Inverary, Scotland
by Joanna Orland
Scotland’s a long way to go for a festival… unless you’re already there.
Don’t get me wrong, Hydro Connect was a great festival with definitely the poshest local food of any festival and some of the best bands… except they were mostly all on Sunday when I had already packed it in. :(
I was admittedly a bit tired and grumpy from catching a 7am train from London to Glasgow, then a 2 hour bus journey up to the AMAZING scenery of Inverary. To be frank, the bus journey up was my favourite part of the weekend. You can’t see such breathtaking sites like that just anywhere!
Once I got on site, I realized the vibe was great. Unlike at English festivals, the general Scottish public are FRIENDLY and enjoy chatting for the sake of chatting! Makes such a nice change.
Band highlights for me were Gomez – even though I didn’t know any of their songs, they were infectiously charming. They got on stage and announced it was the 10th anniversary of their debut album Bring It On and played it exclusively from start to finish with the crowd sopping up every minute of it! Even I was moved by the performance never having listed to them before in my life!!! ACE!!!|
Then the Gossip closed the second stage on the Saturday night and I heart Beth Ditto! That woman rocks! Apparently Bloc Party blew the main stage away and managed to get a 2nd encore out of the deal!
After Gossip we headed straight to the whiskey tent and checked out the silent disco. Then nearly collapsed from exhaustion.
One tip that I would like to share if you’re thinking of heading up to Connect fest one year… don’t worry about getting a ticket or wristband. Just take a piece of colourful paper, write the word “Media” on it in big letters, and laminate it. It’s the laminated bit that works every time. Then you’re free to wander in and out as you please… apparently. And when the staff question you…. which they do on a regular basis… just say, “But that’s what they gave me!” and you’re scot free (pun intended).
No really.. buy a ticket, it’s the honest thing to do. And well worth it if you’re of Scottish descent or in the area anyway, or planning to stay for more than a day and a half…
