The Cambridgeshire Fens are certainly an interesting choice of venue for a festival. It’s not going to disturb the neighbours because there aren’t any, but it’s also nigh on impossible to get to other than by bike or car. This terminally flat countryside is captured best by the mighty band Fen whose name and music are influenced by the surroundings as they “draw the listener into a windswept landscape, bereft of hope”. And then there’s the brutal death grindcore scene in nearby Wisbech, epitomized by the delightful Beef Conspiracy whose seminal album “Hung, Drawn and Quarterpoundered” is the stuff of inspiration. But there are none of these esoteric offerings here this weekend. This is the place for progressive metal, metalcore and generally music with a technical and djenty slant, so if you thought that TechFest was some geek’s convention about computers, it’s probably best that you go back to your laptop and die prosaically.
With the boiling hot weather and the main and second stage situated next to each other for the purposes of continuity – as one set ended, another started in the tent next door – it all meant no respite for the spectators but endless metal on tap. This was typical of the excellent organization by promoter Simon, who rightly received accolades throughout the day from spectators and band members for the quality of organization and attention to detail at this friendly festival.
The first band to be hot and sweaty was Colours To Shame. The Glaswegians worked their way through unfamiliar climactic conditions and dished up the expected diet of technical prog djent. Constantly transforming, the changeovers were deliberately irregular but the control in the sections themselves was tight. The set ended well with “In Search of Sasquatch” which featured plenty of drama and passion to match all the technicality. The first victim of the weather was the drummer who blacked out for two minutes during the set, so credit to the band for getting through it. From what I heard here, Colours To Shame are a band worth investigating further. (AD)
I had looked forward to seeing Kartikeya from Russia as a fan of fellow Vedic metal band Rudra, with whom I learnt afterwards they have collaborated in the past. The look wasn’t Vedic metal – a distinctly Russian-looking drummer with a spoof McDo t-shirt, a hard case tom-tom player who had the air of a punk tattoo artist and a more conventional square-faced vocalist / guitar player. It transpired that there was no bass player, the vocalist was a stand-in, the tom-toms were inaudible and much reliance was placed on samples which, short of engaging an army of people, were necessary to generate the Eastern elements.
Kartikeya threw away all the obstacles and to the sounds of Indian restaurants and a mantra, the full forces of darkness were presented to us with “Sarva Mangalam”. An exotic energy flowed through the music. Deep and growly vocals and hypnotic drum runs led us into a series of exciting and dangerous patterns. Indian passages were never far away but, even with the carefully-controlled prog sections, the dominating factors were acrid power and crushing movement. I was as if we spectators had to be put in our place. The only bizarre aspect was the exaggerated gestures of the tom-tom player who reminded me of one of those backing artists who draw disproportionate attention to themselves in the Eurovision song contest. “Horrors of Home” was delivered with deliberate intent, each layer adding a further substructure and new sounds and imaginary smells. The clean vocal sections weren’t so convincing but when the vocalist screamed, he sounded like an angry god. The set ended with “Neverborn”. Finally the tom-toms became audible. The instrumental passages as ever were magical. Although there were too many vocal variations for me, Kartikeya’s performance was compelling and no-one was left in any doubt that they had brought war and dark atmospheres into our miserable lives. (AD)
One short hop next door took me from the world of Vedic warfare to the altogether cleaner progressive melodies of Shattered Skies from Ireland. It was evidently “no bassist” day today as Sean and his colleagues launched into “The End and the Rebirth” without one. Sean himself was looking more well-scrubbed than I remember – due perhaps to on-stage alcohol deprivation – but, superficial considerations apart, something wasn’t working. I wondered if it was the effect of going from the thundersome dark clouds of Kartikeya to this decidedly more commercial sound. The prog vocals didn’t harmonise with the steady rock-metal beat. Sean explained it: “I apologise for sounding completely flat”.
