Sunday 31/05/09 Wychwood Festival 2009, Day Three @ Cheltenham Race Course, Gloucestershire

The third and final day of this family-friendly fiesta saw the organisers being brave enough to hand over the main, Independent newspaper sponsored stage in it's entirety over to folk and World music artists with anything resembling popular or rock music being relegated to the two smaller venues.  However, the quality of the acts more than justified their confidence.

German folk-reggae act Shtetl Superstars bring us their irreverent, comedic and catchy tales of modern European life and have the whole of Wychwood on their feet and dancing in the hot afternoon sun. Whilst the Superstars entertained, the following act Justin Adams and Juldeh Camara are an unexpected sensation. This collaboration between seasoned guitarist and producer Justin Adams and Gambian ritti (a one string African fiddle) virtuoso Camara has produced two albums, the highly acclaimed 'Soul Science'  and it's award winning follow-up 'Tell No Lies' that combine driving blues rhythms with the transcendental beauty of West African strings and tribal beats. This is fusion at it's best, and though the quality of Adams' vocals don't quite match up to those of his partner altogether this is a truly exceptional performance.

Offerings elsewhere on the site also manage to impress. Underground songwriting sensation Josh Vizor stepped out of the shadows and onto a festival stage for the first time for the early slot in the Big Top, and his beautiful, heart-felt melodies sweep you away to an even more idyllic place than the festival occupies and deserved a far bigger audience then the time-slot allowed. A little later in the day the tent plays host to talented Mancunian five piece Rook and the Ravens. This young Americana infused indie group are becoming regulars on the festival circuit thanks to their well crafted up-beat and remarkably versatile sound, aided and abetted by having three equally able vocalists sharing mic duties. Ranging from Coral-esque west-coast vibes to the best of indie-pop, hopefully these boys are the shape of things to come. Next on the bill are Dakota, a four-piece who come over as nothing more than a blander popier clone of Britpop maestros Suede right down to their Brett Anderson look-a-like front man Ben Talbot. Uninspiring stuff that receives little more than polite applause from the few people watching. Luckily one of the bigger names of the day are next up, hotly tipped as one of the bands of 2009 and beloved by both NME and Radio 1 alt-rock band Red Light Company. The band who's début album 'Fine Fascination' charted at number 13 back in March this year are a dynamic and exciting presence on stage and their technical and well executed, joyously triumphal and powerful songs such as 'Meccano' and 'Scheme Eugene' are instant hits that fill the lofty spaces of the tent stage in a way no other band has achieved so-far.

It's then a return to the Independent Stage for the final acts of the festival and more of the best World and fusion music around in the shape of Dub Colossus whose chilled-out blend of jazz, African music and dub was perfect to ease tired and probably sunburnt revellers through the last sunset session of this long but rewarding weekend. The final and most alternative headliners of this and possibly any festival bar WOMAD (who they are closely connected to) are Banghra-electronica  fusion drumming troop Dhol Foundation. Their unique high energy,  Indian spiced dance music revived the flagging crowds and made sure that they went home reinvigorated,with a bounce in their step, an inescapable beat in their hearts and glowing memories of the final days of May.