At last year’s Isle of Wight Festival, rain stopped play, to use a cliché. I’m still haunted by a vision of my tent floating away on a river of mud, leaving a trail of snappy hot-pants, torches and socks in its wake, so hopefully my bad memories will be cleansed after my attendance at the 2013 festival. After all, last year’s event still managed to absolutely smash it in terms of the band selection making me wonder what this party would be like on a smashing sun soaked afternoon.
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What’s am I looking forward to most? Who knows, there’s such a selection of classic artists here, it’s hard to stick a silver rizla between them. Debbie Harry might have lost her looks, but she certainly still knows how to play the big numbers with Blondie. The Stone Roses truly are managing to extend their spell as then men of the moment another twelve months, and how could you not love Bon Jovi, a poor boy from New Jersey who had the gall to tell the world that he’s Livin’ On A Prayer, whilst recording one of the most successful, hit laden rock albums of the 1980s.
Of course, with any field trip it’s my belief that you should always take in the historical sites, even if they are a crumbling old ruin. Some people say that I shouldn’t talk about Bob Geldof and the Boomtown Rats in such a way, but I kind of feel that seeing this relic of the 1980s will be akin to visiting a musical museum. If I keep all my bits crossed then maybe he’ll have a moment of self-lampooning irony where he declares that “all we want is the money”.
Alongside all these classic acts there’s a whole load of new bright red blood waiting to be spilled on the rich, green fields of the Isle of Wight festival. I’m talking the ultimate camp-fire guitar sound from Ben Howard, more fast talking hip pop from Example and Bastille. I’m gonna stop there because I’m sure you guys are capable of reading a line up list for yourselves, but if I’d be lying if I said the music wasn’t one of the biggest parts of the draw for me this time out. There seems to be just the right blend of classics and contemporary to keep almost anyone interested this side of Bestival.
If I wrote up a timetable for this event I could just create a stamp with which to fill every single window, and it would say drunk. Yes I plan to be that girl, and whilst there will be at least one excursion to the Bohemian Woods, an eclectic part of the festival, I shall only be there to sup my lager colada from a hammock until I’m suitably legless and feckless enough to stumble down to the front row of the event and immerse myself in the vibe and the music.
The final thing I’m can’t wait to experience here is the use of the Bathing Under The Sky feature. You know all those times you’ve had to simply swerve the festivals bathing and toilet facilities completely with a combination of body spray, wet-wipes and imodium? Well, there’s going to be none of that here as you can actually hire out a hot tub at the Isle of Wight festival. I’m actually going to give this a go and trust that there’s been no party unions in the water before me – hopefully there will be some sort of overseeing going on, and apparently you can get your hair done too. This should be the perfect pick me up following my front row hangover.
All that’s left for me to do now is to finish my packing and I’m off. The plan is to walk that narrow line between inebriation and lucidity, allowing me to still have a few memories with which I can fashion together a review of the whole débâcle for your imminent perusal.
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Watch IOW 2012 Highlights