All was ok after that but what I witnessed overall was a softer and more polished performance than the 110% livewire energy I had seen before from the band. The ante was upped with “15 Minutes”; always an audience-friendly song mixing prog emotion and rhythmic punchiness. The crowd moved, and continued to do so when the band played a rocking version of the Pendulum track “Propane Nightmares” (thanks to Sean for identifying it to me afterwards). The rumbling and rolling flavour continued with “Saviours”. Again very commercial, it sounded a little tinny and lacked emotional depth, but did feature a splendid guitar solo. Sean’s cheeky smile at the end captured the audience-friendliness of this band. An overly long intro to “As The Sea Divides” created a mixed expectation of suspense and the concern that the set was going to finish with a whimper. In the end, it was both as the heavy framework built up the intensity while Sean struggled to pull at our heartstrings. Today it was a case of heatstrings. As always, this was an interesting performance from this talented prog metal band. (AD)
As the quartet of Red Seas Fire rolled onto the stage, the dry ice was pumped up another notch drowning the guitarist. The fact that he sported a beard as vast as something out of Norse mythology and a high-strapped guitar meant there was little left of him to spot. They quickly settled into a cajoling rhythm of Safety Fire-esque jack-hammering bass threaded with feisty chugs. On top of this backline, there was plenty of screams with some occasional quiet patches and cleans to allow for the builds back into more screaming. They did struggle to serve it all up with any real venom or intensity, but the stifling heat can’t have helped matters. Vocalist Robin Adams deep, scarred roars were excellent, but his singing was often a little over-emotional. Still, he had the frontman patter down a treat and was constantly pepping up his audience, all of which elicited a decent reaction from those pogoing in the centre. (JS)
I was drawn into the room like a magnetic attraction. A set had just started. Unbeknown to me until afterwards, Neosis had pulled out and had been replaced by Aeolist from Norwich on the second stage. This was a revelation. What I heard was utterly heavy but tightly controlled, riff-driven prog metal. 5 young men were in front of me. There were two guitarists, a bassist, drummer and a vocalist who showed the capability to rip our throats out. Their progress was smooth but the band was clearly not averse to going into multi-coloured technical passages. This was compelling and fun too. The bassist looked like he was practicing for a gurning competition. Such was the technicality that I too felt my mouth and eyebrows move. There was no widdling or wastage here. Mountainous passages swept through the room. The vocals were utterly hardcore and harsh amongst this progressive finery. But my goodness, it held together in perfect fusion.
“Raise your hands!” proposed hardcore man before he threw himself around the stage, whipping up anger and hysteria. This was just musical magnificence. A post-metal element emerged. A carefully executed dark, heavy and chunky musical display was being laid out before us. A little guitar-driven jazzy number introduced a fresh aspect. The drum beat featured funky mosaic-like patterns. The vocalist had his back to the audience, looking like he was throwing up in front of the drummer. The build-up of this un-named track was like the dawn rising. The sun came out – a dark one, mind – in all its glory. Hardcore man was now post-metal man. Instead of launching himself at us, he channeled his anguish and anger at us in an entirely emotional, gripping and powerful way. “Bang your fucking head”, he exhorted. This colourful explosion made me think of another UK band – Heights. Aeolist exhibited perfect musical and vocal harmony. The musicianship was exquisite in a progressive, post-metal and hardcore way. Sections could be moving, and even a little jazzy. The music came from the ether but also suggested a story of life and its realities. The drums tapped like the sound of impending battle. The set ended with one final progressive hardcore blast. There was such subtlety. I had witnessed a performance packed with intelligence and creativity. Aeolist came, conquered and disappeared into the night. I’m glad they came and would very much like to see them again. (AD)
