusiastic crowd of the day, as was a set including "Race for the Prize" and "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots." Unfortunately, the late start time meant that the plug was pulled after a mere forty minutes. While Coyne did his best to smooth over the situation, it was obvious that the band and its followers were displeased. Although I'm not really a Flaming Lips fan, seeing the most highly appreciated performance of the day cut short was still a downer. * * * Sunday I started a little later on Sunday but still caught Matt Mays and El Torpedo, who lived up to the standard set by Wintersleep for Nova Scotia bands with second stage afternoon slots. Whether it was a product of the better weather or a more popular line-up, the crowd was larger throughout Sunday. The decent number who turned up for Mays were treated to a straight-ahead rocking set highlighted by "What Are We Gonna Do Come The Month Of September?" and "Cocaine Cowgirl." After having barely seen Mays at Bluesfest, it was a bonus to see him in Toronto. After the scheduling problems on Saturday, organizers apparently made the unannounced decision to push ahead the main stage times by twenty minutes on Sunday. As a result, Wolfmother had already launched into "Dimension" when I arrived but I was still fortunate enough to secure a position close to the stage. There were a number of impressive sets at Virgin Festival but the most fun that I had was witnessing the Aussie trio at play. Andrew Stockdale was a dynamic frontman, Myles Heskett was a force on drums, and Chris Ross was a bundle of energy, often leaping from the drum riser to come down hard on the keys of his teetering organ. Best of all was the crowd, a throng of bobbing heads, with big grins all around, everyone enjoying Wolfmother's throwback metal sound. That shared feeling of joy is probably the best part of the festival experience; and this set made a sharp contrast to the ill will rampant when The Strokes played later. Before that, though, Sam Roberts rolled through a mix of new songs and old favourites. I took the opportunity to have supper, so I didn't pay enough attention to write a meaningful or fair review. From what I heard, though, I'm sure that Roberts and his band were as smoothly dependable as expected. I returned close to the stage before Roberts wrapped up, again twenty minutes ahead of schedule, where I waited for The Strokes. And waited. Not only did they blow through the twenty minute buffer, they were actually twenty-five minutes late. The wasted time didn't add to my appreciation for the band, although it definitely gave time for the assholes to come out of the woodwork. From where I was standing, the crowd was by far the worst that it had been all day, with the entire wait for the band and their subsequent set seeming to be a constant battle with inconsiderate Strokes fans. It was an amazing turnaround from the mutual fun of the Wolfmother set; and the bad vibes definitely hurt my appreciation for the music. Then again, I'm not a Strokes fan, anyway, and their uninterested live shtick never connected with me. I'll admit that they picked up steam for the last few songs but it was too little, too late for me, especially as I was watching them eat into the time of the bands to follow. I expect that the crowd behaviour improved when The Raconteurs played but the truth is that I retreated towards the back of the lawn, where I took in the band in a more spacious environment. Any lingering displeasure was quickly erased by The Raconteurs' stellar offering. I don't think that Jack White is capable of a bad performance, while Brendan Benson and the rest of the band were also equal to the task. The set length surpassed that of their debut disc, Broken Boy Blues, meaning that the album was fully represented, including the singalong hit "Steady as She Goes" and the careening title track. The most spine-tingling moment, though, was an unhinged rendition of Nancy Sinatra's "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Dead)," with White shrieking out the words while the band punched home every shot. "Headin' for the Texas Border" was another standout cover in a set that never faltered from start to finish. Apparently, much of the audience had already had enough opportunities to see hometown act Broken Social Scene, as the crowd thinned greatly after The Raconteurs wrapped up. For me, though, it was a fitting festival turnaround, making up for missing the band at Bluesfest. For a headlining slot that was accepted on three days notice, Broken Social Scene came through very well, reeling in a large portion of their collective, including Leslie Feist, Amy Millan, and Emily Haines. Confined to a one-hour span before the curfew, Broken Social Scene was admirably tight, wasting little time in moving from song to song. Among the highlights were "Cause = Time," "Superconnected," and "Anthems for a Seventeen Year-Old Girl." While the concert fell slightly short of the first two times that I saw the band, there was still little fault to be found by the time that the group closed the festival with "Lover's Spit." * * * The Canadian debut of the Virgin Festival certainly had its snags, with the loose scheduling being the strongest offender. However, it was still a welcome addition to the musical landscape. With The Dears and Buck 65 anchoring the first day and Wolfmother and The Raconteurs dazzling on the second, it was a great weekend; and I'm left with hopes for a strong return from the festival next year. <--Prev (The Sadies) | Next (Controller.Controller)-->Return to Concert ListReturn to Main Page |