249 replies to this topic

[luckysalt]

Vince Power has announced he's bringing back Phoenix Festival in 2012!!! Always looked back on these line ups and thought Damn I wish I was there, very excited about this!

[5co77ie]

luckysalt, on 04 July 2011 - 09:34 PM, said:

Vince Power has announced he's bringing back Phoenix Festival in 2012!!! Always looked back on these line ups and thought Damn I wish I was there, very excited about this!

Oh dear, I hope it's got more soul than last time, and less like a Nazi run holiday camp.

I guess this is to build up his portfolio - I'm not sure that the market can take another indie rock festival - guess a good time to hold it with Glasto taking a year off - it'll be interesting to see how it fares.

[padders]

if its as penny pinching as the feis earlier  in june this year  then it is best avoided

[glasto-worker]

I worked at the Phoenix Festival from the first year { 93 } to the last { 97 }  and I found it far better than Reading although I have never attended as a ticket holder.

It used to be around the same time that Latitude is now held and while it was well out the way { from London } I never had any problems with it.

I spotted Vince at Hop farm driving in a little buggie { rather than his old vw beetle } and he is looking well although I was working at the time so did not get a chance of speaking to him { I first met him at the Fleadh in 1990 }    

Its all down to the dates - location and acts so time will tell.

[PastCaring]

Hmmm, we never went to the original Phoenix, but we're heard some real horror stories from people that did - early curfews and the like ...  However, when you look at the line ups they do look awesome - and Vince Power has a history of pulling together some excellent line ups.  So, should be interesting!  

[glasto-worker]

There was some issues due to the original location but the problem is that most horror stories don't make it clear that they are writing about a specific year rather than taking the festival as a whole.

Now I have worked at Reading though out that period and the arena restrictions was exactly the same as the Phoenix mainly down to security as its far easier guarding a empty arena than a arena open 24 hours per day.

So really I cant work out why people were complaining about the Phoenix while accepting the exact same Arena restrictions { at that time } for Reading.

Most of the horror stories was due to car and coach access and I do know that the event was tweaked to allow better access { as far as possible as after all he cant make the main roads wider }

96 was a sell out { due to Glastonbury not being on } and they could have added more wrist band exchange booths but I was in the crowd for David Bowie on the Thursday night and it looked that many made it { although going by some music papers they claimed it was empty which is complete rubbish so one has to wonder if they were even there }

over the years he added extra facilities in the campsite area and it would have got better and better but the local authorities started doubling up their fees so making it not viable .

Some of the restrictions he did not have any control over and they were imposed by the local authorities even although it was a airfield miles from anywhere.

sure its not Glastonbury but he never tried to make it a clone of Glastonbury.

Hop farm is like a mini Phoenix although it was a curious mix of acts at Hop Farm and certainly the Phoenix line up was excellent.

I cant see him going back to Long Marston Airfield but where it ends up only Vince will know this.

[Paul ™]

Was talking to his daughter about this at Hop Farm and suggested it.. can't believe Vince is doing it  

[JC-Mo'Fucka]

If it happens I hope it's around April/May time where the weather is usually pretty good! On a bank holiday weekend and they've got their self a winner + will be before the olympics.
Just means a shorter time to flog tickets.

[glasto-worker]

I recall one year { may have been 93 or 94 } the WBC Crew Camp was behind the arena { if you looked at it from the ticket holders Camp site } and my girlfriend and I had been drinking in the crew bar all night and when we walked back to our tent we were surprised to find two people getting a fire started close to our tent { as fires were banned } - we approached them and it was clear they did not know they were in the WBC Crew area and it was very clear they were not connected to the WBC.

Apart from the fire they appeared harmless enough but we cant take the risk of strangers in the crew camp so called over Specialised Security { who were employed by the WBC to guard the camp } and they were removed.

I suspect they thought that they could walk from our camp into the arena without being checked but in actual fact Security will check photo ID for everyone they don't know on entry and exit  and our wrist bands are checked on entry to the arena so their plan would never have worked.

----------

Unlike when it first started there is a lot more festival's now kicking about so trying to pick a date is going to be very tricky.

time will tell.

[PastCaring]

Yeah, we did hear that a lot of the problems they had there were down to location.  It'll be interesting to see what location is chosen this time around!  (How about Donington Park?   Then we can nip home for a shower and a bacon cob every day - ha ha!   )  As to the timing, not sure about April or May - the weather can be nice in the daytime then, but at Bearded Theory people were scraping ice off their tents in the mornings - and that's in May!   How about September?  There's not too many festivals around then and the weather is usually okay.

