Apologies for the lack of posts. I try to do at least one a week, but I’ve been enjoying summer, getting out in the evenings, riding bikes, surfing, and getting a new board in particular and I’ve also been to my first festival. Yep, at 54 years old I've never been to a festival. Well, now I have, I have broken the festival cherry. The Great Estate Festival is no Glastonbury, but it's right here in Cornwall at the Scorrier Estate, and only thirty minutes from home. I’ve been to some big gigs over the years in stadiums and big concert arenas, but not being one for crowds, I think I’ve always avoided the festival environment. Even at the stadium gigs, like U2 way back in 1987 at Wembley, I remember how claustrophobic I felt, and soon found myself up in the seats, way above the stage and just watching the crowds, the and the fans surging forward. Maybe because I crave space, but I’ve never enjoyed being in the thick of it. The Great Estate Festival is a small scale event, still with plenty of people, but not mental. After our group rendezvous at Smokey Joe's Cafe, along with every other van in Cornwall, we convoyed in and were greeted to a weekend of scorching weather, beautiful grounds with plenty of shaded areas for the non-sun god people like me who burn at the slightest sign of any summer weather. Our van pitch was extra but it did mean we could replenish the hip flasks when necessary, and have a quiet space away from the hoards of teenage campers who gain access on their parents ticket if under 18. The festival was super fun, but I did have this strange feeling of being slightly overwhelmed, or rather the question popped up, ‘what am I supposed to do’? Do I just wander from stage to stage, watching as many acts as possible? Is it OK to just pitch up in the main arena with your seats, beers, food and family and watch the world go by? Do I get drunk or not? Do I really want to go into a silent disco with five hundred teenagers? The answer to the latter was an immediate NO!! Although next time, I’ll give it a go. I did know that I was there to watch the headline acts. The Selecter on Friday night is a band I grew up with in the late seventies, early eighties. I was fully expecting my early ‘Rude Boy' to come out and have a ’moonstomp’ with some fellow old timers. That we did, and scattered around a crowd were the trilby hats, the grey hair and the unmistakable bobbing of heads of the old boys and girls amongst us who grew up listening to Ska music. The Selecter and lead singer Pauline Black did not disappoint. She has an amazing voice and once saw her sing acoustic back in Brighton. Then we had Primal Scream on Saturday, a band who just embodied the nineties, taking weird drugs, and the fans turned out for them in the thousands. I’ll be honest like many, I was only familiar with their classic hits, but it was the other songs that caught my attention. They were epic, and even a power cut halfway through only made the fans want more, and a rising full moon over the estate only added to the emotions. I will add that out of everything we saw the band that stole the show for many were the truly amazing Elvana. Probably my favourite act over the weekend. A tribute band combining Elvis and Nirvana. They were pretty special and absolutely a crowd favourite, with a lead singer dressed in a cannabis leaf printed jumpsuit he was a true entertainer. Totally out of character I found myself, just off the front, and just behind the mosh pit and loving every second, watching my son and his friends get bundled around to tunes like ‘Feels like Teen Spirit’ and ‘Come as you are’, with and Elvis lookalike belting out the tracks. This was brilliant, as to were the young lads playing 60’s Rock n Roll, and although we missed it, the Hip Hop Karaoke was supposed to be all-time. There was also plenty to do for the kids of all ages. Plenty of woodland adventures, axe throwing, archery and fairground rides. One of my friends took his son to the Blacksmith stand and came back with a stunning piece of metal work, and this convinced me that I missed out on something special here, so I’ll be doing that next year for sure, and maybe spend a little money in the well-being arena. I did enjoy the Festival, I think I found my feet a little more on the second day. A good couple of hours watching people cruise by, ferrying kids in trolleys and wheel barrows, dressed in all manner of festival outfits and in all states of sobriety. Outfits either bought especially for the Great Estate, or just pulled off the dresser rails when the season started, they looked the part of Woodstock gone Glam, and middle aged parents with hippie kids in tow. Unlike myself, many seemed like veterans to this festival lifestyle, and as we sat next to the Jubel Beer stand, in a couple of deck chairs, with a couple of pints of Grapefruit Ale, we observed the beginnings of a stunning Saturday evening, with everyone carrying there festival beer mugs, full or empty, heading off to watch another act, at another stage, catching up with friends, or just taking it all in like us. The whole experience was pretty special, but I’ll be honest, I liked that we had our van to retreat to and take a breather, cook some food, regroup, and head back down for some more action. The van was my Great Escape when I needed it, and the Great Estate, 'the most rambunctious garden fete' is soon to be booked for 2024.
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AuthorHi, I'm Russ Pierre, a Cyclist, Surfer and outdoor enthusiast. Please join me as I have some fun on my adventures and write about all the stuff that makes me tick. Archives
October 2023
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