Sunday 16/07/06 Day 3 @ Latitude Festival, Henham Park, Suffolk

    Something's been bugging Gigwise since we got to Latitude Festival two days ago. It's not the weather (beautiful) or the people (lovely, and almost always skimpily dressed) or even the eclectic line up of bands, who, on the whole have been as exciting as any event we've been to in years. It's just that… everything at Latitude is TOO nice, too perfect. Even the sheep in the petting zoo are well behaved. We don't live in fear of a burning latrine flying into our tent at midnight, or a muddy hippy expiring in a field – in short, it doesn't feel completely real. Mean Fiddler have taken all the best ideas from Glastonbury and created the perfect festival, but have lost some of the soul. Not that we're complaining though, we'd certainly pay to come back next year - and every punter is having a great time. Perhaps all it needs is some mud.

Musically, all is well. Over at the Sunrise Arena – certainly the best of the weekend – is hotly tipped Glaswegian Paolo Nutini, bringing a bit of chart pop to the proceedings. Already bothering the Top 20 despite his tender years (19) Nutini's blues rock has led to a Rolling Stones support slot (and how many bands today can claim that?) To call him the next James Blunt would be a disservice, his songs are catchy enough to match the ****'s ubiquity, but he's charming, good looking, effusive and actually very talented. What's more, he's even got the songs to back it up – 'Last Request' and 'Loving You' may sound like cheese drenched ballads, but live, Paolo wins the skeptics over with his growly soul-howl. We'll probably have to eat our words when he becomes the most hated performer in Britain, but at the moment, he's enjoyable enough.

Paolo manages the difficult task of actually filling one of the tents at Latitude – something almost no other performer could do. So it's not surprising, when we rush over to get to the Uncut Arena to see the Mystery Jets that we appear to be the only people there. Surely the festival crowd has heard of Eel Pie Island's most famous residents? As it is, the crowd fills up a little during their set, which is a typically boisterous affair, opening with 'The Boy Who Ran Away' and 'You Can't Fool Me Dennis,' but it feels a little unfair on the boys (and Dad) who seem to be putting in much more effort than their audience. You have to wonder why, despite the cultural riches around the site, people have ignored a shining light on the new music scene.

Well, it's because the entire festival crowd has gone to see Jose sodding Gonzalez, that's why. Not since Elvis Presley on the Ed Sullivan show has one man with a guitar caused such a stir – 'that song of the advert with the balls' has become the casual music fan's favourite song, and his album, ‘Veneer’ has propelled him to almost unreasonable levels of success. But, is it just us, (and tell us if it is, we won't mind) but do Jose's songs have a gorgeous build up… and no chorus? Seriously, 'Heartbeats,' 'Stay in the Shade' and 'Crosses' are beautiful, finger-picked little ditties, but they hit the bridge, and keep going, and going, and going… Only 'Hand on Your Heart,' has a jaw-dropping moment when the chords change, and everything falls into place. And it was written by Kylie. Still, it doesn't deter an normous crowd. We can't really hold it against him, the poor Swedish mite looks absolutely terrified facing down the rapturous crowd, and he can't even bring himself to speak during songs but really, does Jose really deserve this, especially at the fantastic Mystery Jets' expense?

As we leave, we happen to saunter past the Lake Stage on the way to the toilets, and are stopped dead in our tracks by a stunning chanteuse wearing elbow-length gloves and an expression of pure, unalloyed sultriness. No, it's not another one of those performance artists, rather it's Paris Motel on the Lake Stage. They probably won't ring too many bells with readers, but trust us, they're pretty special. Continuing a good line of female-fronted bands over the weekend, Amy May and a bunch of smartly dressed gentlemen put in a mesmerizing performance of ethereal pop. A couple of the ones we caught, 'I Lost My Heart,' and 'Static Song' are absolute beauts, and they'll hopefully be breaking onto the London scene soon.