Yes says Nicky Wire of Manic Street Preachers
"I've always hated festivals. From the very start of the Manics, me and Richey used to live by what Pete Townshend said at Woodstock: 'so much for peace and love, all I saw was mud and people smoking marijuana.'"
"The first festival I ever went to was Womad in 1985 or 1986 with James [Dean Bradfield). Siouxsie And The Banshees were headlining, but we wanted to see The Blue Aeroplanes and The Shop Assistants. It was horrible, everything I'd imagined festivals to be: all these people eating tofu and doing t'ai chi. It rained non-stop and me and James ended up sleeping under a bin-liner - your classic festival experience."
"The fist big one we did with the Manics was Reading in '94. It was a big gig for us at the time. I don't know why, but as soon as I got onstage I said, 'God, you lot stink.' I don't know what came over me. Then I smashed up my bass and tried to throw it into the crowd, but I was so weak it only reached a security guard and broke his shoulder. I was really fed up on the tour bus afterwards, but it was all worth it the next week.I'd been wearing a dress and MM and NME both had a picture of me on the cover. It was a great moment: we'd upstaged the headliners. So I'll
concede that festivals can be crucial turning points in a band's career."
"The one incident everyone remembers about the Manics is Glastonbury 94 when I said, 'Someone ought to build a bypass over this shithole' onstage. It was meant as a joke, but of course it caused a big furore. It was a bit like when you read an oasis interview - some things that are meant as jokes just don't translate into print. Which brings me to Toiletgate (Glastonbury1999). I have to exonerate James and Sean Moore from any blame - it was entirely my fault. We were headlining and I insisted we had separate toilets because I couldn't stand the idea of sharing the loos with all these other bands. I mean, how awful! All that fucking fake bonhomie between bands backstage. How great we all are, how amazing the vibe is. NO, it isn't, it's horrible, and you're talking total bullshit."
"Needless to say, I loathe 'festival bands', too: Travis, Robbie Williams...it's the sort of music liked by people who buy one CD and who go to one gig a year. And the gig of course, is a festival..."
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