I am back from Glastonbury and back at work but haven’t quite come down yet. Every year again the festival manages to make you feel that a kinder, more positive and more colourful world is possible. I am not sure why five days in uncomfortably hot weather, walking crazy distances and hardly sleeping at all would make one feel that way, but everybody who has been to the festival can attest that it has that effect.
Once again I went as an Oxfam volunteer. I had a nice job, scanning EPO (easy pass-out) wristbands at a worker’s gate. The location was a forty-five minute walk from my tent. The shift pattern I got meant that I could not see Neil Young and I contemplated trying to swap shifts, but I had a list of “want-to-sees” and would be able to see all of them if I sacrificed Neil. Friends said he was very good.
The festival took crowd control very serious this year, issuing updates and shutting down areas if they got too busy. They had sold a couple of thousand tickets less too and this was noticeable. There were highly visible crowd control stewards and people seemed happy to follow their advice. I never had to queue for toilets or water. Several days temperatures got close to 30 degrees, but then again it seems to be very hot every year now and attendees come prepared for this.
The festival app worked particularly well this year. I wanted to be old school and use Clashfinder and highlighter, but the acts I wanted to see where spread out over so many different stages that I decided to give the app a go, and it was most helpful. I was pleased with how much I managed to see, despite working. I saw twenty-three full or almost full sets. I score my gigs and while I had no 10-out-of-10 gig this year, I had many more 8- or 9-scores than in recent years. These were the best:
1 TALISK (Avalon)
Scottish trad power trio, led by concertina virtuoso Mohsen Amini. I came off a night shift and had to set my alarm to go and see Talisk. It did not matter one bit that they were scheduled at 12:30 in the afternoon. From the off the audience was on board, clapping, whooping and jumping along to the rave-like build and release pattern of Talisk’s tunes. Mohsen is a high-on-life manic musician, and Charlie Galloway (guitar) and Benedict Morris (fiddle) make it all seem effortless. Talisk tour a lot and are a well-oiled machine. The new Avalon stage is half tent half canopy, which means the entire field can see the stage. The sound is better now than it was in the old tent. After the gig hands were sore from clapping and face sore from smiling. Next time may they get a much later, preferably headline, slot.
NB: Mohsen Amini’s other band Ímar recently led a successful boycott of London’s King’s Place, which caused said venue to cancel an upcoming conference sponsored by a company that supplies Israel with fighter jets.
2 HOTHOUSE FLOWERS (Acoustic)
Liam Ó Maonlaí said that this was his 18th time playing Glastonbury and there is good reason why they are asked back so often. The Hothouse Flowers were not even on my must-see list, as I have seen them often, but I went because time and place were convenient. Liam was in flying form. He is an absolute master musician as well as a beautiful singer, who deserves to be much better known than he is. Fiachna Ó Braonáin and Peter O’Toole are also in the band since the beginning, which was 1985. As I stood there watching them on the Acoustic stage my mind went back to all the times I had seen them over the years. Closing track ’Sí Do Mhamó I’ gets extended into a set of frantic trad tunes, with Fiachna on super fast tin whilst and Liam eventually switching to bodhrán. Intoxicating stuff.
3 ROD STEWART (Pyramid)
I had not gone near the “legend slot” since Dolly Parton in 2014, however Rod Stewart had long been on my wish list, so I put in some effort and got into the pit. I am a fan Rod’s early work (‘The Complete Mercury Recordings’ box set!) but I did not know what to expect. It turned out to be a bit of everything. It wasn’t perfect, but the good bits were really good. First of all he sounded great. When Mick Hucknall came on as a guest, Rod’s voice sounded much better in comparison. He was funny too: “I had nothing else”, he said shrugging his shoulders, coming out in an OTT pink suit after a costume change.
I would have liked more 70s and fewer 80s songs. Why pick ‘It’s A Heartache’ when you have a song as good as ‘The Killing Of Georgie’ in your catalogue? Highlights for me were ‘You Wear It Well’, ‘I’d Rather Go Blind’ and the emotional closer, ‘Sailing’. All of a sudden I was eight years old again, watching Toppop (Dutch ‘Top Of The Pops’) which for weeks on end finished with the ‘Sailing’ video of Rod on a boat.
It was lovely to see Ron Wood come out and also how much Rod himself seemed to be enjoying the gig. Despite some cheesy bits and lengthy breaks (he is 80 after all) it was a real feel good show.
4 BEANS ON TOAST (Bandstand)
On Friday afternoon I felt grotty after a tough early shift (the heat, not so much the work) and wondered what I could do to lift me up. The app showed that Beans On Toast was doing a gig on at the Bandstand half an hour later. This was one of his five shows at the festival. Beans first went to Glastonbury when he was 16, which he wrote about in his book ‘Drunk Folk Stories’. He has been playing at the festival since 2007 and proclaims it “the best place on Earth”. During lockdown I watched his lifestreams and saw him in his house drinking from a Glastonbury stainless steel pint pot. A kindred spirit. Jay (Beans) immediately came down from the Bandstand and performed on the grass amongst his audience. He stayed there for the whole gig, while his excellent keyboard player Matt remained on the Bandstand. He played requests, a very good new song, a trilogy about Glastonbury and finished with the a cappella ‘Money For War’. A Beans On Toast gig instantly makes you feel better about everything.
