2014 Review: Culture

I started compiling the list of cultural things I've done this year and was really surprised by how much I've done. As with my 2014 Review: Eating and Drinking post, living in London makes it really easy to take advantage of new shows and exhibitions frequently, and you can guarantee that any band that tours will always drop into the city for at least one night.

[Fashion] Superdry SS15 Press Day

Shake off your thoughts about Superdry. Stop envisaging uni students in jumpers with massive logos across them and gap year teens wearing Japanese character emblazoned tees. I'll admit that I went to the press day with a little bit of trepidation but ultimately with an open mind, and there were some stand-out pieces for me in the SS/15 collection.

There were the expected loud prints and cuts more suited to a Bondi beach surfer than a local London girl freezing her bits off well into June, but within those were some gems. I'm on a constant search for decent white shirts, but a regular cut just doesn't sit well with me. The buttons always gape so I need something less structured, and the material is always way too stifling for someone that regularly gets a sweat on during her commute. This white blouse though was flowing without being 'boho', and I really loved the texture to it, making it stand out from the obvious staple we see from Primark to Prada.

I was extremely surprised but the quality of the leather jackets on show too. The pink one  (which looks quite orange in this pic annoyingly) made me feel like I was channeling Grease, and I'm not entirely sure if I would be brave enough to wear it, but on someone confident it would look amazing. I can see it draped over the shoulders of a 50s style dress with some cute flats, or some great jeans and massive sunglasses.

The biggest surprise though is the beauty. I had no idea Superdry even had a beauty range so I was excited to have a nosey around. The colours are a little brighter than I would wear, but the gift sets would make great presents, especially the festival kit which comes in a nifty flask all prepped for mud, tents and dodgy toilets. 

So have I persuaded you? Will you be taking an intrigued peek into Superdry next season?

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Field Day Festival

I'm wearing:

Coat - Uniqlo

Sunglasses - Tatty Devine

Tshirt - Finders Keepers (bought Amy Valentine on Depop)

Necklace - Vintage

Shorts - Beyond Retro

Boots - Doc Martens

I always feel like I'm kind of done with festivals, until that June-September period rolls around and I find myself lusting after stellar line-ups and pining for a overpriced, warm pint in the company of thousands of pissed music lovers. Let's face it, I like to have a shower everyday, know that the nearest toilet isn't covered in something heinous, and sleep in an actual bed, which is why the appeal of a weekend no-camping festival sounds fine and dandy to me. 

Field Day isn't huge in size, it's not in the middle of nowhere (unless you're not particularly familiar with Hackney...), and it doesn't have the household name headliners, but it brings in a dedicated crowd of music lovers who are looking for something a bit different to your average festivals. Gone are the chip pan death trap food vans you'd expect, and instead you're treated to gourmet (by festival standards) grub from Street Feast. Choose from Indian wraps, pimped up mac n cheese, or maybe a big old venison burger if you just want gold old fashioned meat in bread. The booze isn't your regular selection either. Yes you have your basic piss poor plonk for the less discerning palate, but I was loving the Meantime Brewery van, keeping me refreshed with quality cold ale instead. I may sound like a snob, but I'm not one to drink to get drunk, I actually like the taste of a good beer, and Meantime always delivers in that respect. 

As for the music, there was a great line up. I only went on the Saturday, which in my opinion hadn't he best bands on offer. I managed to catch Sky Ferreira, Blood Orange (who did an ace version of Mansun's 'I Can Only Disappoint U'), SBTRKT and Simian Mobile Disco amongst others. The best act by far for me though, was SOHN. You'll have seen from two of my recent Monthly Mixtapes that he often features highly on my 'I LOVE THIS' spectrum. Having recently seen him in the intimacy of his gig at the Village Underground, I wasn't sure what to expect from a festival atmosphere, but the crowd knew how to create the right ambiance to appreciate his gorgeous sound. I left even more in love with him than before, and I still cannot recommend his album 'Tremors' enough.  

With the sun shining until the end of Metronomy's headline set, we were chilled out, happy and a hell of a lot less smelly than your average festival goer. Dare I finish by saying we did in fact have a 'field day'? Yeah, why not.

Goodbye 2013 (and good riddance!)

Finally, 2013 has come to an end!

This year has been full of huge ups and downs, and frankly I cannot wait for it to be over. 

