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Reading, England August 23-25, 2002 By C. Bottomley Although this year's Reading Festival was attended by spotty teenagers eating greasy fries and drinking warm beer under gloomy skies, there wasn't much else that seemed typically British about the affair. The kids had come to see the Strokes and Foo Fighters headline on the main stage; the line-up contained but a sprinkling of native acts. This time around, the gathering - a three-day celebration of rock music held every August outside of London - belonged to bands from the United States, Sweden and points abroad. The list of participating English bands spoke volumes about the current music scene in Britain. Muse and Spiritualized played material that became golden oldies years ago, while Sunday's headliner The Prodigy haven't released an album since 1999. Purveyors of what could be called Radiohead-lite, like Travis for instance, stayed home. Only two Brit groups kept the sun from setting on a once-glorious musical empire. Sheffield's Pulp combined anthemic muscle with the star power of leader Jarvis Cocker. Imagine the school nerd leading sing-a-longs about class warfare and porn addiction while doing Elvis' kung fu kicks and you'll get an idea of his odd presence. Northern Ireland's Ash were handicapped by a bus crash that left their drummer with cracked ribs, but with the vim of a Saturday morning cartoon they ably connected the dots between Beach Boys and Buzzcocks. Chagrined by the lack of homegrown saviors, the British music press now stamp any import with the label "future of rock." However last year's saviors the Strokes were exactly as they've always been, playing their entire half-hour debut Is This It? and four new identical songs. They're aging fast, too. A bum knee left singer Julian Casablanca trying to look cool while sitting on a stool, Andy Williams-style. But this year's hype, Australia's Vines, showed a packed tent that a great singer can transform a merely average rock band. Vocalist Craig Nicholls was powerful enough to even touch hearts when wailing Outkast's "Miss Jackson." Nude Portugese punks The Parkinsons may have a Jam fixatation, but their set had ass-flashing frenzy to spare. A host of Next Big Things used Reading as a chance to make their case before their biggest audiences to date, but some of them stumbled. The White Stripes' blooze was horribly white and deathly dull, especially when compared to the authentic racket made by veteran John Spencer Blues Explosion, playing something similar at the other end of the field. And if wimpy adolescent hacks Electric Soft Parade ("They may just have saved British pop music!" - NME) and Haven ("Haven look set to engulf this entire nation!" - Dazed & Confused) are Britain's future, the country might as well make The Hives members of Parliament. The Swedish garage punks ran rampant with goofy charm, gas-fumed riffs, and ironic arena rock guestures. Yes, the Hives are the Syndicate of Sound pretending to be the Pretty Things pretending to be the Stones, etc. But Howlin' Pelle Almqvist has the cocksure arrogance of a great front man, bravely wearing his black uniform in the moist heat, jabbering, "It's a hot day, so let's play a hot song!" and delivering with the irresistible "Main Offender." And the energy was felt elsewhere, too. The Soundtrack of Our Lives embraced their midday slot as if someone had told them Reading's industrial park was Budokan. The (International) Noise Conspiracy delivered the kill shot with a sweaty Saturday night set of Marx & Engels-inspired R&B. "People ask us why we prefer revolution to reform," said leader Dennis Lyxzen, dropping his manifesto from the top of a speaker stack. "It's because revolution is so much more fun!" If there's a revolution going on, it's in American alt.rock. Former dark stars like Mercury Rev had to glitter blissfully in the early afternoon, the Offspring and Slipknot's comic strip rage was very much last week's news, and Jane's Addiction gyrated like tired strippers. Several glassy-eyed teens were probably trying to figure out who the hell these old-timers were. Young hearts and tear ducts now belong to emo, and a tragic throng crammed the Concrete Jungle Stage on Saturday to weep along with Saves the Day, Dashboard Confessional and the Get-Up Kids. On Sunday, And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead raised the emotional ante to impossible levels. Eschewing emo's punky thrash for Sonic Youth's artier structures, the Austin quartet issue a challenge: you are either with their conspiratorial fervor or about to be shoved out of the way. Their "A Perfect Teenhood" ended with squalling white noise, splintered instruments and a drum kit sent arcing into the awestruck masses. Passion isn't a particularly English trait, either. But alot more of it is what Reading seems to need. Tell us what you think of this review. For more info about the artists that played at the Reading Festival, go to our Artist A-Z pages. |
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