Victorious Festival 2017

[Greenelk]

23 hours ago, Tommy101 said:

I'll back up @Flaminglippy here with support of the Southsea Alternative Choir, they are entertaining indeed.

With regards to your clash issue I'd always suggest the option against Jake Bugg, unless you are considering listening to someone plain a door, then they are almost inseparable in terms of sound, enjoyability and charisma, but then that's just my opinion!

I'm afraid I'm going to have to totally disagree with you  @Tommy101.  That isn't just your opinion, what you state regarding Bugg is actually an irrefutable fact. 

[Frangipane]

5 hours ago, Comalley2014 said:

Hi all,

The charlatans (not the band) who I booked a double room with for this Sunday have cancelled my original hotel booking.  Not only that they now want to farm me off to a "sister" hotel for double the price!

Can anybody on here (or a friend of a forum friend) help out a couple of people who are coming to Victorious on Sunday, but with nowhere to stay (unless wishing to pay £160+ a night).

Thanks in advance,

 

Christian

Try asking on the official FB event page. Just seen someone offer their sofa-bed to a couple who have nowhere to stay.

[Comalley2014]

15 minutes ago, Frangipane said:

Try asking on the official FB event page. Just seen someone offer their sofa-bed to a couple who have nowhere to stay.

Thanks for the reply/assistance.  Do you have a link for the web page, I found about 5 different pages when I just looked.

Thanks again for your help.

[Frangipane]

2 minutes ago, Comalley2014 said:

Thanks for the reply/assistance.  Do you have a link for the web page, I found about 5 different pages when I just looked.

Thanks again for your help.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1371617906278731/?active_tab=discussion

[Flaminglippy]

18 hours ago, Greenelk said:

I'm afraid I'm going to have to totally disagree with you  @Tommy101.  That isn't just your opinion, what you state regarding Bugg is actually an irrefutable fact. 

You're both right...clearly. I don't know what I was thinking. I accidentally sat through a Tom Odell set once because it was pissing down and I couldn't be arsed to wade through the mud and I swore I would never subject my ears to anything like that again...my ears have been good to me over the years, they've let me hear some amazing music and also let my hat know when its time to stop sliding down my head.

Dinosaur Pile-Up and Pulled Apart By Horses it is... 

[luckysalt]

On 21/08/2017 at 9:35 AM, Tommy101 said:

It's heading in the right direction! I still think 90 mins would be better.

Also relieved to see Franz are getting 50 mins. Any shorter would be a travesty. They also clash with Macka B who, under other circumstances I would check out but thanks for the shout @eFests .

Stereophonics are playing for 90 mins

[luckysalt]

Is there an updated clashfinder guys

[seanz25]

 

10 minutes ago, luckysalt said:

Is there an updated clashfinder guys

Matt's one - https:///s/vic2017/

[Tommy101]

1 hour ago, luckysalt said:

Stereophonics are playing for 90 mins

OK, sorry for not being clear; 90 mins each.

[the wonderwhy]

On 23/08/2017 at 1:30 PM, Tommy101 said:

OK, sorry for not being clear; 90 mins each.

Looks like Rhythm of the 90's have nicked 15 mins off of Elbow 

[Tommy101]

'they'll sort the bars out next year' (everyone, every year) 

I truly hope that it won't be an issue for the rest of the weekend with more of the site being open and punters pacing for a longer race but tonight was silly. 

[rseamer]

Didn't bother with the Castle Stage bar tonight - was a queuing nightmare. Hopefully better tomorrow with people dispersed wider and on site longer so less peak demand. Someone told me they queued for half an hour and then gave up.

A few people complaining that sound levels for Madness was too quiet but it was fine where I stood.

[Tommy101]

From what I saw all bar queues were around 40 mins but I'm sure it'll be better today with more main bars open. It's amazing, they would have taken so much more money if they had another bar or 2 open.

I didn't have any complaints about the sound at castle or real ale. We were near the front for charlatans and behind a speaker stack for madness though.

Edited August 26, 2017 by Tommy101

[rseamer]

Here's a pic of the bar queue at Castle Field for Friday night (the white tent is the bar).

