END OF THE ROAD FESTIVAL (Larmer Park Gardens, 29/08/13 - 01/09/13)

HIGHLIGHTS

• Deap Vally (perfect festival band. Big riffs, lots of charm) 
• Cider Bus Disco Party on the Thursday night (although the brandy shots may have been a mistake) 
• King Khan (although I'm absolutely gutted about missing the Tipi Tent set) 
• Eels (Double fuckin' rainbows! All-out rock 'n roll set! E in exuberant form! So much better than the previous times I've seen them)
• David Byrne and St Vincent (Almost identical to the London show, but no less fantastic for that.) 
• Sigur Ros (My personal performance of the year. Surprised "Untitled 8" didn't cause structural damage to Stonehenge.) 
• Frontier Ruckus (Sunday morning. Musical saw. Good mix) Ichi (the most delightfully creative set of the weekend.) 
• Bo Ningen (because they're BO FUCKING NINGEN, duh) Jens Lekman (the perfect Sunday evening dance-along) 
• The Walkmen (find them hit or miss as a live band, but they were on top form this weekend. And they played "The Rat", which obviously isn't to be sniffed at) 
• The chocolate brownies at the Proper Tea Company stand

DISAPPOINTMENTS

• Most of Saturday (Julianna Barwick and Anna Van Hauswolff sounded good, but couldn't really get into them stuck in the back of a crowded Tipi Tent. Telemann, The Leisure Society and Pokey La Farge were pleasant enough. Nothing else grabbed me at all.) 
• Braids (Loved this band a few years back, but their new material is pretty zeitgeisty in a boring way.) 
• Belle and Sebastian's encore (the show itself was enjoyable enough- especially as they played “Your Cover's Blown”, but them finishing early ended the weekend on a somewhat anti-climatic note.) 
• Too many boring folks strumming guitars earnestly (although I was at End of the Road, what did I expect?)

In summary: not quite as fantastic as 2010, but still the best British festival in terms of atmosphere. First weekender in ages where I've enjoyed all three headliners, but can't deny a little disappointed by the lack of new discoveries. Nonetheless- a solid 8/10 weekend.