Highstone at the Finsbury and England v France

So, who walks for over an hour to see an unknown opening band, and only to see them? Well me of course. 

I had seen Highstone last Saturday on an all day indie bill. And I liked them well enough - certainly they were very much in my taste range.  I wouldn't say they were the stand out act on the bill. But spoke to them afterwards and they said they were playing the Finsbury next weekend, which for me is "down the road". But Green Lanes is a long road - hence the hour's walk.

But it was a nice evening for a walk (as has every evening been now for at least a fortnight) so I thought I would give them another go. However, the clashing alternative activity to this gig was the England v France third place world cup match, which I knew would be rubbish, but hey ho. Deciding factor though was that I looked up the headline act, Electric Cherry Blossom, online. And they sounded like further and advanced shouting. So my plan was see whether I really did like Highstone who were the openers and then head back home at 9pm in time for 10pm kick off.

Sometimes I think I make really good life choices!

I really did like Highstone on second hearing. I like guitar bands, so a fourpiece with three guitars and a drummer are in the right place. But what I picked up from the previous Saturday, and appreciated here in isolation from a host of other bands like last Saturday, was the quality of the lead singer's vocals. I don't have the expertise to pick out top quality drumming or guitar play from the merely competent. And as I have said in previous entries, I can rarely appreciate a good song on first (or even second or third) hearing. So all that I can pick out first is outstanding vocals, appearance or personality. The easy stuff. And while Highstone also score well enough on the second two, its the vocals that are outstanding. Not that the guy has an amazing voice per se, but that he has both the power that a lot of indie vocalists have, and also great range with it. It isn't all belted out. There is volume control and variation. The guitarist on the left adds quite nice high range backing vocals. 

It is also nice seeing a band starting out. And here I liked the fact that there was almost no audience (well we were in the 20-30 range) and good lighting so I could get some very decent photos, and chat to the lead singer before the start

I caught the drummer in a quiet moment. Always difficult with shooting drummers - they are at the back and if actually playing they look great in person but my photos just come out as a blur. And if you catch them in a quite moment, well you can get them looking bored.....

I also liked it where the lead singer switched from electric to acoustic guitar. Just that added bit of variation.

Actually hardest to capture was the bass guitarist, although he was nearest to me, because at this angle he got bleached out by the powerful light just behind his head. Of course I could have solved this by wandering around like other photographers and getting the best angle (unfortunately for Highstone there was plenty of space in the audience!). But I am not a photographer. I actually want to listen to the band. Just like the memento of photos and using them to illustrate my reviews. So I find my spot and stay there.

While I love weekends like the last one with two all day bills of indie music, I do find the acts slightly blur into each other. And inevitably my reviews are rather brief as there are so many acts to cover. So nice here to have just the one band to concentrate upon.

After the gig I did take the lead singer "to task" in not name checking his band, by which I meant only as an aside at the end mentioning their name. I mean, its really tedious listening to some bands promote themselves, but there is the other extreme too! But he did say to me (but not the audience as a whole!) that they were playing the Elephants Head on 27th. And lo I am free that evening. Well not any more. That's a date!

I have to listen to them rather more to work out whether I actually rate their songs as opposed to just their music. There is a difference. Writing catchy songs is the genuinely hard bit.

So after all that I headed home to watch the football. Obviously it was going to be a rubbish game as no one cares about third place, the French are definitely a step above England and Tuchel was playing the reserves. 

And then Rice scores inside three minutes. The French were also playing a reserve side, well apart from Mbappe who clearly wanted the Golden Boot. And by half time we were 4-0 up, and good value for it. Saka and Rashford were looking really dangerous every time we got forward,. There was space. England were running at defenders and playing accurate first time passes. We were contemplating biggest ever England world cup finals win (6-1). Agincourt. Waterloo.

Then second half France started with four substitutions and a different attitude. It was soon 4-3 and we looked totally on the ropes. Only a matter of time before France scored an equaliser. Mbappe was looking unplayable. And yet, unlike against Argentina, we had capacity to break. And Spence duly got into the penalty area running at pace and the defender slid in. Clear penalty. Not the slightest protest from anyone. Saka kept his nerve to complete his hat-trick. Surely at 5-3 we would hold on. France did look like that knocked the wind out of their sails.

Deep into added time, 5-4. Surely not? And then the maestro himself, substitute St Jude, breaks clear with strength and skill to make it an extraordinary 6-4. The final is going to be such an anti-climax!

