RANT - Wakestock Cocaine Festival

In what was an absurd attack on the hugely successful Wakestock Festival held last weekend near Abersoch the Daily Post newspaper sank into tabloid journalistic hell in a pathetic attempt to boost circulation sales. The headline ‘Cocaine Festival’ greeted readers on Monday morning & the following 2 pages illustrated how shocked reporter Hugo Duncan uncovered ‘Drugs chaos at North Wales surfing event.’ What a pile of complete bollocks. It’s patently obvious this journalist either has aspirations of working for The Sun or thought a rock festival was something Bryn Terfel holds for his opera friends every year.

I was at Wakestock on Saturday with Pocket Venus, Treehouse 3 & Reef & none of us had to surf down mountains of cocaine, stand on blocks of cannabis or catch collapsing party-goers. It looks like Hugo Duncan was having all the fun as I don’t recall this ‘massive drugs party’ taking place. Wasn’t it a lucky coincidence he took his own photographer with him to capture the moment he was offered cannabis (shocking isn’t it!?) by a reveller? Quite frankly, those who have read the Daily Post article & attended the festival will probably deduct that to have written a story like that you’d have to be on drugs as the guy was obviously hallucinating! And anyone lying on the ground had obviously come under the effect as the ‘cocktail of drink & drugs took its toll.’ There is no denying that drug intake went on at this festival, as it does in every town every day; it is a scourge, but the level that the report descended to is quite laughable had it not been so potentially damaging to the O’Shea Wakestock organisers. Would you believe that as Reef blasted out their heavy guitar riffs most of the audience went wild! It must have been a frightening experience for poor Hugo (you’ll never make the NME sunshine, maybe Y Gadlas if you’re lucky). Thankfully the North Wales Police viewed the festival for what it was, a huge success, extremely friendly, no arrests & a huge boost to the income of a struggling part of our country.

There were 6 stabbing related incidents in Rhyl the same evening (2 with knives, 4 with bottles), I didn’t see any news stories on them.

Unlike the Daily Post, this website will not close ranks. Hugo Duncan & his editor are welcome to reply to this item.

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They did…. (this from Mark Brittain)

WHEN the Daily Post visited the Wakestock Festival last Saturday evening, little did we know that we were about to stir up a hornet’s nest. Mind you, we didn’t know that we were about to witness scenes of blatant dope smoking and cocaine sniffing either.

Our report which appeared on Monday, under the headline “Cocaine Festival”, led to a total (so far) of 15 irate phone calls, e-mails, faxes and letters, all of them critical, and some extremely abusive, but all voicing virtually identical criticisms.Faced, therefore, with demands for an apology, it is incumbent on us to answer our critics and state our case – which I shall do having given you a taste of the more reasoned correspondence, which, for reasons of space and repetition, I have been obliged to condense – for which I do apologise.

First off, a very temperate rebuke from Mrs C. Fox, of Pwllheli. “My husband and I were present at the prizegiving and live music on Saturday night, having watched the competition events on Friday and Saturday,” she wrote. “I was amazed at your account of events and find it difficult to believe we were at the same venue! We have been to a great many live music events over the last 30 years and felt security arrangements were satisfactory – my bag was searched before we were allowed into the arena, and at no time did we feel threatened or see any `chaotic scenes’. As I understand it, the 15-year-old boy mentioned in the article had in fact been drinking `Red Bull’ and had his drink `spiked’ as suggested. As for `ten people’ climbing over the fence and `letting party-goers in and out at will’, you then state that `security guards replaced the fence soon after’ – and there were between 3,500 and 5,000 people present!!

“While I agree there were people a bit worse for wear towards the end of the evening, are you naive enough to think this doesn’t happen – here, or anywhere else?”It is a sign of the times that some people do take recreational drugs, and, as with anything, if you go looking for them, you will find them. We saw no one obviously flaunting or offering them. “I was, however, encouraged to hear that the police were happy with the way things went and, after all, there seemed to be no reports of violence as there have been in the past at other live music events in North Wales.

“It would be a terrible shame if this event ceased to exist after only three years due to one distorted view, when so much hard work has gone into organising it each year.”

Next up, Heather Torkington described our report as “spectacularly inaccurate and quite frankly pathetic”, but took immediate exception to our incorrect reference in the subheadline to “surfing”.

“Wakeboarding and surfing are two very different sports demanding totally opposite weather conditions and equipment … such a blatant inaccuracy is inexcusable,” she wrote.”I am absolutely disgusted with your `exclusive scoop’ and I, and other local business people, hope you fully intend to apologise to the organisers.

