A big thank you to Alex Mitchell who has kindly written his account of his day spent at the Dot to Dot festival in Nottingham! For those of you who didn’t attend, the review will give you an insight into what one of the UK’s fastest growing inner city festivals has to offer. As for the rest of you who did attend, then this may be a chance to find out what you may have missed with so many bands to see in one day… Enjoy!
A May bank holiday in Nottingham can only mean one thing. Music lovers unite for the city’s very own Dot to Dot festival, now in its seventh year. A day when hungry-for-it young acts will break through and already-on-their-way newcomers sit fairly at the top of the bill. Whilst the festival has spread to Bristol and Manchester in recent years, Nottingham is its home and this is my account.
If there were ever an excuse for a street party (royal weddings aside), Dot to Dot would be it. I approach the nucleus of the city’s main venues Rock City, Rescue Rooms and Stealth to see Talbot Street cordoned off and strewn with bunting, clothing and food stalls and people everywhere. Fourteen hours of live music deserves a setting like this. I stop the nearest passer by and ask them what the festival means to them. Nic, 23, from Nottingham thinks for a while then replies intently “It gets better every year”.
My first stop of the day is Rock City; considered by many to be the UK’s number one live music venue. If ever a band is on the right side of popularity, they’ll be sure to grace this venue. Dot to Dot gives this chance to so many bands it’s a real blessing. I make my way to the basement to catch Foreign Office do their thing. Sounding like Huey Lewis and the News, they could be the most ear opening act today and the band really deserves a sun soaked rooftop party in LA. Either way, their preppy nerdiness is infectious and you can’t escape the party atmosphere. I make a point of circling the floor and see a smile on every face. The eighties tinged drums and bass that drive debut single “Leaving The House” widen these smiles even further! When they finish I grab a word with Alex, 30, from Derby. “What does Dot to Dot mean to you” I ask? “Great new bands like this” he replies with a grin!
I agree with him and make a dash over to another of the quintet of venues hosting bands today; Nottingham Trent University’s Student Union. Its cavernous hall has the potential to swallow up acts this early on in the day and as I enter, I catch Benjamin Francis Leftwich hypnotising a respectably sized crowd for this space with his delicate acoustic tunes. Whilst the fragility of songs like “Pictures” doesn’t quite sound right in a huge and near empty room, there’s definitely something of value here. Leftwich’s songs have that rare talent of sounding sincere and never coming across as clichéd which is a constant threat with indie-folk. Have you ever heard a lyric like “If you crash a car into your best friend’s house…”? Me neither. I look up and notice the balcony is packed full of people with camera phones aloft suggesting the empty floor has betrayed how promising he is. It’s clear from “Pictures” and lead single “Atlas Hands” from Leftwich’s upcoming debut that he’s destined for big things.
By the time I head out of Trent University to make my way back to Talbot Street the sun has broken through the usually impenetrable Nottingham cloud and we get the balmy bank holiday everyone wanted. I arrive at Rescue Rooms where walking through the gated entrance is like being transported to downtown Manhattan’s SoHo district. It’s an exercise in slaloming through various hipsters and impossibly beautiful people (the sun must draw them outdoors). I stop and think to myself that this is what’s great about the festival; rubbing shoulders with every type of person imaginable.
Headbands and skinny jeans aside, my best band of the day award goes to Is Tropical. The first thing I notice is how good they look. All in black with their faces veiled by scarves, the London trio march out onto a stage that’s notably not lit by anything. Then the music starts. Synths fight with samples that fight with bass that fight with guitars – all filtered to make them sound as filthy as possible. Think The XX if Tim Burton got his hands on them. Tracks like “Seasick Mutiny” define this band; samples everywhere, looped synth lines and reverb soaked vocals. With an intensity present right from the off, Is Tropical’s songs follow each other relentlessly leaving half of the crowd standing open mouthed like me and the other half stomping away. Veiled faces, electro smash, filthy bass; all present creating a sort of down and dirty rave that even next door’s Stealth would be proud of…
Having spoken of Stealth, that’s where my journey follows on… I make my way through the rabbit warren of stairs and corridors. It really captures the feel of Dot to Dot; something exciting to see and hear at every twist and turn. I make it downstairs to watch Niki and the Dove. It turns out that festival headliners Hurts were bang on when they championed this Swedish band. A Goth infused mixture of Lykke Li, Kate Bush and Stevie Nicks makes for a mystical air circulating in Stealth’s basement. Hearing the euphoric “Under The Bridges” and knowing that the sun is still shining somewhere above me makes me feel that this somehow works very well. I think to myself that being tucked away down here reflects part of the charm of what today is all about. Mia, 19, from Leicester tells me that she stumbled across this room completely by accident; “It’s what I love about seeing bands in Nottingham”.
Boasting a “before they were big” ethos, The Bodega Social Club has opened its doors to the likes of The White Stripes, The Strokes, The Killers and many other ‘The’ bands. If you live in Nottingham it’s most likely you’ll see this intimate little venue as a mecca for what is emerging from the underground and in-vogue. I arrive at The Bodega at around eleven and emerge and just over an hour later after having seen Fixers and Cults. I’ve never seen a gig there as busy and the place is literally one in one out!
Fixers will be compared to the Brooklyn school that spawned MGMT and Animal Collective but shouldn’t worry though as their British take on their style of music sees them right. Whilst those Brooklyn schoolbands give us moments of accessible pop genius, Fixers are much happier with meandering opuses that radio won’t touch. This five piece from Oxford take that pop genius by the scruff of the neck and run with it. Songs like “Crystals” are way too good to ignore and a set of dreamy Californian sounds will surely earn them a load more downloads tomorrow morning from a satisfied sea of people.
The Bodega somehow feels even busier by the time Cults take to the stage, hoping to mesmerise with more songs touched by America’s west coast sound. It’s the first time today that I’ve felt an awe of anticipation before a band emerges and I see people actually biting their lips. Once Cults begin, it feels like good indie pop of the highest order; think Camera Obscura but in warm weather. You could half imagine Phil Spector backstage pulling the strings. Sound problems plague their set though, meaning sure fire hits like “Abducted” lose their power and even cause a packed room to thin a little. This is disappointing as it’s a problem that’s out of their hands. I can even see the frustration etched on singer Madeline Follin’s face.
By the time Cults finish, there’s a little room to breathe and I can hear voices amid the crowd starting to talk about Stealth. I rush back to the venue caught in a flow of bodies, all with the same purpose, to ensure a spot for SBTRKT. It turns out to be a mass migration between the two venues and I enjoy the feeling of being swept along. SBTRKT are brilliant! Sounding like Autechre on a soul tip but with such intensity. The live drums do something to the crowd, as I see the first few rows of fans succumbing to a primal sway dictated by the tribal masked duo.
As it all washes over me, my body tells me it’s time to exit Dot to Dot 2011. I make my way up and out, leaving it in the hands of those with the stamina to last out what’s left of the day’s fourteen hours of music. Roll on next year!