 

[Flaminglippy]

Had a great day Saturday...BSP & Frightened Rabbit in particular were brilliant. No queue at the bar for BSP either which was great. Clearly they have cut costs on the bars...didnt have the ridiculous queues we've seen this year last year. That said, feels the demographic has changed...seen loads more pissed up helmets and drunk teens this year. Shame. The Madness night in particular seemed to be full of rude old drunks. 

We're currently debating whether we will be back next year. Good day of tunes ahead on main stage today. 

[seanz25]

Attendance is way up on previous years, feels absolutely mobbed everywhere. They're not prepared at all. Ques about 40 mins for food yesterday at 6pm ish. Bars at least 20 mins. Crowds are utter shite too. Must be said.

But for the money I've paid it was enjoyable though, seen Feeder, Maximo, Jake Bugg and Phonics. All pretty good.

[LOCHLAND5]

9 hours ago, Flaminglippy said:

Had a great day Saturday...BSP & Frightened Rabbit in particular were brilliant. No queue at the bar for BSP either which was great. Clearly they have cut costs on the bars...didnt have the ridiculous queues we've seen this year last year. That said, feels the demographic has changed...seen loads more pissed up helmets and drunk teens this year. Shame. The Madness night in particular seemed to be full of rude old drunks. 

We're currently debating whether we will be back next year. Good day of tunes ahead on main stage today. 

Not going back ? Debating? Did your idiols not make an appearance?

[seanz25]

I spent yesterday hanging out my arse at this due to the boxing Saturday night. I didn't really get down to the front so to speak, just laid about around the main stage. 

Arrived on time for Pete Doherty which I regret, made the effort to get down to catch him and it seemed he was on something, set was awful, he seemed off his face, got dragged off stage due to over-running. Dissapointing, seen him early 2016 with the Libs and he was bang on form.

Slaves went down very well, all considering you tend to get more families than anything at Victorious. Probably the most lively crowd I'd seen of the weekend.

Franz did the job too.

Elbow was odd, felt all a bit to slow and depressing, setwise for a big headline act of the weekend. A lot of standing around and the crowd was noticeably smaller for this than Stereos the night before.

Overall a decent weekend, they've got issues with the numbers and being prepared for it with bar staff etc. But both days out where relatively enjoyable.

[rseamer]

I enjoyed Saturday and Sunday a lot. Friday was just Ok - felt to much like a Madness gig with some supports and horrendous queues for the bars.

I don't really understand the comments about it being mobbed. Some of the stages I was at were relatively quiet (possibly because it was mobbed elsewhere). Even when it was busy I found it easy to weave through the crowd and get near the front with no hassle. Elbow seemed less busy than Stereophonics but apparently Olly Murs was very busy as well.

Would definitely go again - but then it's only 20mins cycle from my house! 

Highlights: Stereophonics, Elbow, The Dandy Warhols, Slow Readers Club, Jerry Williams, British Sea Power, Slaves but most of all the weather.

 

[sedra]

So we went Sat and Sun- first time there- was pleasantly surprised location was great - not many festivals you can watch a band and the ferry to and from France go by! Weather was great and plenty of cool shady trees to rest under when it got too hot. Thought the sound was ok and both the main stage and castle stages were bigger than expected. Plenty of smaller stages, food stalls and bars- we didn't queue for long for anything. It was expensive food and drink but when you only pay £25-£45 for a day no complaints really but Pint of Fosters lager was £5.20! Food around £7.00 - £11.00. And not allowed to bring your own. Made a change to be able to get close to the stages and see bands without flags in front obscuring view! Discovered Slow Readers Club who played twice on Sunday and were great both times. Frank Turner, Feeder, Frightened Rabbit, Stereophonics all good, as were Dandy Warhols, Slaves, Franz Ferdinand and Elbow. Might go again next year and punt on early bird cheap tickets as it's relatively local. Can't go wrong for £25.00!! 

Edited August 28, 2017 by sedra

[Frangipane]

We had a fantastic weekend (there Saturday and Sunday).

Sailed straight through security with no delays. Also had no issues with waiting too long for the bars, food outlets or toilets.

