Goldie Lookin' Chain close the show at Midgefest

At first thoughts upon entering the site for Midgefest, apart from that lovely farmyard pong, was the question "Is this it?". The site looks tiny, I mean really tiny, like the inside of a university venue, but with added 'fresh air'. With a little time though, I begin to like the closeness of everything; it's not a trek between the two stages, and the toilets and bar are close by...



Talking of the bar, the price for a pint is £2.50, almost the same as the pub, and the burgers are £2.80, a bargain for festival fodder. There are plenty of toilets that are reasonably clean, and even some benches to sit on (a lot of one day events neglect to give us somewhere to sit).

As mentioned before, there are two stages, the main stage with a backdrop of the rolling hills over to Huddersfield, and a smaller stage opposite it. These alternate; as soon as one band finishes the next stage is ready to go.

There is a stunning line up of local bands, a few were at the recent (free) Clarence Park festival, meaning that you are paying to watch them again here, but you do get headliners Goldie Lookin' Chain; a ticket for their show alone would be over the £15 price tag.



A lot of the bands are in the indie vein up until Whiskey Cats (and the cheap ale) get everyone dancing at tea time. A superb cover of 'Push It' as a set-ender treat goes down really well for the ska act, and they have the most dancers of the day.

The Labels, local winners of many band competitions like Battle Of The Bands, are actually related to the farm owners, but that does not give them a headlining slot, rather they take to the stage early, and go down well with their friends and family who run the close knit event.

Local lad Ryan Jarman (The Cribs) can be seen in the crowd supporting Pavilion, a new band he has produced. The band members are well known faces, and their style of music is professional and should do well.

Above them must be the youngest band here, and the Pontefract lads and their Biffy Clyro rock are the first to bring some heavy music to the proceedings. After a bit more indie from Sky Larkin it's time for small stage headliners Milloy. The place has filled out for them, with many a fan catching a rare outdoor performance for the hardcore punk band.

The set has a equal mix of new and old tracks from the last two albums 'More Than A Machine' and 'Creating Problems Whilst Practising Solutions'. Singer Jim McManus is loving the opportunity to take the wee out of the security, who looks the spitting image of a rival rugby player hated by Wakefieldians. This is the messiest mosh pit of the day, but also the most energetic show, both from the band and the crowd...

And finally, as the heavens open and give us the rain they have been threatening all day, it is time for Goldie Lookin' Chain. Never before has Wakefield heard the sounds of 'Your Mother's Got A Penis' live! All eight Welshmen are having a ball, even though they are getting the full force of the rain too as the stage is not covered.

Although the crowd is not large (less people have turned up, probably due to the weather) everyone is in good spirits, and the close-knit community theme makes this like your own private garden party.

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