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The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts is like nothing I’ve ever known or imagined. When close to 200,000 people are gathered on a farm to celebrate their love of music, art and culture, things are bound to get a little wild. In the case of Glastonbury 2013, “a little wild” doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of what could easily have been the biggest 3 days I’ll experience for quite some time. As such, I’m sure you’ll appreciate my struggle to put into words a series of events from the weekend -- the dream like state that is Glastonbury Festival sure does leave a lot of questions in its wake. 

Part of the festival’s beauty is in its ability to be entirely different depending on the decisions made throughout and if you were at all familiar with this year’s line-up, you’d know that there were literally hundreds of acts on the bill for the weekend. Considering the sheer size of the event, (it can take 45mins to walk from one side of the area to the other -- conservatively speaking,) all you can really do is choose one or two must-see acts and build your days around them. If you’re doing things right then of course you’ll see more than that, but the idea of ‘letting the music happen to you’ is one that holds remarkably true at Glastonbury. These are our highlights from our time at the festival, all of which will have us smiling for quite some time to come. 

Knowing that camping isn’t a strong point of mine, the decision to arrive at site on Friday was a calculated one. As we pitched our tent to the distant sounds of Local Natives playing the John Peel stage, it became clear that the following 72 hours were going to be special. The overwhelming crowds of the festival were well and truly in party mode by the time we made it in and once we’d figured out the important things (i.e. the locations of the nearest bar and toilet facilities,) it was game on. SW favourites Tame Impala, Alt J and Foals performed sets that left no room for disappointment -- each of whom played their songs in a manner well worthy to call the Glastonbury stage home. Mention must of course be made to our surprise highlight of the weekend, when Mr. Nile Rodgers and his band Chic stormed the West Holt stage late Friday evening prompting sing-a-long’s and dance-off’s amongst the thousands of onlookers. We quickly learnt that the end of the day’s performance’s did not signify the end of the day’s partying, with area’s such as Arcadia and Shangri-La becoming increasingly alive as the nights became later.

As one would expect, Saturday morning got off to a slow start. Nursing tired eyes and sore heads, those brave enough to face the bright summer’s sun prior to midday were treated to the soothing sounds of The Staves as the three fine ladies showcased their melodic sounds and tight harmonies to a welcoming crowd. As the day went on we witnessed the talents of Dry The River, who performed a collection of their heart wrenching indie-rock tunes; Noah & The Whale, who’s cinematic and violin-driven melodies are second to none; and Daughter’s atmospheric, brooding ballads that upon completion, had all in the crowd aching to hear more. Finally, (in all possible imaginations of the word,) The Rolling Stones made their Glastonbury debut, acting as the perfect Saturday night bridge between the live music offerings the day had to offer and the forthcoming party that was sure to rage all through the night.

If ever there was a morning seedier than the one before it, the Sunday of Glastonbury was absolutely that. Opting for a relatively low-key start to the day, we made our way to the Acoustic tent to see Matt Corby perform the music we know and love him for. Beyond that the day continued in its sluggish manner as we made our way around the Theatre & Circus area, took gander about the Park Stage, wandered through the Green Fields and finally made our way back to the Pyramid Stage to watch Vampire Weekend do their thing and oh, how they did it well. After that, the Other Stage came alive as Smashing Pumpkins performed a collection of their old and new songs alike and despite the notable absence of their track 1979 on the set list, it was a show well worth seeing. To close off the night and the festival, the wonderful Mumford & Sons took to the stage in their passionate manner to showcase a carefully selected collection of work from their debut and sophomore releases. The onlooking cast of thousands watched blissfully throughout and in a worthy finale, the band performed a cover of The Beatle’s, ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’ with a little help from their friends, The Staves, First Aid Kit, The Vaccines and Vampire Weekend. 

For want of a better way to put it, the weekend itself felt like a dream. Things that happen at Glastonbury are, at times, so far from reality that the only logical conclusion to draw is that the weekend was spent in an altered state of existence. After our festival experience, we’ll never really be sure what went down that one time in Somerset but hey, maybe that’s the point. Glastonbury, we can’t thank-you enough for your hospitality -- here’s to 2014.