Caribana day 2: More sun, crazy potatoes and English bands

Caribana Day 2 reviewed here by Jonas Parson - Jonas is studying at the University of Lausanne and has written various festival, band and  music reviews  for this site. All photos by Jonas. Although Caribana has a somewhat long tradition of inclement weather during the festival, it looks as though the curse has been broken after a second day of fantastic weather on the Crans lakeside. The grounds filled up gradually, as more and more people arrived to chill out and watch their favourite bands. Spirits were high as people were glad to enjoy the sun at last and sit down in the grass for a drink, some music and something to eat. The grounds are really small at Caribana, set on the lakeside with an amazing view of the lake from two of the bars, amidst trees- some of which are actually used to hold up f the lighting!  consequently, it feels really cosy.

But the price to pay for such nice settings is getting here- especially if you have to come by bus. The timetables are rather limited (two buses an hour from Nyon) to get there, and it's even worse coming back! Riding to the festival was quite an experience - even more so as we haven't gotten use to the warmth yet, and a quarter of an hour of stuffy jam-packed bus ride wasn't exactly what anybody was looking for! But what the festival lacks in organisation- you can feel this is a tiny festival, nothing on the scale of Paléo for example-, it makes up for with the settings and very tranquil spirit. This makes for a very composite crowd, families with small children, youngsters roaming around (well, roaming might not exactly be possible at Caribana, say strolling), and festival goers in their twenties - the natural fauna of a festival?- to older folk, here for a nice night out with friends. This unique setting tends to make people quite attached to this little festival, and the faithful are here every year. If you get lost or need some information, these helpful helpers will help you find your way with a smile. Strolling around the grounds, they are easily recognisable by their trendy orange waistcoats.

This year's must in term of food are these crazy potatoes- basically a long crisp rolled around a stick. Delicious and rather cool looking!

 But the success of a festival is most importantly made by the people, not by the food stalls, (although there are quite a few really nice ones, including a delicious

bar), so here's the portrait of a couple of people met on the grounds. First of all, Petros, this lively young man originally from Zambia has been living in Switzerland for 6 years, and spends the festival season going around Switzerland selling hats and sunglasses- the typical festival stall. Last week was Festineuch, then there'll be Greenfield, before Montreux Jazz and Paleo in July. What a life! Dancing and saluting passers by in front of his stall when he wasn't selling a pair of bright pink sunglasses, he was slightly critical of the music coming from the stage, although it didn't stop him from dancing to it.

Valerie and Pierre-André came all the way from Fribourg to watch Archive - Pierre-André had seen them in Cannes this year and wanted to take his partner to see them, even in crutches, as this was Archive's only concert in Switzerland! They really enjoyed the unique atmosphere of this small festival, and were appreciating the view over the lake when I met them. Regular festival goers, they then choose the night they'll come on depending on the line-up. They were really impressed with how well they were welcomed and helped, what with the crutches and all. Spread out in the grass, a cloth bag on his head, Jorisse was hard to miss, in a very festivalish attitude. Come from Yverdon with Marion to see The Heavy, it was his first time at Caribana, and he was really enjoying the atmosphere of the small festival. Marion suggested that there should be a holiday after each festival, as getting up next morning was always a bit of a challenge...

 The evening kicked off with "Take Me Home", a pop band from Geneva. The three musicians were quite energetic, even though the crowd wasn't very big and a lot of people were just sitting around having a drink. But by the time 77 Bombay Street came on stage on the main stage, the grounds were full and people were pressing forward to watch the Swiss German quartet of brothers. In their trademark uniforms, and with lots of punch they charmed their audience with all of their most famous songs, from "Up in the Sky", to "47 Millionaires" and "I love Lady Gaga". Although the crowd was quite calm to start with, everybody was clapping to the music at the end of the concert, and the most dedicated fans at the front were dancing about. The band thanked the crowd and promised they would be back soon!

Next on was Andy Burrows. This multi-talented musician from Winchester (he started of as a drummer, and plays the drums for We are scientists, but also plays solo as a guitarist and songwriter) delivered his folky 

indie-pop for the delight of the crowd in front of the

scène du lac.

He made everyone happy, from the enthusiasts who wanted to dance, to the people who were glad to be able to sit down and have a bite while listening to some nice music- neither too calm as to make you fall asleep, nor too loud to make it impossible to have a chat. Burrows himself was quite lively, never standing still - as you can see on the photo below, he even played while standing on one foot for some reason! The crowd had grown constantly since the beginning of the evening, and it was now hard to make your way through the festival, zigzagging between people sitting down or queuing for food. By the way, you can always tell when you're in a festival in Switzerland. It's that place where you can still get to eat a

raclette

and see people walking around with bottles of Swiss wine and wine glasses.

As there are only two stages on the grounds, the schedule is quite tight- one band at a time playing alternately on the main stage and the "lake" stage. Night was falling as Archive walked on stage, with their new and charismatic young vocalist, who brought soul touches to the trip-hop of this British band. Starting off with three of the band on the keyboards, and quite a melodic tune, they then went on to some heavier stuff, to the delight of the crowd gathered to see them. Never too young for a festival! A lot of kids came to watch the music with their parents, enjoying the sweet stall on site and watching the music as best they could, whether on the shoulders of their parents or sitting on a rubbish bin.

 As the night fell, I came across two kids fast asleep next to their mother, lying down on a rug behind the crowd in front of the Archive concert

The rouge FM bar even has a game of Just Dance! much to the pleasure and amusement of these ladies. Getting warmed up before the real stuff!  

 What a better way to decorate the entrance to the toilets than to let some graffiti artists come and paint them?

People sitting down for a bite-including a very well organised (oh so swiss!) festival goer

The lights play tricks on the crowd