Washington Irving dedicated their set of flute-infused indie-folk to Bob, their driver, who had driven the band from Glasgow earlier in the day. This sense of happiness and jollity was continued throughout the set, which featured the band’s most recent single, The Magician. The fairly large crowd who had gathered to see Washington Irving really got into the spirit of the gig, and were seen to be dancing and jigging throughout.
Official Secrets Act, Hothouse Stage
Official Secrets Act walked onto the Hothouse stage a man down, nevertheless they powered through a storming set minus their synth player, proving they are a band who can adjust. Later in the set frontman Tom Burke revealed that “Alex was involved in an accident, and unfortunately couldn’t make it today”. Official Secrets Act then burst into a cover of the Proclaimers' Sunshine on Leith, which went down a treat with the crowd.
The Joy Formidable, Garden Stage
“We’ve driven for fifteen hours from Wales just to be at this festival” revealed guitarist Ritzy during The Joy Formidable’s set. Any band putting in that effort certainly deserves respect and The Joy Formidable definitely got a lot of it. As they flew through their set of delightful indie pop, they managed to gather quite a crowd, showing that they are a band to watch out for in the future.
Broken Records, Garden Stage
Glasgow’s Broken Records played another stunning set at this year’s Belladrum, after having “the most fun at a festival [there] last year”. After an atmospheric start, the band stormed through some tracks from their recent debut album, including If The News Makes You Sad, Don’t Watch It and A Promise, as well as playing some songs which may appear on their sophomore outing. The 7-piece, who are known for swapping instruments, didn’t disappoint, and the large crowd that had gathered for their late afternoon set got into the full swing of things. Towards the end of their set, the band energetically played A Good Reason, which set the crowd at the front dancing, and was a real highlight to a great set.
Tommy Womack, Grassroots Stage
Over in the Grassroots tent, country singer Tommy Womack entertained the audience well, the stage harbouring himself with an acoustic guitar, and an accompanying slide guitarist. Womack’s lyrics were hilarious, whether intentionally or not it remains to be seen, however the large crowd that had gathered to shelter from he rain seemed pleasantly surprised, and enjoyed his blues-fuelled strumming.
Pearl and the Puppets, Grassroots Stage
“Hello, I’m Pearl and these are my Puppets” greeted the enigmatic front-woman as the band took to the Grassroots Stage. Despite having torn ligaments in her left wrist, after tripping on the road in front of a “hot guy” she used to go to school with; and battling with a malfunctioning guitar; Pearl aka Katie Sutherland seemed to be really enjoying the gig as she and her band played through some catchy pop-folk tunes. Songs like Because I Do and Make Me Smile, which closed the set, went down very well with the big crowd the band had gathered.
The Holloways, Hothouse Stage
The Holloways weren’t originally billed for Belladrum, and were appearing in The Wallbirds’ absence; however the massive crowd that gathered to see them play ensured that the set would be a cracking one! Kicking things off with fan-favourite Dancefloor, the eccentrically dressed band stormed through a set of old mixed in with the new, such as Public Service Broadcast which deals lyrically with “shit TV”. Forthcoming single Jukebox Sunshine was also unveiled, and went down well with fans, who also enjoyed renditions of gems like Reinvent Myself and Generator, the latter whipping the crowd into a frenzy and creating a real party atmosphere in which you couldn’t help but dance.
Alabama 3 (Acoustic), Hothouse Stage
As a piper walked Alabama 3 onto the stage, it was obvious this acoustic performance was going to be special, and it most definitely was. Opening to Converted, Alabama 3 had the crowd grooving from the start. Even though the songs were stripped back versions, featuring only guitar and harmonica, Alabama 3 still managed to fill the tent with their brand of rock and blues. Before bursting into a cover of Folsom Prison Blues, frontman Larry Love told the crowd “last year my wife was arrested while we were at this festival” to which he told the crowd to chant “that’s the sound of the police” at points during their cover. This cover had the crowd joining in and going wild. Alabama 3 kept this pace up during their whole set and once again set the crowd into a frenzy during their most famous hit Woke Up This Morning. As the band realised they had over-run their set time, they finished up and then walked off the stage to the applause of the delighted crowd.
Editors, Garden Stage
As Editors came on to the Garden stage to a euphoric audience, it was obvious they were the main attraction of the day. Editors’ set of old favourites mixed in with brand new songs went down a treat with the Garden Stage crowd. Their new songs saw Editors visit a slightly more experimental side with electronic beats akin to Kraftwerk. This was by no means a bad thing though, and these new songs helped to vary the set a lot more, showing that Editors can become a band with a lot of diversity. As Editors played old favourites including Munich and An End Has A Start there were mass sing-a-longs in the crowd, however the biggest response of the night came as Editors kicked into Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors.
ES, RT
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