Underworld - review by : John Haywood

Glastonbury Festival 1999

Friday 25th to Sunday 27th June 1999
Worthy Farm, Pilton, nr Glastonbury, Somerset, England
£83

Last updated: Wed 7th Aug 2013

Pyramid Stage, Saturday 26th June

Their combined age may be well over one hundred, they may have churned out some dismal electro-pop albums in their pre-Darren Emerson days, but Saturday night's performance proves that Underworld, rather than being one-hit wonders, are still a force to be reckoned with in.

The Romford threesome continue their mission of bringing banging-yet-accessible techno to the masses, started three years ago with the summer of lager, lager, lager, which was Born Slippy. Performing a selection from their latest album 'Beaucoup Fish' plus select pickings from the other two albums of their latter incarnation, they had the honour of being the only proper dance act to play a live set on a main stage. But no ordinary bunch of glued-to-mixing-desk knob-twiddlers are they. No indeed. For a man nearer to drawing his pension than most performers at Glastonbury, mega mega dressed-in-white thing Karl Hyde has energy, presence and showmanship approaching Skunk Anansie's Skin. His on-stage antics, along with the arrival of dusk and one of the best light and visual displays of the festival gently coaxed an audience of mixed tastes and mixed intoxications to dance like nutters, building to a strobe-filled crescendo shouting about a certain alcoholic beverage. The end of their set left a gap that the Manic's couldn't fill, only a trip to Carl Cox in the Dance Tent fixed that. Underworld were awesome; the best live act of the festival, by far.