It's an understatement to say that the Access Festival got off to a soggy start - howling winds and hammering rain almost put a dampener on the whole thing. Not to mention the fact that one of the stages had blown down!
 | | The Shan |
Festival organisers and musicians struggled to keep equipment dry and people huddled in the beer tent in an attempt to keep out of the rain. It looked as though it was all going to be a bit of a wash-out. Thankfully, the sun finally squeezed its way through the dark clouds and the festival, which supports the local charity The Society of St. James, got underway. With the Hobbit stage cancelled, it was up to the bands on the Soul Cellar stage to get the party started.
 | | Music fans in Mayflower Park |
Kicking things off were Brown with their Jamiroquai-tinged funk. A small crowd had braved the weather and were in good spirits as the band's jazzy vibes set the feel-good tone for the day. Young, funky six-piece The Shan came next, complete with a brass section and some Chilli Pepper style jangly guitars, followed by rocking indie four-piece Murmur whose grungy tunes and strutting singer lured a few moshing blokes to the stage.
 | | Fleeingnewyork |
As the day wore on, the sun continued to shine coaxing more and more people into the park to listen to some live music in the open air. The Soul Cellar DJ kept the festival vibe going between bands by spinning some seriously jazzed-up funk while those lively, jaunty chaps The Sways got a few more bodies dancing with their happy-go-lucky tunes. Energetic six-piece SixNationState came on stage in a swirl of sharp suits and swaggering style. The boy/girl vocals fuelled their fast and furious rock which had a definite Merseybeat edge and the band's cover of The Beatles' Helter Skelter seemed to go down well with the Access crowd. Southampton's art-house indie rockers Dead! Dead! Dead! found themselves playing their first outdoor gig together but rose to the occasion delivering their songs with their usual finesse. Meanwhile solo artist Steve Lowis, who was originally set to play on the Hobbit Stage, squeezed in a short and sweet acoustic set to entertain the audience while the next band set up.
 | | Smerins Anti-Social Club |
Rising rock trio Fleeingnewyork had a lot of fans in the crowd judging by the banners and heckles that came from the audience and they blazed their way through a whirlwind set of punchy tunes including their new single Up, Up, Up, Up. Despite threatening the festival all day, the lurking dark clouds kept their distance and as the day wound to a close, the sounds of headliners Smerins Anti-Social Club could be heard wafting around Mayflower Park. Their infectiously funky ska tunes and full on brass ensemble were a definite hit with the windswept, rosy-cheeked Access crowd who jumped to their feet and danced as the sun went down. Check out our photos of the festival by clicking on the Access Festival Gallery link at the top right hand side of this page. | 
