Rob da Bank's Weekly Blog #8

On duty at Radio One's Big Weekend

Rob da Bank - 11 May 2009

Another seven days and Rob's been at One Big Weekend with Westwood in sunny Swindon...

So my festival season kicked off with Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Swindon. Ok so it finishes at 9pm and there’s no camping but it felt very much like a proper festival and after 5 years of playing the Outdoor Stage this was my favourite by a long straw. Westwood opened proceedings with some great banter ‘put up hands up if you’re wearing underarm deodorant’ and my Welsh comrade Huw Stephens set the scene perfectly with some quality indie and drum & bass before I unleashed a typically eclectic energetic hour long set with bonus microphone action from yours truly bellowing ‘come on sunny Swindon’ into the mic every other record and getting the hands in the air treatment. A beautiful afternoon only topped off by an incredible Dizzee Rascal performance joined by special guest and green tracksuit sporting Calvin Harris. It’s gonna be Dizzee’s year at the festies with an on fire live show and new single Bonkers surely going for number one all summer! My other bet on best act of the 2009 festies is Florence and The Machine. Just delivered an amazing album and smashed it at Big Weekend with a full on live set and then a cute acoustic show complete with mini piano and mini harp. A vision in glittery silver!

I’m hoping to head off to the Wood festival this Saturday, put on by the good folk behind Truck with some great green credentials and no bullshit about being carbon neutral as so many promoters seem to be boasting. Just a good old fashioned wood fired party with a great crowd out in the open. Also watch out for some forward thinking news from the Association Of Independent Festivals and download my latest podcast from Wednesday at www.sundaybestpodcast.com which is a very haphazard A-Z of Festivals.

Toodle pip!