Saw some super bands, found plenty of places to just sit and enjoy the glorious weather and generally had a lovely time with friends.

That was my fourth Victorious and was definitely the most enjoyable.

Pleasantly surprised to see the tier one tickets for 2018 haven't risen too steeply in price, really thought they would do.

Rees Hall (Portsmouth Uni halls) was fine as  a place to stay very near the festival site. Very basic, but clean and comfortable and breakfast was ok. I'll probably book to stay there next year, too, as it was among the cheapest (relatively speaking, obviously everywhere hikes the prices for the festival) within walking distance.

[luckysalt]

Just got back and settled in, my take.

The general crowd there has gone downhill, whilst it didn't seem THAT much busier for big acts, as it seemed about the same as Noel last year, the bulk of the crowd is mainly now kids, teenagers and 10-12 year olds running around with NO parents whatsoever, I had my hat attempted to be stolen by some [around about] 18 year old girl and when I said what the fuck are you doing shouted swear words in my face for about 20 seconds and ran off, if it was a bloke he would have had a punch, the bloke with her, there were girls with her too, swore at me from a distant, what should I have done said yes please, you're at a festival when normal rules don't apply, steal my property. Another girl ran up and booted my pint and ran off, clearly was doing it to loads of people and thought it was great fun, this girl was about 12 and again in groups of kids. 

This is what happens im afraid when you start booking the acts that V started doing and the crowd went to absolute shit there, this lovely indie festival has become another shitty V. It was bound to happen when the blokes running it said they wanted to grow it to the size of glasto, to get there, you fill the site with scum. 

It won't get better, they'll book more stuff like Olly and Rita Ora and they'll be the main stage acts and the indie element will be pushed into the background. 

That being said, the music was great, Friday I saw Silver Beatles, Sundara Karma, Charlatans and Madness all great. 

No-one in the crowd seemed to know who The Charlatans was mind, which surprised me but was perhaps a sign of things to come, Madness was the best I've seen them I reckon, and despite their set only listed as 45 mins they probably did about 1 hr 20 if not more. 

The problem with the castle stage is, where people come in from the right of the stage, it gets bottle necked and people think they cant move forward and it gets rammed there, if you move to the left there's tons of space and everyone can move in, people didn't though, all weekend for the bigger acts, they need a person there to say move around, that part there is very dark at night and you cant see theres space to move around, they need to sort it. Another problem with castle stage is the location of the ice cream vans, they're in utterly stupid positions blocking the stage, you wouldn't put a food stall there so dont put an ice cream van, theres FAR too many of them on site as well. 

The castle stage bar, the bar you first get to which is where the picture above is taken from the queue was huge, but walk over to the other queue and it was about 15 minutes wait, I never waited longer than that all Friday night, I couldn't understand why people were still pilling into the bigger queue. 

Saturday I saw Frank Turner, not a fan tbh, did his usual routine, was fine for what he is. 

watched rolling stones tribute, were great at it, good fun.

Echobelly, had problems with sound for her vocals a lot throughout, especially at the start, but thought they were really good, crowd didn't seem bothered with them at all though. 

Didn't return to Main until later, had a walk around the site, caught Four Folds Law then a band called Submariner on seaside stage, really enjoyed them, Submariner should be booked again, great little act. Caught some of Lady Leshurr then watched British Sea Power who were fantastic. 

Back on main for Maximo Park, they were ok, but you can see why the interest in them as a band has worn off. They just didn't really get over with the crowd.

Then went and watched Dinosaur Pile Up on the Butserfest stage, which was pretty hard to find, it was behind the fare and needed to be sign posted, no bar by this stage, which I guess was there was of continuing the alcohol free vibe, but you could walk up with beer anyway, they may as well drop it being Butserfest, because its not anymore and put a bar there. I'd like this stage open on Friday too. DPU were great btw.

Then watched Band of Skulls on castle from the banks, they put on a quality performance I thought, don't know much of their stuff but I enjoyed them, then went back over for Stereophonics and yeah they were alright, it dragged in the middle but for them it was a good performance. 

Sunday, got down for Dandy Warhols, I loved them but I think that long song they did with the organ killed the crowd. 

