– Primal Scream – live at BBC 6 Music Festival, Bristol 2016 – February 12, 2016 – BBC 6 Music –
Primal Scream headlined the first day of BBC 6 Music’s Music Festival in Bristol in 2016. In what wound up being one of the surprise hit festivals of the year so far, the Bristol music scene has handsomely established itself as one of the essential proving grounds for bands on their way up.
But that’s not to say that veterans like Primal Scream are any less celebrated. Frontman Bobby Gillespie and company brought the house down and ended the first day on a high note.
Luckily for all of us not living in the UK, BBC 6 Music took it upon themselves to devote all their programming that weekend to sounds from the Festival, live and uncensored (much to the cringing of a few station personnel) from the stages of most all the venues making up this city-wide festival.
A huge effort and a lot to keep together, and going off 98% without any noticeable glitches.
Primal Scream have been around for decades, getting started in 1982 and continuing without letup, despite lineup changes and unforeseen losses. One of the best Rock units currently on the scene, they gave their usual “blow-past expectations’ performances to a sold-out crowd.
It’s bands like Primal Scream and festivals like that one that reiterate the solid impression that Rock is far from dead – that bands are just as vibrant and exciting as ever, and that all the really interesting stuff is still not coming from the mainstream, but rather a bunch of people getting together and seeing what happens, playing for audiences who like music and have open minds. That’s the bottom line and it hasn’t changed in over 60 years, and probably may never change.
What was good about that day was that we had instant access to it, which we didn’t very easily before. How amazing it would have been to listen live to one of the first Glastonbury Festivals, while sitting in a living room in L.A. – to listen to all those up-and-comers and wonder which ones would go on to become household names. Fortunately, we get to do that now – and the world gets a whole lot smaller, and we aren’t so alienated anymore.
Crank up Primal Scream while you’re contemplating the state of Social Media.
