Thursday 20th to Sunday 23rd July 2006 near Valencia, Spain, Spain £105 (plus fees) for a 4 day pass or £97 (plus fees) for a 3 day pass
Once again proving we were totally incapable of getting to the festival site
at any sort of reasonable time, we caught part of the live set on the
Escenario Electronico by Soulwax Nite Versions. This was to be the Belgian Dewaele brothers night as they took over the dance tent with their Soulwax band, friends Justice and finally their 2 Many DJs incarnation. The Soulwax project that first brought the Belgians to our musical attention have failed to have any of the success that their 2 Many DJs project has enjoyed, so the Nite Versions project was an attempt to move the band onto the dance floor.
While this is not a move that will make them any more fans from the Indie
scene they originally espoused, giving tracks like NY Excuse and E Talking
an even dancier kick was definately a good move that got the crowds moving.
Up next were Justice, Parisians Xavier de Rosnay and Gaspard Auge who re-wired Simians Never Be Alone into the mega watt club anthem 'We Are
Your Friends' whose shouted refrain "'We are your friends, you will never be
alone again. Come On!" was to be heard all over Benicassim this weekend.
Their live set came as a shock to me as I was expecting a DJ set but the
live electro pop was good fun and very well received. 2 Many DJs, however,
were my tip of the night. Playing a set that was a far cry from the
trademark pop mash-up that made them famous, they still managed to rock the
tent with massive bass lines and a few crowd singalong tunes including
Professional Widow by Tori Amos, Boys & Girls by Blur, No Good by the
Prodigy as well as a bit of Daft Punk, Aphex Twin and the inevitable We Are
Your Friends. A cracking set and a highlight of my weekend.
Back on the Escenario Verde, The Kooks also wowed the crowds with a rather pocket-sized set that only seemed to last about 40 minutes. With bags of
energy and playing to a packed crowd already well on their side, The Kooks
rattled through hits like Naive, She Moves In Her Own Way and You Don't Love
Me before exiting the stage to raptuous applause. I am not really a fan of
The Kooks on record, but this was a good solid live set and the audience
adored it.
