Alternative rock bands billed for Soundstation's Main Stage: Graham Coxon, Orson, Guillemots, Boy Kill Boy, The Crimea, The Rifles, V//Formation, Switches, The Big Bang and local new band My Alamo.
 | | Switches on stage |
Dance acts due to appear in the B-Live Arena; Kenny Dope, Mr Scruff, Quantic, Bugz In The Attic and the Yesking Soundsystem. Also noted; no Glastonbury-style mud, and lots of clean chemical toilets. Eric, from Surrey, with brother Guy, a PHD student in Birmingham, was watching the bands on the main stage. Soon-to-be-a-doctor Guy's diagnosis, three bands in:
 | | Eric, with brother Guy |
"My Alamo - never heard of them before, but really good sound - really enjoyed it - might check out their CD. "Big Bang - not really my sort of thing - more sort of punk, but still quite good. "The Switches - best band so far - they had a vibe about them - quite arrogant which is great. They got the crowd going, I think. "We're here to see Graham Coxon - liked him in Blur - and Orson as well, and Boy Kill Boy."
 | | Main Stage |
Rebecca, from Lichfield, was at Soundstation with her sister Louisa. Why are you here, Louisa? "To see Graham! And the Guillemots - they're my friends." Are they? "No." You'd like to be their friend, Louisa? "Yes - they're good." Rebecca: "This festival needs to get warmed up a bit. I'm sure it'll get busier."
 | | Inside the dance tent |
A festival? Birmingham? Why? I asked Nick Morgan, one of Soundstation's organisers. "Because there aren't any festivals of this scale, I don't think, in Birmingham." he replied. "There's lots of other peripheral festivals like Capsule, Supersonic - lots of other things - but not, on this sort of scale, where we're crossing over to mainstream, with bands like Orson.
 | | V//Formation on stage |
"The closest is the V Festival, at the end of August - there's nothing else really. We're opening the season here in Birmingham. "We're just doing rounds now - probably between three and four thousand people have attended - so we're really happy on year one. There's a really good vibe as well, about the place. Everyone I'm speaking to is really happy. "It's been really good - an intimate festival feel - I think it has worked really well.
 | | Yesking Soundsystem on stage |
"We hope we'll be back next year - we've been working with the council, and all of our sponsors... we're alreadyÌý thinking about a headline act for next year. And no, I'm not telling - not yet." The last words to Ruth Wright, Clare Samuel and Hanna Bushell who were heading back to the site. "It looks good so far - it's very cosy" said Hanna, of the festival.
 | | Ruth, Clare and Hanna |
Clare: "It's got a good range of music - it has got everything, from hip-hop to more indie bands and that's perfect for us as a group of friends, to come together. "We're looking forward to Mr Scruff and the Crimea - a bit of both. That's what this festival has, a bit of both." | 
