Beastie Boys headline Bestival


Photo by Rocket Stu

I'm not sure what happened at Bestival, but most of the reviews I've found on the Beastie Boys' headlining set on Saturday are negative. I've been waiting to publish what little information I found on the show in hopes that I'd find some good fan reviews. That's not happening.

Did the Beastie Boys deliver a bad set or are British festival-goers overly harsh critics? How bad could a show in which Mike Diamond renamed the Isle of Wight (the location of the festival) to the Isle of Mike be?

Setlist*
MMM Intro
Time for Living [video]
Triple Trouble [video (with Sure Shot)]
Sure Shot [video]
Root Down
Off the Grid
B for My Name
Electric Worm
No Sleep Til Brooklyn
Ch-Check It Out
3 MCs and 1 DJ [video]
Intergalactic
Heart Attack Man
Sabotage

One blogger reports that they performed "Rhymin' and Stealin'." They have not performed that song in over 12 years.

*Incomplete

Press
  • Bestival Day 2 report by MTV UK
  • Concert review by Daily Telegraph
  • Brief concert review by The Sun
  • Festival review by The Guardian Ouch!

    Opinion (via Blog Search)*
    *Uncredited on purpose

    "There can't be many bands that actually sound worse when they pick up their instruments, but the Beastie Boys headline performance at Bestival was a surprising let-down...I don't normally begrudge a change in direction for a band, but this is too much and they must be stopped. The crowd were leaving in droves."

    "The Beastie Boys played a disjointed Saturday set which failed to hit the right balance between their new instrumental album and classic hits like 'Sabotage' and 'Heart Attack Man.'"

    "The Beasties were quality, and the mixmaster was on top form. It wasn't nearly as crowded as I expected for the headline headliner, but we had fun all the same. They left a huge gap between set and encore. I got a little worried they weren't coming back. But eventually my head was blown off by the opening bars of 'Intergalatic' and the world was good."

    "For me this was a set of two halves. When they boys rocked out the classics like 'Sabotage,' 'Intergalactic,' 'Check It Out,' etc., the place was on fire. There wasn’t a still body in the house. But they also dug into their punk rock back catalogue, which may have been better enjoyed by a group of 14-year-old boys moshing in a basement, as well as their new instrumental stuff, which was good but not for party o’clock, although I was surprised how instrumentally competent they were."

    "With a set that spanned their career, they sure as fuck didn't disappoint. Ending with 'Sabotage' was a good move, as it made an entire festival spaz right out."


    Photos

  • 8 comments:

    9:25 AM Anonymous said...

    The reviews are strange. Perhaps the Beastie Boys are tired of touring and the audience felt it in their performance.

    Any reviews for the gala event?

    9:31 AM Hot Sauce said...

    I found only a few fan reviews of the Gala Event at Bestival. They're more positive than the reviews for this show.

    10:28 AM Anonymous said...

    mca got his answer to whether the UK press likes him or not

    1:31 PM Anonymous said...

    festival audiences are fickle. there's no pleasing them.

    most people only know the band's name & several hits. they are disappointed if they don't hear the hits in concert.

    1:43 AM Anonymous said...

    ouch.

    10:25 AM Anonymous said...

    Bestival has a young audience. The kids are all about drinking and dancing to techno.

    4:33 PM Anonymous said...

    ^That's what most festivals are about. :D

    5:15 PM Chris Oliver said...

    You're wrong about "Rhymin' and Stealin'". I just saw them do that song on the Ill Communication tour, and that was just...let's see...2007 minus 1995...carry the two...oh shit, I'M OLD! How did that happen? (Too bad though--that's my fav from License to Ill)

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