On the face of it, only masochists and serious rock fans should need to apply for the latest All Tomorrow’s Parties Nightmare Before Christmas fest, curated by reunited, famously bleak Canadian post-rockers Godspeed You! Black Emperor. And in the depths of midwinter things begin in barren fashion, a bill already depleted by veteran occultists Throbbing Gristle‘s cancellation further hindered by crazily-bearded former Lungfish man Daniel Higgs‘ no show (his set later rescheduled for stupid o’clock on Sunday night). That doesn’t stop Growing from unleashing their sonic colour wheel early doors on the Centre Stage though, even if the pulsating mass of vibrating electronics and guitar judders feels better suited to a late-night blowout. On the same stage, the curators remind why they became one of the most whispered about underground bands of the late 1990s/early 2000s, turning in as close to a greatest hits megamix as any multi-legged wordless dread-mongers are ever likely to detonate. Experienced English noisemaker Philip Jeck melts a few brain in Reds, but it’s DJ/ Rupture that gets the masses moving finally, throwing down a fine selection of the best juke, dancehall and weird dance you’ve never heard.
Day two dawns with typical ATP divisiveness: there’s no denying Flower/Corsano Duo are hyper-talented musicians, yet between them create nothing more than a rhythmic squall too intense to process before lunch. The same might be said of Oneida‘s epic 10-hour project The Ocropolis in the Crazy Horse, except it’s impossible to get bored with such luminaries as Deerhoof, Godspeed and White Hills dropping in to wig out, the Brooklyn warehouse psych masters’ improv marathon climaxing with a final blast through their own set of whacked-out gems. After which it’s time to get asses moving once more, breakcore scamps Shitmat and Parasite firing Amen splinters all across Crazy Horse, either side of a dash to the Centre Stage to catch evergreen Dutch agit-punks The Ex.
By Sunday, things are getting a touch fuzzy, so we swap beers for rather more civilized White Russians and prepare for the weekend’s most eclectic offerings. Rotten bastards the Country Teasers are equal measures deadpan misogyny and taut weirdness in Reds, but the real variety begins with consecutive delights from Neurosis, “Weird Al” Yankovic and Emeralds. If there’s another festival in the world that allows gut-churningly hellish heaviness followed by side-splitting comedy parodies (the first hour of “Weird Al” is unexpected genius), then ear-splitting noise washes to catalyse dead-eyed trances then we haven’t found it yet. And it’s impossible to find any remaining energy once grim updated black metallers Wolves In The Throne Room have sandblasted final resistance from aching bones on the Centre Stage, a late rally confirming ATP’s continued status as the greatest, most imaginative three-dayer on the UK calendar.
Words by Adam Anonymous