So how did this game that no-one seemed to want to have to play, end up being so brilliant? Well, because it almost felt like a friendly, it was really open. And in particular the French in the first half didn't seem  to feel the need to close anyone down. We got a clear run at their full backs, and we had a will to run at them rather than pass back inside and keep possession as in many previous games. No safety first. 

But one also has to appreciate that there are two teams playing, or not playing. So while in the first half England looked brilliant, a major factor was how bad France played. Which became evident in the second half when they played really well, and suddenly England looked in real trouble. But we also kept actually playing when we could, and breaking fast. Which is why we got the two further goals. We have players who can make a great pass and run with the ball. Jude Bellingham is absolutely top quality. 

And while the game started as if the sides were not really interested, with the main prize gone, by the end you could see both teams really wanted to win this one. They had got caught up in the drama which they were enacting. The reason so many big matches are stultifyingly boring is the pressure to make sure that no mistakes are made; no one is given an inch. Take the pressure off and the skill and talent can come to the fore in an entertaining way - not just in one brilliant move and then try and shut up shop.

My double bill of Highstone and World Cup bronze match was a triumph! Today the Lightning Seeds and the World Cup Final. They have a lot to live up to.

On The Meadow 2026 (Part 2) - Artio, Finn Forster, Arxx and Swim School.

Really there was only one act in the day that I wasn't too fond of, and that was Artio. And it was probably one of those "its not you, its me" moments. I just never have got on with heavy metal, and this was really where the band was in the spectrum. The lead singer even started by saying we may find them a bit heavier than we were expecting (given the tenor of the other bands).

To give her credit, the young lady on vocals was very good. She could have just been a screamer, but actually had a fine voice. I just don't appreciate the genre, although a lot of the crowd did. They didn't go down badly.

 

The guitarist nearest me had the thickest neck I have ever seen. Like an American footballer!

I did say in the previous entry that I didn't know any of the acts, with one exception. And that was a chap on the acoustic stage, Finn Forster. I had come across him supporting Blossoms and the Stereophonics last year at Finsbury Park and at the time wondered about the choice of him as a support. He was swallowed up by the huge stage at a big park. Here he just had the little acoustic space and it suited him much better.

I often describe my taste in music as "skinny white boys playing guitar". So the next act was pretty much the antithesis of that. Two ladies, one fat and heavily tattooed. I would not have considered seeing them in a million years. But how wrong could one be. Seriously the best act of the whole festival. The lead singer was funny, great voice and wonderful danceable anthemic songs. Just marvellous. They should be compulsory on every festival bill. This is why I have to go to festivals like this. To get someone else's good taste to stretch my own preferences. So this is down to young Leo. 

If they play again in London I will definitely go. I may not be able to persuade anyone else to do so, but I will try.

They even got along a couple of "dancing girls"

Last but definitely not least, Swim School. I quickly saw why they were headlining (and given a much longer set). Not just good, but a perfect climax to the evening.

First just an apology for the picture quality. To explain, I had abandoned my usual place at the front for the better sound quality further back. And they turned down the lighting, but still with the screen behind showing the band name, brightly. So the effect was to leave the band in shadow. Especially the very pretty blond lead vocalist.

They are a Scottish band. And if one likes indie rock you would have to love this outfit. Obviously I had never heard any of their songs before, so this was just a case of letting the music wash over. It was a superb experience. Just such a good band. The full auditorium was rocking.

After the gig I asked the blokes from Leicester if they fancied staying for another drink. And in the bar we noticed the lead singer from Swim School so we went over and had a chat. I can confirm she is as delightful to talk to as she is to see and listen to. Being a Scottish band they are unlikely to be playing my usual Camden pub circuit every week, but if they tour down in London I will be at the front of the queue.

After that the father and son had decided they needed to get back to their place, but by this time an Asian chap had joined us and he and I stayed on for another drink. This was only his third ever concert - it was my third of the week. We managed to stay so late that I missed the last tube to Finsbury Park so needed a bus back to Wood Green and then a good 15 minute walk home.

Any regrets? No none at all. Wonderful day. Loved every minute of it. I haven't even mentioned meeting various people in the crowd from other gigs I had been to.

My thanks to Leo and his mate for curating and organising the whole thing. I don't normally gush, but am gushing about this.😂