Eternally Now Competition, Nationwide Bowl, Milton Keynes, 22 June
★★★★☆
The summer time competition season could be a troublesome time for these with a leaning to the darkish facet, as heritage and mainstream occasions can appear all too shiny and shiny. However like a bolt from the black, Eternally Now – sister to California’s Merciless World Competition – stalked onto the stage promising a one-dayer full of “most of the best pioneers of latest wave, post-punk, psychedelia and different rock”.
Following sizzling on the heels of Yungblud’s Bludfest on Friday and Saturday catering to a youthful era of these on the perimeters, Eternally Now’s Sunday unfold throughout the spectacular essential stage in Milton Keynes’ large amphitheatre, the second stage in a considerably dusty area and a unusual interview tent – the Echo Chamber. CP hit the bottom early with Theatre of Hate opening to a busy area on the Different Stage with a decent, brooding set. Stan Stammers prowled the stage as Kirk Brandon delivered booming vocals earlier than closing with a rousing Do You Imagine In The West World.
We took the straightforward five-minute stroll again to the primary stage for The Psychedelic Furs and a foppishly dressed Richard Butler charming the gang in playful temper. Whereas President Fuel was the primary however not final observe of the day to reference political circumstances on a weekend when america bombed Iran, Heaven and Love My Means quickly wrapped followers again within the heat of the Furs.
The Echo Cave offered a relaxed respite from the rock with a cultured Richard Jobson delighting followers with anecdotes from his ever-so-youthful days with The Skids, and a extra diffident Kirk Brandon tracing his post-punk gestation via The Pack, Theatre of Hate and Spear of Future.
Anger Is An Vitality
In the meantime, John Lydon was in imperious type commanding an enormous viewers in a area not sufficiently big for his charisma. Missing a big stage display screen, some colleagues had been unable to take pleasure in Lydon’s disdain for the business, officialdom and the “karaoke Intercourse Pistols” – the one factor he felt obliged to apologise for. The rapture for Public Picture Ltd’s Rise and Chant confirmed it ought to at all times have been the Foremost Stage for this icon.
The Pleased Mondays adopted with a predictably chaotic however heartwarming set. Delivering arguably the grooviest, danciest temper of the day, the gang ran via all of the favourites earlier than organisers misplaced persistence with the 20-minute overrun and pulled the plug whereas the Mondays stored enjoying.
There Is A Gentle That By no means Goes Out
Again on the primary stage our tag workforce stored tabs on a delighted Johnny Marr who rewarded followers with a cultured mixture of his personal solo materials, The Smiths highlights, Digital’s Getting Away With It and a canopy of Iggy Pop’s The Passenger. Billy Idol struck maybe probably the most discordant second – for this festivalgoer no less than – along with his 80s metallic/Vegas schtick feeling at odds with the day.
As nightfall started to fall, The The fittingly took to the stage dressed for the lounge in black fits and shirts. Candy Fowl Of Reality and Armageddon Days Are Right here (Once more) introduced the gang again to the real-world politics of the weekend earlier than Matt Johnson settled right into a sentimental temper bringing Johnny Marr again on stage to share guitar duties. The chums from teenage years revelled in The Beat(en) Era and Canines Of Lust earlier than Johnson and his polished band took us via their greatest favourites. He even introduced a tear to this author’s eye remembering how he penned I’ve Been Waitin’ For Tomorrow (All Of My Life) as an 18-year-old daydreaming his future as a airplane flew previous the window.
Fahr’n Auf Der Autobahn
The Different Stage rumbled on with The Damned, Jesus & Mary Chain and Loss of life Cult giving heft to the post-punk/goth claims of the organisers, however CP solely had eyes for Kraftwerk’s sole UK look of 2025. The long-lasting 4 keyboards emerged forward of the band members one-by-one taking their positions. Then it was a tour-de-force of gorgeous visible, stomach-churning bass and digital heaven for his or her legion followers. Laptop World, Radioactivity and Autobahn all delivered with an epic Tour de France ensemble proving our spotlight.
Eternally Now wasn’t with out hiccups on the Different Stage, however general delivered massively with a memorable 10 hours for our group of one-time goths and misfits.
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