Narc. Magazine Online
Reliably informed
Damian Robinson discovers an event for the ages at Lindisfarne Festival
Image: Doves by Victoria Wai
Very much for the festival goers who like either dressing up as Vikings, or Marcel Marceau, or both in some cases, the laid back, extremely friendly, three day Lindisfarne Festival proved yet again this year that there’s a strong market in the 30-50 year old who fits the music-lover-still-loving-a-festival bracket.
Something of a festival for those not young enough to stay up all night, but will try their hardest to do so, the strength of Lindisfarne is it’s curation; there’s interesting music and entertainment throughout the day in a tight, compact, setting but things don’t get ‘really’ lively until about 9pm – meaning that the morning can be kept to a lie in, with the afternoon is a gentle steady pace back into party mindset… Thursday sees a pop style outing on the main stage with both Scouting For Girls and Lottery Winners playing indie pop-rock which gets the festival off before sonic pioneers Hawkwind with the type of space jam designed for an outdoor festival so close to the backdrop of Lindisfarne island itself. Friday gets livelier thanks to the electronic vibes coming from the Shanti Bee tent (shout outs in particular to Kevin Sands, Shanti Residents and DJ Maia) and also from a comprehensive day at the main stage; Lucy Spraggan and (bandless) Sonny Tennet put on great shows before a lovely run of Inspiral Carpets in to Doves into party-maker Armand Van Helden which keeps things tight and lively.
Saturday’s final day again sees a relaxed start to the day, this time with a great amount of fancy dress, before a combination of Sugarhill Gang, Jamie Webster and The Waterboys (stunning) round off the night. As a festival for the slightly older crowd, who really enjoy music but also like a little sleep, both Hardwick and Lindisfarne really stand out in the North East as being friendly, helpful and filled with great music.
