Offset Festival (day one): one-liners

Offset Festival 2010

Hainault Forest Country Park, 04sep10

day one

One-line reviews off all acts seen. Rarely can one line describe a band’s whole set, mainly because I rarely saw a band’s whole set. Rendering, you might argue, the whole thing a bit futile. Still, my blog, my rules, by which I mean none.

The Neat Main Stage

Too early a slot for this much infectious rattle and bounce.

Pariso Hardcore Stage

Challenged crowd not only with hardcore fury but also tasked them with the building of an inverse human pyramid and, fair play, some of the chaps gave it a good go.

Oh! Gunquit Offset Presents Stage

On paper, 60’s style garage bands who don’t reference Cadillacs and surfboards, rather Facebook and, err, off milk, are all wrong, but Oh! Gunquit gleefully get away with it.

Cold In Berlin Main Stage

If the main thrust of Alice Glass’ shtick was actually singing, and she fronted a band in the Interpol scheme of things, it might come out like this.

Guess What ECC Stage

Tempted to say “dunno, what?”, but the ‘what’ appears to be a slightly overdressed for the occasion Velvety Undergroundy thing.

Invasion Main Stage

Where soul and metal come together in a way not seen since Esso’s ‘Wigan Casino’ coin collection.

House of §chtinter ECC Stage

Shrouded within a heavy sheet and hidden behind a dolls house frontage (dolls house noir, anyway), Ho§ offers brooding drone, torch piano twinkle, barely visible video projection and spoken word gloom.

House of §chtinter @ ECC Stage

Bo Ningen Main Stage

The kind of strident psych that only works when performed by those with billowing hair

Egyptian Hip-Hop Loud & Quiet Stage

Well as it wasn’t spat rhymes on sarcophagus maintenance or pyramid styles (not to include tea-bags, Ponzi schemes or the organisation of English football) I didn’t think I be interested, but turns out, after a hesitant start, to be rather intriguing stuff.

Teeth!!! Loud & Quiet Stage

Prodding eager chiptuney business, with live drums amid the squeaks

Kap Bambino Main Stage

Much like Teeth!!!, only a little more ankle-grabbingly hectic with their synthetic beats, and entirely of the moment

Lavotchkin Hardcore Stage

Apropos of nothing, early doors, their frenetic display is interrupted by a man wearing nothing but a gimp mask and a thong.

La La Vasquez Offset Presents Stage

Yelping and tumbling through ‘Blue Monday’ and a set of lackadaisical garage pop where strong harmonies are they key and sadly, here, are the let down.

Good Shoes Main Stage

There’s something so utilitarian about them, which doesn’t feel like a ringing endorsement really.

Art Brut Main Stage

Eddie Argos is post-punk perky-pop’s most effortlessly erudite yet cheeky wit.

Art Brut @ Main Stage

Factory Floor Loud & Quiet Stage

Have really hit form and found their attack-as-build-followed-by-subtle-release voice in 2010 and it’s been mesmerising to watch them grow in stature

Liquid Liquid Main Stage

After FF seemed rather pedestrian and unthreatening by comparison, but pleasingly percussive in their own way

Thomas Tantrum Offset Presents Stage

Light, fluffy, take-em-home-to-meet-your-mother indie poplets

O.Children ECC Stage

Seeping synths, hints of Nick Cave in the shadows, yet a twinkle in the black of their irides

Telepathe Loud & Quiet Stage

An electro pop thousand yard stare, but through moist and milky eyes