All Tomorrows Parties Film Screening & Live Show With Les Savy Fav @ TJ's Woodhouse Club, 27 October 2009

'Indie'. These days a word synonymous with the top forty, arena concerts and the most mainstream of exposure. Once upon a time none of this mattered, it was a time when playing to just a handful of diehard fans was more than enough, and it's a time that ATP founder Barry Hogan knows all too well. It's an ethos that always has and always will provide the backbone for the All Tomorrow’s Parties festival, now more than ever as it rolls through its tenth year.

In what has become more of a movement than a concert, the past decade has seen an impressive list of curators showcasing the talents of some of the most unsung heroes of modern music: Shellac, Mudhoney, My Bloody Valentine, Suicide, Daniel Johnston and The Jesus Lizard to name a few.

The 'All Tomorrow's Parties' film only looks to cement the reputation of what has arguably become the most prolific celebration of underground music the world over, all held inside the confines of Minehead's very own Butlin's resort. Those looking to savour a selection of live music clips by their favourite bands may be disappointed, as it soon becomes clear that the festival and its spirit is the headline act here, in what is essentially a retrospective biopic told by both the curators and Hogan himself.

Beginning in the Butlin’s resort with the 1999 Belle and Sebastian curated 'Bowlie Weekender’; we're guided through the years by the odd 30-second live music clip alongside some hand-held camera work that fully immerses the watcher into the festival atmosphere. It's the footage of pure inebriation, the room parties, pranks and in-crowd antics that really pull you into the film. Set aside clips of intimate performances by Daniel Johnston, Lightning Bolt, A Hawk and a Hacksaw and a night time Saul Williams freestyle, the true spirit of the weekender comes to life. Never has a festival focused so heavily on being ‘for the fans’.

Seamlessly edited together with old resort footage and new festival moments; Super8, camcorder and even mobile phones provide the visuals. Each weaves their way through the carnage of a decade of performances and recklessness in a cool eighty minutes that left me with the sudden urge to up sticks and move to Minehead.

“We were there when the world got great, and we have to make it that way,” chants a crowd surrounding Les Savy Fav front man Tim Harrington as the film draws to a close. It seems as though All Tomorrow’s Parties can, if only for a weekend.

Tonight though, it’s Les Savy Fav themselves who’ll have to do.

They may not be the most prolific of bands in terms of releases, but by God do they know how to put on a show. The always enigmatic Harrington approaches the stage in typical stage attire. Tonight, he’s a mime artist, complete with wig, striped shirt and make-up. “We brought bread... its French,” he mumbles, ripping apart a loaf before hurling it into the crowd. I guess that means he’s a French mime artist.

It’s never a dull moment as Harrington runs riot both on stage and in the crowd, gradually undressing himself before returning to cover himself in paint and lipstick, of course adorning his band mates with some mid-song. Cross dressing and indie-punk have never worked so well together. ‘The Equestrian’, ‘Patty Lee’ and ‘Stay With Me Tonight’ are played out with utter precision as Harrington continues being the showman. “That was extraordinary. It’s one of the hallmarks of our band,” he quips with childlike assurance. Still, I have to admit, it’s the truth.

Tonight I find myself desperately wondering just why this band doesn’t have the following they deserve. Is it something to do with the lizard costume Harrington returns in for the encore? It can’t be. The lengthy breaks between albums? Probably not. No, just like ATP, Les Savy Fav have always done what they do just for the fans. If this means diverting their mass appeal by donning lipstick and rubbing sweat onto the audience, then so be it, because I know I’m in.

All Tomorrow's Parties is out on DVD from November 9th 2009.