Never walked away before

[spu98ajc]

And, for those who are saying that Gorrilaz haven't got big hits - dead true, which is why they shouldn't have headlined. Headliners are about the euphoric singalong.

[Jackmypie]

As much as I didn't like U2 I kind of wished they were here. The only good songs Gorillaz played were Dare and the other one that I forgot. I walked away towards my tent about 10 minutes before it ended and came accross Groove Armada in the Jon peel stage playing Superstyling, the crowed looked f**king mental.

Should of went there

[In transit]

Kowalski, Wooderson and CockneyJesus have it spot on here in my view. I think that people totally missed the point of what a Gorillaz set would be about. You can split the moaners into those who were expecting an epic set combining the best of Blur last year with what U2 would have been and a second group who only wanted to dance along to Dare and Clint Eastwood.

Both these seem very odd to me as even the slightest knowledge of Gorillaz' albums would tell you that was not what was going to happen.

The musicianship was absolutely top class and you had people asking 'who was that bloke reading lyrics on that Glitter song' who probably had never heard of the Fall. I wonder how many people's hearts skipped a beat when they saw, live, Paul Simonon playing Feel Good Inc and some other superb basslines with such confident, cocky arrogance. The slow, slow pace of Empire Ants and To Binge make them beautiful, mournful songs but their impact was lost amid people wondering who Little Dragon was and complaining that no one was playing There's No Other Way.

One review put it quite well, festival-goers want anthems and they'd probably have been better off getting Radiohead or Coldplay to replace U2, just as they'd have been 'better off' getting Radiohead or Coldplay instead of Jay-Z. I just thought a Glastonbury audience would be better than that.

Gorillaz replacing U2 was a challenge, it was a show that was never going to mean as much to anyone as Blur or Muse returning after Dominic's tragedy in 2004 or any number of other gigs. Unfortunately it seems a lot of people were only expecting a 15-minute set as that's how long it takes to play Dare, Clint Eastwood and Feel Good Inc.

It was however a brilliant show but it didn't spoon-feed anyone. I can understand why people maybe felt underwhelmed but I don't really have any sympathy at all, they should have known what Gorillaz were about and taken themselves off to watch one of the other 6/7 excellent Friday headliners.

[Wooderson]

I've been lurking these forums for ages and I've finally decided to sign up to give my two cents about Gorillaz's performance!

For me they were the band of the weekend, it's only now that I realise that they are probably in my top 5 live acts ever.

I can see why people are saying that they aren't headliner material because they don't have the big hits, but for me Gorillaz aren't about that, they are about how beautiful and eclectic music can really be,seeing the syrian orchestra for arabic music performing with the lead singer of Blur and two uk rap artists just felt really special, and I'm a big Bashy fan so it was pretty cool to see him on the bloody pyramid stage!

When you look at it, Gorillaz only really have a few big tunes that you can sing along to, DARE, Feel Good Inc, Clint Eastwood and 19-2000, so what were people really expecting? They played three of them!

My one qualm with the set is that I felt Snoop Dogg ruined Clint Eastwood, fair enough he was another great special guest, but to not come out on the song that he actually raps on and then come on during CE and not even rap the normal lyrics was a bit annoying!

Edit: When Mark E Smith & Lou Reed came on stage there was a couple of lasses going on about how 'they just keep getting random people to come on stage, it's rubbish' I got very pissed off!

[dan05delaney]

Kowalski, Wooderson and CockneyJesus have it spot on here in my view. I think that people totally missed the point of what a Gorillaz set would be about. You can split the moaners into those who were expecting an epic set combining the best of Blur last year with what U2 would have been and a second group who only wanted to dance along to Dare and Clint Eastwood.

Both these seem very odd to me as even the slightest knowledge of Gorillaz' albums would tell you that was not what was going to happen.

The musicianship was absolutely top class and you had people asking 'who was that bloke reading lyrics on that Glitter song' who probably had never heard of the Fall. I wonder how many people's hearts skipped a beat when they saw, live, Paul Simonon playing Feel Good Inc and some other superb basslines with such confident, cocky arrogance. The slow, slow pace of Empire Ants and To Binge make them beautiful, mournful songs but their impact was lost amid people wondering who Little Dragon was and complaining that no one was playing There's No Other Way.

