Having a prior arranged engagement back up in Newcastle the following day we were only able to be present at this prestigious event for the Saturday. With so many last minute changes to the line- up we weren't entirely sure who we'd be seeing here today.

The two bands we had really come down to see were the mighty Jorn and a bright new band by the name of Pulse. Any fans of Bob Catley would recognise the founding member of this band as none other than Vince O' Regan on lead guitar.  As for the rest of the bands we decided to wait and see what they had to offer. Here are a few of the bands that turned our heads during the course of the day.

BONEYARD DOG

It seemed strange that the first band up today would be a cover band.  I was informed later on in the day that they do actually have some songs of their own and that they sound rather good once they get going.  Today however they had decided to play safe and stick to covers only, as a way of warming the crowd up.  The songs they played were probably the very same songs a lot of people had been listening to in their cars as they drove down today.  It was very 'air guitar' set.  They did some covers extremely well, while others were just not worth covering, as they didn't quite hit the mark.

You could tell they were probably a good band when they did their own material though.  To be honest that's what I would have preferred to have heard instead of the covers.  The whole band had a lot of enthusiasm and the lead singer even jumped off the stage and ran around a lot terrorizing the punters while he sang. The songs were OK and the crowd whilst groaning at yet another one of 'rocks greatest hits' being played, it did actually do the trick and loosen a few of them up.

However the highlight of their set for me was when they played one of my all time favourites … 'Enter Sandman', and a jolly good version they did of it too!  Before this I had thought they were an average pub band and was wondering what the heck they were doing opening a festival like this. But after hearing them perform this particular track with so much conviction, they had me intrigued.

Are they a cover band?  Or are they something better than that?  Next time you play guys, loose the covers and show us what you're made of.  It was the first time I'd seen you play live, and probably a lot of other punters too, and what impression did you make on me?  Well you do a fair version of a Metallica song.  Other than that I know nothing more about your musical capabilities than I did before you took to the stage.  It must be said though that I was about the only one in the room that enjoyed that particular cover.  The rest of the room were about to lynch you for playing 'non-melodic' music.  Hee hee, they want to learn to live a little if you ask me!

NEXX

Fronted by what must be one of the most endearing females to hit the melodic rock scene in a long time we had Nexx on next.  Hailing from Spain (?) this band really did warm the crowd up and won the hearts of a lot of people here today at the same time.  Who could forget the energetic performance by the lovely Patricia?  I'd be mighty surprised if the CD stall had any demo CD's left by this band after we saw them perform.  For once we saw a band who were truly proud to be at the festival.  There were no big ego's here, no strutting their stuff and pouting.  What we saw was a band of young people who were absolutely bursting with excitement and energy.

They were a delight to watch and although a little on the pop/rock side they are sure to go far if they keep up the dedication they showed here today.  It was good to hear the band perform that old rock cherub 'Rock The Night' (originally done by Europe).  A band that themselves were greatly underestimated when they hit the high times. 

The band played a floorless set and gave the room a taste of what rock is meant to be … fun and exciting.  Too many bands these days sound bland and 'safe', good to hear a band that still enjoy what they are doing and don't find it a chore.  They were bright, they were fun, and they were bubbly.  The big question however is how on earth did Patricia manage to keep that pace all through the set?  We were shattered just watching her bounce around the stage!  Keep an eye out for their debut album which hopefully won't be too long before it makes it's appearance.

 *Click here to continue to Part Two*