Festival diaries, day two

We were back at Seaclose Park for noon. Despite my already tired feet, I was glad of the night in a real bed and ready for, more or less, twelve hours of standing. The first call of the day was at a coffee wagon to get a drink and the fortification of a pastry. Then, walk towards the main stage. As the crowds were still not out and, I suspect, many of the on-site campers were recovering, we took the opportunity to look into some areas of the site that went unvisited yesterday.

The Platform One Stage, which a music college runs, showcases student talent. According to the schedule, we watched Stereo Screams, but there seem to be more people in the band (based on their Instagram) than we saw. Whoever they were, they were good.

We walked the long snake-fenced-off queue line for a beer and fruit cider. Nobody else was buying, and the staff watched, amused, as we walked up and down the lines. It's hard not to feel stupid doing that, but I wouldn't vault any fences to save a few seconds. We carried our drinks to the Main Stage area, where we could secure a space near the front and watch Apollo Junction. It's another new band to me and another fantastic way to start the day. Over several years, they had progressed from one of the small stages to opening the big one. Added to my playlist.

Yesterday, I mentioned the challenges of shifting between the Main Stage and other areas. Today, there were several acts in a row that we wanted to see on the biggest stage, so we settled in for about four and a half hours, standing three or four rows from the barrier. 

Natalie Imbruglia was first up. Of course, everybody wanted to sing along to Torn, which came towards the end of the set, but there were plenty of other solid songs. It was a great set that pulled people towards the stage.

The act PY wanted to see most today was Jake Shears, who was up just before 3pm. Arriving on stage wearing a glittering red and silver tracksuit, he opened with "Too Much Music". Pretty much straight afterwards, the tracksuit was removed to reveal a glittering silver and red vest-shorts combo. While most of the acts on the main stage stuck to the accepted dress code of 'something black', Jake Shears was the opposite.

Apollo Junction's Jamie Williamson got down from the stage to sing to the front row, and Jake Shears repeated the move during "Do The Television". This is great for those of us up close but not so wonderful for those further back with a view of the stage who lose sight of the artists. I am not complaining. Jake's set was another fantastic one. I hope he's back in a future year with a longer show as his solo collection of hits is growing, and he still needs to fit in the crowd-pleasing Scissor Sisters tunes.

Half an hour later, possibly the 90s pop highlight took to the stage. Unlike everybody else we've seen so far at the festival, S Club did not pretend to be singing to a live band. There were no instruments on stage, and it was a pop-perfect 45 minutes: opening, of course, with "S Club Party' and closing with the crowd's favourite, "Reach". If the Isle of Wight festival has a reputation for being a rock fest, then perhaps S Club will convince people that there's something for everyone.

After reaching for the stars, we decided it was time to eat. We found a pizza and sat on the grass near the Big Top, watching several people wearing Pet Shop Boys-inspired red and white pointy hats. The crowd had fewer 'costumes' than I remember from last year.

While we were sitting on the grass, the Big Top crowd was getting bigger and bigger to the sounds of Irish music. Intrigued, we wandered in and caught the last, thoroughly enjoyable half-hour of The Mary Wallopers before making our way to The River Stage. 

I am trying to remember who had just finished on The River Stage when we arrived, but most people who'd seen the previous act were hanging about. I nipped to the bar tent, and when I turned around again to return to PY with a couple of drinks, I needed to push through quite a mass of people. In another 80s flashback, Johnny Hates Jazz took to the stage with a collection of hits. I am not sure some of the crowd knew what was coming as, after the first couple of songs, there was a changeover with a bit of an exodus making way for more people who'd been trying to get into the area. 

By the time we'd heard "Turn Back The Clock", "I Don't Want To Be A Hero", and "Shattered Dreams" from the River Stage, the mass audiences had arrived in front of the Main Stage for not-quite-headliners, Keane. I am not familiar with Keane, so I was content to stand back and see most of the set on the video screen. I was surprised I knew as many of their songs as I did. 

Generally, I am not a fan of going to concerts where you can't see the act on the stage and watch the show on a video screen. However, at a festival like this, you must accept that it's the only way to see some acts without camping out in front of a single stage all day.  

After Keane, as it got darker, the air got colder. We both added layers, and I decided that something warm would help. It's incredible how a portion of super-unhealthy but equally delicious, loaded fries could revive us both. On a side note, the site's food selection was pretty impressive. PY went to try to find a stall still selling coffee. That's how rock-n-roll our evening was.

One of the peculiarities of festivals is that there are often no intros to the bands. After many people move equipment, and somebody inevitably hits the drum for a soundcheck, the band starts. And so it was with the Pet Shop Boys. PY returned, coffeeless, once he realised the Pet Shop Boys had started (the coffee queue was moving slowly due to high demand for the waffles that were also available). 

By this time, we were stood even further back than we'd been for Keane, and this is the point in my notes where I should inject something about the people who manage the stage-side video screens. 

It's ubiquitous for bands to have impressive video projection shows at the back of the stage. You can tell the amount of money artists are being paid by what they do with those screens. Earlier in the day, it's usually just the band's name or logo. As the day progresses, video is increasingly used. It looks nice when you can see the band on stage.

However, when you have 50,000 people back in a field with a partial obstruction of the mid-field sound/video/lighting gear, you only get part of the experience and rely on the side-stage video screen to see what's happening. Several bands, including PSB, often showed the video effects on these screens instead of the live view, and there was no sight of the band on stage. IMHO, I am there to see a band. Generally, I want to be able to see the performers on stage (even microscopic versions of them), but, as with PSB, when that's impossible, I implore the art directors of these things to keep the band on screen. If I want video effects, I'll watch Vevo.

OK, back to the the show (well, almost). The Isle of Wight is very family friendly as a festival. There are lots of kids of all ages. I imagine many little kids are exhausted by 10:20pm (the headline start time). A mass of people stay to see the first couple of songs by the final act and then start heading homeward (or, at least, campsitewards). As a pleasing result, within the first twenty minutes, we'd moved from being a long way back with the screen as the primary view to having a view of the stage where I could see Neil & Chris (and appreciate the aforementioned video effects). 

It's a stunning show. And every song is known. It's amazing how extensive and familiar PSB's back catalogue is. When a band can put songs as big as "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)" and "Rent" in the early part of the set and still have hits left for later, you're reminded of how prolific the band has been since their mid-80s arrival on planet pop*.

We took a gamble that "It's A Sin" was the closing song of the main set and made our way backwards as it was playing. And we were right. Thus, we started the power walk back to the bus stop to beat the crowds for the shuttle to Ryde. "West End Girls" (an encore song) played in our ears.

The bus was significantly busier than yesterday, and my legs were much creakier than last night. But it's nice to get to the flat for tea and more Sky Arts festival catch-up.


* I put that phrase in as it sounded like a homage to Smash Hits magazine.