I then went to Seaside stage for Slow Readers Club as got down too late for their main stage, they were class and need to continue to be booked. Started to watch the next act on seaside, Fjorka, but they were crap, went and watched the Kate Bush tribute on Real Ale stage, drew a huge crowd, I thought she was ok, the mrs thought she was cack at doing Kate Bush. Im not sure who we watched then cus we wandered around for a while and sat out watching the sea and having a chill, but got back down main for Pete Doherty who started slow, then sorted seemed decent, then went on about meeting someone from Dandy Warhols he never knew backstage and doing some coke with them before he came on stage then absolutely nose dived [no pun intended] and the set never recovered. Guys a idiot and I hope they haven't got Libs booked next year due to him playing this year. 

Slaves were fantastic, Main stage didn't seem to big for them and they absolutely were a highlight for me. 

Franz, I was shocked were bloody brilliant, I hadn't seen them for about 12 years, when I thought they were a boring, carbon copy of their cd, wow, they've grown so much in that time, really worked the crowd, setlist was perfect, right order imo, just nailed it.

Went over to Butserfest again then and watched Young Guns, who despite seeming off their game cus they said half their gear was fucked, I enjoyed. 

Then was dragged to Olly, who had an insane crowd, he should have been on main, sadly and I can see the fest going this direction. I wonder how many tickets they would have sold for the weekend without Olly and Rita, I think Sunday would have suffered the worse, as Stereophonics were a huge draw Saturday but Olly was defo the big act Sunday, anyway I watched him do Karaoke until Sikth came on at the Butserfest stage and watched them. Wow, they really put a lot into the set despite the small crowd, got a new fan in me! 

I worry if Butserfest will be back next year, the 3 times I was there, there were such small crowds, the stage was out the way, you didn't stumble across it it was like it was just forgotten about. I hope it is though as it added such a element to the fest to me and the stage was dickhead free as well. 

All in all, the fest hasn't been spoilt for me, but I hate the direction its headed, was gunna get early birds but I may wait for an announcement. That being said they can announce quality and then add the pop shit later like they did this year. 

Not sure who could be there next year, James and Weller are two acts they've not had yet, im not too huge on either however. I'd love Pixies to headline Friday. Ah well, hope you all had more good memories than bad like I did. Just a shame some dickheads think the world revolves around them, but guess thats life these days.

[Frangipane]

My only 'down' moment was the fact I had to see TOY and Temples surrounded by fans of Raye (AWFUL) and Olly. That was one messed-up thought process, putting those four acts on the same stage.

[Flaminglippy]

Agree with @luckysalt...the crowd had the transitional feel V had when it was veering away from indie to chart crap. That said...some phenomenal sets across the weekend. Charlatans (although the crowd were embarrassingly quiet), BSP, Frightened Rabbit, Stereophonics, SRC, Slaves, Franz and Elbow were highlights. 

We really enjoyed it but probably less than last year due to crowds and queues and a higher percentage of tools so we're undecid

 

 

[Simsy]

3 hours ago, luckysalt said:

I had my hat attempted to be stolen by some [around about] 18 year old girl and when I said what the fuck are you doing shouted swear words in my face for about 20 seconds and ran off, if it was a bloke he would have had a punch, the bloke with her, there were girls with her too, swore at me from a distant, what should I have done said yes please, you're at a festival when normal rules don't apply, steal my property. Another girl ran up and booted my pint and ran off, clearly was doing it to loads of people and thought it was great fun, this girl was about 12 and again in groups of kids. 

Welcome to Portsmouth!

I couldn't tell if there were more youngsters there this year, or if I'm just getting older. There have always been idiots there - a couple of years ago we saw a very drunk man be helped up by his friends & propped against a tree so he could have a piss (right in front of us). He was so drunk he fell flat on his face, in his own puddle.

The line-up wasn't particularly exciting for me this year. Surely they'll have to step it up to attract more non-locals (if they want to expand to 200,000 that's basically everyone in Portsmouth, they'll need to do something get outsiders in!). I'll be going next year anyway, but it's just a short stroll away for me.