Bearded Theory Festival Gallery: Highlights from Wednesday

Crikey Bearded Theory. That was fun. And Hot. Very hot. But mainly fun. Lots of fun.

What do you mean you haven’t been yet? What’s wrong with you?

If you are fan of festivals then Bearded Theory has to be on your bucket list.

It’s simply got everything you need… including a few things to grumble at (and we Brits love a good grumble, so that’s another feather in its cap).

Let’s tick a few boxes off the list:

Small, but with BIG acts: you can walk around the main part of the site in around 20-25 mins, and in the stroll you might well see Pixies, Kid Kapichi, Beans on Toast, Scott Doonican, and Samantics playing… (well, maybe not quite at the same time, but you get my drift). Seriously though…often one of the best line-ups of the season. Hands down.
Beer: Bearded Theory puts the beer in your beard. Alongside their standard bars (which are half decent) they bring in a couple of specialist craft ale purveyors who will ‘blow your bloody doors off’ if you fancy something above 4.2 abv with serious flavour.
BYOB: not that we want to sound like beer is more important than music, but if you want to carry your own supplies into the arena you are perfectly able to do so…
Friendly as f*ck: fancy a chat? Turn to your left or right, glance a a t-shirt, and use it as a start for a trip down memory lane… you’ll make twenty new friends every day.

Oh…and I mentioned grumbles:

It’s very hot (this year)! Or it’s very wet (some years)! Or it’s cold (sometimes)! Get over it…that is UK weather.
The stages are too close together and the sound bleeds…yes, fair enough… but it’s actually getting better very year as the team learn how to isolate things a bit more.
Food is expensive…blah blah blah… eveything is expensive these days, but you only live once, so bring a packed lunch if you don’t want to to pay a little more than you would in a standard McDonalds.
Too many camping chairs and blankets. OK…that one’s a fair cop… there are too many!

What about the bands?

Every year Bearded Theory brings us a bunch of old masters, some current bangers, and a few new-found gems.

It’s rare to find yourself sitting around at any point over the weekend without a good excuse to not be at a stage somehwhere where the music will rock your boat.

I mean… Pixies, Fat Dog, Warmduscher, Skunk Anansie, Meryl Streek, EMF, PWEI, CMAT (sorry, had to lump them together), Lambrini Girls, Panic Shack, Beans on Toast, Neville Staples, Samantics, The Bar Steward Sons of Val Doonican… the list goes on in terms of the best names in the business. And then you throw in new acts such as GANS, Jools and Native James, and things get really interesting.

I could write a tonne of words nobody would read about these three bands… but let’s just say that over the years I haven’t just tipped Getdown Services… I gave Beans on Toast his first official Glastonbury gig, Booked The Bar Steward Sons of Val Doonican for the festival gig that turned them into a professional band, and told the world to watch out for Nova Twins, Hotwax and Kid Kapichi…so trust me, I’m a festival doctor.

This year also saw the return of Getdown Services – who we first saw live at last year’s Bearded Theory on the Woodland Stage. They have moved up to the Meadow now, where they headlined the stage and melted the tent… incendiary isn’t a hot enough word for these two guys. And they are funny too… check out this interview report from their Q&A…