Diaries of Desertfest: Part 1

I get myself down to London after a half-day at work for around half past 5, checking in to the Dev just as Dunes take to the stage. Their groovy, stoner-infused alternative rock is a great first act of the weekend for me. It's laid back without feeling lazy, and with shades of Clutch and earlier QOTSA, is easy on the ears while still rocking out and making my head nod with every bluesy groove. Their new album Gargoyles is only a week old by this point, and they baptise it in glorious, fuzz-soaked style. I'm surprised how full the venue already feels for around five in the evening, and as more pints are poured and the beers begin to flow, the crowd cheer louder and louder, showing them well-deserved appreciation. I can definitely see Dunes on the Desertfest bill again.

My next stop is Truckfighters, and I manage to catch about the latter two-thirds of their set. It's full to the brim with sprawling jams, hard grooves and most importantly - good fun. Without a doubt, their emphasis on rock n' roll party is more than most bands on the bill this weekend. Dango's energy is incredible, with exuberant grins, acrobatics and guitar windmilling descended from The Who. Most impressive is when he puts his guitar behind his head without missing a beat. It's hard not to watch him perform without a smile on your face. For the fans, the song Gain Speed, from the Desert Cruiser EP, is played for the first time outside of Sweden. Yet it's (obviously) the anthemic Desert Cruiser that gains the biggest audience response, with everyone singing along to that chorus. It's the first real 'crowd' moment of the weekend... and it's no coincidence that I realise mid-set that I haven't been in an audience as dense as this for over two long years.

I go back to the Dev, and shortly after meeting up with the Brothers Keg for an interview (stay tuned!) they make the most of their moment in the spotlight in true style. The crowd lap it up, with devotees of the band chanting 'Keg!' between songs, swaying and moving to their hazy cacophonies. Yet there's plenty of class and quality in their set to turn the heads of the uninitiated, like myself - I'd given Folklore, Myths and Legends... a brief spin when it came out, but the hypnotic power of what's on display today proves that I need to re-listen and really take it in again. Tom's various effects for both guitar and vocal really constructs a hallucinogenic atmosphere, but their gleeful introduction of Elephant Tree/Trippy Wicked's Peter for one song near the end and wide grins throughout let us know they're still there for a good time. And a good time is had.

After the Brothers Keg, there's a changeover in an increasingly busy and claustrophobic Dev and I take to the stage myself to play a set with Alunah. From my perspective, I've never seen so many jammed into a pub, let alone have people outside watching through the window. The reception was awesome - especially to our new material, my debut with the band - and it was cool to see all sorts of familiar faces out there and meet a few new friends for the first time. Pretty unforgettable as things go for my first festival appearance with them!

My first band of the Saturday is Scotland's King Witch, whose thudding grooves provide the ideal hangover cure. Those whose morning headaches have dissipated unite into an enthusiastic wall of headbangers, but it's fair to say that their songs are well received by all. Their prog-tinged doom/heavy metal has lots of points of interest for the listener. For example, the psychedelic guitar wizardry sees smoke coming from Jamie's fretboard, and Laura's operatic soprano lead vocals probably smash a glass or two somewhere as she hits a few impressive high notes. There's a bright future ahead for King Witch - a new song played at the end goes down extremely well, with its upbeat, bombastic, NWOBHM stylings. Its breakdown gets the most movement and energy from the audience all afternoon, who are surely less bleary-eyed than when they walked in. All very promising for the band indeed, and what a way to warm up for the rest of the day!

I make a brief stop at the Roundhouse for the first time this weekend to catch a bit of Elephant Tree, reminding me why they're one of the nation's brightest live acts at the moment. Their hypnotic trances are well received, and you can say or joke as you wish about bass solos, but the crowd give a warm, enthusiastic cheer for an effortless moment of lead bass wizardry from Peter. At one particularly magical point, an acoustic guitar, a cello and a violin are brought on, turning the band into a full musical ensemble, creating atmospheric, Western-tinged melodies, rich with vocal harmonies. The use of keys and approach to drums controls the layering and volume masterfully. After one track, they explain that they're going to keep the strings on for one more. No one complains - it's a real gift for everyone present. I stay just until they begin to turn their amps up again, reluctantly rationalising to myself that I have seen them before, and next time, will stay for the whole set.

Making my way past Camden Market, I make sure to get to Konvent early, whose two albums have left a great impression on me but have scarcely been performed on UK soil up to now. Stood near the front, I get the full impact of their powerful death/doom assault. They open up with Sand Is King (maybe the most 'desert'-themed song title of theirs), immediately locking their audience's necks into a vice grip, as they nod along as if under a spell. Grains, the epic lead single from Call Down The Sun, follows - their 'less-is-more' approach to heavy works well at a festival like this one, and though they are one of the most overtly extreme bands on the bill, they don't feel out of place. Undeniable worshippers of The Riff™, they follow in the footsteps of Candlemass and Paradise Lost, but with a hundred times the brutality. Frontwoman Rikke is a commanding presence at the front of the stage, getting the crowd to chant along as she pleases. Ropes Pt. II goes down particularly well, as does the thundering Squares to close proceedings - which you'd never guess was originally recorded for a demo in their fledgling days.

Nick Oliveri, Brant Bjork and Ryan Gut have teamed up to produce Stöner as a result of lockdown, which makes me wonder if Covid really was that bad - in any case, their second ever English show is at the Ballroom and I'm feeling the anticipation before they hit the stage. Opening with the laid-back, Demon Cleaner-esque Rad Stays Rad, into the catchy The Other Kids, before the stoner rock-freakout of Evel Never Dies, it's a strong start to the show, with a trippy backdrop adding another dimension to the overall performance. Most will have come for the legendary statuses of Nick and Brant, but Ryan pounds the drums faithfully and holds his own, showing that he deserves his place with particularly impressive fills over Stand Down. The slow bob of Own Yer Blues oozes into its climactic finish, then segues into the more upbeat Nothin'. The audience's energy levels begin to pick up as the band play a more punk rock-infused belter (which I assumed at the time to be from the then-unreleased Totally..., but upon listening to the album that dropped a couple of days ago at the time of writing, doesn't seem to be on there), igniting a mosh pit that even stays for the more chilled out Strawberry Creek. But Stöner know their crowd, and bust out a few covers towards the end - firstly of Motörhead's R.A.M.O.N.E.S. before a storming Kyuss one-two of Gardenia into Green Machine, igniting the biggest, most energetic pits of the show, the whole crowd singing every word. Personally I think that if Stoners Rule had come out 30 years ago, the audience would have done the same to the Stöner originals played tonight.

My last band of the day is Stöner's labelmates Josiah, who formed in Leicester around twenty years ago before calling it a day after about a decade, then realised fairly recently that there were still unwritten chapters in the band's story. They're now up and running again, set to re-release old material and bring out some new, fuzzy, lysergic bangers. The Black Heart is smokey, hot and herbal-scented at this hour, as Josiah's swaggering stoner rock gets the crowds moving and dancing. The guitar and bass tones are delightfully retro, faithful to the late 60s/early 70s point in time when the meaning of 'heavy' was constantly evolving and chaning. Mat's slightly distorted vocals create a solid atmosphere, looking the part with stylish attire and his white SG. The classic Malpaso, with its gloating grooves and spacey interlude, is a particular highlight of the set - but with new single Saltwater Josiah prove that they haven't run out of steam by any means. Josiah feel the blues and round off day 2 in classy style.

MN