Living in a wee village in East Lothian, I feel lucky to have three annual music/arts festivals within a ten minute driving radius. DUNBAR MUSIC FESTIVAL in the autumn, North Berwick's FRINGE BY THE SEA in the summer, and Haddington's HADDSTOCK in the spring. Haddington is only about 5 miles from Fud Towers, so it would be rude not to go have a look at what HADDSTOCK has to offer.
Being a mixed-arts kind of thing, it's a bit like North Berwick's FRINGE BY THE SEA, but not by the sea. Or in North Berwick. There's arty stuff, poetry stuff, buskery stuff, and all that, but it's the musicy stuff I'm after.
Being, as I am, somewhat parsimonious by nature, I ignore the main events in the Corn Exchange (which require financial outlay) and opt for the musical delights on offer at the
RAILWAY HOTEL. Still, not being a total cheapskate, I DO chuck some money in the tin at the door.
Line-up:
THE WAXING QUARTER: The first live outing for indie/alt-rock new kids. Coldplay/Elbow/Travis adjacent. But better than Coldplay. To be fair, EVERYBODY is better than Coldplay.
Oddly, the biggest audience of the day. Clearly, they have lots of friends & family along to see their first gig. Goes well, though.
VIDEO:
https://youtu.be/dBSHjVSfnzk https://www.facebook.com/thewaxingquarter
HENRY THE NAVIGATOR: 60s/70s style R&B and blues. Obscure covers, mostly, of songs from the likes of Jeff Beck and Jimmy Reed. Great stuff, and proof that age is no barrier. They're not as old as Keith Richards, though. Too cool for the socials, it seems.
VIDEO:
https://youtu.be/Y0jU7-AOD9Q https://soundcloud.com/henry-the-navigator
AUTOMATIC WRITER: Jangly indie with a distinctive Scottish flavour. Joined for a couple of songs by guest singer/guitarist possibly called DAN. That's him with the acoustic guitar.
It's really hot in here, now, and the guitarist's daughter (I think) nips out to bring back a handful of paper towels for brow-mopping.
VIDEO:
https://youtu.be/i8fN7j5_N44 https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090015565674
OPERATION WOLF: Mostly gloomy, occasionally jolly 80s/90s style synth pop. Very
DEPECHE MODE/HUMAN LEAGUE. Keytar included. Not as loud as they need to be, struggle to be heard over the very chatty audience. Judging by the number of children who turn up to watch, I reckon one of the members is a teacher. Or has a LOT of kids. I need to watch where I'm standing to avoid the wee girl sitting on the floor just behind me.
VIDEO:
https://youtu.be/scD8CBAKU-4 https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61578235396059
UNDER-VOLT: Loudest band of the day. Jed on guitar and Vini on drums, blues-heavy riff'n'roll, and the only band of the day that I've seen before. I'm curious to see how they go down with the very mixed audience - from little kids to grannies - but they seem to be quite popular.
VIDEO:
https://youtu.be/Id0fVa5Z658 https://www.facebook.com/undervoltband
So, that was fun. Remarkably good sound in the venue. But very, very warm. Sweaty. I'll be watching out for this next year.
