The third Body & Soul festival is the biggest to date, with a new main stage area added to the scenic surroundings of Ballinlough Castle. The atmosphere is magical - the woods adorned with twinkling lights, the main stage framed perfectly by the wild Westmeath countryside.
And then there’s the music! Cork man REID (of Zombie Computer) is on early on Saturday on the Upstage, his chillwave electronic sound the ideal start to the weekend. Tip: Check out the gorgeous ‘Miami’, released a couple of months back. Derry’s Def Disko (Des O’Leary) keeps the party going with a slick mix of house and techno. An early highlight on the main stage, meanwhile, is five-piece Come On Live Long, who manage to merge electro with folk, using synths and samples, while embracing that most popular of instruments, the ukelele!
Deep in the woods meanwhile on the Wonderlust stage, Galweigan Elaine Mai plays songs from her excellent Dots EP, effortlessly looping vocals, guitar and percussion on tracks like the excellent ‘Tainted’. Django Django take to the main stage having just chatted to Hot Press. Though they’re starting to think about tracks for a second album, their set this evening is taken from their much-adored self-titled debut, and like previous Irish visits, the crowds flock to see them. Kitted out in matching outfits (they’re all about the visuals!) the four-piece’s live set is impressively tight, with their fusion of psychedelia, Afro rhythms and pop whipping the crowd into a frenzy, particularly when they crack out the excellent ‘Default’.
Next up, it’s the return of Villagers, and Conor J O’Brien & Co. don’t disappoint. Having taken a breather following the extensive promotion of 2010’s Becoming A Jackal, O’Brien proves he’s still got it, with a set that perfectly blends old and new. It’s fitting that the sun should set as Villagers play. O’Brien’s thoughtfully dark verses are made all the more poignant by the light show behind him as the sun sets. “Darkness has arrived,” he announces ominously, before launching into newbie ‘Earthly Pleasures’, a delicious taster of what’s to come on album number two. Spiritualized follow, opening with ‘Hey Jane’, the first single from excellent new album Sweet Heart Sweet Light. They throw in plenty of hits from 1997’s classic Ladies & Gentlemen… Meanwhile, the excellently appointed Casa Habana stage in the Walled Gardens plays host to Groovalizacion, a collective formed by French-Moroccan DJ iZem, who mixes Latin grooves, Afro rhythms and Brazilian cumbia (see Page 113 for full report).
With Sunday comes a most unexpected surprise: sunshine, and lots of it! Portadown producer SertOne does the honours on the Upstage, attracting passing punters with his slick hip-hop remixes. He’s then joined by Young Wonder’s Rachel Koeman on vocals for his version of the Cork act’s track ‘Flesh’. On the main stage, Tieranniesaur’s set lends itself perfectly to the surprise sunshine. Funk, disco and Afro pop are combined in the Popical Island six-piece’s set, which includes a funky cover of the late Donna Summer’s ‘Bad Girl’. In keeping with the summery vibe, Londoner Hollie Cook’s reggae set goes down a treat too. The singer, daughter of Sex Pistol Paul Cook, was a member of The Slits along with the late, great Ari Up. Cook’s debut album was released last year and received glowing reviews. A charismatic performer, she has the crowd dancing (and hula-hooping) along to laidback, summery tracks like ‘Milk & Honey’. Check out our post-performance interview with her on hotpress.com.
The main stage line-up is strong all night, with a crowd-surfing St. Vincent and the excellent Little Dragon doing their thing, the latter taking a momentary power cut in their stride with some off-the-cuff cowbelling… And then it’s time for M83. A must-see for most Body & Soul attendees, Anthony Gonzalez’s electro project delivers. Mixing old and new, Gonzalez’ and keyboardist Morgan Kibby’s vocal harmonies sound particularly haunting on tracks like Saturdays = Youth’s ‘Skin Of The Night’, while unsurprisingly, the crowd goes wild for ‘Midnight City’, taken from latest album Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming, featuring some killer live sax. Back on the Upstage, Spanish house DJ JohnTalabot sees out the festival with a bang. Though he only released his debut Fin earlier this year, he’s been making waves with his blissed-out brand of dance since 2009.
Mixing it up with remixes of Everything But The Girl’s ‘Wrong’ and Black Box’s ‘Ride On Time’, Talabot keeps the crowd completely engaged ‘til the very last. Until next year, Body & Soul!