The Talk About Whatever You Like Forum Until We Know Who Is Playing At No Direction Home

[RedRockRick]

Haven't I told everyone about the time I got hit by a drunk HRH fan at the Albert Hall for telling her to be quiet.....

[perfectpassion]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/peewubblewoo/4697375031/ Richard Hawley fans, see hooligans the lot of them...

[seadragon]

Given that Richard played the festival first back in 2008 and has since djed with jarvis at the festival at least once (or was it twice) I get the impression Fiona and Simon know him or at least 'his people' pretty well and would be happy to do their fanclub a favour. Even if that wasn't the case I don't think I have a problem with 50 day tickets for a fanclub. I really don't think it will affect the atmosphere of the festival (unless there's something I ought to know about RH fans) and it's clearly not a commercial decision so it's hard to accuse them of hypocrisy. Seems like a satisfactory explanation to me,

[Nigey_boy]

Come on, let's face it, at least 75% of the bands playing NHD have a 'history' with the EOTR guys given that so many of them have played EOTR more than once. Why do The Low Anthem, The Unthanks, Other Lives, Woodpigeon not have 50 tickets each to sell to their fan clubs? Either it's weekend only tickets or the reasons stated for supposedly only having weekend tickets on the NDH website are a load of bull. I'm well and truly out for this year for both festivals and I find it sad that EOTR especially has become exactly what the organisers always said it wouldn't become. That is just like any other festival. Shame because I've met some good people there over the past years. Many of whom I've shared similar sentiments with about the direction it's gone in.

I

[asita]

I just wish that if day tickets were available then they were just honest about it and didn't try and make up reasons for it.

[perfectpassion]

Your opinion of EOTR really has fallen a long way if you're accusing them of being liars. It does explain your colossal overreaction though.

Personally I don't see how 50 day tickets could affect a festival given the number of guest list tickets that bands get anyway. Mainly I'm just excited as hell about the whole weekend : )

[asita]

sorry if that came across as harsh but i just found seadragon's suggestion that he was being lied to to be an extreme overreation.

i think there's a good chance we're overthinking a situation that we have too little information about. as you say, it doesn't seem likely that hawley would really be requesting special favours, and if EOTR really wanted to recoup some money on the festival then this would not be the most efficient way to go about it. 50 day tickets sold exclusively through richard hawley's website is not going to break the festival and all the people involved have delivered some really good times to all of us. in the absence of anything bad actually happening beyond a little confusion i think they've earned the benefit of the doubt.

as to the size of EOTR these days, and the general repetitiveness of the lineup, i do understand seadragons disappointment, but its important to see it in context. yes EOTR has gotten big but that's why they started NDH, which will probably be the smallest festival in the country to feature an act that's played the RFH. as to the lineups, i do wonder how much of that is down to who they can book for money that wont bankrupt the festival. having good relationships with the bands must make it easier to convince them to play your small festival for less money than latitude offers. the NDH lineup isn't as dramatic as the first EOTR one but then that festival lost a barrel load of money, and NDH has quality running all the way through it, even if it is familiar to some of the regulars. i doubt i'll ever get bored of andrew bird or dirty 3.

i guess what i'm saying is that it's easy to loose perspective when talking about something that means as much to people as these festivals. i recall some of the joanne newsom discussions last year getting pretty heated too! i'm still pretty sure everything will turn out ok - if not this year then next (assuming NDH gets a second year, which is a whole other but significant worry).

Edited April 24, 2012 by asita

[geofelgie]

[asita]

[ljsawyer]

Seeing as seadragon's made his point (for about the 10th time now), can we all just move on and look forward to both festivals?

[seadragon]

Your opinion of EOTR really has fallen a long way if you're accusing them of being liars. It does explain your colossal overreaction though.

Personally I don't see how 50 day tickets could affect a festival given the number of guest list tickets that bands get anyway. Mainly I'm just excited as hell about the whole weekend : )

Edited April 25, 2012 by seadragon

[Fareham Grecian]

Seadragon, you may not 'recall' accusing anyone of lying but I think most reasonable people would interpret your earlier posting as doing exactly that.

You've made a big thing of the fact that you have taken your ball home as far as the festivals are concerned, so why are you bothering to post still? And why does it bother you so much that the rest of us still expect them to brilliant?

(Having said all that, I reserve the right to be as grumpy as you when I am beaten up by 50 rogue Richard Hawley fanclub members...)

[ElGanzo]

I do apologise, I thought this was a forum where opinions could be expressed? You're right though, maybe it's time I moved on from here. I am starting to find the continuous praise for the festival on here a little bit disturbing. All the people who used to post here and were perfectly capable of a debate seem to have disappeared and been replaced with clones who do nothing but continuously tell everyone how amazing EOTR is and jump on anyone who criticizes any aspect of it.

[RedRockRick]

It looks like rain.