5 KNEECAP (West Holts)
I was taking no chances and got to West Holts two gigs early. Judging by the amount of Palestinian and Irish flags, as well as ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘Free Mo Chara’ T-shirts I was not the only one. The anticipation for this gig was unlike anything I ever experienced at Glastonbury. It was baking hot and it got busier and busier until they closed the field. Unintentionally I had gotten quite close to the stage, over to the side to stay out of the mosh pit. Mo Chara and Móglaí Bap spoke a lot and made perfect sense. They thanked the Eavis family for standing firm and allowing them to perform. I spoke to a photographer who had been outside the court in London for Mo Chara’s court case. He said that all the photographers started snapping when a band member arrived, only to realise they had photographed the wrong guy. I told him that if he did not know much about the band, their film would be a good place to start. I am not really into rap, but the fact that Kneecap rap in Irish makes it interesting and I am proud of the band and what they stand for. They are the modern day successors to Pete Seeger. And their latest single, ‘The Recap’, which closed the show, is an absolute banger.
6 RHIANNON GIDDENS WITH DIRK POWELL (Acoustic)
I have seen many of Rhiannon’s different musical projects over the years, including the Carolina Chocolate Drops, and she is always top class. This time she performed a very traditional, mostly bluegrass-based set, accompanied by Dirk Powell, who I was not familiar with, but who has played with many great names AND is the composer of ‘Waterbound’. Both Rhiannon and Dirk switched instruments frequently and Rhiannon also gave the background to the songs they played, almost like a university lecturer. Thankfully they were given a full hour to play, but I still wished it had been longer. The Acoustic stage sometimes struggles to attract people when there is so much competition on site, but Rhiannon and Dirk drew a good crowd. When Rhiannon sang the beautiful ‘We Could Fly’, which she and Dirk wrote together, I was reminded of the fact that she studied as an opera singer. What a voice, what a gig!
7 JOSHUA IDEHEN (Rumshack)
The Glastonbury lineup is so vast that it is impossible to get a full overview, but I had done a good bit of research and stumbled upon Joshua Idehen, an English-born Nigerian based in Sweden. He is a poet, spoken word artist and musician, who has collaborated with The Comet Is Coming and Sons of Kemet, amongst others. I listened to his EP ‘Mum Does The Washing’ and marked him as someone to see. I caught him on Thursday afternoon in the Rumshack in the South East Corner. The tent was packed and this was a very participatory and uplifting event. Joshua performs with Ludvig Parment, who does the music while Joshua sings, raps, dances and addresses the crowd like a personal trainer. His enthusiasm rubbed off on all present. The show finished with a superb cover of the Talking Heads’ ‘Once In A Lifetime’. Joshua’s debut solo album is going to be released on Heavenly Recordings.
8 CHRIS T-T (Laboratory Stage)
Many festival-goers do not have a plan and just wander and stop if they see something they like. I am a planner and was on my way to see Mohamed Errebbaa when I walked past a tent and heard a compère announce Chris T-T. I had only vaguely read about Chris coming out of retirement and had no idea he was at the festival. This was the Laboratory stage, a small tent with rows of chairs in the Green Fields. The gig was just about to start and there was an empty chair halfway in. Pity about Mohamed, but what a treat to unexpectedly see Chris T-T! Chris is a songwriter, writer, broadcaster and producer. I used to be an avid listener to his fantastic radio shows (Midnight Campfire, Folkhampton). Turns out he performed three different sets at Glastonbury: A ‘9 Red Songs’ full album show, his A A Milne show (poetry to music) and the show I was at, which was a bit of everything. Chris played guitar and piano and chatted in between songs. And what great songs. The crowd swelled to outside the tent and it was a great listening audience, unusual for Glastonbury.
9 HENRY GRACE (Acoustic)
Sometimes digging through the newer acts on at the Acoustic stage can bring a surprising discovery. A few years ago I found Roseanne Reid. This time Henry Grace, an americana singer/songwriter from London. Henry left England age 18 and moved to California, where he worked, studied and started songwriting and working as a musician. His wonderful album ‘Alive In America’ is the result of that period. He is now back in England and working away with a superb band, having just released the first single of his second album. The crowd was always going to be small at 11:30 in the morning, but everyone present was hugely appreciative. Great sound as well. Pity Henry only brought T-shirts. I reckon many of his admirers fall in the CD-buying age bracket.
10 DAISY RICKMAN (Tree Stage)
The Tree Stage sits in between the Woods and the John Peel stage (now Woodsies) and focusses on ambient music. It is a circular area, with benches and a ring-shaped canopy; a relaxed place with some shade. I saw several acts there and it works well early on in the day, when people are happy to sit and are not too chatty yet. Daisy Rickman is a singer and multi-instrumentalist who makes drony, atmospheric folk music. I had come across her in Songlines magazine. Reviews of her albums mention Anne Briggs, Nico and Karen Dalton. She was accompanied by Isaac I. Ockenden, himself a multi-instrumentalist and singer. It was incredibly windy during their set, but they battled on admirably and it somehow enhanced the otherworldly atmosphere of their music.
