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I would write a lengthy reportage on our antics at the Leeds Festival, but Lee’s already done one on Myspace, so I think I’ll just cut and paste that instead.
x

So…Leeds Festival. Yeah. Eh? Oh yeah. Definately eventful. Those of you at the show will have witnessed our new technique of playing half a song and then leaving the stage for five or ten minutes, you know, just to build up a bit of tension n that. This is a new style of post rock. Most post rock bands just get quiet for a bit. We’re taking it to new levels. You’ll see. They’ll all start copying us sooner or later. For those of you who missed the show, what actually happened goes pretty much as follows:
“Ah, what a beautiful morning Tim.” “Yes Lee. ‘Tis as glorious as the heards of wilderbeasts flowing majestically across my brain.” “Yes Tim. It is. What say we rock on up to the ‘Topman Unsigned Stage hosted by Alan RAW from BBC radio” and play a ditty or two for all these fine people”. “Why that sounds like an excellent idea my fine ginger friend. Let us away.” So of we go.
First of all Tom has to drive around the festival perimiter a few times with all the gear. This is quite unusual but there’s nothing wrong with getting a good lay of the land before you play. Checking for emegency exits and all that. The rest of us mosey on up to the stage at about half ten and meet Scott from the Engine Rooms who thankfully was doing our sound. Already there are a few people milling around. Tom finally arrives after his little excursion to the edge of the world and bravely states that he never wants to put that much equipment in his car again.
We get set up. No rush. Loads of time. We get a lovely sound on stage and we’re all really comfortable and happy. An unusual state of mind for us admittedly. All systems check. Ready to rock. With a large expectant crowd now starting to form we take the stage. We get through the first song and it sounds bloody marvelous. “I say Tim, this is going jolly well isn’t it”. A roaring applause. Obviousley not from Tim. That would be a bit self indulgant. So with much confidence we rip into the next song, heads held high and grinning like sexual deveants. Then, just as the song is about to kick in (”How to drive on the wrong side of the motorway and not die” if your interested) everything goes silent. All the stage lights go out. All power to the amps has gone. Everything is still.
Fuck
The crowd are more than a little aggitated by this sudden stop but to there merit very understanding and laugh with us (thank christ! or buddha or whatever). “I say mister stage manager fellow, what’s all this about then?” “I do appologise mister ginger guitarist fellow, the generator seems to be reading empty, which is somewhat odd as I just filled the bugger this morning.”
Anyway, after about five or ten minutes the genny decides to live again and we get power, so we go back onstage and have a go at the beast. Everything seems to be fine. The crowd are still with us. We’re all feeling confident again as we slam into the good bit at the end of the tune and then…pop…silence.
Fuck
Fuck again
“I say mister stage manager, are you attemting to extract the urine?”. “Why no mister ginger guitarist. Such behaviour would be altogether shocking.”
“Indeed”.
After another five or ten minuters we get power and quickly kick into the good bit at the end of the beast. Pop. Silence.
Fuck
Fuck again
Oh, fuckityfuck fuckeroo
This time it’s bad. Half the crowd have had enough of being teezed in such a manner by now and decide to find a stage with some sort of continual set, regardless of how shit it might be. Who can blame them?
Meanwhile, back at the funny farm, everybody and his/her dog decide to go have a look at this generator. The site sparky turns up. A couple of sound engineers, stage manager, most of the band, a couple of people from another band and my mate Andy…and a dog.
After much chin scratching the dog pipes up. “I say, where does this wire go?”. “Ah, it goes over here, next to this dohnut truck.”
It turns out that in the middle of the night this dohnut vendor bloke had taken it upon himself to splice into the primary power cable coming out of the generator and attatch some random device that powers his truck. Unfortunatley the nobber left this device in a puddle. It was so utterly stupid that all we could do was laugh. This was the reason why smoke was coming out of the genny and all power shorting out.
Well, after much chortling and praising the dog we decided it might be a good idea if we went back onstage and finish the set. Chris and Ade joined us for “Look at that cloud” to bump the guitar compliment up to five. This made everything worth while. Somehow we’d managed to retain a massive crowd and we gladly (finally) gave them what they wanted: a song that didn’t just start, it also finished as well.
Then we got fucked.

Lee.

Viva la movement.