One review put it quite well, festival-goers want anthems and they'd probably have been better off getting Radiohead or Coldplay to replace U2, just as they'd have been 'better off' getting Radiohead or Coldplay instead of Jay-Z. I just thought a Glastonbury audience would be better than that.

Gorillaz replacing U2 was a challenge, it was a show that was never going to mean as much to anyone as Blur or Muse returning after Dominic's tragedy in 2004 or any number of other gigs. Unfortunately it seems a lot of people were only expecting a 15-minute set as that's how long it takes to play Dare, Clint Eastwood and Feel Good Inc.

It was however a brilliant show but it didn't spoon-feed anyone. I can understand why people maybe felt underwhelmed but I don't really have any sympathy at all, they should have known what Gorillaz were about and taken themselves off to watch one of the other 6/7 excellent Friday headliners.

[cejx]

In your view. Headliners mean different things to everybody.

[gizmoman]

Well this turned out to be a real 'Marmite' set, those who hated it should at least give them credit for being ambitious and trying to do something different, the guests are all edgy and controversial artists and so it should be no surprise that this set wasn't the poptastic singalong some of you wanted. I went along as a neutral not being a great fan but thought it was very good, there was more than enough good stuff in what was admittedly an inconsistant set to keep me happy. Showing the video of the whale slaughter was very brave, no other headline artist would risk alienating the audience like that , it was not pleasant viewing but there is more to this festival than pop singalongs, trying to raise people's awareness is a valid aim. Stevie Wonder used his slot to try to promote better access, all fair in my book.

[In transit]

Quit lurking and get tucked right in chief. 100 posts by the weekend or there'll be trouble.

[Dan R]

In my opinion there seems to be two ends of the spectrum when it comes to headliners

Either bands with a massive dedicated fanbase, but with a lot of people who barely know anything by them

Then theres the bands who have a huge fanbase of passing fans and can entertain them easily

and Gorillaz were definitely a dedicated fanbase type band, but then people wouldnt of had time to get into them before the set with the short notice

I personally thought the set looked incredible on tv and cant wait to see them on tour!

Btw i know im oversimplifying it lol

Edited June 28, 2010 by Dan R

[Wooderson]

The musicianship was absolutely top class and you had people asking 'who was that bloke reading lyrics on that Glitter song' who probably had never heard of the Fall. I wonder how many people's hearts skipped a beat when they saw, live, Paul Simonon playing Feel Good Inc and some other superb basslines with such confident, cocky arrogance. The slow, slow pace of Empire Ants and To Binge make them beautiful, mournful songs but their impact was lost amid people wondering who Little Dragon was and complaining that no one was playing There's No Other Way.

One review put it quite well, festival-goers want anthems and they'd probably have been better off getting Radiohead or Coldplay to replace U2, just as they'd have been 'better off' getting Radiohead or Coldplay instead of Jay-Z. I just thought a Glastonbury audience would be better than that.

Gorillaz replacing U2 was a challenge, it was a show that was never going to mean as much to anyone as Blur or Muse returning after Dominic's tragedy in 2004 or any number of other gigs. Unfortunately it seems a lot of people were only expecting a 15-minute set as that's how long it takes to play Dare, Clint Eastwood and Feel Good Inc.

It was however a brilliant show but it didn't spoon-feed anyone. I can understand why people maybe felt underwhelmed but I don't really have any sympathy at all, they should have known what Gorillaz were about and taken themselves off to watch one of the other 6/7 excellent Friday headliners.

[SJC]

i enjoyed them hugely. we were near the front left side and everyone there seemed pretty into them.

[folkpunk]

ok my tuppence worth - I'm not a Gorrillaz fan and hadn't listened to the new album all the way through let alone more than once. I havn't heard their older stuff apart from the hits. Before we got to glastonbury I thought I would read the opinions on here as I was torn between the Flaming Lips and Gorrillaz. Most people were recommending the Lips so I thought I would catch a bit of the Gorrillaz and then go to see the Lips. However they were probably one of the best acts all weekend and I stayed to the end. Maybe its my age but the chance of seeing the likes of Jones, Simenon, Lou Reed, MES, Ryder, etc, etc all on the same set was fantastic. I thoroughly enjoyed it and thought it was visually spectacular. I will be listening to the album more now as I can't get some of the tunes out of my head.

