Wilderness 2012 - day one review

Anne-Marie Douglas - 10 August 2012

Celebrated chef Valentine Warner cooked up a delightful feast of garlic and herb snails, venison, crayfish, trout and lamb for diners at today’s opening day at Wilderness Festival while gangsters and molls ran riot amongst diners in the banqueting hall.

A beautiful day sees the lake at Cornbury Estate filled with families enjoying the idyllic surroundings. 

Promising Massachusetts singer-songwriter Willy Mason (7/10) ends a charming set with the striking ‘We Can Be Strong’, later followed by ever dapper King Charles (8/10), who plays to a small crowd initially, that eventually grows to a field of happy campers dancing in the sunshine to his extraordinary blend of folk, funk and rock.

Extravagant and charismatic, it’s hard not to make comparisons in mannerisms and looks to the likes of Prince, but this is ultimately just pop. The saleable ‘Lady Person’ is a highlight, as is ‘The Brightest Light’; he ends his set with a cover of Billy Joel’s ‘We Didn’t Start The Fire’, where Wills and Kate amongst others are name-checked a la Sheeran.

A much anticipated set from Lianne La Havas (5/10) fails to inspire on this occasion while Crystal Fighters (7/10) get us all in the mood for the evenings’ entertainment as the sun goes down with banging beats, acoustic guitars and ambient vocals. Party anthem ‘I Love London’ is sweet in its devotion and unbridled passion for the capital and is a million miles away from the end of their set which morphs into Balearic style humdrum.

Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings (9/10) bring a soul revival to close the main stage at Wilderness, taking us on a soul train journey back to 1965.  This is epic funk soul at its best, and the crowd can’t help to holler along with soul as she begs them to ‘Pick up the Phone’.  Their cover of ‘Heard it Through the Grapevine’ is a highlight as is new release ‘She Ain’t a Child no More’.

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