Womad 2007

[Lisarocket]

said that hardly any bands can get there, the weather is ok, but the mud is horrendous

I don't get that. Me and Rocketman were there for the day yesterday. No problems getting on or off site- in fact it was really quick. Mind you, we went on the train. A bloke we were talking to said there were problems on the M4, so maybe that's it.

It was nice and sunny yesterday. The mud was bad, but i didn't think it was as bad as Glastonbury...

 

[marty21]

I don't get that. Me and Rocketman were there for the day yesterday. No problems getting on or off site- in fact it was really quick. Mind you, we went on the train. A bloke we were talking to said there were problems on the M4, so maybe that's it.

It was nice and sunny yesterday. The mud was bad, but i didn't think it was as bad as Glastonbury...

they are newbies, haven't heard owt from them today, i guess they changed their minds

 

[marty21]

they did come home last night, not a good time had by them all

 

[JTG]

home early 'cos I've managed to get myself a horrible cold.

It was muddy but nothing like as bad as either Glastonbury or the Glade. The Womad crowd are just wussier that's all

 

[JTG]

A call came over the radio on saturday morning (I think) from a steward saying he had a punter who wished to complain about the mud and where should he direct him?

How to get a hundred odd people laughing at you in one easy move

 

[marty21]

A call came over the radio on saturday morning (I think) from a steward saying he had a punter who wished to complain about the mud and where should he direct him?

How to get a hundred odd people laughing at you in one easy move

was johnnymarsbars there?

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

A call came over the radio on saturday morning (I think) from a steward saying he had a punter who wished to complain about the mud and where should he direct him?

Oh dear

 

[aqua]

A call came over the radio on saturday morning (I think) from a steward saying he had a punter who wished to complain about the mud and where should he direct him?

How to get a hundred odd people laughing at you in one easy move

priceless

 

[Lisarocket]

A call came over the radio on saturday morning (I think) from a steward saying he had a punter who wished to complain about the mud and where should he direct him?

How to get a hundred odd people laughing at you in one easy move

You should go and see all the whinging and moaning on the official boards.

I know i was only there for a day, but i feel like i was at a different festival to the complainers. There was still grass in places (Around radio 3 stage)! I don't know what some people expect when the weather has been so bad and there have been floods everywhere I gather from some of the messages on the boards that Womad always has good weather, so i daresay the 'womad veterans-not ever coming again" types have been a bit spoilt by good weather and didn't know how to handle a bit of mud for a change..

I wonder if they would have survived at Glastonbury or The Glade.

If Womad had been at Rivermead this year it wouldn't have gone ahead as i read a report that 30% of the campsite was totally flooded.

I'm waiting for William to turn up and give us a more balanced view of things. He sounded like he was having a good time last time he texted me.

 

[Dubversion]

was johnnymarsbars there?

nah, he was down the hardware shop trying to buy a packet of skyhooks

 

[mr steev]

You should go and see all the whinging and moaning on the official boards.

They are funny!

...conditions unseen since the battlefields of 1914.

oh really?

If nobody dies, it will be a miracle. A laid back festival vibe is one thing, but this was bordering on criminal negligence.

and people calling for refunds!

 

[rocketman]

Just read some of the threads on the official womad site. Can't help but think that some people are such moaners. I mean, checking the local weather report may have given em something of an insight as to what to expect.

It's always been a great event and has done so much to promote international music, let's hope the moaning minnies don't show up next year so everyone else can have a better time.

((all stewards, staff and organisers at this year's festivals))

 

[JTG]

I accept that Womad is different in some respects in that there are a lot of families with young children there and more disabled people than at other festivals but even so...

It was nothing like as bad as Glastonbury let alone the Glade and those snippets from the official site are jokes. It was somewhat wearing for me but I was ill and had just emerged from the carnage of the Glade with very little time to turn myself around before heading to Womad.

Shame because I enjoyed myself more than I had ever done at Womad before, the line up was excellent and the site fantastic (albeit perhaps in need of a rethink for next year given the flooding problems in the Meadow and the subsequent cancellations of the stages down there and the children's workshops).

To be honest, the moaners simply confirm my opinion of a large proportion of Womad attendees. Cosseted weekend hippies who can't handle it when things don't go entirely their own way. As stewards we take far more abuse at this one than any of the other ones we do.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

I've just had a look at that forum, what a bunch of moaning twats

 

[JTG]

Just had a skim read of that forum. Jokers.

There's people on there who claim to love Womad but are also demanding refunds for everyone, something which would presumably cause the organisation some severe financial problems and make it harder to organise future festivals. There's people who think punters should have been informed of conditions on site - conditions were perfect on Wednesday when we arrived, by Thursday morning we had had twice the average monthly rainfall in a few hours.

It's very hard to see how a site will react to thousands of people marching all over it until it's happened so I don't think Womad were in any way guilty of misleading people about conditions. I do think they need to rethink the amount of trackway laid around site and the locations of toilets (dozens next to each other in one part of the campsites but then none to be found in other parts).

