Wight folk can rock!

From the archives...

Isle of Wight Festival 2006: The UK’s Woodstock

A hot summer weekend has placed The Isle of Wight Festival back in its rightful place basking in bright sunshine on the landscape of music iconography.

Held only eight times since 1968, the festival has provided music with many defining and historical moments. Best remembered are the last performance of rock legend Jimmy Hendrix, and the chaos of The Who playing to 600 000 gate-crashing hippies on a late August night in 1970, resulting in the event being shut down for the next three decades.

Revived in 2002 as a one-day event with headliner Robert Plant, the 2006 Isle of Wight Festival, held from 9 to 11 June, emerged as a three day spectacular with headlining acts The Prodigy, Foo Fighters and Coldplay.

Five miles off the southern England mainland, the town of Newport on the Isle of Wight is transformed over a five day period to cater for the needs of an influx of 60 000 music fans, nearly three times the local population. What could be a logistical nightmare is a carefully orchestrated liaison between organisers, local councils and emergency and security services.

For those willing to enjoy the true spirit of a rock festival, joining 30 000 people camping on site for the duration is the experience. With a closest neighbour never further than one or two yards, this is a true test of co-operation, tolerance and best of all, good humour.

The nature of festival camping necessitates the voluntary sacrifice of life’s luxuries like refrigeration, near access to running water or a toilet, or having a shower for a couple of days. No place for a princess, but the makings of priceless anecdotes and many friends from all walks of life.

Kicking off on the Friday evening headlining bands included Goldfrapp with their offering of a highly visual stage act of electro-fused pop, followed by melancholic and androgynously styled power-rockers Placebo.

Another definitive performance of relentless breakbeat from The Prodigy set off an electric vibe across the arena showing why they are a formidable live act and a foremost exponent of electronic music. The standard and tone for the remainder of the weekend was set. An aura of expectation from the thousands of punters enjoying the post-concert bars, discos and funfair well into the early hours was clear.

True to the ethos of the Isle of Wight Festival, Saturday’s line up offered the best of music old and new. Suzanne Vega and The Proclaimers returned the crowd sprawled on the grass basking in the sun back into a unified 80’s sing-along with very appropriate folk-pop.

Next came of the finest of new British indie-rock bands with critically acclaimed Dirty Pretty Things, and a group widely expected to go all the way to the top, Editors, with a great rendition of Talking Heads Road To Nowhere.

Introduced by model Kate Moss, and main supporting act, the ever-controversial and often chameleonesque rockers Primal Scream set up a healthy vibe for the Foo Fighters as highlight of the night. Band leader Mani asking the crowd "Do you have any drugs?", as per the script, played into the hands of controversy.

With expectancy apparent and without disappointment, an ever-smiling Dave Grohl led his Foo Fighters through a most-powerful performance of attitude and musicianship, belting out the hits DOA, In Your Honour and Times Like These to a lively and responsive mass. Grohl again proved beyond doubt why he is considered "the nicest guy in rock" and an enigma in modern music.

Sunday promised to be less intense but equally exhilarating with Coldplay headlining with their only UK performance for 2006. Highlights of the day included veteran prog-rockers Procol Harum with lead singer Gary Brooker who also appeared at the first festival in 1968.

Lou Reed played through a moody set of blues-rock with the distinctive New York drawl and sleazy lyrics that have made him one of rock’s icons and the ire of many a music journalist. Reed’s disrelation to his audience was at most reclusive if not poetic.

Pen-ultimate act Richard Ashcroft returned the Isle of Wight Festival to the politically charged 1970’s lashing out with sentiments on the Iraq war and state of British politics. That aside, the former Verve front-man showed his real talent as a solo singer-songwriter with an emotional delivery of his hits Lucky Man, Drugs Don’t Work and the anthemic Bitter Sweet Symphony.

Coldplay took their place as Festival headliners with the grace and aptitude that makes them one of the biggest bands in the world after only five years and three studio albums. The charm and wit of lead singer Chris Martin is endearing and mirrors intelligence and feeling so obvious in their music.

Critics have been many, but in performance of sublimely crafted songs like The Scientist and the show finale Fix You, there is intimacy, passion and bullish confidence. Avoiding comparison, but as a point, Bono and U2 have worthy contenders as music’s top dogs in Chris Martin and Coldplay.

An after-show adrenaline-high transformed the surrounding campsites into vibrant communities sharing a few drinks, the laughter of painfully cyclic jokes and experiences of the weekend well into the night. Sleep at most was difficult, but then again, the general consensus was that few come to rock festivals to sleep.

Memories are set by the sound of acoustic guitars and improvised percussion scattered far and wide, and groups of total strangers joined together in music spanning three decades. The sounds of Jimmy Hendrix and The Doors filtering from the masses as the sun rises adds a true irony, kindling that founding spirit of the Isle of Wight Festival.

Published reporter.co.za