On the downside, I've had to deal with relatives and friends being seriously ill, resulting in me knowing the hospitals of London a lot better than I wish I did. On the plus side, I earned my first ever promotion! It's obviously come with a lot more work and pressure, but it's a big step in the right direction for my career.

On that note, let's keep it positive! Here are my top 10 moments from 2013:

1) Retreating to the idyllic silence of the Lake District twice, once in January and then again in December

2) Taking an epic road trip to Scotland with my wonderful housemate and being proper tourists

3) Learning to ski in Austria at the Snowbombing Festival

4) Buying my beautiful Mulberry Del Rey!

5) Camping out on the Sherlock set (twice) and meeting Mr Cumberbatch himself!

6) Revisiting my old uni town of York, remisicing about days gone by and catching up with distant friends

7) Spending a solid seven days on a beach in Spain with my boyfriend

8) Getting tickets to see Nine Inch Nails at their tiny sold out Scala gig (and then again at Reading Festival a week later!)

9) Exploring Cornwall and eating my weight in pasties and ice cream

10) Dancing like a crazy lady at Future Cinema's Dirty Dancing event

2014 so far promises more Nine Inch Nails gigs, a big house move and an amazing month long trip to Australia! It's looking great already.

Happy new year!

xxx

Music: Bestival 2011 - the music

Friday

Patrick Wolf 

He was as enigmatic as I had expected him to be. I'm always entranced by solo performers who can capture a crowd and fill a room in such a lively way. It takes a certain someone to master an audience with such encouragement and excitement, but Patrick Wolf really did that. The whole crowd in the Big Top stage moved to every beat, and were suitably wowed by his musicianship - it's not every performer who plays a harp on stage!

Patrick Wolf on stage at the Big Top

Graham Coxon

This was really disappointing. He was the epitome of a middle aged man trying to stay young; his scissor jumps in the air with his guitar causing embarrassment. Everything sounded too fast, and we weren't the only ones who left midway through the performance because of it.

Magnetic Man

I don't really listen to the radio, but I've heard the odd song by Magnetic Man and found it quite catchy, despite not really liking the whole grime genre thing that people of my age are supposed to like. However, despite the admittedly innovative beats, I had to stop watching through sheer frustration with Magnetic Man himself. Why he kept repeating his name over and over I have no idea, but it was highly irritating. There's only so much of that you can take before you want to move away. Swiftly.

Crystal Fighters

So catchy! A mixture of what seemed to be calypso, electro and pop, the Big Top stage was packed out for this, so we sat just outside on the grass and listened from there. I'd definitely go and see them again at a gig of their own as the crowd seemed to feed off the band's enthusiasm and, frankly, manic presence on stage. 


Saturday

Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip

Easily my favourite performance of the weekend. They created a fever in the audience that continued to rise with every song; everybody unable to resist moving when the beat kicked in. For me, I love this pairing because of Scroobius Pip's lyrics. They are passionate, political, relevant and inspiring. Sadly in the tent, the words weren't always heard, and the irony of everybody dancing to a song about suicide wasn't lost on the performers' themselves. The passion and fury in every song was enough to catch everyone's imagination (although Ms J, my festival buddy, was not so impressed!) and many people agreed that it was the show of the weekend.

Scroobius Pip on stage at the Big Top

Paloma Faith

She has the ability to hit the mainstream and be gloriously bizarre at the same time. Her pop star status is the highest it's ever been, and she is considered a fashion icon by all the glossies, but her performance reminded me that she isn't a celebrity, she is a musican. And a bloody good one. Her voice has a strength that resonated through the entire audience watching the main stage, and her infectious personality shone through her frankly bizarre make-up (full silver face paint anybody?) to keep the audience engaged and singing along. Her new material didn't disappoint either; it looks like she won't be suffering from 'difficult 2nd album' syndrome that's plagued so many others!

Paloma Faith on the Main Stage

Crystal Castles

I was dubious about seeing them live because their music is so inherently electronic that I thought it may get lost amongst the enormity of the open air stage. Luckily that wasn't the case, the addition of live instruments particularly a drum kit, helped to transfer their uniquely artificial sound for a festival audience. Alice Glass (lead singer) has always freaked me out slightly - I'm not sure what it is about her, but she makes me feel kind of uneasy. And Bestival reinforced that with me. She threw around the stage in a way that didn't seem excited, just unstable! 

