A scene from The Simpsons regularly knocks around in my random head: Homer daydreaming about living in a land made of chocolate. He gorges on a lamppost and takes a bite out of a terrier, which then gleefully bounds away. Everywhere Homer looks is chocolate goodness, and this sums up how I felt as I wandered from venue to venue during this year’s Worcester Music Festival.
Over 250 acts performed in 23 venues over three days. Unless you owned a DeLorean time machine, it was impossible to get to every gig, and even then it was a struggle due to restrictions on city centre driving. My gig choices were based on interesting band names and my mate Al’s recommendations. The first act I saw was the Black Country’s Mantis Defeats Jaguar at the Oil Basin Brewhouse. Lead vocalist, JP, stood with the crowd at the back of the room (and it was very much a room – probably one that Charles II hid in) and the band launched into a heavenly tirade of noise that swamped the chatter on Copenhagen Street. JP’s positioning made me think the whole set would be some sort of Brechtian experiment. However, he and the rest of the band abruptly stopped: we had just witnessed the sound check. What followed was a blissful blend of Limp Bizkit & Rage plus a tang of chili pepper. Close your eyes and you were listening to Zack de la Rocha. He was a justifiably angry dude, though perhaps not as animated as the fan at the front, who screamed all the lyrics as if she was challenging a parking fine. According to JP, latest single ‘Dirty Knees’ was a ‘bit more chill(i)’, though after the simmering comes crunching Kashmir guitar. Yep, a bit of Led too. This band are a whole lot of fun and should be massive.
Wolves In Alcatraz are a trio from slightly further afield – Stoke-on-Trent to be precise – though sonically speaking, they’re not a million miles away from Mantis. They played at Paradiddles, a tiny venue drenched in My Bloody Valentine Loveless pink light, which amplified the intimacy, as did Dave the bass player’s habit of striding off the stage to play within the crowd. His guitar was so low to the ground that it made Peter Hook look like Buddy Holly. In isolation, it was the sound of Satan twanging thick barbed wire at the entrance to Hell. Luke’s drums made Bonham seem timid, and a change in tempo during ‘Savage Love’ was louder than hundreds of herds of charging elephants. ‘Eton Education’ is early Manics and The Clash, and a special mention goes to guitarist/lead vocalist Ben’s no hands feedback squeal. In his introduction to ‘More’, he invited the audience to check out the band on an array of social media platforms and then Dave cut in to say, ‘Or just come to a gig!’ Absolutely right.
It was back to the Oil Basin for me to see Banoffee, a Warwickshire duo joined by Alice on drums. The soft arpeggios and harmonies of ‘Take a Bite’ could soundtrack a teen movie montage, and maybe they will – you heard it here first. ‘Linger’ had everyone singing, and another cover, ‘At Seventeen’, (originally by Janis Ian) swung like Burt Bacharach and brought to mind grainy footage of carefree youngsters frolicking in fountains in the Jardin du Luxembourg. If, like me, you pine for The Sundays to reform, you can be sure that Banoffee will be more than sustaining in the meantime.
I dashed over to Spin The Black Circle to catch the last song by The Wreckonings. Firstly, it’s worth highlighting what a loving tribute to music the venue is in its own right (the name is a bit of a giveaway, I suppose). I was especially thrilled to see a poster for a 1985 Smiths tour. Anyway, I kicked myself even more for not having a DeLorean, as I was transfixed by a wall of sound – thunderous, chiming guitars and pulverising bass reminiscent of an entirely different eighties band, Killing Joke.
Outside the same venue, Alice Coley (with Tom on drum & shaker) performed a medley of country and Americana. Her Joni Mitchell/Jack Johnson sound was perfect for the sunny afternoon Worcester was revelling in. As she sung of the highway calling out her name, I had to hop on my bike to meet Al at Tonic to catch Saint Senora. This Cheltenham duo are a ‘down & doity’ (Al’s phrase) version of Americana. Chloe on lead vocals told the crowd that the band have ‘a reputation for playing murder ballads’ before starting ‘Flowers on My Grave’ from the band’s EP of the same name. ‘Who wants to be immortal anyway?’ she sang, though if there’s any justice in the world, Saint Senara’s music will prevail as long as Edgar Allen Poe’s dark poetry.
Collider Skies from Stourport were an angular treat at Drummonds. In the protracted soundcheck, they band implored the engineer to add ‘a bit of everything’, which seems an apt description of the band’s set: Placebo/Arctic Monkey vocals, Futureheads/Franz Ferdinand guitars, and strong flavourings of The Killers and Stereophonics. If you demand more euphoric indie in your life, go see Collider Skies straight away.
At Spin The Black Circle, Al and I caught the end of Ruben Seabright’s acoustic set: Neil Young and Nick Drake with extra rasp and smiles. As we left for our next destination, Jeremiah A.D. jolted into action upstairs, where I had briefly seen The Wreckonings. The death metal growling barrelling out of the window while families basked in the afternoon glow was amusingly incongruous.
In their own words, Cheltenham’s Trash Flower are influenced by bands such as Skunk Anansie, Guns & Roses, and Nine Inch Nails. ‘Freedom’ by Rage was playing before the band entered the Marr’s Bar stage, and the Los Angeles rap metalists are clearly another influence. The whoa whoa yeah yeahs on ‘Rise to Power’ are pure Pearl Jam. At the end of the band’s set, Steve on bass said it was their third or fourth gig, which I can’t believe. While they had the energy of a teenage garage band, there was nothing ragged about their performance, which had the large crowd clamouring for more.
Many thanks to everyone who gave up their time to organise three days of brilliant music. Thanks also to everyone who donated to this year’s festival charity – Herefordshire & Worcestershire Motor Neurone Disease Association. The donation towards the charity is still open online to donate.
By: Neil Laurenson