“Abersoch, like many villages in Wales, really felt the pain of foot-andmouth disease last year and our local tourist board are working so hard with people like O’Shea to organise events that can help regenerate our businesses and extend the season – you have quite simply gone out of your way to defame the festival and pull out all stops to prevent it happening next year.

“The festival has bought thousands of people to the area to enjoy fabulous music and an exciting growing sport in the heart of our beautiful Pen Llyn – surely this is something to be proud of. We enjoyed our busiest weekend this year, which is exactly what was needed during such a gloomy summer. The organisers spent the past year working tirelessly with the council/ police and authorities to make sure that every Health and Safety avenue was explored. If you go to any pub in any town in this country and ask for drugs, you will find them. I am hardly surprised that your stunt of going undercover to find drugs was fruitful! I was reassured by the police presence and security measures, but most of all I was bowled over by the amazing atmosphere people of all ages (I spotted at least two grannies!) having a fantastic time. I think that 10 people trying to climb over a fence is an impressively small number and that security should be congratulated. I arrived around 9.30 to have my bag checked, and witnessed enough police to put the fear of god into any potential drug user. The standard of music was unbelievable – with a superb mix of local bands and emerging bands from all over the coun-try – as for Reef, what a coup to have them play on their return to the UK after a sell-out tour of the US.”

Mike Atherton wrote, expressing his “disgust and disappointment. I have attended the Wakestock Festival over the past three years and very much enjoyed it on all occasions. Every year, a lot of people have a great time at what is widely recognised as a well organised, efficient and troublefree event. As, indeed, it was this year. Articles like yours cause great harm and send out a very negative message to all the people who might not have attended and been able to see that the very large majority of several thousand people had a great night in a great location. I would imagine that, if any journalist went to any event of any scale, looking solely to expose it as a drugs festival, they would indeed be able to find people with drugs.

“Why did you not mention that the Wakeboarding – not surfing – sends out a good message to young people of the benefits of healthy outdoor sports? Why did you focus on a small part of the festival – that, yes, there would indeed be some people taking drugs – and not the great music, good organisation, or lack of any trouble over the whole event? That the police again reported that there was no trouble and are very happy with the event organisation? Or the fact that a relatively small place has brought big names, from both Wakeboarding and the music world, to a beautiful tourist area, boosting and strengthening the local economy after much hard work and planning from local people?”

Someone called Pru e-mailed to say: “Can appreciate your concern with the drug problems that are apparent in society today – just a shame that you chose to pick on one event to highlight it. Not a very good angle considering that, if you go looking for such things at any festivals, then there will always be that element. Just thankful that there were only two incidents out of a possible 5,000. I came away from the event very happy, my only concerns being the camping capacity. The wakeboarding was spectacular, you must agree? Those riders are the most gutsy I have seen in a long time – shame that you didn’t feel it was worth a mention.”

Finally, Neil Crud, manager of Pocket Venus, one of the bands who performed, wrote to “protest strongly”. Although there is no denying that drug intake went on, to portray the event as a cocaine free-for-all is absurd and it is blatantly obvious that you went to ‘dig the dirt’ rather than report on an arrest-free and successful gathering. I spent the entire day at Wakestock and drove home in the early hours of Sunday. Having to stay sober, I vividly remember not seeing mountains of cannabis and cocaine, nor did I fall over any comatose 15 year-olds. Drugs are a scourge on society, but to tar 5,000 people with the brush of being in a `massive drugs party’ is an absolute lie.”

The Daily Post, in line with its policy, is pleased to publish the above “rights of reply” and, for what it’s worth, we deny absolutely that we went to deliberately bury, not to praise, the festival. Let me state unequivocally that we wholeheartedly support any venture which brings tourists to North Wales. We went to report honestly on a festival and found instead, sadly, what we later wrote about, and which we stand by. It may well be that, by concentrating on the drug use, we failed to adequately reflect the many excellent things also going on.

However, if the future of the festival is to be assured, then open drugtaking, especially of Class A drugs like cocaine, must not be tolerated. A minority, to be sure, but one which tainted the rest of the festival and which could, if allowed to flourish, jeopardise it.

By highlighting the problem, we hope we may have nipped it in the bud. To any disappointed readers, we say sorry – but not for taking the antidrugs stance we did.

We will never, ever, apologise for that.

