Feeling groggy from the night before and minimal amount of sleep, we woke up on Saturday hot and clammy yet still unbelievably pumped for the day. Acts didn’t kick off until midday and as we had got up and out so quickly, we had quite a lot of time to kill. When you don’t have a million pounds to spend on anything, killing time becomes a problem. That was probably the main issue I had with the size of the festival. There were limited things to do between bands, which was frustrating.

It was unusual that things didn’t start till later on in the day. I got the impression that Standon Calling was more about the experience, the dressing up and getting involved in the events. Which is why I believe that Standon is the best festival to attend if you’re a first timer. You don’t get thrown into the deep end of masses of people, rubbish facilities and having too much to fit in. You have time to do your own thing and do everything you want without having to rush around.

After an early afternoon pint of the most delicious cider I have tasted (right enough considering it’s price tag) we wandered from tent to tent to see if there were any interesting bands playing. Passing the Twisted Licks tent I had a double take moment. We checked the line-up; SWIMMInG. They caught my complete attention with their sound check alone. They propelled me into a limbo somewhere between lullaby and insomnia with their electronic hooks and ghostly energy. Lead vocalist, John Sampson’s lyrics quivered through the air during the compelling, ‘Sun in the Island’. This personal favourite of mine twisted from simple keyboard to intricate sparks of guitar. Lifting ambience to a whole new level, SWIMMInG are sure to taste imminent success.
I was so struck by their talent that I made it my mission to let them know how good they really were. I bumped into them that evening and it turns out that it’s not just their music that’s incredible. They were the most genuine guys, which made me respect them as musicians a whole lot more. They deserve the main stage next year, without a doubt.

Whilst waiting for Clock Opera to take to the Main stage, we lingered in the Twisted Licks tent, still pumped from SWIMMInG. The Norwegian, 4 piece, ‘The Megaphonic Thrift’ soon stormed onto the stage. They blustered their way through the set with a raw, heavy hitting bomb of experimental, indie rock. Their intricate sound was a thrashing blow to the head. ‘Candy Sin’ knocked you into a whirlwind of aggression. A cacophony of crashing drums and punishing guitar at the climax of the song then suddenly diving into a seductive outro. They played with enormous brutal passion.

Caught up in the jaunty fury of ‘The Megaphonic Thrift’, we rushed over to watch ‘Clock Opera’. Guy Connelly, vocalist, lead Standon Calling down an unusual route with his “melodramatic pop”. Smashing together a voice that can only be described as traditionally masculine and electronic symphonies. The band created a fiddling of bizarre rhythms that infected my feet. Even though the London based band is classified as pop, they cut, sliced and chopped at the genre with pots, pans and whatever piece of metal that made noise. Their single, ‘A Piece of String’ was a personal favourite and a definite crowd pleaser where mechanical clangs and electronic twangs of guitar warped ears of the crowd.

Once Clock Opera’s set came to an end, everyone in costume gathered around the stage to hear who was to be announced the winner of the fancy dress theme, ‘Murder on the Standon Express.’ There were CSI costumes, Cluedo characters, Murder She Wrote, a murder of crows – everything you could imagine (and beyond) that was murder related. It was incredible to see how the majority (there was only a handful who remained in normal clothes) immersed themselves in the spirit of the festival. There was a true sense of community – something that is fundamentally missing and wrong with our society.

We had some spare time before the Brighton soul singer, Alice Russell, hit the Main stage so we checked out the Book Club Boutique tent where we found Orlando Seale playing. A lovely acoustic artist who played the most chilled out, easy listening tunes with his band complete with cello and keyboard. He captured tiny pieces of my heart with beautifully relative lyrics like, ‘what are you looking for behind my sliding door? Salvation on the shop floor?’ But what made the performance for me, was his little poetry session whilst his band was packing up. He delivered sweet, heart melting poems of a true romantic.

We had been told earlier that day to check out the acclaimed singer, Alice Russell, so we headed over. Loaded with her brass band and sassy backing singers, she blasted Standon Calling with her vibrance and confidence. Even though she has been compared to other popular vocalists such as Amy Winehouse and Duffy, she performed with originality that many modern singers lack. She stripped the music down to its roots. She brought back the neck thrust and the hip sway with a bang. Her powerful single, ‘Let Us Be Loving’, sparked up the audience with its simplistic hooks and crowd pumping repetition at the song’s climax, ‘keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on loving, loving.’ I did, however, find her songs, as the set progressed, similar in tempo and pace. There was little deviation or change in the mood of the music, making it difficult to keep me engaged. Sadly, I didn’t get that kick that I have done with other artists.

From funk, I jumped back into the Twisted Licks tent to hear ‘These New Puritans’ where they played a new set to promote their album, ‘Hidden Live’. The tent was rammed with what looked like every youth of the festival, who were presumably more familiar with their music. Lead vocalist, Jack Barnett, cast a haunting, dark cloud as he glared through the audience with wide eyes and a wobbling body. Launching into ‘We Want War’, Thomas Heim thrashed on metal chains that dangled in front of his keyboard, spinning the crowd into a kind of apocalyptic paralysis. They played with a powerful eeriness; almost silence dragging up to a menace of noise. I was in a nightmare that I didn’t want to wake up from.

Back we ran to the main stage to see the Norwegian, electro pop playing ‘Casiokids’. A huge crowd had gathered to dance their wellies off to the cowbell bashing, synth slapping 6 piece. As soon as they stepped on stage, they electrified the air. Arms flailed towards the sky to their trashy keyboards and high pitched, wailing vocals. Every single foot was stomping as each multi-talented member took turns in swapping instruments. They were so much fun to watch! They jumped around and clapped their hands like excited kids. They flowed through their music with ease. Nervously, they introduced the audience to some of their new material, which only made the stomps heavier. While the energy of the crowd was on maximum, they finished with their two most popular tracks that got everyone singing, ‘Finn Bijjken’ and ‘Fat I Hose’. As the crowd was doused in light, the final song sent the field in a frenzied high.

The dancing didn’t stop when the bands wrapped up for the day. Oh no! Camp Alcatraz, Twisted Licks and The Crooked House opened up for DJs sets from the likes of the incredible Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs who delivered an ear ripping mash up of techno, power pop and electro until the early hours of the morning.