Take It To The Bridge part 1/3
July 13, 2010 No CommentsMLNI begin coverage of as many of Northern Ireland’s fabulous summer festivals as we can muster. First up: Take It To The Bridge, a mini-festival that took place 3rd July in a field somewhere in Banbridge, with a pretty immense Line Up including And So I Watch You From Afar, A Plastic Rose and The Futureheads…
Thumbs up to the tallest man in the audience.. or possibly a giraffe (C) laura Rose 2010
It’s the beginning of Northern Ireland’s packed festival season but unfortunately the weather that welcomed me to Banbridge was dull and grey as I entered the gates of Take It To The Bridge. On the line-up were the likes of B.O.Y, Max Raptor, A Plastic Rose, And So I Watch You From Afar and Strait Laces. The minute I stepped onto the field I had the pleasure of being graced with the opening bars of B.O.Y’s first song. Local to the area, B.O.Y in my opinion, are one of the most exciting new Northern Ireland bands to surface in the last year. They open with a flurry of intensity and noise, screams and heavy distortion included.
The 'cool guitarist' from B.O.Y. - Does topless still = cool? We'll have to ask the ladies to rate this one... (C) Laura Rose 2010
Unlike the last time I saw them at Pigstock, their sound is crystal clear and the stage is rightfully bigger for them. With a perfect mix of Shaun the eccentric bassist, Ryan the composed drummer/vocalist and Adam the shirtless and cool guitarist, it’s a pity not to see these guys play at Glasgowbury on the 24th but still, it’s great to see them playing more shows in and out of Belfast.
Cool drum kit... needs more cow bell though (C) Laura Rose 2010
As Strait Laces come on the crowd thickens. This is my first time seeing them live and from the first few seconds into their set, I already love them. Like a mix of Weezer and At The Drive-In they play harsh, they play loud but most unique of all, they play with melody and sincerity. They proved throughly enjoyable and straight up fun to listen to with such songs as “Where The Wolf Roam” and “Guiltshake.” I throughly look forward to seeing these guys again at Glasgowbury (or anywhere else for that matter) in future.
The perfect Northern Irish Rockstar pose - grimaced expression, charismatic beard, farmer's shirt and slightly raised knee (C) Laura Rose 2010
When I was looking at the poster for the festival ‘A Plastic Rose’ were one of the first names I noticed. Last time I saw them was at Pigstock (headlining the festival) and they absolutely blew everyone away – there’s been no change since May time. They arrive on stage and get the crowd involved by playing catchy and fun alt/indie music.
Slightly advanced version of previous Northern-Irish-Rock-Star-pose-effort (C) Laura Rose 2010
Gathering the first real crowd of the day, they play with good intentions, interesting guitar layering and excellent presence. I just wished they weren’t seen as just another local band at this festival, being overshadowed by the bigger acts such as And So I Watch You From Afar and Panama Kings – A Plastic Rose should be performing shoulder to shoulder with them. Finishing their set on the famous “Kids Don’t Behave Like This”, everyone in the field knows the chorus and we all sing along. A fantastic local addition to the festival and a great band for anyone to go see.
To Be Continued…
By Chris Leckey