Pocket Venus have punch up with Bluetones

 

Neil Crud: 'I got them a support slot with The Bluetones at Bangor Uni, but some mix up led to them not being on the bill. So, pretty pissed off with this so-called mix-up, I fabricated story about a punch up with The Bluetones. It was circulated and ended up making the news.'

Pigstock Festival - Denbigh

In a town whose community is built entirely around The Pub, the 1st weekend in August must be a licensee’s nightmare. For unless you are the landlord of the Plas Pigot in Denbigh then you may as well call time & head down to Pigstock with the rest of the population.

I was disappointed to have missed a rocking Friday night, but with the weather just holding off, Saturday wasn’t a let down. This part time reviewing lark has now got to a stage where I am sometimes conscious about what I actually write. As I sat gassing in the field to the prodigy son Nick Grover I glanced in to the crowd & noticed Grasshopper all sat in a row & momentarily thought; ‘Oh shit, did I slag them off in my last review?’ The fear passed quickly, hopefully most bands with any intelligence will respect the fact that I’m prepared to say it like I see it, rather than give a local press type Next Big Thing review.

So it is with hope I don’t have to avoid Strait Jacket on my next visit to Denbigh They have the style, they have the charisma, they have the look (in fact, drummer Chris Grover looks so cool you’d swear he’s just stepped out of a fridge). In their singer, I’ll call him the Grolsch Man (thanx for the drink!); they have the natural front man, at ease with himself & his audience. The type of vocalist most guitarists, bassists & drummers yearn for. Where it goes horribly wrong for Strait Jacket is their original material, err… there isn’t any. Like their Denbigh predecessors, Wild Weasel, Strait Jacket are on the road to local hero status & the tarmac is still steaming. What a band of such obvious talent needs to do is ensure they become anti-heroes. Like I said; they have it all & it’s fine being rabble rousers for events like Pigstock where you’re guaranteed a raucous response, but take a set like that beyond the safety of Denbigh’s borders & the reaction will be very different. I normally wouldn’t spend this long on a band at a festival but I’d just like to stress the importance of original material to a band of such capabilities. Take a leaf out of Fudged’s scrap book (who opened proceedings on Friday) & start replacing covers gradually with your own material. So I expect you to buy Primal Scream’s XTRMNTR 2000 LP & play it alongside Never Mind The Bollocks, drink a bottle of Bub’s Homebrew & start songwriting. I want the results on my desk by Monday morning.

There was something not quite right; due to driving restrictions I was chastised to the consumption of Coca-Cola, & on buying a pint of the said teeth rotting liquid I was stunned. ’60p please.’

Shurely shome mishtake, you don’t set up a stall at a festival & only charge 60p for a pint of coke. Thankfully the town’s traders haven’t cottoned onto the word ‘inflation’ at festivals yet (let’s hope they don’t). Some tosser tried to charge me a fiver for an ice-cream at V2000 last year; he was left with it dripping down his arm as I walked away in disgust. Here you could endure a cheeseburger & can of pop for £2.60, which can’t be bad.

Having missed Fudged, Big Business, K’aenobi, Giro Gypsies, Keaf & Y Moniars the night before I collected eyewitness accounts, all with the same result; ‘What a night!’ With a self-imposed 11pm curfew, the festivities ran on ‘til 12.45am. It must’ve been a good night as a couple of relatives of mine finally dragged themselves from their hungover slumber to get here by 7.30pm having suffered from an incoming tide of beer last night. When I say ‘relatives’ I should be more precise in a town which bears a family tree that is one straight line.

Having warmed her fretboard at Llandudno’s Buzz Club the previous Wednesday, 5’ nothing Emily Gresham calmed things down with an acoustic solo set to much appreciation. I anticipated the worst as the black clouds poised over the event all day finally teetered over the edge & gave a scant warning of possible things to come. Watching Supergrass last year I saw 8,000 people desert the band like rats off a sinking ship when the heavens opened. Here it’s obvious Pigstock has more staying power; with an alcoholic force-field protecting the revellers from the shower there was no need to heed Bob Dylan’s advice & seek shelter from the storm.

Spotting an old school friend, Mark, we watched Carbonari to see how their sound would carry. It didn’t carry that well to the back of the site, not a reflection on the band as Mark did remark [sic] that last year it was loud enough to hear from his house, whereas this year we could converse without shouting from where we stood. Chris White (not being assaulted by bands today) watching things from closer proximity said the sound was excellent from the 3-piece & as they’re serious musicians they just now need to find a level on stage at which to communicate with the audience. I suppose he’s right, but that’ll come with more gigs under their studded belts (The Barfly in Cardiff – see gig guide). It was good to hear new material such as X Rated which’ll hopefully find its way onto their inevitable critically acclaimed debut LP.

