It hardly seems possible that it’s already a year since I was last sat in the sun watching bands at the aptly, well definitely this year, ‘Here Comes The Sun’. What can I say it’s been a great summer and many a festival up and down the country has breathed a huge sigh of relief that the festival season hasn’t been devastated by bad weather this year. Here Comes The Sun, for those who don’t know it is the once a year one day festival held by and at ‘The Rising Sun Arts Centre’ in Reading. The day largely features bands who have played throughout the year, in support of raising money to keep this aging institution alive and kicking. Every space both inside and out of this rather lovely and slightly crumbling, Victorian building are made use of with a mixture of solo performers, bands and performance artists. The atmosphere is suitably warm and friendly from this close nit family of artists and audience and the variety of music on show is wide and various from your more traditional singer songwriters to the more Avant-garde electronica. There’s a great bar serving fine ales all day and a food stall, although I didn’t try the food as I was warned it could take up to an hour to arrive, unusually long for savoury pancakes, but hey ho, that’s not why we’re here. I spent the day wandering from room to room to garden and back again catching some old favourites as well as some acts that I hadn’t seen before. Of the bands I got to see, I particularly enjoyed Luke Paulo and the Grapefruit with his dark noir folk tones and rather beautifully accompanied by a lovely graceful dancing woman who expressed the songs exceptionally well. Then there was Rebecca Lambert who I had not heard before, wow what a lovely sparkling voice and with some entertainging and warming chat between songs. Also of note for me on the day were The Herberts who I am quickly growing fond of there slightly ramshackle performances, the ever entertaining and graceful Vienna Ditto, The Ultimate End with their swirling and pumping Eighties influenced tunes, and one of my favourite bands The August list who have a new EP coming soon, I caught bits and pieces of other acts as I flitted about during the day, but due to the slightly awry running order I’m not one hundred percent sure who they all were, it may also be that the beer effect had started to kick in by late afternoon and I simply can’t remember. if only I could have seen and remembered more, oh well there’s always next year.

The full list of who I did and didn’t see is as follows:

The Jettes
Vienna Ditto
The Ultimate End
Damien A Passmore & The Loveable Fraudsters
Alan Clayson & The Argonauts
The August List
Los Chicos Muertos
Rebecca Lambert
Holdin’ Court Showcase
Punch Drunk Lover
Filip Hnízdo
Haze
Johnny Hoggett
Buildings on Fire
Christina Hogg
Luke Paulo and The Grapefruit
The Two Sisters
Frillerz
Lawrence Piddock
the herberts
Jodie O’ Callahan
Bentcousin
Boredoms In The Bathroom