Y Not Festival - Saturday

Saturday begins similarly to the way Friday did; the storm from the night before has passed and Y Not is waking up in warm tents in a damp field trying to piece together the night before and THAT storm.

Anyone hoping to have a steady road to recovery bundled into BBC Introducing’s allocation at the Quarry to catch These Mortal Cities. Their twinkling teenage indie came fresh out of the mid-noughties with the kind of enjoyable naivety festivals should be about, especially considering the crowd was barely over age in most parts of the tent.
From one indie band to another, much more professional and enjoyable one; Sky Larkin took to the main stage to play tracks from their forthcoming record as well as a few fan-favourites. Judging by a few of the tracks, Motto could be a strong return to form for the Leeds band.

From here, one of the possible standouts of the festival come in the form of Drenge.  A big crowd has assembled for the duo in anticipation to hear the MP plugged grunge that will surely heat up the charts next week; and the boys don’t disappoint.  It’s loud, energetic and even features a song about a bus.

I Am In Love follow. What everyone was expecting to be a simple 30minute set however, quickly became a party that featured people playing rugby, a marriage proposal (of the lead singer) and drumming from the middle of the crowd. When you bare in mind that this is all in the smallest tent of the festival, its certainly a feat. Whitemore following this do not satisfy to the same extent and its up to 65DaysofStatic to battle a painfully short set and bring the tempo back up. They do not disappoint with a set that features material taken from their upcoming record as well as the singles from their last and of course, the epic Radio Protector. If only they had over half an hour in the sun!

The 1975 then cram a tent full to the brim for their performance. It’s energetic and a hugely uplifting set full of material that’s bound to set the remainder of the summer alight once their debut LP is out next month and it leads us perfectly back across the Y Not site for a set of Ash’s greatest hits. Their time at the top is most definitely behind them, but Ash still know how to put on a great show and the masses assembled at the main stage agree.

After this it’s only the Cribs left and they headline in style. Whilst the setlist doesn’t favour those who prefer their older material, almost every single from their last decade gets an outing as the band’s Payola record is rifled through in what feels like no time at all. The festival’s biggest crowd so far also proves to be the most raucous and as the Y Not party continues through the night, you’re left wanting more Cribs and less of their last two LPs.

Braden Fletcher

The Cribs - Troxy 08/03/12

Following support sets from Martin Creed and Crocodiles earlier in the evening, the Cribs took to the stage at the Troxy, situated on an innocuous street in East London. Two days after the release of their 5th album even lead singer, Ryan Jarman, seems a bit surprised that they’ve managed to get this far. And who can blame him? The Cribs have become a firm fixture on the indie rock scene, their place cemented after Johnny Marr’s spell in the band.

But one album later, and with the Smith’s legend now departed, the 5th album has seen the boys from Wakefield return back to their roots in the form of loud guitar rock. Launching in with ‘Glitters Like Gold’ fans would have hardly been surprised if the Cribs had played through swathes of ‘In The Belly Of The Brazen Bull’. But the Jarmans know why people have come out tonight and play a career spanning set, packing in ‘I’m a Realist’ and ‘Hey Scenesters’ before they’ve even said hello.

‘Back To The Bolthole’ and ‘Don’t Believe In Me’ are a chance for the crowd to sample some of the new material, and the band’s energy means that even if ‘ITBOTBB’ wasn’t what you had hoped it to be, it’s still impossible not to enjoy yourself. In fact much of the new album sounds better live than it does on record, with the guitars louder and the raw energy of the songs more tangible. 

 

In fact, it’s The Cribs down to earth attitude which makes them such a likeable band. Ryan Jarman’s ripped jeans and self cut hair make him seen wonderfully genuine as he takes first album requests from the front, playing ‘Baby Don’t Sweat’. ‘Be Safe’ is one of the more powerful moments of the night, Lee Ranaldo projected behind the band to his spoken word verses while the crowd yell out the words to the chorus. The Cribs rip through ‘Men’s Needs’ before saying goodnight and finishing with ‘City of Bugs’. And just like that, the lights in the Troxy come back on. The band disappear without an encore and far from feeling disappointed, the crowd seem satisfied with a perfectly balanced set showing exactly why The Cribs became so popular in the first place. 

Words: Jessy Parker
Photos: Braden Fletcher

The Cribs - In The Belly of the Brazen Bull

Cribs bassist/singer/brother/lover Gary Jarman revealed the reason why we have all been awaiting a new record from The Cribs for so long, ‘We have been waiting for the corporate indie ship to sink’ cries the joint frontman. And with that not looking likely any time soon, The Cribs are coming out swinging.

On their past 3 records, The Cribs have started off with a raucous number (‘We Were Aborted’ ‘Our Bovine Public’ and ‘Hey Scenesters’) Glitters Like Gold however takes you back into the early days of The Cribs with their blasé yet confident approach.

Come on, Be a No-One is the first official single off the album and immediately lets you know that the Jarmans are not messing around, with riffs that sound like they came straight from the grunge scene back in the early 90’s. One of the heaviest songs The Cribs have released to date, Come on, Be a No-One sets the tone wonderfully as the screeching guitars fade out and segue into Jaded Youth impeccably.

Another song we should have all heard by now – Chi Town, and as great as the song is, Chi Town feels out of place on this record as the rest of 'In the Belly of the Brazen Bull' flows together so well. You can’t help but feel this song would be better off as a b-side. The incredibly adorable Noisey kids described Chi Town better than most critics ever could: ‘Elephants like this because they can stomp, it’s quite stompy music.’

Back to the Bolthole is far different to anything The Cribs have done before, the slow build up to the sing-a-long chorus accompanying Ross’s military like drum beat let you know that this is a very special song indeed.

Most Cribs records have an acoustic number; ‘Haunted’ and ‘Shoot the Poets’ to name a couple, I Should Have Helped is ITBOTBBs acoustic number, slowing things down before Stalagmites brings the military-esque drum beats back with full effect.

The last 4 songs on ITBOTBB all merge together to create 11 minutes of brilliance. Self produced by the band at Abbey Road, The Cribs show that although they have roped in legendary producers such as Dave Fridmann and Steve Albini for this record, they can capture the band’s sound and progression just as well as the best of producers.

In The Belly of the Brazen Bull is by far the darkest and heaviest Cribs record to date, but also the most important. The Cribs have come to reclaim indie rock.


8.5


Aaron Lewins

The Cribs - Chi-Town

Hooray! The brothers Jarman have made their triumphant return to reclaim the indie punk crown after a drab 2011 without them.

With Johnny Marr leaving the band to pursue solo material, ‘Chi-town’ sees The Cribs going back to their roots with a piercing guitar riff locked in over a powerful bassline, giving that trademark gritty punk sound of The Cribs that we have all come to know and love. Chicago, start thanking the Jarmans, you officially have your new anthem.

The Cribs’ 5th studio album ‘In the Belly of the Brazen Bull’ is scheduled for release on 7th May, and judging by this banger 2012 is already looking a far more interesting year.

Aaron Lewins