A portly, geeky-looking type from the USA appeared on stage. It was time for Drewsif Stalin. After a bit of banter about poo and “glam flow”, Mr Stalin, as we shall call him, started and stopped. “Look at the person next to you. Would you be prepared to go to war with that person?” The person next to me was my eldest son. I’m not sure what the point of the question was as Mr Stalin fired off a monster riff … and stopped. “This one’s dedicated to those who say “that’s not metal””, he announced. “Deadly Serious” was a large, meaty chunk of irregular, hard and screwed-up metal. Great chorus: “de-de-de-de-de-de-de-de-de-de”. Taking the mickey maybe, but it was a laugh and the crowd loved it. Actually, what followed was some serious, deep and intensive heavy metal. Heads swung. The set went downhill when the lead vocalist from Red Seas Fire joined in for a couple of tracks. It wasn’t that fantastic to begin with but it had entertainment value. Now it got more progressive and serious. It also became anonymous. There was an attempt to restore the energy. The drummer told some jokes which no-one got. Mr Stalin’s wild eyes and his gestures outdid the music which was as heavy as hell but not overwhelming. Even then he didn’t win my unofficial “Facial Contortions” contest, which went to the bassist from Aeolist. At least Mr Stalin and friends didn’t play their One Direction cover song. (AD)
It looked like it was fancy dress time but no-one told us. The guitarist of Serbian pop-metallers Destiny Potato, who had swapped days to be here today, was wearing a crumpled old-fashioned Victorian-style top hat. Why? Do they have Dr Who in Serbia? Still more enigmatically, he stuck a potato in his mouth. I suppose the music had a ghostly flavour to it. I liked the music which had a progressive djent slant of course but interestingly it had Eastern rhythms running through it and even featured techno-pop. The petite female vocalist, Aleksandra Djelmas, looked about 15 but, more importantly, had a great, effortless voice which was well supported by the instrumental department. There was a good balance. Passages were smooth. The songs, especially in the vocals, had a child-like and eccentric quality but always returned to prog metal and solid ground. The singer seemed a little nervous spending her time apparently looking down at the lyrics in front of her. All of this belied her commanding performance. The range was good. Sometimes there was emotion, sometimes the singer belted out her words, sometimes it was very pop-orientated and then in the middle of it she would demonstrate an impressive set of lungs with awesome screams.
The band played nicely with all this and the music moved and grooved as their rock delivery, mixed with occasional rapping, expanded into heaviness and catchy choruses. But although this band didn’t smile very much, there was a fun element about it. I could liken this to In This Moment or Tristania even, but the mix here was special. Amid the depth of Meshuggah, Aleksandre moved across the stage mysteriously, reflecting the Eastern side of it. Thunderous progressions and big screams were countered by hypnotic and impressive rhythms. I know that Destiny Potato were not everyone’s cup of tea and were a bit pop-orientated for some, but I thought they were very interesting and I enjoyed what I heard and saw. (AD)
Disperse plunged straight into their set without ado. Their style of deep and chunky progressive metal recalled their fellow Polish progsters Riverside. Unfortunately the ambience wasn’t as intensive or mesmerising as that of Riverside. The keyboards were under-utilised and the vocalist struggled in the higher ranges. Was this an expression of vulnerability or just a case of a vocalist operating outside of his limits? This spoiled the “ambidjent” feel which accompanied the traditional prog fare which was on offer. Instrumentally it was another matter. The guitarist saved the day time after time with his dexterity and imagination. It was all a bit self-indulgent as Disperse just seemed to be going through a set of motions. The last song “Message From Atlantis” proved to be one last chance for the guitarist, who was the star of this performance, to thrill us with another spectacular solo. (AD)
As the second stage closed shop for the night, it really felt like we’d reached a turning point. As the fans had travelled from across Europe and, no doubt, beyond to be stood in this small field near Peterborough, these next three bands had journeyed hundreds of miles to play to them. The crowd swelled and excitement began to peak. – they were all in now. First up, from France, Matthieu Romarin and his five chums from Uneven Structure. The setlist comprised the whole of the recently released EP “8” followed by a selection from their debut album, “Februus”. Displaying typical Gallic flair the band oozed enormity and breadth. “8”, as expected, proved darker and more complex with the bass sticking the bottom-end; defining the sound with a driven depth. With the three guitars interweaving over the top and the drummer pumping his legs it proved to be a truly powerful experience.
