A wee quickie for May Day Monday… and the last time I’ll mention T in the Park, not least because of the gracious comments made by Mr Geoff Ellis on the pages of this very website a wee while back, despite the ranting tone of my piece.

In that same blog, I had wondered out loud whether selling my T tickets and heading to Latitude instead would backfire with many bands still to be added to the T bill.

I needn’t have worried.

Both festivals announced some line-up additions last week and both were in keeping with my current feelings about my musical summer.

For Latitude we had the mighty Frightened Rabbit (yes, them again!), These New Puritans – producers of one of this year’s best and most menacing albums so far - and the blissed out School of Seven Bells.

There were a handful of others that I hadn’t heard of but this built nicely on an announcement earlier on in the month that included the Kissaway Trail, Tokyo Police Club, First Aid Kit and Black Mountain.

I’m doing my best not to get too annoyed about the involvement of those peddlers of saccharine shite that are the Feeling, but at the end of the day that’s one duff band out of 70+. Even if they don’t clash with someone decent there could still be fun to be had by turning up for their set with some empty bottles and a full bladder.

And T in the Park?

- Joshua Radin who’s having his album plugged via the medium of TV advertising. Sounds like American MOR dross.

- Unicorn Kid who I saw for about two minutes last year and couldn’t stand.

- Unfunny musical pranksters 3OH!3.

- Kids in Glass Houses for the emos.

- Eminem cronies D12. 

That’s the most recent announcement.

On the upside the Drums, Ash, Bunnymen and few other decent acts were announced. Hypnotic Brass Ensemble would also make for an intriguing spectacle, but it’s not enough to make me think again.

Lovely folkie Laura Marling and NYC experimentalists Yeasayer popped up too, but they’re already on the Latitude bill joining Dirty Projectors, Mumford and Sons and the aforementioned Black Mountain among the handful of bands playing both.

So that leaves a very short list of really good acts that I’ll be missing out on – The Cribs, Biffy Clyro (look I like ‘em, ok?!?), Broken Social Scene and Four Tet (and don’t bet against the latter two playing ‘you know where’). I think I can live with that.

But if you’re going to T, please enjoy it. I doubt a moaning muso like me will change your opinion on the whole shebang. But in my absence, make sure you patrol the wee stages for the up and coming, more obscure acts.

And please god stay away from Pete Doherty and Babyshambles, I wouldn’t want you to catch anything…

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