Milton Keynes Bowl
29.06.08
A surprisingly sunny day in Milton Keynes was the setting for a surprisingly top-notch line-up headlined by the scorned by many but actually well good Linkin Park.
Openers innerpartysystem proved naturals on the massive stage, communicating their electro-tinged rock with assured accuracy and getting more than a few heads in the audience bobbing. Next up were The Bravery and though I missed most of their set I did catch their ‘hit’ which sounded like a great soundtrack for the weather. Unfortunately I’m told the rest of their set was dull as dishwater.
Enter Shikari proved their position as one of the country’s most popular rock bands is justified as they put on a ridiculously hyperactive performance with the star turn coming from drummer Rob who treated the crowd to a series of bizarre dances both in front of and behind the drums.
Although I missed a chunk of NERD‘s set, what I did see was also most entertaining. The sight of Pharell grinding up against a random girl from the audience whilst she squealed with delight may’ve been a little sickening but it was also quite fun and proved the guy does have some sort of a sense of fun which I would have debated against before seeing this. New track Everyone Nose was a highlight along with Lapdance and Rockstar.
Pendulum probably got the most people dancing that day with their high octane rocked-up drum ‘n bass getting the majority of the crowd moving and pointing fingers. But… Nothing could detract from the genius that is Jay-Z as the big man was up next. 99 Problems backed by Back In Black? Yes please! Freestyling about girls having a chance with him if they don’t tell the missus and about the queen looking after his jewels? Alright then!
Seriously though, Jay-Z proves he has every right to headline an event like Glastonbury even when fulfilling his duties in a supporting role such as this. Flawless and with a fantastic backing band including a phenomenal drummer, this is someone who can pretty much do no wrong.
Linkin Park are late on. And I’d already decided to leave early. Despite loving Hybrid Theory recently, this band is very much a guilty pleasure for me so as soon as I got my fix of ‘tunes’ from that era I was good to go. The opener was the rip-roaring One Step Closer which basically satisfied my hunger right then and there. As we walked away I sung along to another of the greats but by this point I’d decided that there was no way I’d sit through the shit just for the hits.
An unbelievably eclectic bill attended by an extraordinarily eclectic crowd delivered the goods and each band seemed to be similarly rapturously received with virtually no bottling and little complaint from the crowd. All in all, a lovely Sunday.
Winegums.