As emotion began to rule the performance, either raging or drifting, an electrifying sound began to ran through the background like a constant charge. It was “Februus”, a work defined by its backing soundtrack; the music contantly returning, often mid-song, to a singluar, specific tone. Here too was where much of the metalcore action lay, the parts where the charismatic Matthieu simply shined. The beats were flying as were the dreads of guitarist Aurélien Perreira. The music shifted and began to tell a developing story. As it did, so did Matthieu, moved seamlessly between plaintive cleans and fearsome growls; laying bare his impressive range. He became our guide, occasionally moving forward to touch the crowd while the operators of the giant switchgear continued their work behind him. As they hit their groove, the necksnapping crowd reaction was insane. One passage melted in the next. This was a gripping story. It was one not be missed. Impec, mes amis! (AD/JS)
Follow that Skyharbor. Having travelled all the way from India, and having spent £400+ solely on taxi fares, there was no chance that this lot weren’t going to hit the ground running. Their bass-driven angst and contrasting tones proved to be just the ticket on a sultry evening such as this. The whole project masterminded by guitarist/composer Keshav Dhar had been making waves ever since they brought ex-TesseracT UK vocalist Dan Tompkins on board and there were plenty of smiles in the crowd when that particular face stormed onto stage. He has proved to be the final piece Keshav needed to complete his wonderful puzzle and a UK show without him would have been exasperating. Sporting a dapper button-down waistcoat he set about blowing us away. The sound-desk finally got one right here as his vocal range vibrated when he hit his top-end, sending shivers down spines, and his deep booms hit you straight in the chest like a punch. His style of long notes coupled with his melodic tones, at times, were simply beautiful and, often, strangely effeminate. Alongside him, the stringwork of Keshav and Devesh Dayal covered both elegance and scathing power as they flicked between threaded, cascading riffs and tight, angry shreds. Nikhil Rufus, lightning strap and all, hit his funk button when he wasn’t thundering away, snapping his neck off with jerking thrusts.
With the moody backing track setting up the songs, we were soon being treated to the scathing “Catharsis”, then the floaty, super-emotional “Night”. Soon Dan was cautiously announcing the band’s tight time slot – “Time is so precious, so thankyou. Here’s Aurora”. Then, with a flourish and a run through the photo-pit for our frontman, we were onto the finishing straight with “Celestial” – their “song about freedom”. It hit to huge roars and featured an impressive fan singalong for each chorus. With the award-winning “Meava” to finish, during which Dan ended up wigging out, face-to-face with his fans, the band hit a euphoric peak even we didn’t think they could reach. Considering how little practice time together they must have had pre-show it had been an unqualified success. And the best news? The new album they’re working on is “insanely good” – and that’s from the mouth of the mastermind himself. (JS)
The massive hour-long wait for Chicago’s Veil Of Maya (huge in the US, about to be huge in the UK) was explained away once they hit the stage by the long-haired frontman Brandon Butler – “Our bassist nearly missed the show”. All eyes flicked right and there he stood, pretty-boy image, and my first thought was “too much time spent in the mirror?”. No matter. This quartet soon made up for lost time tossing out a series of battered, scathing vocals like they were going out of fashion. Their main selling point was immediately apparent – the unstoppable force of their unique, ceaseless, polyrhythmic underscore. Badda-bad-badda-badda, badda-bad-badda-ba-ba-bad-badda-badda…
Essentially, what they boiled down to was a ridiculously effective line in tight tech with strong death elements. Everything that had gone before was simply blown away by their lack of emotional complexity. This was just pure vitriol combined with devastating rhythmic intensity. The recorded underscore only popped up to briefly link between the songs. All our other senses were directed towards Brandon; focussing on his caged animal stage-pacing and his urgent demands for more crowd action. Eventually his audience conceded and the first circle-pit of the night opened up. Before long we were all slicked in sweat, the tent walls dripped and the air became unbearably clammy. Brandon became more yeti than man, as his hair began to stick to his face and body. He responded by sticking his tongue out and allowing a dastardly smirk to cross his lips – “I love you guys”. A bottle of whisky was passed around the band and then onwards backstage, presumably for the crew to begin the party. Quick as a flash, the cascading lead of “It’s Not Safe To Swim Today” indicated the final song and in response the pit doubled and the crowd went batshit crazy. Oh yes, Veil Of Maya proved to be the perfect band to finish the night. (JS)
We simply can’t remember having more fun in a field. Room for another 3-500 bodies maybe, but it did make for a roomier and more relaxing atmosphere. With security operating a hands-off approach and bands operating a hands-on approach (whole days spent intermingling with fans), it proved to be a set-up that could have withstood rain, hail, fire and brimstone and still gone ahead as planned. It all made for a large helping of excitement with lashes of freedom and plenty of cool beer on tap. I believe the word de rigueur is “epic”. Roll on TechFest 2014!
