Day 1

So another year has passed and the masses once again descend upon the fields of Byron Bay for the misleadingly titled Splendour in the Grass festival. Apart from the now expected lack of grass, this year saw another flaw in the branding: a distinct lack of splendour in the line-up – well, at least that was my first impression. Thankfully a quick glance at the timetable allayed my fears as I realised there was nary a break in my schedule and actually a few clashes to contend with.

Standing at the pearly gates the anticipation was immense. The smart were decked in emergency ponchos and gum boots, prepared should the heavens open up. After only a brief wait we went two-by-two to the salvation that was the Supertop. Then like some sort of epiphany Swedish progsters Dungen (yes, I know, that’s “Doon-yen”) were upon us. Vintage ‘70s progressive rock meets ‘60s folk and the welcome appearance of a flute gave the punters plenty to shout about – even if the language barrier only allowed for calls of “festival” and the like. In any case Gustav Ejstes and the long-haired boys provided great entertainment for a receptive audience.

Not quite fancying a showdown of OC proportions (Youth Group were next up, followed by Death Cab for Cutie) I decided to go a wandering. It was apt, then, that I arrived at the GW McLennan Theatre in time for Australian troubadour Kevin Mitchell aka Bob Evans. Our man put in a touching performance highlighted by simple yet stately odes to travelling, love and love-lost and was joined onstage by Josh Pyke.

All of a sudden it was time for some travelling of my own – back to centre-stage for the Grates. Here, Splendour in the Grass truly erupted into party mode with balloons and bright colours and, most importantly, the music to match. Whilst musically a little too saccharine sweet for my taste, front-woman Patience provided a lovely counterbalance of eye-candy and crude swearing. Tunes like “Trampoline” and “19-20-20” put smiles on all-round. And with such a large audience (especially compared to last year) that’s a lot of smiles.

For me, the Grates proved to be the sugar-hit before the succulent and all-the-more satisfying main course of TV on the Radio. The New Yorkers pulled out all stops – including cameos from Nick Zinner and Brian Chase of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs – in ensuring the festival wasn’t without its innovators. A rip-roaring version of the recent “Wolf Like Me” single gave way to an electrifying “Staring at the Sun”; all the while Tunde Adibempe wailed and gesticulated in a frighteningly cool manner. Needless to say, the band’s sound captivated and challenged all those present.

It would be hard to find an act that could rise to the great heights of TVOTR but as it was we didn’t have to wait long. Scotland’s favourite post-rockers Mogwai gave punters plenty of reason to side-step the puddles with a ferocious set. While the grass had become mud and the pathways slippery, Mogwai soft/loud dynamic provided a sort of sure-footed shrubbery. Moments of gentle reflection were interspersed with lovely noise and you could forget where you were.

Not that you’d want to, of course, for those ageless masters Sonic Youth were up next to put a cap on the night. Playing songs taken predominantly from the new Rather Ripped album Kim Gordon, Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo showed the youngsters a thing or two about stage performance. When they played “100%”, eyes instantly closed and serious faces were pulled, for this was a classic and after all, a lot of drugs are taken at music festivals (yes, it is a sad fact).

After an unfortunately brief trip to the Mix Up Tent for DJ Shadow – whose new material impressed despite some reported power failures – Day 1 was at a close. As the night slipped away into a sea of hyperboles (“Death Cab were SO good”) and missed opportunities (“Did you see Augie March lose it?”) thoughts turned to the next day – and sleep wasn’t an issue.

Day 2

For me the second day could only really be a let-down; what with Clap Your Hands Say Yeah’s cancellation and the marvellous TV on the Radio, Mogwai and Sonic Youth trifecta of the night before. But still there was much to look forward to.

Unfortunately extended dreams of a TV on the Radio reappearance kept me from catching the Zutons. But who could that surprise act be? I arrive to strands of “Ms. Jackson” floating through the air. Could it be? Outkast? No it’s the long-awaited return of the Vines. Although I’m not quite sure how much of a surprise the re-emergence of Craig Nicholls and co. is, the sound of consistently large applause certainly is. From all accounts, the band put together strong set. I arrive to the smashing of instruments and that’s good enough for me.

A band unlikely to even break a guitar string were up next: Snow Patrol. Whilst not a huge fan of the band’s recent forays into Coldplay-lite I was pleasantly surprised by the highly sing-a-long nature of the group’s work – always good at a festival. From “Spitting Games” to “Run” the group appealed to the emotionally vulnerable and those attracted by Gary Lightbody’s charming persona.

At this point I, myself, became emotionally vulnerable having to pick between the electro-sleaze of the Presets and the smooth-talking of Jose Gonzalez. In a show of geographical logistics I chose the latter and wasn’t disappointed. Ever so gently Gonzalez reduced the audience to silence as he plaintively carved masterpieces out of simple guitar and voice. The one-two hit of “Crosses” and his cover of “Heartbeats” kept all present aghast. Although requiring a certain level of patience, Gonzalez – for the most part solo – effortlessly impressed.

Not so the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, who in the Supertop appeared a little too eager to impress. I know that is Karen O’s schtick, and maybe it was just my lofty expectations, but to me the group’s playing seemed a bit forced. The most intriguing aspect of the show was Ms. O’s wonderful/atrocious sense of fashion, however, that said, “Maps” was as poignant a moment as you would find at the festival.

Surpassing my expectations were the crazy kids collectively known as Gerling. Always a wonderful festival act due to their ability to both rock and roll (in the dance sense, of course), Gerling brought out all the old and new favourites as they kept the Mix Up Tent pumping for the Scissor Sisters. Their set was highlighted by an extended climax of “Ghost Patrol”.

And so the curtain went up; while we waited with baited breath for a sign of the anticipated glitz and glamour, some danced hysterically to the Bang Gang DJs, while others sniggered accusingly. I’ll leave my position to your imagination. With a bang the Scissor Sisters took to the stage, opening with “Take Your Mama” and a whole lot of camp posturing. In between some “had to be there” hilarious rants from Ana Matronix, Jake Shears and the crew found time to play all the hits from their debut album plus give a preview of what is to come from the forthcoming follow-up. While you couldn’t exactly call them cutting edge, the Scissor Sisters brought down the curtain on Splendour ‘06 in style, though admittedly not in a style to everyone’s liking (not that it showed).

Not quite. While I’m not qualified to comment on Brian Wilson’s overall performance the echoes of “Good Vibrations” around the fields were like, well, good vibrations. A fitting close to what was an extremely well run and behaved festival.