[seadragon]

Seadragon, you may not 'recall' accusing anyone of lying but I think most reasonable people would interpret your earlier posting as doing exactly that.

You've made a big thing of the fact that you have taken your ball home as far as the festivals are concerned, so why are you bothering to post still? And why does it bother you so much that the rest of us still expect them to brilliant?

(Having said all that, I reserve the right to be as grumpy as you when I am beaten up by 50 rogue Richard Hawley fanclub members...)

[GeordieMartin]

I'm kind of with Seadragon. I think it's unfair of No Direction Home (NDH) to clearly advertise that there are no day tickets yet there are day tickets available from Richard Hawley's site. So, call it a lie or an 'untruth' or whatever you like, either way you look at it there clearly ARE day tickets available and so it shouldn't be advertised as saying otherwise. Wht if someone bought a weekend ticket on the back of seeing Richard Hawley play and then they found out later they could have just bought a day ticket (if they wanted to?)

The problem i have with day tickets is that many of the people who buy them are generally there to see one person and so often just wander round talking through other people's sets until 'their' act comes on (don't DARE talk near them during that time though) and so therefore not getting into the spirit or for want of another word, 'vibe' of the festival. A festival i think should be just that, a 3/4 day trip away seeing your favourite bands and getting into the whole atmosphere that that brings.

So i say get off Seadragons back a bit, we are all entitled to our opinion (don't get me started on the Bella Union Day) and while we all agree EOTR is still a great little festival that we all enjoy but there are always going to be some things we like and other things we don't.

Ok, as you were....

[wolfamongwolves]

Im also with seadragon. He is just giving his opinion and he,s entitled to it. Since I have been using eotr e festivals forum I have always enjoyed reading seadragons posts.

[eagles69]

I don't mind the line-up 4 both festivals though mayb a whole day for Bella Union at the EOTR is a little disappointing I am with Seadragon also!! Every1 is entitled to an opinion and if their is day tickets available 4 NDH then why wasn't people informed. I am only going to EOTR so I'm not that fussed about NDH though the line-up is not bad. I hope Seadragon continues to go to the EOTR in future years.

[GeordieMartin]

Bella Union Day or in other words 'Hipsters day out taking vintage photos on their iphones, talking (loudly over the music) about just how brilliant the latest venue is in Shoreditch where they charge £96876.49 for a 'real ale' EOTR used to be proud of their no sponsorship ethos and although they still may not have an 'official' sponsor, it may as well be Bella Union.

Still a great festival, just Bella Union get on my wick a bit, As soon as someone gets signed on that label they are all over the press as being some new Bob Dylan or something when in reality, if they weren't on Bella no one would give a shit. they have some great acts on there, don't get me wrong but a lot of it (in my opinion) is average, at best.

Ok, mini rant over...

Edited April 26, 2012 by GeordieMartin

[perfectpassion]

I missed you GM....

I still haven't got the hang of this years EoTR, Bella Union??? I am still confused never heard of them.

I keep thinking oh yeah I've got Richard Hawley to look forward to, plus Laura J, The Crookes, etc... and then I remember they are not playing EoTR. I think that there are some good act playing, I just cannot remember who.

And the bloody Wave Pictures, I love the Wave Pictures like a madman but they are not playing EoTR too....

AND as I am not going to NDH why the hell am I still posting on this thread...New Topic Heading Required.

Edited April 26, 2012 by perfectpassion

[Infinite Jest]

I could have sworn seadragon was a woman, but maybe I'm just confused again. Either way, I like seadragon and hope she finds something of value to bring her back to this forum and next year's EoTR.

On the actual issues: I sort of see the point about day tickets, but I'm not toooo worried. If there are only 50 tickets available through Hawley's site, that's a small fraction of the total people on site (less than 1 in 50 of all ticket sales). And that assumes they all sell - are many people going to buy a £40 (including post etc) day ticket if they just want to see RH? When they could see him at the Forum for £20? Or at Latitude etc? Or buy a three-day ticket.

Not sure I see the problem with Bella Union - I don't know too much about 'em but I love most of the acts on their roster and they're obviously EoTR-friendly acts, so sounds good to me....(hopefully GeordieMartin is wrong about the hipster quotient ...)

PP: honeymoon at the damn festival, you know it makes sense

Edited April 26, 2012 by Infinite Jest

[perfectpassion]

Thanks IJ but honeymoon already booked ages ago. Anyway I just cannot face those Hawley fans again (all 50 of them). GM's description of Bella Union Day is lovely. And I think the point I was trying to make is that I just feel all wishy-washy this year about the line up and for me NDH has taken something away from this forum.

[GTG]

Well, I've got my NDH ticket in hand. Is it time the festival had its own forum, or at least a sub-forum, rather than this rather fragmented thread?

[perfectpassion]

I wish it had its own forum, but I think that EoTR prefer to use fb? As i said before it just makes it all too confusing to have both festivals on here. MY BRAIN HURTS. I don't care about NDH