Everyone's Here

One of the stand out moments for me this summer, nay year, was standing in a sunny field, listening to some of the most beautiful, spine-tingling music I've ever heard live. No it wan't U2 and shockingly not Morrissey either (sacrilege I know) who reduced me to tears with their glorious sunset show, but Elbow.

Elbow's 2011 Glastonbury set had everything you could possibly ask for in a performance, with my only qualm being lack of older material (but it's not as if their new stuff is sub-par at any rate). Every song packed as much punch as the last, whether it was the psychedelic The Birds or something thrilling like Grounds for Divorce.

But what made this something truly special was the band themselves. If there's one act that knows how to work a crowd, it's Elbow. Reverse Mexican waves, a mass happy birthday singalong and even some Freddie Mercury style call and response; Guy Garvey totally had us in the palm of his hand. And what's better is that it wasn't just us who were entranced by the magnitude of it all, the entire band looked just as giddy as we did. For me, that's what makes gigs that little bit more special- the fact that you know the band are right there with you, in spirit as well as body.

There's a lot to be said for the setting here too, which could help to explain some of my gushing. If you've been to Glastonbury before you'll no doubt have experienced the 'sunset moment:' i.e. a period of awe and contentment with the world. It sounds pretentious and maybe it is, but those moments are few and far between outside the gates of Worthy Farm so you have to take what you can get really. Standing in the crowd, singing Hey Jude with thousands of people before the set, then listening to anthems like Lippy Kids as the sun went down- it just doesn't get better than that. It just encapsulates everything I love about festivals. They're a chance to escape and get back to what you love, whether that be watching music, making clay pots or even performing music, in the case of Mr Garvey. At any point across the weekend you'd hear the phrase 'we love Glastonbury' being banded about like nobody's business, but when he says it, you can tell by the look on his face that he means every syllable.

Makes me teary just thinking about it.

Elbow's 2011 Glastonbury set is a fine testament to the Glastonbury spirit, where musician and audience both share something that can only be found at a certain time of year (usually in a muddy field). At 20 years old, Elbow have certainly paid their dues and deserve the success they're currently enjoying. What puts the icing on the cake, however, is knowing that amidst the album sales and gruelling tour schedule, they still love what they're doing. Long may they continue to do so if these are the kind of performances they produce.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have something in my eye.