Now you’ll recall from last year that Vince Power, after 20 odd years of Mean Fiddler, Reading, Leeds and Fleadh Festivals, thought it was about time music came first and launched a 0% sponsored festival in the Kent countryside at Hop Farm (with perennial bad boy rock god Neil Young headlining the one day and and the kings of comedy, the Mighty Boosh the other).

So whilst Neil was at Glastonbury last week (with Crosby, Stills & Nash and countless millions) and again at Hyde Park (reports were he was even better in London!), Power went British for 2009. Well mostly British and I apologise now for a somewhat truncated report now but when I fight the law, the law win hands down every time.

What does that mean? Well, for a start, I missed Whitey in the Dance Tent by some hours and only caught the last few warblings of Florence and the Machine on the Main Stage. The Florence and the Machine album Lungs is out today and seems to have got good reviews all around plundering comparisons with Janis Joplin, Grace Slick and Buffy Sainte-Marie! Sounded more post-goth Soiuxsie and The Banshees from the back of the main arena but I’m sure the truth will out.

First up proper were the rejuvenated Echo & The Bunnymen (sans Julian Cope of course) and with dry-ice battling with the wind, Ian McCulloch (in some sort of duffle coat) put in a suitable pissed-off performance. Bearing in mind it was the hottest weekend of the year (punters still in wellies just in case), he must have been hot; but not so melted to miss a chance of a dig at a former favourite son of ‘pool Michael Owen (on his move to Manchester United) as they launched into the classic, ‘The Cutter’. I loved their early Peel session period classics (circa 1980, Crocodiles) and it was good to see them on such good form. That said, your not getting me pogo-ing about like I was seventeen (as some were in the crowd); hey, if Blur can make a come back, there’s hope for everyone. Whilst on the subject, I’ve heard reports that Awaydays (with ‘Going Up’ on the soundtrack) isn’t that bad a movie?

Whilst the Hop Farm’s staff had the weekend off, the Main, Dance and Third stages had enough variety to keep most folks entertained and there was a celebrity 5-a-side (with Everton legend ‘big’ Neville Southall on duty and a team Big Brother girls). I heard Nicky Graham’s high pitched rantings at one stage whilst in the loo and there was a girl with unfeasible big hair and chest strutting her stuff around; that was hair on head with a big chest and not..well, enough of that. Vince was on hand to get in the photo on Sunday for the winners and as it was all for charity, you can’t complain. OK I will then, where there any local band like my favourites from Kent, Lupen Crook & The Murderbirds? (new EP The Lost Belongins out on Beast Reality coming soon).

Back to Saturday, for me it was all about the Dance Tent with Dr. Lektroluv (how does he do it in the mask and gloves, excellent stuff) and then the late replacement for Etienne de Crecy was the magnificent Justin Robertson. What a result, he of The Art Of Acid (last years’ brilliant compilation on Harmless) in a big tent in Kent with a whoppin’ sound system. It sent me to bed/tent happy and as it coincided with the main stage headliners, The Fratellis, were playing their big karaoke hit, “do be do be do etc”. Apparently, they’ve been touring with Steel Pulse on the Island 50 tour and they seemed to go down a storm here.

I own up, I didn’t go straight to bed then but I paid the toll the next day. Not only that, there were definitely more folks around coming to see the Modfather himself, Paul Weller. Even with 40 year old blokes aping his haircut (not a good idea), there was definitely a bigger buzz about the place. And, whilst I hate to admit it, I think it’s probably true that he’s got better with age. Gilles Peterson seems to be a big fan of his latest works (not forgetting the connections with The Style Council and Talkin’ Loud) but I still can’t forgive him for the break up of the Jam; so we’ll move on.

Well a little anyway as straight outta Walthamstow (my old stompin’ ground, see HERE) E17 ’s very own The Riffles did a fairly good impression of The Jam. And whist there’s a lots of ‘Going Underground’ and ‘Eton Riffles’ (apparenty Weller famously joined them once live doing the very same song, but not today), in the air, there’s some quality Libertine-esque songwriting evident.

So what happened next? Well, I know I was happy with the minimal techno of Synth Eastwood along with VJ display but I seem to have missed Metronomy (who’s Joesph Mount has just mixed Koko Von Napoo’s debut EP, June), Kissy Sell Out, Scratch Perverts, 2 Many DJs and 65daysofstatic; it’s like I’d been up to Villiers Terrace and been in a daze for days.

But I do rememer That Petrol Emotion kicking things off in the morning. You may recall this band as the post Fergal Undertones with Seattle-born Steve Mack on vocals. The first thing he announced was that, “If I’ve had to get up at 6am in the morning to be hear, the least you can do is F*ing stand up”. And folks did! This summed up the weekend for me, people were out to have a good time and I reckon they must have and there was only happy people on the site.

In days of old, folks from the urban grime of London used to have working holidays in the garden of England (Kent), picking hops from the vines that would be brewed into ales that they (and the rest of the country) would drink; the initial reason for the Hop Farm. It’s a popular visitor attraction with loads of events thoroughout the year (try and get on a beer festival), but Vince Power has taken it to another level and I for one will definitely be looking forward to next year.

Links:
The Hop Farm, Paddock Wood, Tonbridge, Kent, TN12 6PY www.hopfarmfestival.com
www.bunnymen.com
www.villiersterrace.com
www.myspace.com/djjustinrobertson
www.lektroluv.be
www.myspace.com/drlektroluv
www.myspace.com/etiennedecrecy
www.thefratellis.com
www.SynthEastwood.com
www.65daysofstatic.com
www.myspace.com/65propaganda
www.thatpetrolemotion.com
www.myspace.com/thatpetrolemotion
101 Bar, 101 New Oxford Street, Holborn, London, WC1A 1DB tel: 020 7379 3112 www.myspace.com/101bar
www.thehopfarm.co.uk Maidstone Road, Paddock Wood, Tonbridge, TN12 6PY tel: 01622 872068
www.lupencrookandthemurderbirds.co.uk
www.myspace.com/lupencrook