Live Review

Constellations Festival – Leeds

• 22nd Nov 2010

The start to the day isn’t quite as planned, we arrive too late to see Run Around Kids and instead I find myself stood watching the rather wretched Dog Is Dead with a piss warm can of £3.85 Guinness in my miserable mitts – thankfully this was the low point of the day.

These kind of events are always a bit odd, university buildings lack any real character, substance or real atmosphere, so the feeling of being within a glorified Whetherspoons with a few generic nightclubs built in is never far away from the mind. However, such is the diversely stellar line-up that people’s excitement and intrigue does at time burst through the sterile surroundings. The bar prices were a genuine shame, it seemed greed got to them, salivating at the prospect of thousands of people all trapped within one building and having no option but to pay what is on offer; well, it worked but tainted the day truth be told and my grumbles were echoed throughout the entire giant building. Luckily the music on offer was enough to make the rest bearable.

Gold Panda somehow manages to stand out from dozens of others, many a young man stands head bowed, hood up and beats blaring in front of a few indistinguishable knobs, but Gold Panda creates a fierce energy and subtle atmosphere in pleasing harmony. Not many people can make dance music an attractive prospect on a early Sunday afternoon without the aid of intoxicants, but today none are needed.

From the snippets I caught of Esben And The Witch they seemed to create a brooding and twisted atmosphere that sadly was lost on me all the way at the back, but I felt had I ventured in closer I would have been engulfed. However, I stood at the back so I could dash and get a good spot for the mighty Liars, who were fucking brutal. Not many bands can amalgamate that dense and penetrating sense of hazy atmosphere with the blistering and rudimentary punk sounds they create. Liars are an anomaly in themselves, and fortunately a perpetually rewarding one. The new material sounds intense and at times terrifying, Julian on drums doesn’t as much play them as utterly molest them, his hands groping and fisting the defenceless skins – the sticks his murder weapons. The set interweaves with one another in glorious fashion and it’s a seamless display of energy, intensity and song craft.

Les Savy Fav, I was a virgin until this day and my cherry didn’t so much get popped as stolen and pulverised. It was hilarious, raucous and something I wish I could see every Sunday afternoon. Watching Tim Harrington is like watching a toddler, look away for one second and he’s climbing something and potentially going to injure himself. Like Monotonix in some degrees this is about the show, except Les Savy Fav have the songs to back up the theatrics, where as Monotonix feel somewhat slightly one dimensional in comparison. No part of the stage or crowd goes unexplored during the show, it’s frantic and exciting and thankfully I was not the man who had anal sex simulated on him over a balcony.

The manic and agitated energy displayed by the previous outfits is replaced by a more reserved and restrained approach in the harmonious and melodic endeavours of Broken Social Scene. Truth be told, with your ears still ringing from the previous clan it feels somewhat flat and uninspired, more wrong place, wrong time rather than poor performance I think. A shame, as they are still a band a long to conquer and see their beauty which I am repeatedly told exists, but so far I keep getting a raw deal. Perseverance is the key I guess, that and good timing. Timing being of paramount importance seeing as though I left before they were joined by Johnny Marr!

That brings proceedings to a close, not as many bands seen as I intended, but as is the nature of festivals which merged with a couple of killer clashes on the bill meant I didn’t quite fill my quota. However, if you put on that many great bands in one building in one day then what do you expect.