PJ Harvey

The twice Mercury Prize winner didn't disappoint in the crazy headwear stakes, but, and I hate to use this word, she was pretty boring. She didn't capture any imagination and she left out any of her more upbeat and anthemic tracks which left the audience tussling with whether they should stay or not. It's not that I or the rest of the crowd don't appreciate the beauty and talent of PJ Harvey's music, it's just that the pace of her performance that day didn't inspire me as I hoped it would.

The Cure

2 encores, 2.5hour set. You have to hand it to them, The Cure were more than worthy of their headline slot. Starting off a little slow, they soon got into the swing of things - the main stage crowd filled to capacity with a variety of people: young, old, drunk, sober, and all of them ridiculously excited when they played 'Lovecats'. I'd forgotten how many songs I actually knew by The Cure! Their time on stage didn't drag as they pretty much continually played, with very little space in between songs. And they weren't like other bands I've seen from the same era who are visibly past their sell by date and cringeworthy to watch, rather they were still fresh and exciting to listen to. My particular highlight was 'Boys Don't Cry' and Robert Smith playing a customised Bestival guitar!

The Cure on the Main Stage

Click here see what else I got up to at Bestival (including leaky tents and lost ferry tickets...)!

Music: Bestival 2011

To paraphrase Charles Dickens, it was the Bestival of times, it was the Worstival of times.


This weekend I attended Bestival on the Isle of Wight - the last major festival of the season, but the first one for me this year. Bestival is known for being eccentric, lively and highly encouraging of fancy dress, as well as being up there with Reading and Glastonbury for a hosting big name acts. This year the headliners were Pendulum, The Cure and Bjork, and the festival was full of other stages and mini venues for a range of other performers, from hip hop to comedians. It is surprisingly difficult to see all the musicians you want to at a festival, but we managed to fit a good few in! See my separate post tomorrow for reviews on the bands I saw.

Bestival 2011

We didn't get off to the best start. Ms J was running late and when she did turn up it turned out I was waiting for her at the wrong train station. This gave immediate cause for cocktails in a can (what else?!).

...G&T in a can for the ferry

Cosmo in a can for the train...

On the ferry out to the Isle of Wight

We arrived on Friday afternoon so we had to basically camp where we could find space. Turns out that the space we found was probably empty because of a) the ridiculous pilled-up morons next to us and b) the proximity to the stages. I've only done a few festivals before, but I've never seen camping areas so central to the actual performing areas. This for me was the biggest flaw to Bestival and a really poor bit of planning. Everyone knows that you get minimal sleep at a festival what with everyone being drunk and/or overexcited, but generally the camping areas are a 15 minute walk from the hub of everything. Bestival planners obviously wanted to cram as many people into one space as possible, and declined to let anyone know that DJs would be going until 4am - the only chance of sleeping would be the bass rocking you to sleep.

Just to prove how close our tent was to one of the stages - The Psychedelic Worm tent

Like all festivals, there was more than just music to keep you amused at Bestival. All kinds of weird installations were scattered around the venue, some completely pointless...

...others to just pretty up the place...

Ms J doing her best 'I'm a star' impression

...and, there were  the festival equivalent of street entertainers dotted around including a guy who could balance a load of stuff on his head...

That's four glasses and an urn on his head!

...and the famous Bestival Saturday fancy dress parade. This year's theme was Rock Star and Pop Divas:

We decided against the whole disposable bbq thing and roamed the site for the huge variety of food stalls available. Whatever you want you can get: from fish and chips to curry, to mexican and tapas. My favourite find was a bloody amazing cream tea on the top deck of a double decker bus (the same bus that took over an hour to serve us a bacon sandwich earlier in the morning, but cake can be very forgiving).

Check out that festival hair!

And then the rain hit.

This was bearable as wellies are obviously a festival necessity, but what we didn't expect was our tent to leak in the middle of the night. I would approximate that it's been 20 years since I last woke up wet in the night, so it wasn't a welcome surprise when I realised the bottom half of my sleeping bag and pyjama bottoms were soaked through. Turns out our waterproof tent was no longer waterproof. We left pretty swiftly the next day (once we'd bought new ferry tickets to replace the ones that had disappeared/been lost/stolen/I have no idea where the hell they went).


So we definitely had our fair share of disasters with cake and Paloma Faith to soften the blow, but I don't think I'll be setting foot on the Isle of Wight again anytime soon!