A Bedminster Perspective: August 2007

As previously mentioned, I managed to blag a free ticket to this year's Big Chill festival in exchange for two paid shifts selling car park tickets.

So, this potato field was my view of the Thursday...

Actually it was more like this, but with pretty much constant traffic...

I finished up at Midnight on Thursday night, and made a 45 minute trek from the north gate to the family camping field on the opposite side of the festival to meet back with Bevan, Rosie & Josh. As I came over the brow of the hill, my first view of the festival site at night took me aback. I didn't even bother trying to capture it with my mobile phone, but these are the best snaps I found online...

They don't really do it justice

I discovered that all I had missed on the Thursday was some DJ officially opening the festival from this mirror boat...

My second and last shift on the Friday was a bit of a killer. Ten hours standing up in the blazing sun was hard work, and this Aston Martin DB4 was the only semi highlight. I recognised the driver from somewhere on the telly, but I couldn't place it. Apparently it's one of only 29 convertible DB4s that were ever made.

It cost him £60 petrol to get to the Malvern's from London... Sucker.

By the time they came to relieve me of my duties I was dead on my feet. The 4000-word assignment that I completed in the two days before the festival had not been the best preparation.

Thankfully however, I was now a free man, and after the briefest of rests I made my way to see the Cinematic Orchestra on the main stage...

They turned out to be the perfect wind-down...

Bizarrely I got a private Youtube message from Heidi, the singer with the Cinematic Orchestra, to ask if I had any more videos of their gig, as mine was the only one on Youtube.

I explained that soon after taking that video, I made my way to the front and enjoyed the gig so much that I didn't think to film any more.

Then I promptly added that I produce music and cheekily suggested that if she was going to be in Bristol in the near future, she should come to my 'studio' and put some vocals down. To my surprise I had a reply to say that she was always interested in new collaborations, and to send her an email.

I doubt it will ever happen, but I am already formulating a plan with Bevan to use Grant's studio. Now all I have to do is write a really decent track. Darn.

Soon after their set it was time to go and check out the drumnbass in the non-smoking 'club tent'. It quickly became apparent that the big chill crowd did not want to chill out once the sun had gone down...

The highlight of the set was when High Contrast dropped his old classic 'Spaced Invader'. The place went off...

Saturday morning was spent at the camp. Grant had managed to get his VW into the family camping field. If you've been responsible for a seminal album or two, it's amazing what you can get away with.

That afternoon I got my first view of the festival in daylight...

Pretty soon it was time for Grant's set, so we made our way to the front...

Does anyone recognise those knobbly knees on the left?

I should say that the banner had nothing to do with me, although I do happen to agree with the sentiment.

Josh still hasn't quite grasped that his voice doesn't carry over a huge rack of speakers, and spent the first half of the set (bar my moment of fame) shouting 'Graaaaaant' up at the stage.

Amazingly it seemed to work...

After getting a cheer from the crowd, a slightly over-awed Josh came back to his Mum and Bevan returned to the stage to take some snaps...

By now the festival tradition of drinking through a hangover was well underway, and I remember very little of Saturday evening...

Sunday was spent chilling out under a tree, and exploring the more random parts of the festival, like these images on grass...

...and the 'Body and Soul' area...

We also stumbled across a glitter-wrestling contest...

Bike powered tree lanterns...

...and bike-powered cinema...

All in all a cracking weekend, and the car park stints were long forgotten by the Sunday night. It was one massive chill...

At the end of officially the "wettest early summer in the UK since records began" (and yes, I can actually quote that from BBC Points West), Bristol City Council decided to dump 800 tonnes of sand on the old dockland car park opposite the Seven Shed and Thekla, to create an 'urban beach'. Bevan had taken 3-year-old Josh there, and noticed there was a DJ in a bamboo booth, so he set about securing us a gig.

They agreed upon 2-4pm, on the Saturday of the Bristol Boat Regatta, for a trial run.

The day before the gig, I was struck down with a serious case of 'man cold' and wasn't sure whether I would be able to attend, but I had already suggested that my Sister should come along with the Nephew's so I decided I would battle on.

I was excited about Joe and Sam finally meeting Bevan & Rosie's little boy, Josh, but as it turned out they didn't exactly hit it off.

Since I was full of cold and surrounded by kids I decided to leave the DJing to Bevan and Jody, and spent my time building sandcastles.

By pure coincidence, Rich and Bruce were back in Town for the weekend.

OK so that's not Rich, but he managed to avoid my camera. All that training must be helping.

Jelfs, Nade, Chris & Em all came out to join us, and we popped over to the Thekla for a free afternoon performance from Bristol's favourite ukulele band, the 'Rinky Dinks'

Hope FC faithfuls Joe & Neil are both members (phnar phnar), and I have to say it was one of the most entertaining gigs I have been to in days.

Here they are performing 'Ring of Fire'

...and the Grande finale was a medley of Queen's 'Fat Bottomed Girls', into the Stones' 'Sympathy for the Devil', into the Beatles' 'Hey Jude', all performed on three ukulele's, a bass guitar, and a portable drum kit. I should get commission for this.