Review: Bristol Grillstock 2015

It was a moment that could have been from a movie, or at least a promo video for VisitBristol: just as The Heavy, the homecoming local kings whose horn-heavy rock nu-soul reggae fusion slayed America and was the soundtrack to President Obama’s victory moment, dropped the beat in their first song, the Matthew returned to its mooring opposite the amphitheatre.

Doing a three-point turn in the harbourside, the boat backed right up to the fence around Grillstock, giving the passengers a grandstand view of the action. The Grillstock crowd, buzzed on fiery chicken ribs and chilli dogs, barely noticed – so captivating was frontman Kelvin Swaby’s energy and drive. He was here to entertain, and gave an astonishing performance – part James Brown preacher, part rock star.

The Heavy were among friends. The place had the vibe of a jubilant homecoming, the crowd filled with close friends of the band. At one point, Kelvin pointed out a couple whose wedding he attended last week, and asked the crowd ‘apart from Mr and Mrs Biggs, are you all live?’ The liveliness of the band and the crowd brought the sunshine and chased away the drizzle that had been blighting the festival since early Sunday morning.

Kelvin thanked Bristol for launching them to the world – reminiscing about their grounding in venues such as the Louisiana – and ended the festival on a high note. Their set included all the fan favourites such as That Kind of Man and How You Like Me Now? but also dropped in a couple of songs from their still-being-recorded new album – hinting at a rockier vibe.

A perfect end to a curiously varied Grillstock line-up, which got into gear with Devon punksters The Computers, whose garage punk rock sound contradicted their Blues Brothers suits and sunglasses. They declared themselves to be ‘the most dangerous band in rock’n’roll’, but this didn’t seem to bother the festival goers, who continued to eat their ribs and paid little attention to the band.  

Despite their late Saturday afternoon time slot, the language choice of lead singer Alex Kershaw was decidedly post-watershed, as he called ‘all the people at the back’ ‘c***s’. Considering the audience featured many small children, this aggression seemed more than a little out of place.

But then on came Newport’s finest Goldie Lookin’ Chain (read our hilarious interview with them here), taking the language to a creative level The Computers couldn’t even dream. Early on and during the band’s song ‘Ice Ice Dildo’, the main stage suffered a major technical failure.

Suddenly, the spell broken, and we were looking at ten men from Newport in shell suits silently walking around a stage. But within a few uncomfortably hilarious minutes, normal service was restored, louder and lewder than before.

Anyone thinking that after ten years, the joke might have worn a bit thin were proven gloriously wrong – a drum and bass take of their favourite Your Missus Is A Nutter crowned a festival-stealing performance. GLC’s lack of purist hip-hop credibility could have been exposed by being followed by De La Soul, but in fact the reverse happened.

The US trio whose hit Me, Myself & I can still be regularly heard on dancefloors across the world, played the crowd better than their actual songs; they split the crowd in half and constantly comparing which side was more up for a party. “I think the party is my side,” joked Posdnuos. “I think the party was born on that side, raised there, grew up there and is most definitely living there.”

It was pure panto – GLC have taught them well.

Here is what was happening elsewhere at the festival:

Photos by Luke Palmer