Bearded Theory has developed a well deserved reputation for being one of the best festivals of the summer. Avoiding the same old line-up that seems to be booked for a lot of the other big events Bearded Theory brings an incredible array of artists, from big names to a huge variety of young, upcoming bands many of whom will be experiencing their first festival outing. Punk, post-punk, rock, electronic, dance, folk, spoken word, poetry – you’ll find them all here. Massive credit to DHP and their bookers for curating such a diverse line-up. Outside of the three main stages there’s a huge amount going on. The Convoy Cabaret tent with it’s punk/indie focus, the eclectic line-up in the Maui Waui tent, the DJ focused CODA tent and the chilled out Tea Tent where you can not only watch some fantastic acts but do so with amazing home-made cake and a tea or coffee. Add in the Children’s Village with workshops, games and talent shows and there’s really nothing not to like. The icing on the already tasty cake is that Bearded Theory takes place right in the middle of exam season meaning there isn’t hordes of pissed up teenagers who, despite having little real interest in music, think a festival is a right of passage after exams. Most importantly Bearded Theory feels safe with an overwhelming sense of positivity and relaxed vibes.
Last year we basked in 4 days of glorious sunshine. This year …. we didn’t. With the festival now spread over 5 days to help avoid traffic/access issues the sun disappeared the day before the opening to be replaced by rainfall of biblical proportions. A month’s rain in just 24 hours left campsites and outdoor stage areas under water and a lot of mud. We got lucky – we didn’t need to be towed IN like some people and we were in a van rather than a tent.
Wednesday was low key. A waterlogged Woodland Stage meant everything was moved to Convoy Cabaret where Pet Needs completely stole the night. Rarely do you see a band seem so happy to be on a stage doing what they do. Punky pop at it’s finest with some hard hitting songs about the stresses and strains of daily life and particularly those of a touring band. The place was rammed. Quite simply it was the perfect start by a band who really know how to bring the party to a festival. Little did they know at this stage but their weekend was about to get even better. Henge followed with their unique view of our world from theirs. They can see we need to act on climate change, that we need to de-militarise and that we need peace. It’s a shame our politicians don’t.
Thursday and it’s stopped raining. Woodland is still like a marsh and closed and the main Pallet stage doesn’t open until later giving the arena a small chance of drying out. We start in the Tea Tent where Muddy Summers and The Dirty Field Whores deliver a fantastic set of feminist folk. Anti-Tory, anti-fascist and proud to be middle aged. Convoy Cabaret tent saves the day by hosting the Woodland Stage bands and we witness brilliant sets of raucous, guitar driven, fast paced, often captivating, sometimes raging, alternative, punky rock ‘n’ roll noise from Total Luck, Berries, Cucamaras and Grandmas House. Proof, once again, that there’s a whole load of young bands delivering superb alternative music well away from the mainstream.
Wonderful sets also from Bleach Lab with their dreamy, angst driven sounds and the solo, raw, acoustic, folky blues of Andrea Kenny.
Pallet Stage opens. Sprints, a personal favourite of the last 12 months, hammer out a seething, passionate, hard hitting 40 minutes of perfect garage-punk. Battlesnake are powerful, rocky, completely bonkers and huge fun with their metal tinged, Judas Priest/glam influenced stage antics. Once known as Slaves, Soft Play close the Pallet with their raging, distortion filled, anarchic noise. A fantastic end to a day that leaves us really looking forward to the next three.
Friday, it’s still not rained again although we’re still wading through ankle deep sludge to get from campsite to festival site. Today’s the day we’re really struggling with clashes. A sure sign that someone really knows how to book some quality bands but just a little stressful when you’re torn between two stages where some of your favourite bands are playing. Hot Wax / Girl Scout. I choose Hot Wax who hammer out a superb 35 minutes of pummelling, bass driven, fuzzy, grungy rock n roll on Pallet stage. It’s then time to get some serious steps in alternating between the now open, beautiful surroundings of the Woodland stage and the Meadow stage. On Woodland Meryl Streek is angry, very angry. Austerity, the catholic church, corruption, rip off landlords and more. This 30 minutes of pure, passionate displeasure at many of society’s ills is one of the standouts of the weekend. A ball of pent up energy and frustration he pounds round the stage, climbs the pit barrier, is in the crowd. A mesmorising presence who tells it like it is with absolute conviction. And Meryl Streek in daylight, with more than just a torch beam for lighting was a new experience for those of us who have seen him before.
