HAVING wreaked Biblical devastation on Britain’s biggest rock festival on Friday, an angry God seemed keen to make amends on Saturday by sending his earthly representative, Bob Geldof, to unite the crowd in hand-holding solidarity with Africa.
It felt like a classic Glastonbury moment when overflowing toilets and lakes of mud were briefly forgotten in the name of a higher cause. The rains did not return on Saturday, mercifully, although most bands still played to crowds standing knee-deep in gloopy brown slurry.
The two main stages hosted a kind of Graduation Day for the latest crop of Britpop contenders including the Kaiser Chiefs, Futureheads and Kasabian, the four-piece band from Leicester who enhanced their growing reputation with a thunderous display on Saturday night.
All played rowdy, bouncy sets to appreciative young crowds.
Likewise Razorlight, who were virtual unknowns when they played a low-key midday set at last year’s Glastonbury, but leapfrogged up this year’s bill to headline the Other Stage. Even to non-converts like myself, their ragged, punk-pop clamour sounded brashly impressive under the starry Somerset sky.
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By an odd coincidence, all the big Pyramid Stage acts were dressed head to toe in black. Perhaps puppyish soft-rock trio Keane believed a little funereal ambience would lend gravitas to their early evening set of infectiously melodic but lightweight sub-Coldplay sing- alongs. If so, they were wrong.
Also garbed in black were the Manchester legends New Order, who warmed up the Pyramid Stage for Coldplay with a stirring set of 1980s classics spiced with tracks from their new album, Waiting For The Sirens’ Call.
Trading affectionate insults like an old married couple, Bernard Sumner and Peter Hook dedicated tunes to the late John Peel and their former Joy Division singer, Ian Curtis.
Ana Matronic from Scissor Sisters made a superfluous guest appearance, as did comedian Keith Allen, arriving on a pantomime horse for a chaotic version of the football anthem World In Motion. On the cusp of 50, New Order increasingly resemble puffed-out suburban dads on their way home from a hearty pub lunch. But even so, soaring disco-rock classics such as Regret and Bizarre Love Triangle still sound ageless and immortal.
Traditionally seen as the mood-defining high point of Glastonbury, Saturday night’s headline set belonged to Coldplay, who rose to the occasion with 90 stirring minutes of sensitive majesty and polite emotional fireworks.
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Singer Chris Martin was in playful mood, referencing the Crazy Frog novelty single that recently kept Coldplay from the Number One slot, and paying eccentric homage to farmer Michael Eavis by scrawling the festival host’s name across his knees.
A minor-key cover version of Kylie Minogue’s signature hit Can’t Get You Out Of My Head was another nice touch, an elegant tribute to the absent Australian pop princess and a little bit of much-needed magic in a long weekend of mud and misery.