Indietracks : The 4or The Record Review

Where : Midland Railway, Butterley, Derbyshire

When: 24th - 26th July 2009

Indietracks is a music festival beneath many a radar, set as it is by a steam train station in one of Derbyshire’s nicer back-gardens, and a chance for the fledgling careers of fresh-faced song-smiths to enjoy their moment in the sun - or rather beneath the overcast skies of this so-called summer. If you want a fibre-optic-lead U2 set or to hear the back-catalogue of your favourite global icon you’ve come to the wrong place, but if fresh air and fun is more your check-list topper then walk right in as immediately the atmosphere at Indietracks is crystal clear – everybody is relaxed, pretence is handed in at the ticket office in favour of open mindedness and the music is merely a bonus – at times a very nice juicy bonus indeed. Wouldn’t it be nice if the whole world was like this field in Derbyshire?
 
But whilst the atmosphere is surely one of the best reasons to give this festival a try this is at the end of the day a music website and therefore the quality of the music must remain of importance, and so I should probably tell you tales of the good and woes of the bad, both of which stole their fair share. To many, Emmy the Great would be the ‘headline act’ of this festival such is their growing reputation and they did not disappoint, showcasing a healthy number of songs each with a resonating sound – they’re a band with an identity, one so very cutting edge, and their set felt like it had long been established. Professional in delivery and exciting in sound, if only they’d have cracked a few more jokes with the crowd it would’ve been a truly memorable live set – that’s probably something they will develop in time. Indeed, watching their performance it became easy to forget that they are new to this scene, merely starting on the road to stardom. On the evidence of this crowd-pleasing set they’ll be leaving behind the understated surroundings of this festival, but they’ll perhaps not play one with a more welcome feel.

Thanks to the main stage being taken over by leading Spanish label Elefant Records, Emmy found themselves swept indoors on this first night as La Casa Azul took to the field, supposedly to demonstrate the exciting euro-pop worthy of the amount of records they’ve apparently sold. Unfortunately my brief glimpse of their set was more Euro-trash than Euro-pop – I literally stood aghast, confused as to what was happening before me. Credit where it is due though, they certainly got the crowd involved and most seemed happy to abandon reason and immerse themselves in this particular brand of music, foreign in every sense to the viewers. Again, this is my experience of Indietracks summed up – the people who paid to enter did so knowing they’d have fun whatever was presented to them. No way would most of these throw on a La Casa Azul record at home nor would they go to see them on their own billing but here, this night in this field, it didn’t matter.

Highlight of day one though was undoubtedly Camera Oscura who showcased the talents that have gained their record such high praise. Theirs was a set that belied their inexperience, encapsulating and yet simple, reliant upon beautiful melodies and vocal delivery. Similarly to Emmy the Great they seemed happy to play their songs without engaging too deeply with their admiring audience but in this case it seemed natural, an aide if anything to the set itself. Camera Obscura’s album is one worth listening to and on the evidence of that and this live effort they will be playing later in the day in future festivals. Here, though, their late-afternoon performance served to set-up the mood of the evening with everyone seeming to thoroughly engage with their work.

 So I suppose the first day of this festival was as eclectic as you’d expect for the setting. Good with bad, excellent with abhorrent, but never once dull. This just didn’t feel like a festival, it felt like a festival should feel; representative of the word itself, a celebration of summer, youth, music, and the countryside – a celebration of celebration, if you’re cliché inclined.
 
Unfortunately for us and all the fellow revellers, Sunday was exactly as Morrissey had warned – grey. Soon, grey turned into wet and so it was a blessing that the Spanish-dominated main stage had resulted in such a strong indoor offering. Sets from Zipper and, in particular, Bonne Idée were very well received, both energetic and interesting and Zipper’s ability to get the crowd involved was just the tonic for the miserable mood Mother Nature had woken up in. Defiant, I chose to wander outside and take in the main stage – maybe I felt it my duty – but BMX Bandits were enough to send me scuttling back inside for shelter, so disjointed and unfurnished was their set. I don’t want to be too harsh because a lot of their music is worth indulging in, they just didn’t bring it to the table this time – perhaps they’re just one of those bands better suited to the dry salvation of indoor performance, perhaps they had the ‘flu, but they’ll have many better days in the future, no doubt.
 
Back indoors then for Art Brut. I mean, if you go to a festival and Art Brut are playing, you go to see them, right? Eddie Argos was in typically vivacious form, showing the young ‘un’s just how you engage a crowd without sounding like he was trying – no, he sounded charismatic and maybe even oddly charming, at the very least persuasive. Musically Art Brut can be shambolic but their front-man holds things together so well that any strays away from acceptable are soon honed back in to make simple yet power-packed arty-alternative-whatever-it-is – Art Brut are original in both material and performance and the organisers of Indietracks chose well when selecting them to perform last on this particular stage.

 
Weather relenting, my wearied legs stepped outside for the finale in the shape of experienced heads Teenage Fanclub. In no safer hands could the ending of this weekend have been placed as the Scots celebrated no less than twenty years together with a thoroughly indulgent set, calling on songs from right across their two decades to send the already ecstatic crowd home with hairs on end. Magnificent stuff this was and as a complete performance head and shoulders the most enjoyable of a very enjoyable festival weekend.
 
Indietracks is a small festival with mainly small bands but its impact upon those who attend is very much the opposite. People of all ages and all musical tastes really did come together here with the sort of attitude needed to take small events like this forward and ensure their future. I for one will definitely be back next year, even if I have to pay this time…

Words: Benjamin Coley

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