All Points East delivers a stunning Sunday
Sunny Sundays in London are pretty-much made for spending time in the park with your mates. This especially applies when the park is set to be filled with some of the finest musical talent from across the globe, including a certain Nick Cave. No wonder then, that the final instalment of the hugely successful collection of one-day festivals known as All Points East was completely sold out.
Late Sunday risers risked missing one of the standout performances of the day on the main stage. Early in the proceedings, London’s own Shame absolutely tore through a set of tunes lifted from their acclaimed debut album, Songs of Praise. Vocalist Charlie Steen (pictured, below), with bleached hair and in a white boiler suit, was a mesmerising focal point as the band smashed out post-punk tunes with a gothic edge. He burst with an Ian Curtis spiky energy before standing, arms outstretched like wotshisname out of Kasabian, as the spoken word of The Lick and the duel-vocals of Concrete hit the bullseye.
In spite of this visceral, thrilling show unfolding in front of them, and despite rapturous applause greeting each song’s conclusion, there wasn’t much dancing or movement at all from the large crowd in attendance, much to Steen’s disappointment. Maybe the blazing sun caused lethargy, perhaps it was the early start time, or maybe those in attendance were just too East London to have fun. Whatever, as the set came to a close the singer, with a wry look in his eyes, told the crowd, “Enjoy the rest of your day. Remember to smile and try not to take any of this too fucking seriously.” Earlier in the performance, he had also announced that, “this is the first time we’ve ever played a main stage. Rest assured, it won’t be the last. Simply, Shame are the best new band in the UK at the moment.
After an hour with the hot sun burning deeply into the backs of our necks, it was time to find refuge, and there was no better place to do so than at the JägerHaus (pictured, above). If you’ve been to a festival over the past few years, you might have chanced upon the JägerHaus, and punters were certainly making the most of its hospitality at All Points East.
With an indoor bar area serving delicious Jägermeister cocktails and a backyard in which to chill, this was a haven, not least because the adjoining warehouse proved a fine venue to watch an excellently curated and varied selection of live bands. Early highlights included Scotland’s up-n-coming Lucia, who we first saw at The Great Escape festival a couple of weeks ago, and a pleasing turn from South West rock three-piece, Black Foxxes.
Back on the main stage, the very Australian weather greeted Melbourne’s Courtney Barnett, who performed songs from her new album, Tell Me How You Really Feel, as well as old favourites such as Avant Gardener. For truthful and unpretentious storytelling, there are few contemporary artists who can match Barnett’s witty and observational take on life. Not quite so contemporary, but equally pleasing were The Psychedelic Furs, rolling back the years on the North Stage.
Meanwhile, back in the JägerHaus, Shame (pictured, below) were piecing together a stellar DJ set. What they lacked in slick mixing skills, they more than made up for in dropping ABSOLUTE BANGERS. One after the other. Eiffel 65, The Vengaboys and Cher got the crowd moving while Jägermeister dished out free, ice-cold shots to all in attendance and, upstairs in the loft, table football and shuffleboard were played and Jäger cocktails were sunk. If those ingredients don’t make you want to party, then there’s simply no pleasing you.
Soon, it was time for the JägerHaus’ headline act. UK artist Marika Hackman (pictured, top) and her band played pretty-yet-dark indie-folk tunes to an appreciative crowd. With the warehouse providing a small, intimate space, attending this show felt like being part of something secret and special and illustrated exactly why it is always worth doing your research, stepping away from the main stage and hunting out performances elsewhere on a festival site.
As the curtain dropped on the JägerHaus’ final act, there was just time to run round to the North Stage to catch St Vincent. As one would expect from this ever-evolving performer, this show was entirely different to the one-woman tour she presented at the end of last year. Whatever shape her gigs take though, they are always visually remarkable, and tonight was no exception. Looking stunning and smeared with lipstick, she had a masked band in support as she shredded through classics such as Cheerleader, Cruel and Rattlesnake, as well as newer numbers like Masseduction, before closing the set with the uptempo version of Slow Disco that she released this week. If there is a space where music perfectly meets art, then St Vincent belongs there.
And so it was time for the main act of the day. As Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds took to the stage, the sun began to respectfully and reverentially set to allow dusk to envelope the occasion. Cave immediately pulled his signature moves, his pipe-cleaner body balancing precariously on the barrier as he eyeballed the front few rows, spitting his dark poetry while Warren Ellis and pals made a beautiful din. Right Right Hand was tossed away fairly early, before the tender chorus of Into My Arms prompted a mass singalong. Later, Jubilee Street would create a cacophonous thrill and the set would end with a mass celeb stage invasion, but not before the absolute highlight of the day. “Ladies and gentlemen,” Cave announced. “Please welcome… *dramatic pause*… Kylie Minogue.” Cue a version of Where the Wild Roses Grow which had everyone so excited that even the big man himself seemed to briefly forget the lyrics to his own murder ballad. The diminutive Antipodean delivered her lines with relish, joined by every single person in the park. “They call me The Wild Rose, but my name was Elisa Day / Why they call me it I do not know, for my name was Elisa Day.”
In terms of life’s ‘I was there’ moments, this will rank very highly and it was an absolutely ideal way to bring an end to a superb couple of weeks of music at All Points East.
Review by Bobby Townsend. JägerHaus photos by Luis Kramer, Lindsay Melbourne.