The mix of emotions being a festival organiser must be quite a hit – you want to enjoy yourself but can’t relax. You’re getting that buzz of ‘I did all this,’ but at the same time worrying in case it all goes horribly wrong. So when a scuffle breaks out you fear the worst that all hell could let loose. Thankfully it was only a couple bringing a domestic argument out from the confines of their home & into the arena. Maybe a Domestic Tent could be set up for next year? Anyway hats, baseball caps & toupees off to John Evans & his troops for another top year, even the pissing rain at the end didn’t dampen the squibs enough to snuff out a magnificent fireworks display.

‘Neil, if you produce the single, we’ll record it live in one night & mix it on another.’ Six weeks on & we’re still leaning over the mixing desk & Pocket Venus (bassist, Naldo pictured above) have lived in my pocket since then. So a write up on them can be either biased or over critical, but in fact, this is what it’s at. It takes a lot to win an audience over with original material & 30 minutes allocated time. So after opening with a new song that blasts straight into the chorus before playing the once crowd pleasing but now honed Rollercoaster (& better for it), the crowd had to be coaxed into cheering. The denim clad Chris Yates couldn’t resist a ‘Hello Denbigh.’

I’m still not convinced the slow acoustic numbers work in the set back to back & someone mentioned that Pocket Venus are one step away from a Coldplay formula, where the songs are polished ballads in the studio & the band go mental on stage. Those watching were won over when Ginger was dedicated to Chris’ daughter & he asked everyone to stare at her; the ice at this point had not only been broken, it had melted a hole in the clouds to give us the only sun of the afternoon. Like You set the tone & the heads started nodding & How High, a 7 minute hypnotic blast of epic proportions convinced Pigstock that it was £4,000 well spent (whoops! shouldn’t have mentioned that!). When you draw blood from breaking your guitar strings in a frenzy you know you’ve had a good gig.

The bunting draped all over the town also signalled the start of the National Eisteddfod. The thought of 170,000 Welsh people converging on a town that is almost a self proclaimed republic might have serious implications. Denbigh is a town where they beat each other up over a beer in practise for when outsiders turn up, so you can only anticipate the ructions when thousands of Welsh youths leave the confines of their tents & venture out into the badlands. Maybe the 2am beer tent & proposed foam party on the Eisteddfod field will keep the factions at opposite ends of the town.

Mahoney perhaps show you cultural divide doesn’t exist outside the people’s republic. From Leeds, they boast Welsh speaking ex-Fluff guitarist Gareth John. (Un)oddly enough Mahoney sound just like every other band from that part of the world that has played recently in North Wales – Lapdog, Find, Bighead, Cardinals & now Mahoney all sound the same; yes, they all sound good & have great songs, but sound the same all the same. Perhaps it’s a cunning plan by a band to get as many gigs in the area as possible by changing their name!

Oh no, not a bloody ska band, I thought – still scarred [sic] from The Specials, Madness, Selector etc of 20 odd years ago when I was a young punk rocker tussling with the labels, genres & school colleagues of the time. Punk, mod, ska, teddy boys, heavy metal & I didn’t want to be reminded. However the memories Caban (above) rekindled were fond ones & soon my head was nodding in unison with those around me who were skanking to the exquisite sound the South Walian outfit gave us. Back by popular demand the programme boasted; Caban ensured they’d be contacted in anticipation of next year.

I was offered some F’s by a dyslexic pusher

The same can be said for the Cargo Cult Sound System (main pic) that could set a precedent for future years as the night closed in & crowd doubled to more than 3,000. CCSS lifted the spirits of the age with their transient pulsing hypnodance rhythms coupled with a spectacular fire juggling show & lasers.

With 700 gigs under their belts Levellers clones the Bleeding Hearts would find it hard to fail to impress. They didn’t fail & they did impress. Just like this event does every year, it’s only a great pity that every month can’t be August.

I felt for the Goodfellas as I drove to the Breeding Ground in Rhyl for another engagement, the heavens opened in earnest, but it’s certain those who got wet were warmed for another 12 months.