Words: Andrew Doherty & John Skibeat
Photos: John Skibeat
17/07/2013 at 1:16 pm
“excellent organization”
What festival were you at? because we were not at the same one
17/07/2013 at 1:28 pm
“This was typical of the excellent organization by promoter Simon, who rightly received accolades throughout the day from spectators and band members for the quality of organization and attention to detail at this friendly festival.”
Surely some mistake? As someone who worked at this festival, Simon’s organisational ability was an absolute joke. Every single thing at this festival which actually worked was the result of someone else picking up the slack, and the number of things which didn’t work was huge. No lighting in the camping area, no food vending until Friday night, no water or riders for bands (until they rightly kicked up a fuss), trying to charge bands’ crew admission to the festival and not allowing any outside sound engineers unless they’d been pre-approved ‘for insurance reasons’, security who were more interested in the bands on stage than doing their job, (I was given the wrong wristband when I arrived, but was able to walk freely into the backstage area without being challenged all day), unsecured band parking. Someone told me there was only one first-aider for the entire weekend, though I don’t know first hand that that’s true.
The only reason this festival happened is that there are people in the scene who wanted it to go ahead for the sake of the fans, and so stepped in to make up for the total lack of organisation by someone who has no business organising events whatsoever.
29/07/2013 at 10:28 pm
“Someone told me there was only one first-aider for the entire weekend, though I don’t know first hand that that’s true.”
You can’t have been working for the festival if the above statement is true, because it is factually incorrect.
17/07/2013 at 2:12 pm
Simon did better than most would, I still struggle to work out how he got the line-up so good, the man will have a much better understanding of things next year and he’ll be better prepared I’m sure 🙂
17/07/2013 at 2:41 pm
This is in response to AAA;
I thought it was a brilliant weekend. I also worked at the festival and Simon and everyone was working tirelessly all weekend. There was also more than one first aider, they had orange hi vis on during the weekend.
Considering it’s the first year that the festival has been with camping, it was well done. If this were a huge festival these things could potentially be huge problems.
Some of your points are literally just winging though, no lighting for camping is a bit stupid just bring your own. Water was freely available at three different points in the campsite which wasn’t a far distance away from the arena (one was just literally as you step outside).
Some things you might be right with, but I’m sure next year it won’t be a problem, you should cut the guy some slack, if the festival fell apart, then you’re right, but it didn’t.
Still can’t wait for next year, going to be a long wait!
17/07/2013 at 4:43 pm
It was terribly organised last year with many huge flaws and even laws flaunted which nearly put the hosting venue in jeopardy… We thought “lessons will be learnt, it’ll be better next year too!”
