Oxford Folk Festival 2010 (Friday)

Well, the coach journey down wasn't great but could have been worse I suppose. managed to get throught the whole of 'Changes'. Jim Butcher's writing hasn't slipped at all and the book is a real rollercoaster ride where you're never quite sure who's going to make it. Harry Dresden does some really scary things and yet they're all believable given the circumstances. As for the ending, it was a bloody cliffhanger and yet I didn't mind. Can't wait for the next installment (If there is a next installment. The cliffhanger could be taken a lot of ways!)

Anyhow, arrived in Oxford at around 7.00am and, since I couldn't get onto the campsite till 12.00pm, I decided to have a general wander round. Fortunately, the weather was gorgeous and I set off to explore. Oxford is really lovely. I've never been before (and I could never stand 'Morse') so I didn't really have any idea what to expect but it really was pretty (even allowing for the fact that the weather was probably showing the city to it's best advantage).
Wombled off to the campsite for 12.00 and found it was very nice and friendly (although it turned out to be fairly noisy at night due to being next to some mechanical business of some description so I was fairly grateful for my hearing quirks), set up my tent and found I was camping next to one of the Bellowhead Forum members so it was lovely to meet up with someone else down there. I had a nap for the rest of the afternoon and then set off to the Town Hall to collect my ticket. There I met up with more Bellowhead Forum members and we went for a really rather nice indian meal before heading back for the Friday evening concert.
Once in the hall, I headed straight for the front where I was met by a whole host of Bellowhead Forum members who were incredibly friendly and enthusiastic and it was just really nice to be able to put names to faces.
The first act on was 'Telling the Bees', a band from Oxford who I've never heard before. Really enjoyed their set, very mellow and yet oddly haunting (bought one of their CD's at the weekend as well, which I've really enjoyed.)
Next up was Maclaine Colston and Saul Rose who were brilliant. Good music, funny banter and just really enjoyable. Sadly, cause we were sat on the floor at the front and not everyone else was, we didn't get a great view but the music more than made up for it.
Then it was Bellowhead. They were amazing. Chaotic, funny, very silly and just so full of energy. It was their 6th birthday party so the band were batting balloons into the audience and letting off party poppers (or trying to in some cases) everywhere and, at one point, wearing false noses! Jon Boden managed to throw his coat off in Fire Marengo so that it landed on his own head. He managed to keep singing so it was a shame that half the fiddle section nearly collapsed in giggles. Very funny. They played a fair few tunes from the album they've just finished recording which were great fun and have guaranteed that I'll be buying the CD when it comes out around October if only for the song Paul Sartin introduced as being about something very dear to the band's hearts;- 'Funky Wizard Sex'!. I don't think I've ever bounced so much. Did get a bit startled at one point when a party popper went off and landed on my head. There was an absolutely manic giggle behind me as the streamers got lifted up and I turned round thinking that it was still one of the other lasses behind me, only it wasn't. It was Saul Rose. Ye gods, he's tall. Anyhow, I think I can safely say that Bellowhead have now joined the Oysterband as my joint first favourite band and I can't wait to see them again.

After we got chucked out of the Town Hall, a few of us headed off to a late night ice cream parlour place where I had some very nice passion fruit sorbet before walking back to the campsite. Apparently there was ice on my tent that night but, due to a combination of me still being hyper from the concert and a nice new snuggly sleeping bag, I never noticed.