大象传媒

For the second year running, a corner of the biggest temporary city in the country will be distinctly Mancunian as Concrete Recordings host the Late鈥橬鈥橪ive stage, somewhere the stage organiser Sarah describes as having "a mellow vibe by day, getting pretty heavy as the night goes on."

"Back in 2004, we produced a compilation of the finalists from the Glastonbury Festival's Unsigned Bands competition. A couple of thousand entrants had got so far that we felt it would be nice to represent that achievement and, in true Glasto style, raise a little cash for charity.

"It was hailed 'the most ethically sound album ever' by the NME. So it seemed logical to sell it at the festival and we traded there from a sort of leaking shack. So many bands were involved that it became a meeting place for everyone and it seemed a natural progression to have a venue in 2005."

The more (musicians), the merrier

The stage takes up the ethos of the original compilation, not just in who it puts on, says Sarah, but also how it deals with them and the inevitable Glasto issue of people trying to blag their way in on the back of it.

"There's no red carpet treatment either. We'd rather use our ticket allocation to get as many new bands on than have an entourage of supposed guitar technicians and the like. That way everyone is directly involved and at the risk of sounding too cheesy, it creates a real family-like atmosphere."

If music be the food...

That atmosphere will be complimented this time around by the catering of another set of Mancs, the catering and bar wonders Kro, something that Sarah is really looking forward to.

"I think it'll be fantastic. They just seem to get behind whatever they do so much and get it right. The menu is great and you don't even have to pay by cash, which is a big plus at the festival.

Manchesterbury?

But for all the food treats, the Live鈥橬鈥橪ate stage will be mostly about the music. Concrete have been careful not to favour Manchester artists, but as Sarah puts it, "Manchester is such a hub for talent from so many regions.

"About a half of the line-up are runners up or winners of this year's Glastonbury Emerging Talent competition. The rest we chose. The fact that this year's overall Emerging Talent winner is Manchester's Liz Green and that The Deadbeats won in 2005 just says it all!"

Of course, at any stage, it鈥檚 not just about the live music but also the people spinning the sounds in-between sets. For Concrete, there were some names that simply had to come with them to entertain the hordes, though there is one name that stands out to Sarah.

Where reality ends...

And while the label are entertaining the masses, what of Sarah鈥檚 Glastonbury? True to her own stages ethos, she鈥檚 there more for the experience than the Pyramid Stage.

"Personally, I'm not really that bothered about the bigger names as I can see them back in Manchester but I am looking forward to living in a temporary city in a field, and to those unpredictable Glastonbury moments when the line betwixt reality and fantasy is truly shaken!"

The Live鈥橬鈥橪ate stage is at Glastonbury from Thurs 21 to Sun 24 June, located just to the back of the Other Stage, next to the Orange Phone Charge Tent.