…
17/07/2013 at 5:37 pm
I didn’t camp but I stick by what I said. It was well run. OK, the camp site was like a rubbish tip on Saturday but that’s up to people to use the bins. I saw more than one first aider, btw. There was water available at different points as someone says and you could get cold water for 10p from the bar (and for a bit more, English real ale which for me was a first at a festival). Enjoyed the food, cheery staff and reasonably priced. Yes, lighting was needed but I had my own little light and if you’re staying there, not a bad idea to help yourself. I sensed that the organisers wanted to get better and let’s face it, no event is ever going to be 100% right. I forgot my earplugs and received profuse apologies (for sth I’d done) and a reassurance that they’d sell them next year!
That’s the admin, but what we were there for (I think) was the bands. I can’t speak for the other days cos I wasn’t there but what a diverse line-up on Saturday. Must have been murder playing in all that heat but everyone gave their all, some really great performances and people (bands and spectators), making a friendly atmosphere all round. If we’re looking for comparisons, it didn’t scale the heights of ProgPower Europe, which is the ultimate in organisation and ambiance, but this was good enough. Viva TechFest!
17/07/2013 at 6:11 pm
The festival was made by the bands and the fans. There were a lot of people involved behind the scenes who saw Simon failing (HARD) in his organisation and they stepped in and saved the day. Fair play though, he booked a great line up, however as an event organizer he is a very dangerous man and was lucky nothing went wrong. I saw a lot wrong while I was there. The Stewarding was not adequate, the first aid cover wasn’t either. There was no professional security and the campsite was not “event safe”. Speaking as a man with 20+ years industry experience in outdoor events it was lucky for all of us there that it lasted the weekend! If he employs some people with their heads screwed on and sticks to the artistic programming next year it will improve. However no matter where Tech Fest ends up next year I will make sure the relevant authorities have a close look at the planning because it was unsafe in many ways.
30/07/2013 at 12:00 pm
TECH-FAN1978
Hi there
I appreciate your concerns and I would like to invite you for a discussion so that we can improve our festival for everyone involved next year.
My email is [email protected]
Please contact me as I would like to nag your brain for any advice you may have from you previous experience in this field. Cheers – Simon
17/07/2013 at 6:35 pm
There were things that were done very well and I agree a lot of that is down to the good will and professionalism of certain individuals.
There are no doubts a few areas within the festival could have been done better given a larger budget. For a festival that was hosted in a town hall in a previous year and for a first stab at something so large, so much more could and should have gone wrong.
It might be worth pointing out that there were only minimal security present, most people in high vis jackets were volunteer Stewards that were not getting paid.
To say the security or stewards lacked interest is actually unfair given the conditions and volunteer basis they worked on. Most people, including myself pitched in far more than we were expected to and regularly worked until the sun started coming up every night of the festival.
This will improve, given a larger budget next year. The comment about a cross between a festival and an illegal rave is very well put, I consider it a golden era where we all enjoyed ourselves but were not subject to over the top security or health and safety constraints. Looking forward to 2014 a lot.
18/07/2013 at 8:44 am
MADN, that’s the most balanced view yet. Looking about and seeing the shortage of staff on show, it certainly felt like an event that could POTENTIALLY implode at any minute. Yet metalheads have proven time and time again that they are a cut above when it comes to music fandom. Hell, I’d have chipped in, if asked. Massive thankyous are clearly owed to those who did – more bodies are definitely needed next year. In this instance though, as a chap on a day ticket, I didn’t mind the whole “a wing and a prayer” feel about the event – I’d rather a festival with a sense of freedom than a restrictively-controlled environment.
29/07/2013 at 8:51 pm
Hey guys, just to clarify a few things…
I started as a blogger/fan of the bands and so I cannot know all the answers to making a perfect festival instantly. I started the idea of Tech Fest as the scene desperately needed an event dedicated to it and I was happy to put the effort into making it happen. I have since put everything I have and all my time into the funding/organization of the event. This festival/tech scene and the demand for it has exploded overnight and I have had to run with that to keep up. In two years we have jumped from pulling off a small level indoor festival in a community center with one stage to a two stage 4 day open air outdoor event.
