Virgin

When looking at the vast array of festivals the summer offers on these shores alone, the only way to find your own niche is to voyage relentlessly until no stone is left unturned (or at least until the following festival season when another colossal wave of up-and-coming weekend shindigs are destined to battle it out to get hold of any loose change on the credit card). V Festival, lying a stones-throw from the Reading Weekend has, in previous years, been some vague form of weekend of rest but with the draw this year of Muse, Hot Chip, Kings of Leon and The Prodigy, it blows the August bank holiday knees-up’s retro metal fest out of the water both on eclecticism and on sheer fire power (fitting that Liam Howlett’s The Prodigy should headline the 4music stage as it was they who proclaimed themselves to be ‘Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned’- a statement that defines this year’s V fest fittingly).

Carrying the baggage of an 8-hour jet-lag, a hangover following a somewhat debauched night mingling, kissing and cavorting about with the likes of Biffy Clyro, Pussycat Dolls and Duffy (all kissing involving Biffy Clyro’s Simon Neil) as well as a mammoth mound of camping equipment that never seems as luxurious once all set up…

Beyond the gates of Hylands Park, all expectations are but blank canvases, awaiting musical strokes. Chelmsford serves up the expected (or at least the images portrayed by The Prodigy) with the addition of a Marks & Spencers. The eccentric beast that is this year’s bill grabs attention from the moment of purchasing a slightly extortionate laminate and doesn’t let go until Richard Ashcroft & co. strum their last; from Siouxsie’s human interpretation of an escaped peacock parading through a scrap yard to Richard Hawley’s versions of love songs that make Valentine’s Day seem 100% respectable back to the Radio 1 A-list of The Pigeon Detectives and Scouting for Girls the mixed sonic sack holds something in store for well, almost anyone.

A feat with around the same probability as 2 days of sunshine at a British festival, a feat only foiled at the final hurdle. The heavens open just as the Chemical Brothers drop their last ‘block rockin’ beat’, Kaiser Chiefs bellow ‘Ruby’ for the 89th time and The Verve’s orchestra of several hundred synthetic violins synchronize, feeding the dying embers of their indisputable reign over this year’s festival circuit. Wherever you are, whatever you’re doing, whether consciously or subconsciously you’re beating your heart out, word for word.

There’s no better way to pay homage to your musical influences than by standing in a muddy field warbling out their songs, well that’s the theory anyway.

2008 was the summer of covers as up and down the country, bands threw on their tribute hats and sang sang sang. V Festival had more than it’s fair share of cover versions, some good, some great and some, er, insulting!

Lenny Kravitz showed us how his velvety vocal chords can sing any song with ease and effortless cool. He covered Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the wall” fantastically and had the whole crowd shouting at imaginary Essex teachers. Without even pausing for a spot of air guitar he then broke in to Billie Jean and shimmied his way across stage whilst the audience screamed for more.

Another fantastic cover was Winemouse’s, sorry Amy Winehouse’s cover of Sam Cooke’s “Cupid”. Even my scathing cynical heart melted when she warbled this soul classic.

Girls Aloud, packed some pop punches with a rendition of Salt N Peppa’s Push it, complete with cheesy dance moves. Sadly, their attempts at rapping “Walk this Way” didn’t have the impact that they were probably aiming for. Entertaining yes, credible? Sarah Harding breaking in to leftfield electro trance would have been more realistic. Run DMC and Aerosmith were brave combining hip hop with rock, Girls Aloud should not have been allowed…

Elsewhere at V Festival, Scouting for Girls argued their point that Elvis ain’t dead by doing a rousing performance of ‘Fools Rush In’ and Gabriella Cilmi continued to protest her sweetnes with a great cover of Led Zep’s “Whole Lotta Love”.

Meanwhile, Reading Festival transformed itself in to the Kurt Cobain Tribute Festival as three bands (or two bands and one group of lucky buskers) paid homage to Nirvana. Manic Street Preachers covered PennyRoyal Tea, Dirty Pretty Things’ Carl Barat did a mighty version of ‘In Bloom’ and Feeder attempted ‘Breed’ . Let’s hope they don’t…

If ever there was an event awash with ropey media perceptions, surely it’s the spiffy festival we call V.

Last weekend played host to my first ever V, arriving to Chelmsford expecting to dodge cartoon-sized hampers, happy-go-lucky families, tee-total teenagers, and a sickly plethora of pop, all thanks to an indie rag’s festival guide.

However, within minutes of kicking off a tent-pitching session I discovered the V crowd were a leery, cheery, beery bunch not a million miles away from some of my beloved festival crowds.

From then on it was a sure-footed leap into the arena for a live line-up apropos of today’s top notch music offerings. Next year’s diary will undoubtedly have mid-August marked with a big, red, tick-shaped V.

The weekend’s stories and encounters were appropriately caught on film, but the upcoming Reading Festival throws a proverbial spanner in the editorial works. In the meantime nurse the painful wait with this video postcard, which also delineates my V discoveries.

Do check back soon for more of this sort of thing.