On another note have to disagree with scottie - was it 1994 when the levs headlined that everyone jumped the fence and there was reports of over 200000 watching

[Wooderson]

ok my tuppence worth - I'm not a Gorrillaz fan and hadn't listened to the new album all the way through let alone more than once. I havn't heard their older stuff apart from the hits. Before we got to glastonbury I thought I would read the opinions on here as I was torn between the Flaming Lips and Gorrillaz. Most people were recommending the Lips so I thought I would catch a bit of the Gorrillaz and then go to see the Lips. However they were probably one of the best acts all weekend and I stayed to the end. Maybe its my age but the chance of seeing the likes of Jones, Simenon, Lou Reed, MES, Ryder, etc, etc all on the same set was fantastic. I thoroughly enjoyed it and thought it was visually spectacular. I will be listening to the album more now as I can't get some of the tunes out of my head.

[Kowalski]

Finally got round to watching the set I recorded on Sky+, and it looks & sounds superb on TV.

Maybe they should have headlined the Other Stage if some folk were expecting mainstream singalongs on the Pyramid.

[folkpunk]

And those that showed up really made an effort didnt they. Ryder was in key. Lou brought the pain with that six string and of course Mark E kicked Glasto's ASS.

I don't think the festival counts the years where there were massive fence jumpers. 2000 for example for Bowie was a freakishly large crowd. I have to agree with Scottie though. Ive not been to half as many Glasto's as him but Ive seen 15/16 Pyramid headliners. Stevie was noticably mobbed.

[Bexxxxx]

Should have ventured up to the park to watch the XX, they certainly didn't disappoint.

[HurrahBrother]

I found it interesting, but no great headliner.

For a headliner you want (or I want) something anthemic, a sing along and a jump around. What we got was something intellectual, that needed to be sat down to and absorbed and contemplated.

[Wooderson]

I found it interesting, but no great headliner.

For a headliner you want (or I want) something anthemic, a sing along and a jump around. What we got was something intellectual, that needed to be sat down to and absorbed and contemplated.

[stevie rayvon]

I agree with the comments about the people who thought it was crap totally missed what the concept was all about. Its a bit like saying "Drum & Bass is crap" without actually knowing anything about the genre.

[5co77ie]

On another note have to disagree with scottie - was it 1994 when the levs headlined that everyone jumped the fence and there was reports of over 200000 watching

[Sweep]

I thought they were fantastic. I was nonetheless acutely aware of the poor crowd reaction though. The general conclusion here is correct; people came expecting something else. Quite why, I don't know, clearly they hadn't heard beyond the hit singles, and weren't imaginative enough to look to another stage for their headliner.

Compare this to Muse, who (don't get me wrong) were very good, but not as good as they used to be... and the new Muse material is plain embarrassing. Yet the crowd was lapping it up. I found it oddly sad - in my opinion, the wrong headliner is being appreciated there. Muse could play virtually anything and the crowd automatically goes mental.

At the end of the day you can't be a great headliner without winning the crowd over, so I guess Gorillaz just weren't entirely suitable for the slot. But I'm disappointed they didn't get the appreciation they deserve.

Edited June 29, 2010 by Sweep

[rhysieg]

i left as lou reed got on stage... i quite liked the albums, but it wasen't my cup of tea in a live show context. Left for groove armada who were good, but not great... then a night in shangri la...

worst headline act i saw of the weekend...

[ukslim]

I have to admit, I had been expecting something more theatrical, and I'm not sure it was worth missing the Lips for. Watching the Pet Shop Boys, who had time to rehearse an all-singing-all-dancing extravaganza, gave a hint of what Gorillaz could have been, but wasn't.

However, it wasn't "a joke", and seeing Mark E Smith on the huge Glastonbury screens was a treat.

[treacle]

Dreadful set. I'm not a fan but my other half is and we left after 4 songs as did many many others. Glad some people got them but a band you have to "get" to enjoy is not really a wise chioce for headliner imo.

Easily the worst thing i saw all weekend.

[Mardy]

Alright, cards on the table, I didn't go and see Gorillaz (I didn't go and see much, was too busy having a good time) but it seems there's a split in perceptions here, between those that want a singalong and those that are ready to listen to something new, or unusual or different.

Me, I think it's great that for whatever reason the Pyramid went with something more than just a shoutalong. There's plenty of bands you can do that with, all weekend.

Sometimes the best music isn't just the one you can bellow along to loudest. Fair play to Gorillaz.