Super Furry Animals – Live at Witnness Festival

Super Furry Animals took the stage at the Witnness Festival in Fairyhouse Racecourse, County Meath, Ireland, during a pivotal moment in their career. Just weeks earlier, they had released their genre-bending fifth album, Rings Around the World, which saw the band expanding their sonic palette and gaining international attention.

Sharing the bill with the likes of Muse, The Charlatans, and Faithless, the Furries brought their trademark psychedelic energy to the Irish crowd. Though no official audio or video recordings of the set have surfaced online, the performance is fondly remembered by those who attended.

The lack of accessible footage is frustrating but not surprising. Like many early-2000s festival sets, it's likely trapped in private archives—possibly even lost. It’s a reminder of just how much musical history remains undocumented or inaccessible from that era. Still, for fans and festivalgoers, the Witnness 2001 set lives on in memory as a snapshot of the Super Furry Animals being as creative as they always are.

ALBUM REVIEW - MC Mabon – The Hunt for Meaning

 

MC Mabon – The Hunt for Meaning (2001, Ankstmusik)

★★★★☆

The Hunt for Meaning is a bold and eccentric concept album from Welsh experimentalist MC Mabon. Out today on Ankstmusik, it follows the fictional character Iago Prydderch on a surreal, genre-bending quest for existential clarity.

Fusing Welsh and English lyrics, Mabon delivers a mashup of downbeat electronics, American rock textures, and oddball pop sensibilities. The standout single, People Are So Stupid, sets the tone—cynical, humorous, and unpredictably catchy.

Songs like The Ballad of MC Barley Crusher showcase the album’s playful ambition, blending lo-fi aesthetics with sweeping narrative arcs. Mabon isn’t afraid to shift tone mid-track, embracing noise, melody, and absurdity with equal confidence.

It'll probably receive little attention from mainstream media, but it is essential listening with its refusal to conform.

For fans of Super Furry Animals, Peaches, or anything Ankst-adjacent, The Hunt for Meaning is a gem of Welsh underground music— erratic, heartfelt, and fiercely original (apart from the very Beck-esq track Route!)

Lunatic Magnets - Terminally Cool

It’s not often something reaches out & not only grabs your love spuds but also kneads your buttocks in the process. Always the advocate of all things North Wales, I have written time & again that the area is at saturation point when it comes to musical talent, many of these bands would be very successful given the right backing. 

Prestatyn’s Lunatic Magnet(s) are no exception & they are also exceptional. For a 1st release they stuck to their guns & steered clear of a radio friendly, people friendly, I wonder if mum’n’dad’ll like this friendly recording that most young bands opt for.
These guys have thought ‘bollocks to that’ & give us 4 tracks that sound like the aborted faeces of Trent Reznor after he’d been buggered dry by the 70 Gwen Party, the title track takes the mantel here though Wrong Side of Maybe, Chemical Beats The Weapon (& its remix) do a good job at holding it there.
There are no rules followed on these songs & I suggest LM keep live performances to a minimum to maintain a mystique – do gigs in record shop, head shops or sex shops, keep it off the beaten track – play behind a black curtain or a smoke screen – do a gig of just one 15 min song & leave straight after. The Lunatic Magnets, like Bangor’s Skinflick are the moles that come out at night & dig up the gardens of the local underground scene. Can’t wait to hear more as this is Terminally Cool.

Barry Cawley (Y Cyrff) – 1963 – 2000

 

Barry Cawley, former guitarist with Llanrwst post-punk band Y Cyrff has been killed when he was cycling near Betws-y-Coed.
The 37 year old, rose to prominence with Y Cyrff as they plotted their way to Welsh stardom with their Clash-like stance and prolific recorded output.
After the band split up he went behind the scenes and worked with Catatonia for more than 10 years as a roadie.
Catatonia guitarist Mark Roberts said: “Cerys [Matthews] is really distraught. Everyone has treated her like a queen – but not Barry. He treated her like a real person. He would tell her something like: ‘Get your own drink.’ She appreciated that – he kept her feet on the ground.”

He worked with the band from their days playing tiny clubs until they hit the charts with hits such as Road Rage and Mulder and Scully.

“He went to 16 countries with us last year. He was very talented but just as a ruthlessly ambitious as the rest of us,” said Mark Roberts.
His girlfriend, nurse Meryl Harrison, said: “Barry knew Tom Jones and was close to Cerys – but he would never show off about any of it. He would never brag about what he’s done or who he’d met. It’s awful. We were planning to have children and we were soulmates,” she said.

Mr Cawley will be buried on Monday in his trademark Levi jeans and denim jacket.