Off The Tracks Spring Festival 2008
Friday 23rd to Sunday 25th May 2008Donington Park Farmhouse Hotel, Isley Walton, Donington, Leicestershire, England MAP
£50 for 3 days incl. camping; aged 12-16 £25
Not uncommonly for Saturday night at OTT the twilight of dawn is beginning to show in the sky by the time I eventually fall into my tent, but by some miracle (also known as Old Scrotum ale) I manage to ignore the racing bikes and the high winds and rain lashing my tent and sleep like a baby well into Sunday afternoon - take that Liam Haslam!
Nevertheless there's still a bucketload of bands left to enjoy and take pictures of and so 'breakfast' is eaten watching the delightful Kaikatsitsi Drummers from Ghana who were a pleasant way to blow out the cobwebs. The hard working 3 Daft Monkeys were up next, straight from a festival in Scotland the day before - some new songs from their new album and foot-stomping as always, they even made the rain go away.
In the gloom of the barn The Bleeding Hearts lived up to their name with a folk-rocking emotional set (which reminded me of early Waterboys at times...) and for good measure they threw in some very photogenic rock poses - cheers guys. Back outside again and I'm glad I didn't dawdle heading back to the mainstage because I would have missed Scott Mckeon laying down some excellent heavy blues (with a great rhythm section) - if noodly guitars are your thing it doesn't come much better, and when it's as good as this it's definitely MY thing so I'm first in the queue at the merchandise table after the set - the Cream of the day.
The Paperboys are pleasant enough but I'm not that inspired after the energy of the last two acts, so I grab a couple of snaps and head for the bar. The final act of the weekend, N'faly Kouyate should be familiar to anyone who's seen the Afro-Celts before - he's the excellent kora player and singer who smiles for Africa! It's an at times faltering set losing the flow but the quality and personality of the band still shines through pleasing the audience and leaving me with nothing but warm thoughts for another great weekend of entertainment at Off The Tracks.
Looking forward already to the 'Late' festival which will feature Dreadzone, Kissmet and Oujami.
Friday review >>
Saturday review >>
review by: Phil Bull
photos by: Phil Bull
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