Blue Dot - Review
25 July 2019 - EditorialJust three years ago, when Blue Dot made its debut on the UK festival calendar, the organisers must have had their eye on 2019. Set among the grounds of recently-crowned UNESCO World Heritage Site of Jodrell Bank Observatory outside Macclesfield, the 50th anniversary of the moon landings touched down square in spectacular style in the middle of this science-themed gathering, providing a fitting theme for three days of science, music, comedy and the usual festival fun.
Blue Dot is a collaboration between the Observatory and organisers From The Fields, who are also known for Kendal Calling, Off The Record (a music conference and showcase in Manchester’s Northern Quarter) and the Inner City Electronic festival taking place in Leeds. From The Fields first contacted the Observatory several years ago and found that they were keen to engage new audiences. This led to the Live at Jodrell Bank series of concerts, showcasing Flaming Lips, Sigur Ros and Elbow among others.
Realising that Jodrell Bank’s out-of-town location made it a little difficult to draw large crowds for a single evening, the organisers went back to the drawing board, and came up with Blue Dot, a well-mixed hybrid of music, art and technology.
Realising that Jodrell Bank’s out-of-town location made it a little difficult to draw large crowds for a single evening, the organisers went back to the drawing board, and came up with Blue Dot, a well-mixed hybrid of music, art and technology.
The science content is curated by the Observatory, and as you’d imagine, over this weekend in this location, it came together remarkably well.
At over 75 metres in breadth, and the centrepiece of this most rockstar division of the University of Manchester, is the Lovell Telescope. The intricate white steelwork was imaginatively used throughout the weekend, particularly effectively as a projection screen timed with audio of Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins’ exploits half a century ago amplified across the night sky.
Late on Saturday night, minutes before the anniversary Moon landing moment, we were treated to Manchester Professor of Astrophysics Tim O’Brien linking up with the Dwingeloo Telescope in the Netherlands to bounce audience messages off the Moon, with Jodrell Bank’s Mark II Telescope tasked with catching the echo.
Phrases from the audience like ‘take me to your leader” and “are you made of cheese?”, were skyped to the Netherlands and from there transmitted to the Moon, before bouncing back to Jodrell Bank back slightly muffled but clearly audible a few seconds later after a round trip of nearly 1/2m miles. Arguably the ultimate in festival night time tech installations.
But you didn’t need to be science-minded to enjoy the weekend, with festival-goers treated to an intergalactic wealth of musical riches including Jon Hopkins, John Grant, Jarvis Cocker, Elder Island, 808 State, GoGo Penguin, Sons of Kemet, Daniel Miller, Kinkajous, Jerry Dammers and many more. Organiser Ben Robinson admitted he may have created a rod for his own back in terms of matching this pedigree next year.
Three bonafide capital H Headliners did not disappoint. Hot Chip, now with a generous back catalogue of mud-pounding hits, were the most recent graduates of Blue Dot’s Stellar line-up, holding their own against Kraftwerk’s mesmerizing (albeit historical) 3D set a day later. Come Sunday, as light rain began simultaneously to Sumner et al’s arrival on stage, there was a minor fear that Blue Dot might be prematurely extinguished. Instead, local boys New Order thrilled a crowd with arguably the most invigorating and showstopping performance of the festival, with hits from Joy’s Division’s Unknown Pleasures through to their most recent album, Music Complete.
Later that evening, following Derrick Carter’s near-trademark Discotheque – which, as well as receiving a solid 5 stars for danceability, ought to have come with a warning about drinking wet confetti that had fallen into your limited edition tumbler – we stumbled upon a 3D installation of AV samples deep in the woods. Projected on a near-invisible screen that created picture-perfect holograms, the samples were being expertly triggered to create a musical performance. Recognising one of the ones used, we felt a rush of excitement, and sure enough, when the show was over, there was Hexstatic founder Stuart Warren-Hill, displaying remarkable modesty about his latest Holotronica project.
Blue Dot’s capacity grew by 3,000 to 16,000 this year, which Ben Robinson confirmed would be the festival’s ceiling, noting an aspiration towards quality rather than volume. In truth, the only element that gave us pause for thought were the pricey luxury showers – £39 for unlimited use if booked in advance, or £15 a pop once there – and the only option for standard campers who wanted to enjoy their excursion cleansed with more than just a wet wipe.
With a 25% increase in capacity, this year could have been a case of one small step for man but a truly giant leap for Blue Dot. However, if quality was the overriding goal, then 2019’s edition completed its mission expertly.
Sam Shemtob
Derrick Carter's Discotheque Credit: George Harrison
Guess Who! Credit: Jody Hartley
Kraftwerk - Credit: Lucas Sinclair
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