Friday

Up first was Hokie Joint, I’ve been looking forward to this band all day and they lived up to my expectation, and more! The first song was a hit, the crowd was happy and hippy and ready for the good night that was about to unfold. Not only was this band great, upbeat and ready to give it their all they also had great use of guy liner.
The band had the privilege of playing on the Cosmic Stage, the main stage. After the next few songs the building was packed and the tunes were blaring, then they played Honey Murder to which Jo Jo Burgess (lead singer) explained that “This is a song about a murder, on a honey moon. It’s a real story…” with that fresh in our minds, they started to play again.
One thing I will always remember about Hokie joint is their amazing solos, normally you would think of a drum solo or a guitar one, but not only did they have those, they had a Harmonica solo and it was phenomenal, the whole crowd went mental.

The band seemed to be having an amazing time, which made the experience so much better for the audience. Suddenly there was a clang from the guitar and almost instantly the drums, bass and harmonica come in and they start playing Devil in Disguise it was a perfect penultimate track. The final song was one they played on the BBC Radio 2’s Blues Show, this one was the “Happiest song I [they] could find” and finally the whole crowd, no matter how drunk, were up and dancing.

Next up was The Majestic, we start by hearing reggae beats, everyone was back in the Cosmic Stage and ready to once again start dancing and enjoy themselves. All throughout their set the guitarist and lead singer were bouncing up and down to the beat.
The lead singer had the crowd joining in with the words- whether it was because it was gone 1 in the morning or because the whole crowd was smashed, but the atmosphere in the room, was out of this world. At the end of their set the management had an announcement, just a few hours into the festival the charity Cosmic Puffin had made a huge £5,300 this was cause for more celebration.

Finally for Friday night (early Saturday morning) on came the band everyone was waiting for, as introduced as the best thing to come out of Colchester; the Newtown Kings, after all of the anticipation we heard the first song. All I can say is Trumpet Solos. The whole crowd loved it, yes they were slightly drunk (still) but they were having fun and dancing along with the awesome live music unravelling in front of them. I get the feeling that everyone at Cosmic Puffin is your friend, the bands aren’t stuck up, and they are there for the music and to have a good time.

Newtown Kings sound like Madness with a mix of Amy Winehouse, they were perfect for the music festival even at 2.31am they were smashing it; with happy, upbeat music they created a new atmosphere. It was majestic.

Saturday

First up was Schrodingers Cat I guess it’s true what they say about art, it really is best to be seen- or in our case- heard from afar. No doubt about it that cat was dead. ‘Nuff said.

After that I was looking forward to listening to Matt Briggs, after accidentally mistaking him for stage crew we had a laugh. With a quick speech “I had a practice in my car, I guess I’m ready…” and he was ready to go. His voice was really refreshing and perfect for the hot spring day in which he played. He’s the type of singer/songwriter that you would want to hear on the radio, sunbathing with iced lemonade, he just awe inspiring.

Next up was a 14 year old who stole the attention of everyone in and around the tent. Roisin is the type of performer that you get captured in the moment, her voice was so unique. With the mixture of eye contact and her songs, it really feels as if it’s just you and her in the room. The crowd especially liked her original song Danger, it reminded me very much of Gabrielle Aplin and I could hear a hint of Taylor Swift in her voice. She is definitely one to look out for.

Next up on the ‘Breaking out’ stage was Drop Dead Fred, I could see that the lead singer Lee was nervous for the performance but he pulled it out of the bag. The crowd at this point was getting merry and were having fun, dancing around the tent, and outside of the tent in the sun. There was just the right mix between covers and DDF originals; I would call it the perfect set list.

The next act on the Breaking Out stage was to take the whole festival by storm. Rebels of Rock are a band made up of 4 kids, ages from 11-13 years; one word to describe their performance is wow. Amber, Natasha, Sam B and Sam V were just remarkable. Not only did they fill the tent but they had the biggest group of people outside. Amber, the rhythm guitarist and vocalist reminded me of a young Taylor Momsen, her voice was incredible. Their set had various amazing songs including a relatively new song by Slash Been There Lately. The bassist and vocalist, Natasha was great too, she had good harmonies with Amber. Sam V made every drummer in the festival jealous, being 11 with those skills; I can predict a great future! And the crowd was envious of Sam B’s guitar skills, he rocked. They well and truly stole the festival, quite literally because they were asked to play again the next day on the main stage.

Next up on the list was Surfquake on the main Cosmic Stage. This psychedelic, space rock band were pretty good, with their husky harsh vocals, it was very much a crowd pleaser, especially when they did a cover of Bird Song, and the crowd went mental.

Then came on One Eyed God. With a mixture of Bongos, Saxophone, Bass, Drums and Guitar I found there was a bit too much going, I guess you might like them more I you were drunk- especially with the heavy space-rock beat.

Sunday

To start off the day was Off The Wall, at the beginning the lead singers nerves were getting the better of him, but he took a few deep breaths and then wowed the audience with his rendition of The Wombats, I heard someone in the crowd saying ‘It’s almost like Christmas came early’. Then they really got the crowd in with their song High in the Sky, it was quite frankly awesome, I recommend a listen.

Up next on the Breaking Out stage was a band called No Reply, I was lucky enough to meet them on Friday evening and again on Saturday. On Sunday morning they invited me to go and listen to them warm up, I quickly took up the offer, and I got to see what it was like for a band to warm up and have an acoustic rendition of their set. I asked them where their band name came from, Jordan, the pianist explained that Ryan, the drummer (or as they call him Fairy) never answered his phone and it just seemed to fit.
The bands set list was perfect for the day, with variations from 20^th Century Boy, to Stacey’s Mom, the crowd that had congregated in and around the tent were having fun rocking out with them. I liked that for most of their set there were no pauses between the songs, the band had picked tracks that flowed into each other. No Reply are an easy listening band and perfect for a hot Sunday afternoon.

Finally for my festival experience was Dads old Pants, they were cheery and upbeat, it was just what I loved to end my day. Their indie sound was just right for the moment, I can see them going further during the summer, hopefully they will go to many more festivals and gigs to get seen, because music like that has to be heard.

Cosmic Puffin isn’t just a festival, it is a community.

Lucy Hutchon.