The great bill at this festival included headliners, the
legendary Steve Harris and his British Lion, and the amazing Y&T,
alongside Toseland, FM and The Amorettes (some of my favourites). Plus the
brilliant new band Wayward Sons (fronted by Toby Jepson), Graham Bonnet Band,
and quirky Spaniards, StOp STop to name but a few.
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| StOp STop rocking the crowd |
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| StOp STop after their fab set! |
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| It was lovely to chat with Toby before his set! |
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| Toseland on stage on Friday night |
Next up was the marvellous Toseland who rocked the tent
right from the word go, as they marched on stage to perform the brilliant
Living In A moment. The band jammed their way through a set full of favourites
including Cradle The Rage and Renegade. As well as We’ll Stop At Nothing of
course, which has been chosen as the official anthem for the Special Olympics
to be held in Sheffield next month – click here to see James talk about it in
full with me!
Closing the night were the much-anticipated Steve Harris' British Lion. The legendary Iron Maiden bassist led his band on stage to a
packed marquee who went mad for the band. The guys played a great set of tracks
that went down a storm with the audience. Performing as though he was playing
to an arena of Maiden fans, it was a real treat for fans to see Harris playing
up so close.
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| Graham Bonnet had a great reaction from the crowd! |
Saturday saw three ace girls (who go by the name of The
Amorettes) take the stage (who I will be catching again later in the year),
before another legend took his place in the spotlight – Graham Bonnet Band!
Bonnet’s set went down a treat with the crowd who were in love with his distinctive
vocals and outstanding band.
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| The mighty FM showcasing their undeniable talent |
Following Bonnet’s set was the one-and-only FM. These guys
have been on the go since the 80s (with a break in between!), but boy have they
still got it! With Steve Overland’s outstanding vocals and their unbelievably
good songs, like Dangerous, That Girl and of course the original version of Shot
In The Dark, you can’t go wrong with these guys! Check out my backstage chat
with Steve and Jim from the band here, as they talk about their new album, plans for
next year and why some guitar solos just shouldn’t be tampered with!
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| It was a pleasure to catch up with Steve and Jim prior to their set! |
And finally, to close
what was a cracking weekend of music and fun, the legendary Y&T took their
place on the main stage. Also having been on the go since the late 70s/early
80s, it was a pleasure to see such a well-respected and talented band. Despite
being a member short (get well soon John!), the band were highly professional
and made the best of the situation through both a last-minute stand-in, Ross
McEwan (who did a fantastic job!) playing guitar with the band for several of
the songs, and performing as a three-piece, highly impressive. Frontman and
lead guitarist Dave Meniketti had everyone hooked with his iconic tracks like
Mean Streak and Winds Of Change. Check out my lovely backstage chat with Dave
here, to hear him talk about being both the lead guitarist and vocalist as well
as the band’s fans!
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| Dave Meniketti of Y&T very kindly spent a couple of minutes speaking with me before their fabulous set! |
Along with the main stage, the festival also hosted an
acoustic tent and an outside stage which featured the likes of Tequila Mockingbyrd – Aussie, all-girl trio who had some fab tracks and did a great job
with the crowd.
All-round, this was a festival with brilliant bands, plenty
of stalls to wander around (shout out to All Body Jewels for my lovely new
piercings!), a covered main stage (which meant despite heavy rain showers both
the bands and fans could enjoy the sets in the dry!) and most importantly, a lovely,
friendly atmosphere! Big thanks to Dale and his team for having us and huge
congratulations on creating such a fun, successful weekend – I hope to attend
next year!
