Glastonbury Preview

Glastonbury is packed with guitar riffs, pulsating beats, Rolf Harris and his didgeridoo, calming poetry, celebrities trying to do grunge – and with it being the 40th anniversary this year, you can it expect it to deliver big performances. The big names are Muse, Gorillaz and Stevie Wonder, Dizzee Rascal, Snoop Dogg and Shakira – but how to plan your time so that you don’t miss anything? Here are my tips of what to see at the festival this year:

The Headliners

With Gorillaz on Friday, Muse on Saturday, and Stevie Wonder on Sunday the scene is set for a fantastic festival this year.  Gorillaz, filling in for U2, may well use projections of 2-D and Murdoch to aid their set, but in performances this year Damon Albarn has appeared on stage with the rest of the band without such visual effects.  Whether this happens or not, it’s sure to be an exciting set with Mos Def and Snoop Dogg set to make guest appearances as they are performing themselves earlier in the day.

Veteran festival headliners Muse are also sure to produce an electrifying set.  Anything can be expected from the Teignmouth trio, and their stage budget is likely to be huge with it being the 40th anniversary.  Hopefully they will balance the set with tracks off latest album The Resistance and classics such as Plug in Baby, New Born and Knights of Cydonia.

Stevie Wonder will close proceedings with what looks to be a funky set on the Pyramid Stage.  With numerous top 10 albums and singles in a career dating back as far as 1963 he knows how to put on an excellent show.  Expect the crowd to chant out Superstition and Higher Ground.

Best of the rest

Vampire Weekend – Friday, Pyramid Stage, 18:30

Vampire Weekend has taken the world by storm this year following the release of second album Contra, which reached number one in the American chart.  Expect the crowd to dance like maniacs to A-Punk and Cousins.

Phoenix – Friday, Other Stage, 16:30

French alternative band Phoenix is one of many indie-electro bands to have broken into the mainstream this year with their 4th studio album Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix.  They precede electro musicians La Roux and Hot Chip on The Other Stage so get in position if you don’t fancy Dizzee or Vampire Weekend on the main stage.  1901 (see below) and Lisztomania are their best singles to date.

MGMT – Sunday, Other Stage, 19:00

Say what you will about MGMT’s latest album, their Sunday evening performance is likely to be fascinating.  Will they stick to their new attitude of snubbing their world wide fame received from Oracular Spectacular, or succumb to the crowd and play out Electric Feel, Kids and Time to Pretend?  Whatever they decide to do, the set will most likely be based around latest album Congratulations with Flash Delirium, Its Working and Siberian Breaks being the tracks to listen out for.  As much as I appreciated their latest album, I feel that a terrific festival set would require their 3 hit singles to get the crowd on their side, but it’s hard to predict what they’ll do.

Everything Everything – Sunday, John Peel, 13:00

Yet to make their big break, Everything Everything has had a very low billing at this year’s festival.  They have been winning critics over however, especially on the BBC, with their take on electro-indie.  Graduating from the BBC Introducing stage at last year’s Reading Festival, make sure to catch them before they reach a higher stage at festivals next year.

Delphic – Saturday, John Peel, 16:50

Ranked as 3rd in BBC Sound of 2010, Delphic have gone from strength to strength following release of debut album Acolyte.  With hit singles Doubt and Halcyon and the epic 8 minute long Acolyte, expect the ravers to hit the front for one of this year’s most exciting live acts.

Two Door Cinema Club – Saturday, Other Stage, 11:00

Having played at no fewer than 4 May Balls last week, the majority of us have tasted their fun and lively style of music from debut album Tourist History.  Although you may have seen them before, dancing away to them in absence of black tie is a safe way to start your Saturday.

Rodrigo y Gabriella – Sunday, West Holts, 21:45

If you can’t get within a mile of the Pyramid Stage for Stevie Wonder’s set, worry not, as this dynamic guitar duo is playing on the West Holts (formerly Jazz World) stage.  Having performed on this stage back in 2007, they know how to entertain a crowd at Worthy Farm and offer an alternative way to end your weekend.

Jack Beats – Sunday, Dance West, 22:00

My pick of the DJs, Jack Beats has featured on the Zane Lowe and Annie Mac shows this year for his remix of La Roux’s I’m Not Your Toy.  Providing some of the best dubstep remixes around, his set is likely to be pulsating despite an unfortunate clash with Muse. 

A few pearly grains of wisdom:

If you want to be near the front for a gig, get there a few sets before in order to make your way forward.  Equally, if someone in the group leaves to get food, it’s a good idea for someone to have a large luminous object of some form, so that they can find their way back again.  Wearing something both highly visible and embarrassing is also more likely to get you on TV.  The Park Stage secret sets always throw up fantastic performances with small crowds, and with it being the 40th anniversary, expect someone special to make a cameo appearance.  Finally, don’t be a moron and put a padlock on your tent.  This will offer no projection whatsoever for your valuables, and will only make your tent more attractive to thieves.  Unless you plan on bringing some barbed wire, a guard dog and maybe the odd landmine or two, your tent won’t be protected to so bring your wallet and valuables with you.