MONDAY

The final day! Maybe by now I'd realised that three days camping is really too much to take, particularly after another festival, and I was utterly exhausted. However, I stayed at the front of the main stage from Ooberman through to Oasis: the full day! This is one hell of an achievement considering. There were many gems on the second stage I didn't see but being at the front right through to Oasis was a chance that couldn't be missed!

Ooberman opened proceedings with an OK set. After becoming massively attached to their song Million Suns I'd bought their album and all their singles. This has since proved to be a mistake as they'd developed into what seemed like a band for 13-year olds by this time already. But, for an opening show, I can't really expect more. After this performance finished I walked to the very front and didn't budge again!

Boss Hog were on next. The picture says it all as their music didn't seem to say anything. After this, my mate left me and I didn't see him until the end of the day.

Oh dear! All that is wrong with the opinions of NME is summed up nicely by this dire performance by a truly coma-inducing band called Doves. The sad thing is they're still going and have become quite famous.

The best performance of the day so far surprisingly came from Asian Dub Foundation. I had expected them merely to bore us with politics but they focused on what a band should do - having fun running around the stage and playing good songs. Highly entertaining for a band I'd heard nothing by before: the kind of performance that makes you go to music festivals.

At the time it didn't seem too bad at all, just a bit of a joke like Slipknot. However, having since listened to all the shit Fred Durst comes out with and their sickeningly pop-metal music, Limp Bizkit should be put out of their misery right now. They were NOT the undisputed stars of the show as NME decided, but it was great fun trying to survive the crowd and I must admit I enjoyed it when they fired the glitter cannon. Fred Durst coming into the crowd and the terrible sunburn sustained by Wes Borland were also memorable. But, like Slipknot, people took this musical joke seriously which was sad with all the quality stuff out there.

The Bluetones aren't shit, they're just not very good. They certainly didn't help matters by not playing Cut Some Rug and Marblehead Johnson AGAIN: their two finest songs. By this time I was unsure how many I had left on my camera so I didn't take a photo of them myself. But it provided a welcome break after the crush of Limp Bizkit and the ending, where the singer blew us kisses before being carried offstage by a sailor, was a wonderful moment that added several marks to their show!

Thank God for the indie band calm in the middle or I'd never had survived The Foo Fighters! Everyone knows Nirvana were great and, for a drummer, Grohl is pretty talented too! They perfected the approach to metal giving us well-crafted pop songs that really rocked without any cynical image. Not bad at all.

Prml Scrm Mthr Fckr! I saw a lot of T-shirts over the weekend, so it's a shame so few of their fans bothered to actually see them. They were not too bad, with a stunning backdrop and light show and Bobby Gillespie pulling the most rock 'n' roll faces you've ever seen! However, one can't deny his voice live is terrible. The crowd did nothing, merely created a horrific crush and Bobby was clearly pissed-off with the poor reception they got (or so he told us). Not at their best anyway. Apparently Q magazine voted this among the top 50 gigs ever. This is completely baffling as they weren't particularly good and didn't even go down well with the crowd. Shows how much the fools at that magazine, the musical equivalent of The Daily Mail, know!

SETLIST

Swastika Eyes/Shoot Speed Kill Light/Pills/Insect Royalty/Exterminator/Kill All Hippies/Kowalski/Blood Money/Accelerator/Higher Than The Sun/Loaded/Movin' On Up

(This setlist isn't strictly in order. They also played two songs I didn't know...)

Ignore what you hear about Oasis. Although there may had only been one great song each on Be Here Now and Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants their live show has never stopped being incredible. This was the fabled "last performance" which is why I felt I had to be there right at the front. As it turned out, they just played a blinder of a set, giving us truly electric versions of all the songs I could ask for. Their sheer power was amazing - impossible to convey in words - and so good that even the bouncers were singing along. We also got to chant "Robbie Williams: Is a wanker! Is a wanker!" which was very satisfying. By now, although the crush had taken its toll, I managed to survive right through to the end. It was difficult at times as I nearly perked me up again. I was sad that they decided to continue so now I won't be able to say I was at their last show! A fitting end to two amazing weekends.

SETLIST

Fuckin' In The Bushes/Go Let It Out/Who Feels Love?/Supersonic/Shakermaker/Acquiesce/Step Out/Gas Panic!/Roll With It/Stand By Me/Wonderwall/Cigarettes & Alcohol/Don't Look Back In Anger/Live Forever/Hey Hey My My/Champagne Supernova/Rock 'N' Roll Star

And that's it. Possibly the best music festival ever in terms of the bill. Not only that but this remains to the date of writing the most exciting (albeit exhausting) week of my life. Happy days indeed!

SONG OF THE DAY: Oasis - Cigarettes & Alcohol