Splendour in the Grass 2012
by Kayla Clibborn [Photo by Stephen Booth]
Gumboots were less a hipster accessory and far more a necessity at this year’s Splendour in the Grass when rain, hail, and very little sunshine turned Byron Bay’s Belongil Fields into nothing short of swampland only hours into day one of the festival. The term ‘Splendour in the Mud’ was thrown around more than once, already beginning to tire by Friday night. In good festival spirits, however, torrential rain did little to deter the moshing masses’ enthusiasm for Splendour’s homecoming to its original site at Byron Bay.
With chilled-out indie acts like Ben Howard and Emma Louise kicking off day one, it was clear I wasn’t the only one feeling smug that the two acts ran back-to-back, allowing guilt-free shelter from the hurricane outside, as brave DZ Deathrays and Big Scary fans fled to their respective stages. Ben Howard’s husky tones brought nothing more than delight to a surprisingly heaving GW McLennan tent, as he belted out obvious crowd favourites like Keep Your Head Up. Cairns-born Emma Louise looked positively tiny in her Alice in Wonderland inspired dress as she melted the crowd with Triple J regulars Jungle and Boy.
The early evening saw Kate Miller-Heidke channel Splendour ’11 with her own rendition of Kanye’s Monster, to the shock of all, sheer enjoyment of most, and disgust of some, I’m sure. The Shins reeled in a crowd to rival much larger headliners at the Supertop, with fans spilling way out into the swampy walkways. Kimbra’s performance noted an obvious boost in popularity and confidence in comparison to her solo set last year. Her penchant for the avant-garde sadly made for a disappointingly over-the-top show that drowned her usually bewitching use of loops and electric stage presence. The legendary Jack White, as expected, completely lived up to the hype created by his recent solo release, Blunderbuss. Knowing exactly how to please a crowd, he treated the packed Supertop to a few White Stripes originals at the end.
Though Byron blessed Saturday with sunshine, Belongil showed no signs of drying up as we all conceded to remaining gumboot-clad for the next two days. Matching the sunny weather perfectly were the smooth Aussie roots sounds of The Beautiful Girls in the late afternoon, again drawing a sizeable crowd considering the line-up sharing and surrounding their timeslot. Front man Mat McHugh seduced the crowd as usual, with no one left sitting down after fan-favourite I Thought About You.
Lana Del Rey inspired mixed reviews with a disappointing show that, at the same time, did not disappoint. To her fans, she delivered everything expected of her; dressed in indie glamour and sounding exactly the same as her album. For others – the haters, the curious, the indifferent – she was lacklustre in performance and talent. In the end, Lana’s Splendour fate comes down to taste and perspective. Again the Supertop was pumping by the end of the night with Swedish indie pop favourite, Miike Snow psyching up the crowd for the never disappointing Bloc Party – whose timeslot clash with Hilltop Hoods was barely noticeable.
End-of-Splendour-anxiety was in full force on Sunday morning, until indie pop New Yorkers, fun. amped things up in the Supertop in the afternoon. Their performance style completely mirrors their upbeat, anthem-style songs, as they had the crowd belting out We Are Young and their new single, Some Nights, mimicking every ounce of front man Nate Ruess’s boundless energy. Wolfmother proved not even a change in line up can stop them from pulling a crowd to rival festival closers and punk rock legends Smashing Pumpkins. The Kooks, however, stole Sunday night’s show, with one brave – yet stupid – fan even scaling one of the tent pillars to get a better view, much to the displeasure of security (and several can-throwing fans), who stopped the show until he shimmied precariously down. Billy Corgan’s raspy vocals showed no signs of age, though this year’s Splendour crowd showed a lack-thereof, as the legendary ‘90s rockers pulled a far smaller crowd than expected.
The sense of homecoming and pride to have Splendour back home in Byron was certainly present at this year’s festival, and a less mainstream line up than last year came as a welcome break for Splendour regulars who may not have enjoyed 2011’s Top 40 headliners. It’s a credit to the hardcore festival goers who didn’t let mother nature ruin their fun. However there are some things, like two-hour-long waits in windy, swampy paddocks due to a shortage of buses, no on-site camping, and a lack of Woodford’s amphitheatre acoustics, that not even the most resilient of punters can ignore. So, while there’s no place like home – trawling mud-soaked jeans through foot-deep puddles made it hard not to miss the grassy knolls of Woodford and memories of a Splendour in the actual grass.
ENDS
