WATLING FEST
It’s not just the big metal festivals that we cover, if it sells beer and we can get there we will be happy to turn up. It has to be said this was a bit of a different one, just a bus ride away and in a park with a funfair. Finding it was easy I just followed my ears as I could plainly hear someone murdering ‘Breaking The Law’ an interesting choice considering that the police were getting into the community spirit and were out in force making sure nothing untoward was going to happen!
The first band I only caught got a glance considering their mauling of said Priest number which I would hazard a guess was older than most of the group themselves. The beer tent was located and I did consider perusing the stalls before I was informed there were some Yes albums and a friend had bought a pot of jam.
Settling down to see next band Chasm I was instantly sold by a perfect sunny afternoon festival sound. They had a psychedelic and progressive fusion about them with warbling guitars and a nice thick bass sound. I suspected this was going to be an instrumental affair (apparently they are looking for a singer) and numbers like ‘Mexicana’ had plenty of sassy aye carumba licks about them with a heavy dub sound riddling through their core. There was a spark of Ozric Tentacles about them and a dog on string vibe that deserved to get everyone up and dancing.
Harrow herberts Sick Lizard set about things with plenty of uncouth attitude but after one song were upstaged by an man with a big bushy beard at the small 2nd stage auctioning fluffy toys and pots of jam. (Yes you heard that right) and at least Sick Lizards gigging career cannot ever sink to greater depths. At last they started up again (the elderflower jam went for 70p in case anyone was interested) and this is a close as heavy metal and ‘cash in the attic’ are ever going to get!
Quickly a pit of about 5 people started throwing themselves about as The Lizards tore the park apart and revelled in a raucous racket. Families watched with open mouths, children (please think of the children) had tears in their eyes and should have been rushed to the relative safety of the candyfloss stall. Singer Ricky meanwhile straddled a clean singing style part Stone Temple Pilots part Danzig whilst the heavier moments had a Pantera swagger about them. They could do with a 2nd guitarist quite honestly but last number ‘Brutal Beating’ had a nice punky crust about it and re-invigorated the pit with kids wearing bunny ears and a 5 year old with a plastic gun. Luckily no attempts were made to shoot the band!
Southampton crew (perhaps via Mexico as the deranged singer would lead you to believe) Hellcyon were in a word barking. Doing away with impressive backdrops they had their name displayed on a whiteboard and on first impressions their somewhat infectious grooves reminded of the Red hot Chilli Peppers. We stuck around after having debated the joys of the funfair and dangers of mixing copious amounts of cider with candyfloss and watched as they next went into a Reef meets Led Zep kind of groove. It was the comedy routine that really amused and one number in particular was (I was informed) very much like Tenacious D. As far as I am concerned anything that manages to rhyme pieces with faeces can’t be faulted. A very entertaining group.
With a name like Spitting Blood you can’t really screw about, you have to be tough as old boots. They were that and then some, most definitely the heaviest band of the day and mashed it up with hair a twirling (don’t think I managed to see the singers face once the whole set). This had a gnarly sound to it and was both brooding and threatening a bit reminiscent of older Gorefest at times with grating vocals and crunching guitar riffs. ‘Betrayer’ had a hefty demeanour about it and at times bordered on brutal death metal, not the sort of sound one would expect from a leafy park in Barnet on a Sunday afternoon. Last song ‘Pedal To The Metal,’ yep they certainly brought it home.
Knuckledust were originally billed to play but for some reason were not which was a shame. Spirytus from Nottingham just wanted to rock out and put on a determined performance despite having “lost” their singer. Unfortunately I hated their hodge-podge of styles and the stand in singer rapped away in a most alarming manner. Spirytus struck as the sort of band who pay to go on a metal magazine cover Cd and are never heard of again. They had apparently written one song backstage (yep it showed) Murder in tribute to Spitting Blood. We got a Prodigy number murdered and a song that sounded like it was based around Downset’s Anger but the best thing was watching the most appalling fire juggler at work in the audience. He dropped more catches than an England test cricket team and boy is that grass going to be singed now.
Headliner was Huw Lloyd Langton the guitarist who had beamed down from spaceship Hawkwind and it was a shame so many had succumbed to the day and not stuck around to watch him. Those of us that did had a great time and the man himself certainly seemed happy to be here as he went through an extensive back catalogue of numbers such as ‘Waiting for Tomorrow.’ We spaced out with starry looks in our eyes as the warped and cavernous guitar sound unmistakeably warbled with the funfair carnival lights in the background adding perfectly to the tripped out music. Huw was happily taking proffered beer between tracks and a bottle of strong rum that had been doing the rounds didn’t quite floor him. ‘Outside The Law’ and a Kinks number ‘Death Of A Clown followed (aptly a right old drinking number). The enforced 8.30 curfew was close, it was meant to be a couple of hours later but the police stopped this due to ‘security issues.’ Before he went (at the outside the law time of 8.50) we got a classic Hawkwind track from their debut self titled 1970 album, ‘Hurry On Sundown’ a firm favourite and I doubt I was the only one humming all the way home.
Pete Woods
MONTROSE PARK LONDON NW9, 16 - 09/09/07