Live Review

Chester Rocks 2012 – Chester

• 20th Jun 2012

Chester Rocks returned on Saturday, with a cracking line up boasting The Courteeners as headliners, Cast, The View, The Rifles, Sound Of Guns, The Fallows, The Suns, and The Fifth Movement. Amongst the earlier performers Chester band The Suns stood out. Their song ‘Jessica’ being a particular highlight, sounding like a cross of early sixties surf music and Roots And Echoes era Coral.
There’s a lot to do on the site in addition to the live music. You’ve got all your usual silly hat stalls and terrifying carnival rides. Special mention should go to the excellent on site food and drinks stalls. They’re undoubtedly of the best quality on the festival circuit at the moment. Too many otherwise enjoyable festivals have (literally) left a bad taste due to the tragic phenomenon of “Crimes Against Burger”. Thankfully this was not the case at Chester Rocks. Kudos to the luxury BBQ people!
The View braved the intermittent rain to bring their unique brand of indie rock to Chester, kicking off with ‘Same Jeans’ they started as they meant to go on. ‘Wasted little DJ’s’ and ‘Grace’ really got the crowd involved, and if new single ‘How Long’ is anything to go by, 4th Album ‘Cheeky For A Reason’ is shaping up to be another superb offering from the Dundee four piece. After some delightfully incomprehensible Glaswegian stage banter the boys closed with ‘Superstar Tradesman’ and ‘Sunday’, a reminder that amongst the scratchy Libertines guitars and rock n roll personas, The View have a serious talent for writing a glorious melody that leaves them standing head and shoulders above their contemporaries.
North West icons Cast were next up. ‘Fine Time’, ‘Guiding Star’ and ‘Live The Dream’ prove that John Powers magnificent voice can still leave any crowd in awe. New song ‘Timebomb’ taken from this years ‘Troubled Times’ LP was a highlight also. Eternal classic ‘Walkaway’ was the icing on the cake here, its mystical powers even managing to encourage the elusive sunshine to peek out from behind the clouds.
The Courteeners came on stage to headline around 9pm and were greeted like conquering heroes. Although of course popular all over the UK, a Courteeners gig in the North West is something to behold. Indeed it seemed half of Manchester had made the trip. ‘The Opener’ and ‘Acrylic’ have the crowd onside from the start but things shift into another gear with the pulsing rhythms of ‘You Overdid It Doll’. This was immediately followed by 2008 standalone single ‘That Kiss’. Having these two particular songs adjacent in the set list showcases just how versatile The Courteeners can be as a live outfit. One minute thumping disco groove, the next heart felt balladry. Crucially the glue that holds it all together is the lyrical wit and sharpness of Liam Fray. “You let me change the radio station in your car, do you remember that time I raised my voice. Because you said you’d never ever heard of The La’s. You continued to get intimidated. Then your fingertips wrapped around those knuckles of mine” sings Fray on ‘Please Don’t’. The crowd lap it up. Like The Smiths before them, it is this knack of combining the personal with the universal that makes The Courteeners so loved.
The set concluded with two bona fide indie anthems ‘Not Nineteen Forever’ and ‘What Took You So Long’. If there had been a roof on the place it would have duly been blown off. The crowds left truly satisfied singing the closing refrain “Whoa ah oh wah wah waaaoh” long into the night. All in all a superb days entertainment – if Chester Rocks keep booking line-ups as good as this it will surely become a force to be reckoned with and a staple of the festival calendar in the years to come.