With the final day upon the thousands of revellers that had descended upon Strathallan Castle, there was still plenty of time to catch some great and truly inspiring musicians at work.
Kicking off the day with one of the most hotly anticipated sets of the weekend, the much fawned over Wolf Alice took to the BBC Radio 1 stage with something to prove. As their lauded and celebrated debut album My Love Is Cool continues to capture the imaginations of those that come into contact with it, a great deal of discussion has taken place pertaining to their potential as future festival headliners.
Judging by their aptitude for thrilling live performance and the remarkable depth of their catalogue for such a young band; it’s not all that much of a far cry to picture them playing to a packed main stage as the sun sets.
Their songs are ones that the public can gravitate to for a multitude of reasons; their humongous choruses, their propensity for concocting some of the most effective riffs this side of the 70’s and the enthralling presence of frontwoman Ellie Roswell both on record and whilst standing centre stage. Tracks which particularly struck a chord with the audience included the stirring, Siamese Dream-esque ‘Your Love’s Whore’, the delicate sentiment of ‘Bros’ and the gargantuan rock ‘n’ roll of closer ‘Giant Peach.’
Speaking of bands who hold within them the potential to be future headliners, Catfish and the Bottlemen have cultivated the kind of ravenous support from both musos and casual music listeners that hasn’t been seen since Oasis exploded onto the scene.
Rugged yet at times sincere, Catfish and the Bottlemen’s stadium ready indie rock resonates with people of all ages who believe in the uncontrollable power of guitar music. Wheeling out the material that garnered them the groundswell of support that their every move is now met with, every track from Debut LP The Balcony was met with a fantastic response; sending shockwaves through the crowd from the barrier and all the way to the back.
As Van McCann witnessed tracks such as ‘Kathleen’ and ‘Pacifier’ incite a riotous atmosphere in the crowd, their time travelling up and down the country on the festival circuit must have been immediately validated.
Heading over to the main stage, the multi faceted Alabama Shakes made an incredibly triumphant return to the festival. Having made an appearance in 2012 within the King Tuts Wah Wah Tent, this upgrade in stages is more than justified for an act that is so beloved by their fans.
Despite the fact that it certainly wasn’t the largest crowd of the weekend, anyone who adjourned to the festival’s largest platform to witness the bluesy rock ‘n’ roll of Alabama Shakes certainly wouldn’t regret their decision.
With material from their debut and new record Sound & Color receiving near equal levels of airtime during the set, it demonstrated the growth and maturity that has occurred in the time since their last appearance.
Filing down some of the rougher edges on their sophomore effort didn’t result in them losing their charm, if anything it made them instantly lovable. Tracks from their debut such as ‘Rise To The Sun’ still maintain their spirit and don’t pale in comparison to the more sculpted material of Sound & Color such as ‘Don’t Wanna Fight’ and ‘Future People.’
Frontwoman Brittany Howard’s southern drawl is utterly sublime, with every soulful affectation causing absolute awe. In summation, Alabama Shakes are indeed a special and diverse band; one who deserve to be even higher up the bill than they’ve climbed on their second visit to T.
One of the most highly awaited of sets on the T break Stage; the incredible hybrid of dance music and rock that Crash Club purvey almost seem tailor made to fit the festival environment. If one were to splice the dna of a braggadocio filled band such as Kasabian with the big room sound of The Chemical Brothers, the concoction that you’ve have on your hands wouldn’t be far away from the powerful group that is Crash Club.
Tracks such as ‘Jawbreaker’ and the Ian Mckinnon assisted ‘Recondition’ make for an immersive experience on both recorded mediums and in the live arena; as the incredible band led their adoring public in an all out party that marked a huge leap for the group. with Crash Club preparing to head back into the studio in the near future, expect the latter part of the year and 2016 to be pivotal in their career.
Rounding the evening off with a performance from true rock ‘n’ roll royalty, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds provided the anthems that make festivals such an earth shattering experience for those in attendance.
As fans begin to gravitate towards a great deal of his solo material with the same fervency that met Oasis’s commercial peak, the notoriously disgruntled musician looked overjoyed by the response whilst delivering a lively set.
Naturally, outings of tracks such as ‘Whatever’, ‘Digsy’s Dinner’, ‘The Masterplan’ and set closer ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ were met with a deafening response from the crowd; but it must have been comforting for Noel to hear ‘The Dying Of The Light’, ‘If I Had A Gun’ and ‘The Dying Of The Light’ met by enthusiastic cheers from his audience.
