Shellac close All Tomorrows Parties in typically offbeat style

Like many from the festival we took the pleasant stroll along the beach in bright winter sunshine come Sunday morning. This was followed by two mesmerising and lower-key sets on Stage 2, fitting for a more gentle Sunday afternoon start. Rachel Grimes on grand piano and then Nina Nastasia with acoustic guitar both put on enchanting sets, both with much banter and stories with the audience between songs. A little calm descended amongst what was quite a stormy, shouty line-up for the weekend as a whole. This proved to be the oasis of calm in the weekend in fact, as the rest of the day picked up the pace once more where Neurosis had left off, starting with the Shellac/Wire-like post-punk sounds of Bear Claw.

Livening things up a step more, Future Of The Left proved to be one of the highlights of the weekend, another dynamic and forcefully delivered set, covering earlier incarnation McLusky twice to an equally enthusiastic and lively audience by now. Another highly influential veteran post-punk outfit, Mission of Burma followed suit in similarly raw style to that of Wire the previous day. Elsewhere on Stage 2, Italian grunge/noise rock band Love In Elevator were loud and good value on Stage 2, shades of Mudhoney in their set. I also caught a little of Dead Rider's psychedelic funk, another lively affair.

The assembled mass of The Ex + Brass Unbound filled the big stage, and put on perhaps the highest energy performance of the weekend alongside Future of the Left's show. Billed as 'experimental trance-dance avant-afro-punk improv music' (!), there were all kinds of diverse influences in their fun set for sure. Despite the diversity of instruments and unpredictable influences, all seemed coherent and flowing through their set however. Another crowd pleasing set; the powerful brass section lent an added dimension to previous times I've seen them.

Shellac of North America closed out the festival with a characteristically uncompromising 90 minute set that showcased both plenty of new material and old classics alike. Shellac are a band that are particularly best appreciated live and untamed, the band's improvised guitar/vocals/stories mean that no two shows are alike. Minimalist and precise as always, the solid backbone of Todd Trainer (percussion) and Bob Weston (bass) allow Steve Albini licence to roam with his abrasive, amelodic guitar riffs and offbeat vocals. As ever there was plenty of offbeat humour and antics in the mix, including the usual 'question and answer' session mid-set. The set ended with the deconstruction of Todd Trainer's drum kit as always. Steve Albini spoke of having caught a little of every band and a weekend 'where no band sucked', and one couldn't disagree. As always over the weekend it felt good to be reminded what the title 'Alternative' means.

As a first-timer to Camber Sands the more basic nature of the site came as a surprise after Minehead; Butlins seemed like a 5* resort by comparison in many ways. Perhaps Pontins comes alive in summer though through its communal areas; much of the outdoor entertainment was shut down for winter also. However, once the bands start you're generally too busy to notice much of anything else, the stages were great and the sound was generally right on the mark which is the main thing.

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