Arriving at 2000Trees this year felt like an overwhelming relief. It’s been a long time since I last visited but this year’s lineup stood out even amongst their usual incredible bills, with some incredible headliners. Wednesday is a gentle warm-up to 2000Trees, fewer stages and a selection of bands that have gone down well at Trees past. After setting up camp (apparently I’d forgotten about all the hills…) I head into the arena to see what’s going on.
Unpeople
By the time I’ve set up, it’s time for unpeople – no chance of getting near the front for this one, the Forest Stage is heaving. unpeople have two sets this week, so this one has been deemed the covers set, opening with Beastie Boys Fight For Your Right before dropping into Weezer‘s Hash Pipe (“This set started at 4:20”). The middle of the set is originals, more to wet the appetite for their full set later in the week. The highlight for me is Blamethrower by Reuben, a track that’ll no doubt resonate with those who’ve been coming to Trees for years. They end the set with a cover of Sugar by System of a Down, the key lines yelled back around the forest, before finishing on the hook from last year’s banger, ‘The Garden’. unpeople are undoubtedly of the bands of the moment, and their main set later this weekend is firmly on my must-see list, but this intro to the festival is a hell of a lot of fun.
Other Half
Over at The Word tent, it’s a busy crowd for Other Half, who deliver a loud and abrasive set of angsty songs. Anecdotes about the state of the backstage toilets (“other bands, clean up your shit”) introduce songs about “pure evil” but for the most part it’s non stop music, showing off why Other Half are one of the best bands on the DIY scene at the minute. Last time I saw them they were having a day of misfortune but today it’s practically flawless, an excellent performance and a great crowd for it. “not really good at the rock star shit but if you want to show me some N R G, let’s go! That was a joke.”
Blood Command
Even standing around near the Forest Stage, it’s sweltering hot, yet Blood Command seem committed to turning up the heat further, commanding a circle pit to move at a pace more befitting a track run than a circle of people in various costumes in the UK summer heat. It’s a hell of a lot of fun though, the guitars, bass and drums unrelenting (the bass lines are shaking the moss off the roof of the stage) while vocalist Nikki runs back and forth across the front of the stage, alternating between singing and screaming, spending as much time on the barrier and the crowd than on the stage. Musically, they’re fantastic, with a perfect balance of punk and big hooks, but they have a stage presence very few bands can match.
Meryl Streek
Shamefully, I’ve never seen Meryl Streek live before, despite him playing shows with a lot of bands I love, although perhaps the more intimate space of The Word stage is the right place for it, given that he spends most of his time performing directly to the audience. He performs solo to a backing track, although today he’s joined by a drummer, adding even more energy to what’s already quite an in-your-face performance. The repetition of the backing tracks is quite infectious, which is probably why by the end of the set the crowd has spilt right out of the tent. The final track gets a big sing-along, the music quite melodi,c while Streep delivers his lines with vitriol. I’m sold, what a performer!
Panic Shack
Back over at the Forest Stage, Panic Shack seem to be enjoying every minute of their forty minute set (I’m sure unrelated to the tequila handed to them before starting) Jiu Jits You really sets the tone, with its yells and catchy chorus getting the crowd going. They introduce a new song with a note of solidarity towards Kneecap and Bob Vylan, before saying it’s about love and friendship – it’s a lush song though, great sounding guitars, catchy singalong chorus, it’s shaping up to be one of the most fun sets of the day. Given this is Metal Junkbox it’d be wrong not to point out their bassist’s bass has to be the most glam metal looking guitar I’ve ever seen. They introduce a later song as a song about big breasts and it’s impossible not to laugh at “I didn’t go to brit school, I went to tit school, I didn’t get straight a’s, I got double d’s”. The perfect band for a festival warmup, a ton of fun in a forest.
Groove Street
Someone’s expecting Grove Street to get lively – the barrier, which previously stood about 1ft from the stage over at The Word, is now around 12ft. You could almost fit a second stage in the gap. With a bunch of inflatables launched into the audience, it seems it’s finally time for some hardcore! Their vocalist has great presence on stage, traversing the width while belting out the vocals, stopping only to kick out into the air. It’s getting a bit rowdy out in the crowd, too, brutal.
Kid Kapichi
Kid Kapichi are another band with two sets throughout Trees. They’ve decided to make this one different, and they’re going to play a set of older songs they haven’t played in a long time. They introduce their song Violence with a shout of solidarity to Bob Vylan and the notion that being more offended by words than actions is wrong, “Sometimes you have to be violent because it’s the only fucking language they speak.” I’ll admit, this isn’t the kind of music I usually listen to, but the energy both on stage and down the front of The Forest is so good that I can’t help but enjoy it.
The Meffs
Over on The Word stage we’ve got the stage headliners, The Meffs. The Meffs were, at one point, a “local band” to me, although they didn’t hold that position for long and I’ve been lucky enough to watch them go from small rooms in town to playing arenas and huge festival stages. Ironically, this is probably the most intimate setting I’ve seen them for a long time, but, as tonight demonstrates, often those shows have the best atmosphere. An attempt at opening two pits up in what is one of the smallest tents ends up with one massive pit when they collide. Trees organiser James Scarlett recently said, “There have been various bands that are 2000trees stalwarts… The latest band on that list is The Meffs. “ – can’t argue with that with a crowd reaction like this, I’m sure they’ll be back on a bigger stage, nearer the top of the bill.
Hot Milk
“I want to see it open up, wider than my arsehole on poppers” has to be one of the more graphic descriptions for a circle pit that I’ve heard. Hot Milk have a lot of hype around them at the moment and it’s easy to see why, big riffs, brilliant stage presence and tunes for days. The two guitarists play off each other perfectly, the bass and the drums hammering the songs forward. Partway through the set, the dangers of moshing on a sloped forest floor become apparent when the show has to stop temporarily due to an injury (shout out to the security for doing a great job in pausing proceedings and getting into the crowd quickly). Things resume with a political message, “we can always put pressure on our government, when he used to be a human rights lawyer, to do the right thing”, into a track against American imperialism. The hype is justified, Hot Milk are incredible live, the crowd is eating out of their hands (and sprayed with their water).
Wednesday at 2000Trees is a slightly different way to warm up for the weekend, most people haven’t arrived yet, and only two stages are open. What we get is a selection of bands that went down well in previous years, some of whom run with the idea and put on an interesting, slightly different show. It’s been a good warm-up, a taste of what’s to come over the next three days.
