Main Stage, Sunday 4th September, 10.30pm
Describe in a Tweet: F.E.E.L.I.N.G. C.A.L.L.E.D. P.R.E.T.T.Y G.O.O.D.
What happened: What better way to finish a festival than feature a band with debauchery, partying and disco at its core? It feels as if king of the hipsters Jarvis Cocker is presenting one of his radio shows, talking to the crowd at length between tracks and showing his experience as a festival veteran as he plays on the substantial crowd that's turned out tonight. If Roxy Music met ecstasy in the 1990s, this would be the result: we hit the heights of the back catalogue pretty quickly with Do You Remember The First Time and Disco 2000 warming us up a little bit. It's when we hit the halfway stage that the more average tracks come out. Underwear is instantly forgettable and when Pulp slow things down the audience seem somewhat less enamoured with the group. It's a professional performance and for a band advancing in age there's still a tremendous amount of energy on stage, with Cocker pulling off dance moves that would be impressive on a man half his age. Common People is a glorious finale, a song that has stood the test of time without a shadow of a doubt. Is this the last hurrah of the Pulp reunion? We're not quite sure. But all good parties must come to an end, and this was a damn good one.
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Electric Arena, Sunday 4th September, 7.35pm
Describe in a Tweet: Famous in the Eighties, grew up in the Sixties, inspired by the Fifties, playing in the Teenies.
What happened: Electric Picnic has a habit of picking acts from yesteryear to appear and Big Audio Dynamite certainly fall into that category: with a few successful hits in their repository this could have been one of those memorable festival moments. The crowd in the Electric Arena isn't a substantial one considering the high billing the band have received but there's a few pockets of fairly hardcore fans singing every word at the front. Most of the tracks are pushing four minutes or more and while they aren't the punchiest numbers we'll hear this year at Stradbally there's a level of inventiveness that piques our attention: the punk drumming is supplemented by early hip hop drum machines and guitars that skirt a fine line between good and the dreaded "dad rock". The Bottom Line recalls Frankie Goes To Hollywood and new track Rob Peter To Pay Paul snatches victory from the jaws of defeat. Lyrically it's a bit of a disappointment (if we had a penny for every mediocre track written about the global financial turmoil we'd have enough to bail out the banks and have a few quid left over) but the classic hooks integrated in the song show that even to this day the band know how to write a decent bit of pop. Fans will have enjoyed this and bystanders will be amused but it's not exactly a thrilling experience.
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Cosby Stage, Sunday 4th September, 6.15pm
Describe in a Tweet: Broken bones can't even stop these guys.

What happened: And So I Watch You From Afar could have been given a bye ball for a poor performance this time round, given the fact that one of their members was beaten up less than 24 hours before this performance. Tony Wright is confined to a chair and appears to be in some pain before the post-rock band begin their set but when things begin it's barely noticeable. Bassist Johnny Adger revels in his position in the middle of the stage but the entire band are full of their trademark energy. A setlist mixing the best of their two studio albums (and two tracks from their EP) means there's never a dull moment. The drumming is fiendishly tight and for the most part the duelling guitars are excellent, creating an intense atmosphere that the crowd adore. The mark of a great festival band is how those who aren't familiar with the band react and without doubt the general view was very, very positive: from kids to teenagers to the middle-aged couple having the time of their lives in front of this reviewer they've made one hell of an impression. 7 Billion People All Alive At Once provides a sing along while D Is For Django features a brief foray into soft jazz. Seriously. There's barely a moment to pause and there's the occasional reworking of a track we're used to but on the whole it feels like a ridiculously special experience.
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