My (54) first Glastonbury Festival with my son (27) – Day 3 starts off gently at 11am, to bring all the fragile ravers back from their slumbers. The exhaustion is being felt as bodies are pushed far beyond the limits. A small group of us went to Martin Richter who combines classical instruments and poetry in a modern way. It was dreamy and just what we needed.
Call-out for Digico
Sami, one of our band works for Digico, world leaders in sound consoles. There’s a mass of expertise behind the scenes. And Digico’s offering includes total tech support so the music happens on the day regardless. Every mic on stage, and there can be up to 250, is connected to the console so the sound engineer can design the sound the performers want. This includes prerecorded backing tracks which blend in with the live voices, especially when the lead singer can’t make the high notes.
Sylvan with his cowrie shells
Beating the crowds
This is a very beautiful jovial space but it does require survival skills. When walking anywhere, get in someone’s slip stream, preferably someone tall and assertive. When dumping, go when the Loo Crew is there, it’s the only time you can sit down, ‘coz the prospect of squatting and shitting is a perfect recipe for constipation. I have luckily had experience of squat-loos in France and Japan. You never get used to them, but at least you learn the dos and don’ts, like not putting pressure on your bladder or you get a sprinkler system. Like breathing through your mouth so you smell nothing. Glastonbury loos are the pits because they’re also open cess-pools.
Siesta
I lay in my tent as the sun beat down. After napping best I could I boogied along to Chainska Brassika at the Glade dome, a mini stage where you can make eye-contact with the musicians and suss out the hardware. It’s intimate, unlike the great stages where you can’t see a thing, but for the massive screens either side. Why are big stages the height they are. I say build them much higher, and have them sloping or stepped. And the audience too. A flat stage and flat audience is just inconsiderate of hobbits.
Woodsies, like a circus top
Early evening
Manneskin in Woodsies at 7:30 was brilliant. He worked the crowd, loved being there, and told us he was coming out to us because Glasto rules state fans can’t come on stage. He brought his mike and jumped in to the screaming broiling melée. They played their Eurovision hit and other rock favourites. It was such an electric atmosphere. Freddie Mercury, but straight.
I’ve done quite well so far surviving Glastonbury.
Manneskin up next!
One. More. Day….
