PostStockan

Thanks are due to an awful lot of friendly folks who put on a great festival in the Wicklow hills this weekend. KnockanStockan is organised, built and taken care of by volunteers who love music and good times so fair play to them.

My personal experience at first was one of feeling out of place, unprepared, boring and old but once I stopped thinking I actually had any real responsibility to fulfill, I had a smashing time.

The arty tent only sort of happened on Saturday after taking ages to set up on Friday and eventually being taken over as a regular stage due to the cracking Melty Marquee getting blown away Saturday night. Fuck it. When I did get around to doing one of the pieces I'd prepared, there wasn't really anyone there and I'd already realised it wasn't the most fitting thing to present in that setting so yeah, fuck it. I did it how it ought to be done more or less and I know now what work is left to get it ready for the gallery space its being designed for.

Much more satisfying work wise was earlier on the Saturday when I thought it was a bit of a waste sitting in the lovely indian (that's from the country called india) marquee with all these flowing colours and patterns sweeping about in the wind, listening to an iPod on the PA and decided to grab my gear and do a few A Room For Improvement style electroacoustic sound sets. About the same time I decided to that, a deadly painter called Barry Quinn showed up and launched into a lovely live painting session and over the course of his painting and my sound set, enough people wandered in and out, a good few staying to chill out after hearty breakfasts and what not, that I felt like I'd made some contribution to the festivities. It'll DEFO be A Room For Improvement who applies to do any festivals from now on. Until the Icarus Crane is willing to muddy up his sports jacket anyway.

Later some different folks hanging around in the healing tent across the way mentioned that the music had changed favourably into what sounded like my set, so job done.

Also performing in the arty tent were Stephen James Smith, Colm Keegan and Karl Parkinson all doing spoken word. The first too guys I've seen before and they both do a great set and it was cool seeing Mr Parkinson for the first time. I hope to come across his set again. What sets him apart is a of natural dramatic flare which sort of sneaks into his reading without coming over as fruity or pretentious. Good stuff.

I just about managed to get around to see a few of the acts that were either known to me beforehand or recommended by trustworthy folks during the festival but not nearly enough of them. Deadly stuff I actually saw include but are not limited to The Northside Kontraband (or something very like that) - stompin' good fun! Toward slavic type party music, banjo, percussion, heaps of brass and a clarinet. Not a milliion miles from the Ompa music I love so dear - on Sunday evening right after Eric Noon and the Future Gypsies - those two bands in succession will melt yr legs off! Manu Negra eat yr heart out. Seriously good, seriously fun songwriting and bags of energy (backed up by real talent in the individual members). Indeed the Fish Stage was the new Main Stage.

Something I wasn't going to miss was just after that on Sunday night - Marcas Carcas was due to do a longer set than I'd ever seen him do (just seen him twice on his own unplugged) and I was dying to see what he'd do in this setting. Couldn't see really, he had the Tunnel of Fun WEDGED and nearly bouncing the tent spikes out of the ground. Missisipy Wine is still knocking around in my head during quiet moments. Great stuff.

Saturday is a really random blur altogether I have to admit but yeah, loads of talent knocking around. On Friday I actually took my video camera out for a little while until I started to unhinge from work mode and decided to actually enjoy myself a bit and I think I got the odd good tune on tape. I think the guy's name is James Guilmartin who was with his band (don't know what they're called I'm afraid) in the Melty Marquee on Friday eve and really impressed me. I've seen the guy play unplugged on his own too a few times and never totally got into it even though he demonstrates himself to be massively talented, the songs he's doing are really more suited to the format of the band I saw him in, guitar, bass and drums all being played very very well indeed. An eclectic sound for such a simple set up, enough bluesy guitar to even out metally build ups and some great songwriting.
I was in that tent a good bit on Friday (not just cos it was raining mind) and saw some really different stuff. Over all I'd say it was younger talent in that tent, so some really good acts that people will be delighted to hear more and more of in the coming years. Don't know who they are but I'll pick my way through the bands on the festival website to try to find out a little more about some of the bands.

That doesn't really cover anything at all in comparison to the amount of great acts that were about but I'm sitting quite uncomfortably and haven't quite recovered yet.
For this reason, I'm going to relax a bit more and continue the days work which has been small scale drawing in preparation for a refocusing on the exhition in August.

Peas and Love