A dash over to The Meadow Stage where Ist Ist don’t disappoint (they never do). At times dark, at times uplifting they’ve absolutely nailed that ability to produce songs that on the one hand carry some serious, deep, thought provoking images whilst on the other everything is underpinned with almost joyous, foot tapping, singalong beats. It’s early afternoon but there’s loads here to witness a band who continue to captivate those who have followed them for years and gather new fans wherever they play. Back in Woodland LIINES hammer out their infectious post punk garage beats as they continue their more than welcome return to the live stage. New single ‘Holding On’ is out June 7th, don’t miss it. A quick dash back to Meadow for a glorious set of quirky, foot tapping tunes from BIS, celebrating 30 years together with the first of three gigs in two days. His Lordship, resplendent in eye watering suits, smash out a perfect set of high octane, pure rock ‘n’ roll. I say this every time I see them but I seriously doubt there’s a better live act out there at the moment. On the Pallet Stage Bob Vylan spit out their anger at the everything that’s wrong with the world we currently reside in after having a cheeky dig at the excessive number of people who claim they saw the band on a much smaller stage two years ago.
For this reviewer Dexys, on the Pallet Stage, were yet another standout. But opinions were split. Yes, there was an excessive amount of waffle during just one song but the rest of their set was just sublime. Finishing with ‘This Is What She’s Like’ was perfect. Hard to believe a voice was heard saying “they need to play the hits” – Clearly this person was elsewhere when thousands sang along to ‘Geno’ and ‘Come On Eileen’ or danced around to ‘Jackie Wilson Said..’. That or they were thinking of a completely different band.
Back over on the Meadow Stage Therapy? play their unique blend of rock/punk to a tent packed with fans before we finish with the unmistakeable sounds of New Model Army. This is a band that never disappoint. There’s a sizeable number of their dedicated fans present and a real buzz in the atmosphere. The lyrics, the tribal beats, the feeling of total unity for a common cause. New Model Army have been bringing people together for over 40 years yet are just as relevant now as they’ve ever been speaking out against corruption, discrimination and distinctly unequal opportunities. A fantastic end to a day that, musically, would be hard to beat. Too many clashes mean I missed Lambrini Girls, Panic Shack, St Agnes, Future Islands, Headsticks, The Twistettes and The Bar Stool Preachers. Bands that would also have a made any festival day perfect.
Saturday. It’s positively warm. Hot even with glorious sunshine. There’s something a little bit odd about plastering suncream on while your feet are stood in 4 inches of sloppy mud but t-shirt weather is better than jumper and poncho. The Meffs are a band that should be on everybody’s ‘must see list’. Fast paced, tuneful, hard hitting punk rock with strong messages. There’s nothing not to like about this duo who absolutely own the Meadow Stage and gain a whole load of new fans in the process. After a hiatus of several years the return of Sonic Boom Six is great, and their set explodes with energy. Ska, dance, punk, infectious beats. An early afternoon wake-up call. Bdrmm follow with a set packed with massive sounds. Shoegaze, otherwordly, dreamy, huge guitars. Some have said since that this was the set of the weekend. Staying for Do Nothing was the right choice. One of the few I hadn’t seen before. Subtle, chatty, post-punk vibes. Unfortunately I don’t catch the whole set and dash over to the Pallet Stage to witness the apocalyptic, thrashy noise and mesmorising stage presence of Wargasm. So much more than just ‘an image’. Another set we unfortunately leave early in order to catch another glorious moment. Having rejoiced in being able to fill a mainstage slot earlier in the day after Divorce were unable to play Pet Needs are now performing an acoustic set on top of the Catton Fiddle rum bus. Like them or not, and most do, you cannot take away from the fact that the happiest, most enthusiastic band of the whole weekend were this lot. Their third set of the weekend and the sheer joy of it all oozes from every pore on their faces.
