Rhythms of the World

The day started off lovely and sunny! The festival has been running for 20 years but this was our debut at the Hitchin Priory. A great venue with seven stages, good viewing, food and drink at reasonable prices and an emphasis on welcoming families. Unlike the greedy and incompetent lot who organised the Elton John concert at Hatfield House, the organisers of RotW encouraged people to bring picnics and allowed festival goers to bring their own alcohol. The only downer? You guessed, the English summer weather...



They may sound like a box of matches but the Swanvesta Social Club's Afro-Caribbean rhythms were lively and put the audience in a happy bouncy mood. We loved Randolph Matthews and his soulful vocal melodies, fusing musical styles from around the world. The Welsh folk group Calan were great, including clog dancing and energetic foot tapping songs to keep spritis up during the downpours.


Best of the evening for us were the top class rock and rollers, The Monsters and the blast from the past, the 80s horrible Thatcher era, The Selecter and their hypnotic ska beats.

We'll be back for the 21st I hope.