Ben Lanes is punching the air and singing along to the "hey hey hey" bit of Far Gone And Out by The Jesus And Mary Chain, many of my other best friends are with me, it's (surprisingly) not raining, I've got a can of (massively overpriced) lager in my hand, and the Crystal Palace Tower (London's highest structure) looms impressively over one of London's finest parks.
I think it's safe to say I was happy. Thoughts running up to the day had been based on the weather (the forecast wasn't good) and Primal Scream and the fallout following the death of their former keyboardist Martin Duffy and the open letter his son put out, following Duffy's death, which castigated the group in no uncertain terms. The only thing I can be certain is of uncertainty regarding the whole affair and, to be fair, Primal Scream have kept a silent counsel about it all.
But it definitely affected the public conception of the band and it, possibly, affected ticket sales. South Facing in Crystal Palace Park is a small 'festival' anyway but with tickets not shifting as quick as the promoters would have liked it became even more smaller. Three bars, three toilet blocks, about fifteen (expensive but, apparently, tasty) food stands, and one stage (not even the famed rusty laptop) meant it was easy to meet friends and even go to the bar, and/or the bogs, and still find said friends again pretty quickly.
The natural bowl shape of the park also meant that wherever you stood you got a good view. Unless, like we did - initially, you decide to congregate around the bins with a massive WASTE DISPOSAL sign blocking your view. That didn't last long. Even if only a few of our number made their way down the front to watch Texan psych warriors The Black Angels.
I got the impression they'd have sounded better at 2am than at 6pm. Low guttural bass sounds, two left handed guitarists, and a guy that looked like Badly Drawn Boy. I thought they sounded like Black Sabbath if Liam Gallagher had replaced Ozzy Osbourne on vocal duties. They sounded good though. I stood back and let the sound wash over me but when it came to The Jesus And Mary Chain, one of my all time favourite bands, I wasn't going to stand at the back. I was going to get amongst it.
Which I did. In the weeks running up to the gig I wondered what it'd be like to see the Mary Chain playing outdoors (!), playing as a support band (!!), and playing while it's still light (!!!). None of which I'd done before. I comforted myself by imagining it would piss it down while they played but it didn't. It stayed fine - and guess what? The Jesus And Mary Chain sound good even on sunny days.
Even when they played Nine Million Rainy Days (did they chose their setlist with the predicted weather in mind or is rain just part of their brand?) which they did to great acclaim. The set was pretty heavy on the hits. Starting with a double salvo of Blues From A Gun and Head On and ending with I Hate Rock'n'Roll and Reverence, elsewhere they effortlessly tossed some bones to us old dinosaurs in the crowd with Some Candy Talking, Darklands, Cracking Up, and All Things Pass.
I don't need to tell you what those songs sound like it. If you're reading this you already know. Isobel Campbell came on to sing Sometimes Always, Black And Blue, and Just Like Honey. She sounded pretty good though I know not everyone is her biggest fan. I was almost sad when they finished. It had felt like a headline set. But another beer and the thought of Primal Scream kept spirits high.
Ver Scream, however, were something of a mixed bag. I've seen them play brilliant gigs and I've seen them play average ones and, for me, last night's was more average than brilliant. There's no doubting that tunes like Movin' On Up, Jailbird, Rocks, and Loaded are indestructable classics and last night the band proved they work those songs better live than they sound on record.
But elsewhere the set flagged a bit. The band seemed a bit tired, maybe it's all the gigs they've been doing, maybe it's the stressful fall out of the whole Duffy affair, but they didn't seem the all conquering rock heroes (that once refused to fly into Luton Airport) they once were. At least not in the sense they'd want to be,
Elements of the set felt like spending time with a coked up banker and what the fuck was going on with the saxophone player? Saxophones can work, and have worked, in rock music (I'm thinking Chuck Berry or Morphine) but Primal Scream are not the sort of the band that need a Steve Fucking Norman of Spandau Ballet figure and last night that became more evident than ever.
Despite these longueurs (which lasted about half the set, from Can't Go Back to Free), everyone still had a great time and everybody certainly pepped up for the big hits at the end, even Country Girl. After the gig (it finished just after 10pm) there was time for a couple more drinks in The Westow House and that was it. Primal Scream were good if not great but The Jesus And Mary Chain were excellent. Talking in rhyme with my chaotic soul.
Thanks to Pam, Ben, Tracy, Vicki, John HB, Mary, Simon, John Black Dam, Chris, Mesude, Tony, and Michelle for the great company (and, in some cases, photos used here) before, after, and during the gig. Makes you want to feel, makes you want to try, makes you want to blow the stars from the sky.
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