11 ALABAMA 3 (Avalon)
My choice for the Sunday night headliner. I had not seen Alabama 3 since lockdown and was pleased with the opportunity to finish the festival with them. Founder member D. Wayne Love died in 2019, but singer Zoe Devlin is back in the fold. It was a fun set, with all their hits: ‘Woke Up This Morning’, ‘Mao Tse Tung Said’, ‘Mansion On The Hill’ and my favourite, ‘Hello, I’m Johnny Cash’. The voice of the departed D. Wayne Love was heard throughout, and while it is understandable that the band want to honour him, this does not work too well for me. I believe that in the Prodigy, Maxim has taken over vocal duties and they have just a section featuring Keith Flint’s vocals. As I always prefer things to be properly live, that sounds like a better solution to me.
12 VIEUX FARKA TOURÉ (West Holts)
You can never go wrong with desert blues. Vieux Farka Touré is a master guitarist. I had seen him and his band before but that did not diminish the pleasure of seeing them out on the big West Holts stage under the burning sun, with all those colourful flags flapping in the wind. I am convinced that music sounds better in open air.
13 THE LIBERTINES (Pyramid)
One of only two sets I saw at the Pyramid stage, as it can be trying to try to listen to a band amidst the “tourists”: Instagrammers, too many people with flags and folks who enjoy the festival but are not particularly interested in the music, yet they plant themselves in large chattering groups in front of the Pyramid stage. I probably would not have been there for the Libertines if it wasn’t to get a good spot for Rod Stewart, however I enjoyed their gig very much. They are true rock’n roll survivors. The stage looked really nice - a replica of the Albion Rooms, a studio owned by the band. They had brought additional musicians and it was good to see Pete Doherty looking happy and seemingly relatively healthy.
14 TENGGER (Tree Stage)
Tengger are a “Pan-Asian family band” from Japan and Korea. The band name is Mongolian. They describe their music as psychedelic new age drone. They played around noon on Thursday, just after some heavy rain, and their show was perfect in that time and place. All band members were dressed in white. Mother and son left the stage to walk and dance amongst the crowd. Their set was really well received. A band I would love to get to know better.
15 ASH (Avalon)
One of those shows that surprise you when you realise you remember the words to so many of the songs. I liked Ash in the 90s but had not listened to them in years. Tim Wheeler wanted to set the record straight. When Billie Eilish headlined Glastonbury she was hailed as the youngest ever headliner at age 20, however Ash headlined in 1997, when Mark and Tim from the band were younger than Billie was. The band still look remarkably youthful and the songs have aged well: ‘Oh Year’, ‘Angel Interceptor’, ‘Shining Light’ and best of all ‘Girl From Mars’. Joyous.
16 FOUR TET (Woodsies)
I went for some electronic dance music for a change. The tent was packed. Fabulous music but quite boring to watch a man standing at a console. I had hoped for good visuals, but I have seen better lights and visuals at rock gigs.
17 BOB VYLAN (West Holts)
Bob Vylan started their show with a mass yoga and meditation session. Main man Bobby Vylan spoke a lot during the show and all the slogans displayed on their screens were spot on. He brought his daughter on for a charming guest slot. I applaud the band for speaking up and calling for an end to genocide. My only problem with this gig was that their music features a lot of heavy electric guitar but there was no guitarist on stage.
18 GWENNO (Tree Stage)
Gwenno performed solo this time, singing in English, Welsh and Cornish. An engaging set from a very original performer.
19 FLOATING POINTS (Woodsies)
Floating Points were on before Four Yet. Another case of great music - not much to watch. The fact that I was sober and had gotten up at 04:15 did not help.
20 BETH PORTER (Bandstand)
This show was billed as a Beth Porter show, however Ben Please of the Bookshop Band was on stage too: Seasoned performers who managed to engage the audience at the Bandstand, which is a tiny stage on a busy crossroads in the market area. I first saw this duo when they supported the Unthanks on tour.
LEAST LIKED: Opening ceremony
The festival licence does not allow for amplified music on the Wednesday, which is why only acoustic events take place. Most people are already onsite and looking for something to do. The Theatre & Circus field team put on an ambitious opening ceremony in the Pyramid arena. There were drummers, acrobats and trapeze artists. I had walked by the dress rehearsal on Tuesday and it looked very impressive: Ballet dancers hoisted high up in the air. On Wednesday night however the field was absolutely rammed with people and unless right at the front you couldn’t really see anything, nor could the drums be heard further up on the hill. Unfortunately it all fell flat. Even the fireworks at the end were not great, because they disappeared in low-hanging clouds.
2026 will be a fallow year. Info for 2027 will in due course be on the festival website
Helen.
Tree Stage