Lessons have been learned both years of the event and each year will improve greatly. These are the first negative comments I have seen and not all of which are valid, but its clear that the other 99.99% of people had the best time of their life.
The Plough venue had constantly been changing their mind on things and breaking their agreements with us. The power situation on the camping field was a result of the venue’s lack of organization and their change of plans regarding power supplies, we insisted something was to be arranged for lighting at the event when we realized it had not been taken care of.
We have gained a lot more interest and we have acquired a much stronger team to be involved in the pre-organization of the event next year. People who are very experienced and knowledgeable in areas that I am not will be there all year round planning and are already working with me to plan the next edition.
All the areas we lacked on have already been heavily addressed by our team. We have discussed everything that went wrong on our part. We are currently seeking a much better organized, better equipped venue for the future so that these things are no longer a problem.
Yes some extra crewmembers did join in last moment to lighten the load for myself on the day and tighten a few cogs, but until that point no body else had offered to help me so I was still dealing with everything myself.
We actually had a random inspection from a Police Officer in the local area who was specialized in event safety/security. He was very understanding, given the fact I am 23 years old and an on a very limited budget to make such an event happen. They checked the place out and asked us about our security/first aid procedures and spoke with all relevant heads. They said the event was fine and that we met the legal requirements even though we were cutting things to a minimum. We have since then agreed to take part in a training course they offer for event promoters in order in ensure all areas are covered as we expand in the future.
We had to have the minimum amount of paid security as its just too expensive at this stage to pay for a full team. We have to pay a huge amount out to get the bands together in order to make such an event worthwhile. We were also taken by surprise with the shear amount of people that actually turned up to the event on the day, I suppose that’s a good thing as it means it’s been a huge success. We have learned from that and we want to quadruple the amount of stewards managing the event next year.
Just to clarify we did have Official SIA holders on security and several licensed first aiders at all times during the event. Their contact numbers were on posters around the campus and all the stewards/organisers/staff had access to them. They were always in the loop and communication between all heads was upheld all weekend.
Ill I can say is that, I care deeply about the music the bands and the fans and I do the best I can to make the event as good as possible each year. I am still new to this I don’t know all the answers, I know that with the team we now have things will be running like clock work this year and every year from now and that all of the issues addressed above will be 100% taken care of.
If any of you guys wish to contact me personally please do, I am happy to take feedback or advice from you all and I would like to answer any questions you have for me. Contact me via [email protected] and I will get back to you.
Cheers guys, I hope you still enjoyed yourselves and I urge you to continue your support for Tech Fest and help us to grow and improve each year, the bands and musicians really do need it – Simon
30/07/2013 at 8:55 am
Simon, firstly, I just want to say the fact you nabbed Veil Of Maya, Scar Symmetry and Skyharbor this year, literally blew my mind – that kind of coup d’état is going make people take you extremely seriously in the future! Secondly, it’s far easier to criticise the small things than to say thankyou for the big thing, so thankyou for putting TechFest together this year and for your determination to improve. I hope my review summary of “We simply can’t remember having more fun in a field” provides sufficient heart and motivation to make next year’s line-up and event organisation even better!
30/07/2013 at 11:55 am
Cheers John, it means a lot, I can only try my hardest. I do need people to help me do this, and now finally I have a team of people behind me. They are advising me on the business and organization side of things and also on event security/safety. We are spending the next few months together searching for new venues that are going to be much more professional and reliable. We are also fine tuning the organization process so that Tech Fest will improve on everything we have learned and more!
Thanks again – Simon
07/08/2013 at 11:44 am
Right that’s it! No more anonymous slagging off posts at the promoter will be published (thank’s very much for your insightful message Homer Simpson!) Simon has left his contact details on the post above so please either contact him there or via the Techfest Facebook if you want to air your grievances.
The editor has spoken!