The grubby, spoken word, thumping bass and droning background beat of Sleaford Mods can split opinions and it does today. Love them or hate them they speak for a generation in much the same way as the early punk bands did. Focus on the lyrics and more people would ‘get them’. Then it’s off to the Tea Tent for another of the few ‘absolutely must see’ bands. Interrobang?! provide an outlet for Dunstan Bruce (formerly of Chumbawamba) to question life after 50, to question why punk didn’t make the world a better place, to realise you’re turning into a miserable git all delivered over sharp, scratchy guitars and catchy beats. Well worth missing the majority of Jane’s Addiction to catch this lot.
It pours down overnight and once again the mud that was slowly drying out yesterday is back to the consistency of diarrhoea. There’s also the threat of more to come and we’re told that if the storm currently 8-10 miles away hits the site it’ll be a complete shut-down. Thankfully it doesn’t but another huge deluge mid-afternoon doesn’t help the underfoot situation. Regardless, Sunday still throws up some absolute gems on the musical front. Old school punk from the wonderful Penetration sees people bouncing and singing along. Hard to believe some of these classic anthems are now almost 50 years old. Bodega charm us all with their perfect, charming, witty, poppy tunes. Rapidly rising indie stars English Teacher pack out the Meadow Tent, Bodega return to do a fantastic set of Bob Dylan covers that quite literally leave one photographer in tears she was moved so much.
Captivating, angry, powerful. Big Special know how to deliver a message, interact with an audience and generally blast out a set packed with emotions. Little wonder they’re 6Music favourites with an ever expanding fanbase.
Dry Cleaning are a band to listen to, to concentrate on. Florence Shaw delivers deadpan like no-one else can. Brutal, honest observations of daily life and a vivid imagination all underpinned with a fantastic, weaving interplay between instruments. It’s easy to think a band such as this are much more suited to small, dark, intimate venues but even on the huge Pallet Stage it works.
Dinosaur Jr do their best to split our eardrums with a fantastic career spanning set of full on grungy noise. Few others can do it like they do.
Amyl and The Sniffers are the perfect mainstage Sunday headliners. Slicing guitars, full on, non stop speed, noise, energy and, in Amy Taylor, a front person who seems to have unlimited enthusiasm for bouncing round the entire stage. It doesn’t take long for those present to be hooked right in. Yes it’s noisy, yes it’s punk(y) but it’s also tuneful, danceable and it’s this complete combination that makes them a must see at any event. Perhaps they should have played for longer but as the fireworks explode over Pallet Stage it’s hard to think of a better headliner to end Bearded Theory’s main stage.
About to retire to my van a mate recommends I see Baxter Dury. So glad I made the effort. My surprise of the weekend. Having never really given him much thought everything about his set won me over. The poses, the stage antics, the spoken words, the gruff voice contradicting with the beautiful tones of a female backing singer. Late night, in a tent, in a field when you’re completely broken after five festival days. It just all works. Brilliantly.
Bearded Theory you were magical. Great staff, great organisation. A miracle the staff behind the scenes kept everything running as it did against the onslaught of the one thing they can’t control – the weather. You can plan for rain and soggy ground but you can’t plan for the unprecedented rainfall that hit the site 24 hours before opening. The crowds, the atmosphere, the positivity, the support, the clean toilets, the reasonable (for a festival) bar prices, the variety of acts, the opportunity to see some big names but to also discover something new.That feeling of safety despite being amongst 10000+ people. For me there is nothing not to like.
Finally, a huge thanks to the people who towed us out of our still waterlogged campsite.
