Ugh, international music festivals, why must you insist on being so good? I really don't mean to offend anyone, but Australia of late has really been on the arse-end when it comes to decent international/headline acts and music festivals in general. The past few years have seen the industry take off like crazy, with new events popping up all over the place, but they seem to be catering to a particular crowd which - and here's the part I sincerely apologise for in regards to offensiveness - leaves a really ugly taste in my mouth.
Alright, I'll spare you all from the retrospective, dreamy-eyed anecdotes starting with "When I started going to festivals...". Let me just say it would take something pretty spectacular, or an event fairly obscure in the eyes of those ugly mainstream festival goers to get me to purchase a ticket to an all day, large-ish scale music event. Last year's V Festival joy was replaced with dismal, despairing disappointment this year, when instead of being a champion of left-of-centre choices, they followed the JAMC/QOTSA/Smashing Pumpkins (shut up, you love them) extravaganza with the... ergh... Kaiser Chiefs and who bloody else remembers?
All Tomorrow's Parties - this is devastating - isn't returning in 2010 (although we're assured that the festival will be happening in 2011). The rest of the events on the calendar? Interchangeable. Don't even get me started.
Perhaps because two of my most favoured acts are on the bill is why I'm kinda turning green whilst feeling particularly keen to shout out about Boomslang, happening between October 9-17 in Lexington, Kentucky. Can't say, with all honesty, I've ever felt a strong desire to head to Kentucky, but this event could change that. The Black Angels AND Atlas Sound are both on the bill, as well as Psychedelic Horseshit, Kraut rock legends, Faust and seminal Os Mutantes. Of course, there are many others - you should check out the website.
The best part is tickets are limited to 1000. Oh my. My biggest gripe with most music festivals is overcrowding - the last time I went to the Big Day Out, I felt for the most part like cattle being herded through gates. Tickets go on sale this Friday, August 15.
One more thing, the event is put on by independent radio station, WRFL 88.1FM. The station is run by students at the University of Kentucky - commercial free and entirely volunteer-based.
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