All other complaints invalid tbh, the weather is the weather, sometimes it's shit and we have to cope with it. I read complaints of stewards being rude but I find it hard to believe that this was the case on any widespread basis. Having worked for Oxfam for three summers at eight different festivals, I can honestly say that I've hardly ever experienced any truly poor behaviour from stewards in that time. Sure, sometimes we find it hard to keep ourselves informed of changing conditions on site but this is a hazard of festivals when the weather is poor as free spirit demonstrated on one of the Glade threads. We do find it hard to keep ourselves courteous and helpful in the face of rude and overbearing punters though, which is probably why there are fewer complaints from places like the Glade than there are at Womad.

 

[Rocket no.9]

Like a lot of people with kids at WoMaD this year, we bailed out early. Got back Saturday night before the severe weather warning kicked in.

We were lucky and made it on site without problems on Thursday afternoon just in time to pitch the tent in horizontal rain. The ground was well drained where we were, but the so-called 'family area' was waterlogged. Getting between any two points on site stopped being fun after the first ten hours of slogging through foot-high mud-sewage, and there was nothing funny about seeing the disabled getting stuck or cleaning your children 6x a day from the sludge - a real health and safety issue!

We'd been camping around Wiltshire in the rain and mud for some days before the event, so we were well prepared for anything nature could throw at us. But nothing could prepare us for the complete lack of planning and foresight on the part of the festival organisers ie; only 3 toilet sites for an arena holding up to 20,000, a total absence of trackways/gravel/wood chips/ hay/ or anything to soak up the greater lakes of mud we were obliged to negotiate to get anywhere, the absence of any information whatsoever apart from a £5 programme..

Despite the legions of smug, twittering, self-congratulating, beaming, broadsheet-perusers Womad is still a brilliant festival with loads of lovely, lovely people and the best music possible (everything I saw and heard blew me away this year). But it's not Club 18-30 at all, so you have to expect some whinging from brittler and littler folk.

As usual the Bath Ales (Gem ) were worth going for alone and the food is always outstanding. The site is pretty amazing too!

We aren't happy about the mismanagement and misinformation, but we'll be back next year.

 

[JTG]

oh and another thing - for all that Womad goers would probably like to think they're so much more eco friendly and right on than any other festival, there were still legions of people happily prepared to piss all over a nature reserve rather than use the facilities provided.

Next time I'm taking a gun and shooting these fuckers on sight

 

[Tort]

I have JTG's cold. I also have calf muscles twice the size they were when I left home

It was good, apart from the sneezing & wheezing. I'm going to get my buttocks tattooed to celebrate my kiwi heritage. Photos (& possibly a video ) later.

 

[JTG]

I have JTG's cold. I also have calf muscles twice the size they were when I left home

It was good, apart from the sneezing & wheezing. I'm going to get my buttocks tattooed to celebrate my kiwi heritage. Photos (& possibly a video ) later.

that video was priceless

 

[moonsi til]

I have just arrived home via clocking in at the pub first and now listening to Calexico and drinking Pimms... We arrived about 8pm on Thursday after a good run down from the West Midlands it took about 2 hours to get on site. When on site we had to get rescued by a passing tractor as my BFs van Sputnik got stuck in the mud. On the Thursday we stayed back at the camp but what we could hear sounded fun...but we had brought a cocktail cabinet and had to get started on that !

This was only my 2nd WOMAD and although the weather made it disagreeable to be out all day I still had a great time. We manage to watch Calexico, Peter Gabriel,The Imagined Village, Frigg,Vieux Farka Toure...and a few more ! Also had a rocking few hours dancing in the Big Red Top to Afrodisiac Sound System. We never managed to make it to the Organic Bar/Meadow Stage as both direct routes were closed off on the Sat and we never bothered again...prob cos our mate had on Cat boots with gaffer tape and bin liners wrapped round his legs ! His mantra for the weekend was once he was out Im staying out...but going home before it gets dark !

On the Friday I had the late night munchies and ate a very lush Molly Moons Pie with homemade chips and Gravy...it was so good I came back for more on the Sunday but other than that we largely made our own food but there was an excellant selection on offer.

The site itself looks like a good choice but a little hard to appreciate it with all the mud. Up in the Arboretum up by the Radio 3 stage is a lovely lil sanctuary...but I don't think there was a bar there ?

I never heard another moaning soul (apart from my mate, but he always moans) the whole weekend. We spoke to friends of my BFs a retired couple who steward for Oxfam who were in good spirits despite the lashing rain during their shift. A camper had gone off to make them a cuppa...

Overall considering the conditions I had a fab few days and respect is due to all the parents and kids ...i could see first hand how difficult it was but everyone i saw were in good spirits.

