Defiance, love and hope were the defining emotions at the scorching first music festival of summer. Big Special, Gans, CMAT, Pixies, Garbage, Skunk Anansie, Lambrini Girls, Kate Nash, and Kae Tempest brought good vibes and energy to the super friendly Bearded Theory Festival.
Highlights from the Woodland Stage
'This is one of the greatest moments, you have made my year!' declared an emotional Tom Rhodes from the tree trunk-framed, Black Country flag-draped Woodland stage as his band Gans bounced along with pogo-ing festival goers, punching fists into the bright blue sky. His joy echoed the happy, defiant, buoyant vibe that permeated the entire weekend at Bearded Theory Festival, the first and arguably the best little music fest of the British summer.
Despite the sometimes unbearable heat over the May Bank Holiday weekend, the energy levels and kindness of strangers never faltered across three magnificent days of music in the stunning setting of Catton Hall, on the Staffordshire/Derbyshire border, about 20 minutes out of Lichfield.
Acts That Stole the Show
Mercury Prize winners CMAT and the brilliant Walsall duo Big Special epitomised all that's great about the festival. Both acts combined fierce lyrics, great stage presence, and a desire to entertain. The Irish troubadour Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson performed in full-blown technicolour, while Big Special shared a black and white worldview where Reform UK and racists are the baddies and love and unity need protecting at all costs. Both embraced their moment on stage with every fibre, their lead singers launching themselves into the crowd to get up close and personal, while sharing messages of defiance and hope. Euan Woodman of Gans was carried aloft through the woodland.
Veterans and Newcomers
Enigmatic musical heroes Pixies, celebrating 40 years in music, appeared remote in contrast. Their back catalogue included 'Wave of Mutilation', 'Where Is My Mind?', 'Here Comes Your Man', and 'Monkey Gone to Heaven', sounding as incredible as ever. However, their lack of crowd interaction stood in stark contrast to the crowd-pleasing antics of veteran punksters The Damned, an emotional Skunk Anansie, and original rude boy Neville Staple. Staple, of The Specials and Fun Boy Three fame, held back the years with poignant renditions of 'Ghost Town', 'Do Nothing', and 'Message to You Rudy'. The Damned got the singalongs on point with 'Neat Neat Neat', 'Smash It Up', and 'New Rose'. 'We've come from 1976 to save music!' proclaimed Captain Sensible, to a roar.
On the final night, Kae Tempest punched his way through new anthems including 'I Stand on the Line', with its defiant pushback against trans hate personified in the line: 'And how many strangers will I upset today with my existence?' Pro-trans messages were a theme of the weekend, with Kate Nash's amazing 'Germ' a highlight of a politically enriched set which ended with a friend lifting his top to show his recent operation scar. 'Trans Lives Matter' was among the political messages that formed the backdrop to a wilfully chaotic set by punksters Lambrini Girls.
Magic Beyond the Main Stage
It's away from the main stage that the real magic of Bearded Theory can be found, with younger artists seeking their big break and accomplished singer-songwriters grafting. The Woodland was a favourite spot for some festival goers only because of the shade it offered in the heat of the day, but if it meant the music of the likes of Gans, Good Health Good Wealth, Black Water County, and Cowboy Hunters got to impress a new crowd, all the better.
The biggest draws under the bunting-and-lights of the woods included a short comedy set by Stewart Lee, who brought along 'five jokes' and cutting observations about the likes of Russell Brand, Greg Wallace, and Nigel Farage. Birmingham icons The Nightingales teamed up with Ted Chippington to deliver a funny, breathless experience. Peter Hook and The Light drew heavily on the incredible back catalogue of Joy Division and New Order in an emotional, cathartic gathering inside the blue tented second stage, confusingly called the Meadow. This stage also hosted fan favourites including Getdown Services, The Wedding Present, Fat Dog, and Reverend and the Makers.
Other Attractions
Over in the Maui Waui tent, temperatures soared as young metal band Jake T White, rockers Archy and the Astronauts, and punky M/X fed off the festival's warm embrace. Convoy Cabaret hosted the weird and the wonderful, including personal favourites Smag Pa Dig Selv. Elsewhere, there were DJ sets and poetry, massages and wood carving, a Friday school registered with Ofsted, saunas (in this heat!), ice plunges (that's better), cocktail bars and cafes, clean camp sites, and regularly emptied loos.
If you haven't discovered this little festival yet - capacity 15,000 - you need to, before it goes the way of others like it and becomes too corporate and too big. Fingers crossed its directors continue to hold steady. It's less than an hour out of Brum, and tickets for next year go on sale soon.
