Splendour in the Grass - Part 2

As promised, here is the final chapter in the experience that was Dayve's Splendour in the Grass 2006. Enjoy.

DAY 2

We walk in, no line, getting in is an absolute piece of piss, and there are PROGRAMS, hundreds of them sitting on tables as you walk in, for free, to just pick up. Finally we know what the hell is going on all day!

The excitement and novelty had finally sunk in so Sunday was all about seeing bands. And there were plenty there. First intention was to see Butterfingers, who’d come in as a last minute replacement for Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! Who had to pull out because of an ill singer or something. Oh well. Inadvertantly caught the end of ‘The Exploders’ who I hadn’t really heard and probably wont again. Not to say they were bad, but they were certainly pretty uninteresting. Butterfingers hit the stage and were certainly not what I expected. I had to wait until the 3rd song till I was actually sure it was them (I’ve never seen these guys and have only heard the hip hop stuff) but they played a good set to a more than responsive crowd including ‘I like ‘em when they’re trouble’. They were impressive to a relative newcomer and I’d see them again.

We went and grabbed something to eat, smoked some pot and came back in eager anticipation of the surprise band. A lot of rumours going around and a lot of excitement surrounding it all, so you can imagine the disappointment on my face when out walked Craig Nicholls and the other dropkicks from the Vines. I didn’t know who he was at the start, he looked like an emo poof and I thought that was the kind of band we were about to get but once the disgusting noise from their amps and his shite voice got going, I was out of there quicker than an Olympic sprinter with gastro-enteritis heading for the shitter.

With even more time to kill we went and caught the end of 1200 techniques frontman N’Fas set and I must say, I didn’t know any of the songs but the crowd was PUMPED and he was working them and jumping around all over the place. He kind of reminds me of a chef that I used to work with but needless to say the energy from the place was enough to set an enjoyable mood and he was on fire. We probably only caught about 20 minutes in total but he deserved his cheers as he left the stage.

Next on the agenda was Brooklyn’s own Hassidic reggae star Matisyahu. As I’ve already been trying to drill into the heads of everyone around me with constant playing of his cd, THIS GUY IS AMAZING. I had only heard of him 2 days before on the drive with Dean up to Coffs and didn’t even know he was on the splendour bill but if I’d missed this guy, I would have been kicking myself, as should everyone who didn’t see him while they were there. A blissful, soulful experience. He was feeding off the crowd and we just kept giving him more and more energy. The future for this young man looks big and bright. Then again, some people probably wont get what makes this guy so amazing. See him live.

Then it was a bit more walking around aimlessly before it was time for The Presets. This is the second time I’ve seen these guys this year and they’ve been great both times. My only complaint would be the setlist really, it was almost identical to Big Day Out, especially now that I know all the songs and, while it was pumping and groovy, it wasn’t that exciting. But then again maybe that’s just me. Wolfmother were the next band we caught after that and it was kind of the opposite end of the spectrum. I’d also seen these guys at Big Day Out and while there were good they didn’t blow me away. At Splendour, however, they managed to blow not just me away but pretty much everyone else too I think with a massive, epic wall of sound that screams ‘too good to be Australian’ but the best part is that it IS.

The night, nay the whole weekend, came to a close with one man. One man who’s been one of the most influential songwriters of the past 50 years, Mr. Brian Wilson. For those of you who don’t know, he was in the Beach Boys and also wrote a lot of songs for other artists around that time. He played a set filled with timeless classics that got everyone in the place singing their lungs out with every word, no matter how high the harmony. It was something I’ve never experienced before. His band backing him up were also absolutely amazing and there was something about his ‘crazy old man’ persona that just made it even more enjoyable. Singling out people and verbally berating them for smoking near the stage (when the man has certainly had his own past filled with toxins) was met with cheers. I cant even remember which song went where but there was everything from ‘California Girls’ to ‘Good Vibrations’ to ‘Help Me Rhonda’ and the list just goes on and on. He left the stage to have pretty much the entire festival (he was the closing main stage act and if you weren’t there you’re a fool) scream and cheer the house down, ‘Encore! Encore!’ so they came out again and played a few more. When it was all over he and the band left the stage again to the same response from a rabid crowd desperately clinging on to the final ticking minutes of a festival no one wanted to end. So he came out again and played a goosebumps-inducing, 8 piece harmony, beautiful version of a song called ‘Love and Mercy’. A more than fitting way to end it all.

And like that, it was over. Trudging through the carpark with dirty shoes, a different chemical balance than when we walked in and with much sadness in our hearts, it was all over. My first Splendour experience will certainly not be forgotten, and it definitely won’t be the last. I’ll see you all there next year.

________________________________________________________________

On a side note, Dayve's band XQuabed are entering Triple Unearthed Competition. Show your support and get your mits on some FREE mp3s!