31 August 2013 (gig)
24 September 2013
There’s something that makes a festival in Cornwall just that little bit different to any other, it’s got something to do with location.
Electric Beach Festival, at Watergate Bay on 31 August, definitely had that killer advantage. Live music on the beach, with tunes stirring the sand from noon, and lasting past the sun dipping behind the ocean, I’m not sure it gets any better.
The day long event included get-on-down electro soul from Bristol based duo Hot d’Jour, as well as pump-up-your-dance-moves electro pop from Swiss Lips - two relatively young and hugely talented bands. The evening, however, was owned by Zion Train and Soul II Soul.
Acid dub collective Zion Train, were absolutely stoked to be performing and a thrill to watch. Let’s be honest, when a quality band is happy to be on stage then you’re guaranteed a good gig.
With their deep sonic beats and infectious smiles, it didn’t take long before the audience was rocking, only pausing when day turned to night and the colours in the sky momentarily rivalled the performance on stage.
If that wasn’t enough, hello baby, welcome to the stage…. Soul II Soul. Seductive, melodic, make-your-blood-stir music that a corpse couldn’t stay still to. And, with three female vocalists, there was plenty of variety in store.
Soul II Soul kicked off with some R&B, shifting to a bit of deep soul, and then hitting on the audience’s energy and bringing in a crescendo of hip hop. As well as some fresh tracks, the much loved ‘Back to Life’ and ‘Keep on Moving’ kept the band in tune with the crowd.
Well, that’s only a small part of the whole event, did I mention there was an after party? A story for another time, but be assured it was immense.
