GREEN MAN FESTIVAL 2019

"Getting It Together In The Country..."

Last month I once again packed up my wellies, my rain hat and a plentiful supply of wet-wipes and made my way back down to the gloriously enticing Usk Valley in the Brecon Beacons for another fantastically fulfilling four days of festival fun and frolics as the 17th edition of the mighty Green Man opened its gates to the great and the good who had been lucky enough to bag a ticket. I'd come very close to missing out on this one due to a 'just missed the tickets sold out deadline' snafu, but fortunately - and thanks to a very kindly soul on the internet - I was able to join my festival buddy and set up tent with a smile on my face and a spring in my step. 

Weather-wise it was a mixed bag with torrential thunderstorms on the Friday which caused a hefty old quagmire to form around the heavier footfall areas, but happily the sun appeared on the Saturday morning and never really went away, which meant my aforementioned wet-weather gear stayed in my rucksack for the remainder of the festival. Happy days! Food and drink was, as usual, a mighty cornucopia of sights and smells that didn't stop my stomach from rumbling and my tastebuds from salivating all weekend. I stuck to imbibing hefty quantities of Maker's Mark bourbon which kept the wheels juiced quite nicely thank you very much, whilst indulging in lip-smacking fare that ran the gamut from spicy seafood paella, chocolate brownies, soft and tender rotisserie chicken and garlic potatoes, a veggie breakfast from the gods and all other manner of snacks and goodies that kept the hunger pangs at bay.

Other than the music of course, the festival offers a whole range of events and activities that should appeal to almost everyone in attendance with the younger kids and little ones enjoying the Little Folk area with this years Space Travel theme, and the older teenagers indulging in their artier talents in the Somewhere field. Science experiments and all kinds of mind-bending activities take place in Einstein's Garden, whilst over at the Performing Arts area you'll find circus performers, fire-eaters and puppet shows to delight and amaze. Concealed within the leafy environs at the far end of the grounds lies the Fortune Falls area which hosts interactive art installations, wild waterfalls and the Green Man Rising Stage for up and coming unsigned acts to ply their trade. For the inner hippy, there's the Nature Nurture nook, hosting yoga workshops, meditation sessions, sound therapy, hot tubs and massages to ease those aching festival limbs. And for the more cerebral, the Cinedrome tent offered a full range of festival-relatable movies and documentaries such as the 90's rave-era set Beats, Rudeboy: The Story Of Trojan Records, the Frank Sidebottom doc Being Frank and the wonderful Aretha Franklin performance Amazing Grace. Meanwhile, over in the Babbling Tongues tent there were talks and lectures through the day from the likes of Caitlin Moran, Jarvis Cocker, Richard Thompson and Anais Mitchell after which the comedians took over during the evening with stand-up sets from many a funny-boned soul such as Rob Deering and Phil Kay.

It's all about the music for me of course though, and this year I do believe was one of the very best lineups that Green Man has put together. The main Mountain Stage saw incredible performances from scuzzy South London refuseniks Fat White Family and legendary US post-rock heroes Yo La Tengo on the Friday, whilst during the Saturday sunshine there were sterling sets from London psych-jazz exponents Sons Of Kemet, Anglo/French synth-pop indie stalwarts Stereolab and a quite stunning headline appearance from one-man techno legend Keiran Hebden - otherwise known as Four Tet - who laid down an hour and a half of loose-limbed, arm-waving and downright hip-shaking electronic beats that had the whole main stage throng (your faithful scribe included) throwing some serious shapes and grinning like loons as the lasers flew around our heads and a full moon looked down upon us benignly. It was really rather ace.

Sunday was a more relaxed affair, just as well really after the immensity of the previous night, with some hushed Americana from Anais Mitchell before a couple of the best sets of the weekend in the alt-rock proto blues of Eels and the synth-laden drama of Sharon Van Etten - both of whom were far worthier headliners than the slightly too arch and knowing Father John Misty who closed proceedings. Across the other stages - the beating hub of the festival that is the Far Out tent, the relaxed and family friendly Walled Garden and the late night funk-filled shindigathon that is Chai Wallahs - there was some utterly splendid fare from Green Man stalwarts Richard Thompson, Pictish Trail, Gwenno, Steve Mason, Stealing Sheep and James Yorkston as well as debut appearances from Malian desert blues husband and wife team Amadou & Mariam, Thai-funk inspired Texan trio Khruangbin, the truly wondrous Gallic noir-rock of The Liminanas, US art-rockers Bodega, slap you round the chops Bristolian punkers Idles, Belgian funk-frilled jazz nutjobs Blow 3.0, Sons Of Kemet nabob Shabaka Hutchings other psychedelic infused modern jazz trio The Comet Is Coming, middle eastern inspired folk craziness from the Urban Folk Quartet and a fabulous surprise Thursday night headline turn from legendary late 80's indie kings The Wedding Present. As usual, the festival was brought to a close late on Sunday night with the ceremonial burning of the Green Man himself - a giant construction of wood and foliage - followed by a massive firework display that officially brought the curtain down on GM19. The whole affair really was tremendously magnificent from top to tail and as we made our way back to the car park on the Monday morning we were already planning for next year. Thanks Green Man - see you in 2020!