 

[JTG]

Should mention my festival highlight - Bobby Friction and Nihal DJing in the Little Big Top on Friday night. It was, as they say, an eclectic mixture with the emphasis on British Asian dance music. With half an hour to go, they asked 'who wants some Drum and Bass?', a question which received a very warm response indeed

Cue half an hour of Friction turning in an absolute stormer. You don't often see a DJ coming round to the front of his decks, dancing like a loon and shaking hands with the crowd mid-set but there was plenty of that. I especially enjoyed 'Original Nuttah', dancing like a twat on the hill outside the tent whilst the people around me either did likewise or looked a bit bemused and/or scared.

yes I know Womad should be about expanding your musical horizons but you can't beat a good bit of mad dnb to round off your evening and I'm sure lots of beardy three wheeled buggy people had their own horizons expanded by it

I seem to run into Friction twice a year at various festivals and he never lets me down

 

[Treacle Toes]

Just got home myself.....Despite the crocodile invested swamps WOMAD rocked!

Can't say that the mud didn't get me down at times but I had an absolutely amazing time...I feel like I've been on a step machine for 3 days but it was worth it....

Highlights for Rutita included..Bobby Friction and Nihal, Afrodisiac sound system, Mariza, Gnawa diffusion, Chambao, LaXula, Baaba Mal, The Zawosso family, Trilok Gurtu, Mor KArbasi, Warsaw Village Band, Ben Taylor, Massukos, Cesaria Evora. Candi Staton, Issac Hayes and much more...

During the night it was impossible to go to bed as the chai shops were absolutely stomping.....Fantastic atmosphere, a great selection of people and unforgettable connections.

 

[Treacle Toes]

By the way JTG I saw you at one point and was going to come over to say hi or something but I needed a coffee first andd then you disappeared. Next time

 

[William of Walworth]

Not long back online, loads to catch up with, but overall I had a pretty good time. If exhausting!

Wonder if the WOMAD forum, which I haven't checked yet, was overpopulated early on by early and angry returners?

I got a job -- hot spicey cider promoter, I was very busy late (after midnight) on Saturday and Sunday nights. You could tell the difference between festival hardcore (came to drink, often down to my persuasian skills) and exhausted misery-types ...

Explanations and full festie reports later ....

ETA : Didn't realise there was a page 4

I appreciate why Rocketno9 went home. Also a friend, Fern, who had 2 small kids, went home early (I think on Sunday morning) ..... tis understandably hard for some, especially parents, when the quagmire is that extreme.

But there's no need to be whingey and miserable about stuff when all someone is trying to do is sell you cider (and my advertising was very creative, and invariably friendly). Most cider refusniks smiled and the ones who came to drink were even friendlier

 

[William of Walworth]

By the way JTG I saw you at one point and was going to come over to say hi or something but I needed a coffee first andd then you disappeared. Next time

I wish I knew who you were -- I probably saw you without realising ...

Moonsi and RocketNo9 -- sorry to miss you ...

 

[Tort]

I'm a bit pleased with this!

 

[Lisarocket]

Fab photo Tort

 

[JTG]

I've just spent a few minutes reading the Womad forums. I hope my blood pressure recovers soon.

Apparently most of the stewards are 'stoned teenagers' who 'couldn't care less'. Apparently we're there to magic up woodchip and straw from out of thin air and will know exactly who is playing where at any given moment. The supervisors are supposed to know every detail of an ever changing situation, presumably on some kind of ESP link up with site/festival management and we are supposed to allow people through emergency exits in order for them to reach the back stage bar.

I'd pretty much decided to give Womad a miss next year for several reasons but the sheer ingratitude and ignorance of many of the crowd there have made my mind up for me. I happen to know that I'm good at my job and will go out of my way to help people beyond the call of duty so it's the festival's loss. I also happen to know that Oxfam run a very good operation with volunteers, better than most pro organisations, which is why we are continually rebooked to work at Glastonbury, Glade, Womad, Reading, Leeds etc etc year after year.

I look forward to working with the lovely people I meet every year at Glastonbury, Glade etc, even in awful conditions and the Womad lot can go hang.

So there.

 

[moose]

marvellous pic!

 

[William of Walworth]

I've just spent a few minutes reading the Womad forums. I hope my blood pressure recovers soon.

Apparently most of the stewards are 'stoned teenagers' who 'couldn't care less'. Apparently we're there to magic up woodchip and straw from out of thin air and will know exactly who is playing where at any given moment. The supervisors are supposed to know every detail of an ever changing situation, presumably on some kind of ESP link up with site/festival management and we are supposed to allow people through emergency exits in order for them to reach the back stage bar.

I'd pretty much decided to give Womad a miss next year for several reasons but the sheer ingratitude and ignorance of many of the crowd there have made my mind up for me. I happen to know that I'm good at my job and will go out of my way to help people beyond the call of duty so it's the festival's loss. I also happen to know that Oxfam run a very good operation with volunteers, better than most pro organisations, which is why we are continually rebooked to work at Glastonbury, Glade, Womad, Reading, Leeds etc etc year after year.

I look forward to working with the lovely people I meet every year at Glastonbury, Glade etc, even in awful conditions and the Womad lot can go hang.

So there.

Serious question -- how representative do you think those whingers were though?

You were getting grief, which was shit, but there were plenty people there who WEREN'T giving you hassle, I'm sure.

Personally I encountered very few moaners, and plenty more people who were trying their very best to rise above the mud and have a good time.

Will get onto that WOMAD forum to kick arse before long