[mj2004]

I can't believe this!   for years I had bring back the Phoenix festival under my avater, not cos I ever went cos I never got the chance to go
I bought a ticket in 1998 and then it was pulled and I had to go to Reading
It didn't have a great start and wasn't very well recieved from what I remember but I knew people who went who said it was great so thats why I wanted to go. Don't think I would go now though, life is toooo different!

[Flaminglippy]

only thing that would put me off is the 4 days of music/5 days of camping thing...I'm an old man! I camped at the weekend for one night and it nearly killed me...we've got 4 days of camping coming up at Kendal and I've had to book 3 days off after to recover!

[Flip]

Haha, we were Glasto obsessives back then and shunned this for being on concrete and generally not being Glasto..
Long endless summer days in beer gardens waxing lyrical about how wonderful Glasto was and anyone who went to Pheonix must be insane...not noticing the really quite stellar lineup Pheonix always had..
  

[ear_juice]

Hi All
I worked on the milk stall at Phoenix festival 95, 96, and 97 which meant we had traders passes which got us back stage to some of the tents and use of much better toilet facilities. I don't understand why people think it wasn't a great festival cos it was. It had a good atmospere a great line up and as for this no fires thing not only did we have a fire every night that we wearn't told to put out, but they sold fire wood from and old lorry trailer that was near one of the of the aircraft hangers, why people think different is anybodies guess but that was my memory of the Phoenix. Anyway glad to hear its coming back hope its back at long marston.
PEACE LOVE & UNITY

Edited by ear_juice, 09 July 2011 - 02:17 PM.

[glasto-worker]

ear_juice, on 09 July 2011 - 02:14 PM, said:

It had a good atmospere a great line up and as for this no fires thing not only did we have a fire every night that we wearn't told to put out, but they sold fire wood from and old lorry trailer that was near one of the of the aircraft hangers, why people think different is anybodies guess but that was my memory of the Phoenix. Anyway glad to hear its coming back hope its back at long marston.
PEACE LOVE & UNITY

If you re read my post about fires being banned I did make this clear this fire was started inside the WBC Campsite and like every WBC Campsite { at least for the past 22 years that I have been involved } at any event fires have been banned within the WBC Compound.

What rules other crew camps  have I would not have a clue nor would I know about public camping all I know is if any WBC Crew started a fire within the WBC Compound and they refused to put it out they would be asked to leave.

[mj2004]

Isn't Global Gathering held on Long Marsden airfield now?

[HAPPY CHEF]

I went In '94 and '96 had a great time,especially '96

[gazza_20]

mj2004, on 09 July 2011 - 08:38 PM, said:

Isn't Global Gathering held on Long Marsden airfield now?

Yea but this is a totally different weekend

[si_t]

yep - phoenix went, and a few yrs later came global gathering - 40,000 *uck heads pulling silly faces at each other.

'96 was good, wasn't it? My first festival.

wasn't it Dodgy, supergrass, Foo Fighters and Alanis Morisette.... I think

[glasto-worker]

si_t, on 28 July 2011 - 09:47 AM, said:

yep - phoenix went, and a few yrs later came global gathering - 40,000 *uck heads pulling silly faces at each other.

'96 was good, wasn't it? My first festival.

wasn't it Dodgy, supergrass, Foo Fighters and Alanis Morisette.... I think

96 line up was

David Bowie Foo Fighters Beck The Prodigy Massive Attack Björk The Flaming Lips Placebo Alanis Morissette Cypress Hill The Cardigans Barenaked Ladies Manic Street Preachers Moloko Leftfield Sneaker Pimps Lamb Coolio Skunk Anansie Nightmares On Wax Super Furry Animals G. Love & Special Sauce Neil Young & Crazy Horse Cocteau Twins Fun Lovin' Criminals The Fall Frank Black Incognito Sex Pistols Us3 Lush Shed Seven Asian Dub Foundation Dodgy LTJ Bukem Alabama 3 Carl Cox Goldie Terrorvision Jonathan Richman Gene Echobelly Longpigs Terry Callier Red Snapper Cj Bolland Baby Bird The Wildhearts Bis Lionrock Smith And Mighty Drugstore Kenickie Marion Courtney Pine Corduroy Zion Train Ruby Symposium Strangelove Fabio Cable Raw Stylus Mark Thomas Blameless Rare Honeycrack Linoleum Joyrider Baby Chaos Smaller Animals That Swim Wilson Charlie's Angels Pillbox Showgirls Gold Blade Mantaray Send No Flowers Monorail Guru's Jazzmattaz

---------

unless the Council has changed I cant see Vince going back there.