ATP Nightmare Before Xmas Curated By MBV: Day 1

A sometimes forgotten fact at ATP - ATP has music. In the time it takes for us to find our chalet on the cusp of Butlins-colonised civilisation, throw down our bags, and locate a bottle of So' Co' (Southern Comfort) at the grim but conveniently situated Everydays mini-mart, roughly 80 percent of our known friends have gotten well on their ways to being happily too drunk to be fully aware of any bands.

This suggests that with ATP, it's not about the music, really. Overall, the day's performances tend toward the forgettable. But overall, it is a decent ATP Day 1 regardless.

We get to the Pavilion just in time to catch the end of De La Soul getting the party started in the time-honoured ATP tradition of putting an all-black hip-hop act in front of a bunch of white boys with beards. Silly grins abound, as the kids in the front self-consciously go wild with arms in the air and lyrics on the lips.

Still, the most impressive things that we see are a man asleep whilst sitting at a table in Centre Stage through Yo La Tengo's whole sound check and set, and the DJ of Butlins' most ambitious chalet disco asleep on the floor behind his decks, microphone still in hand. The Nightmare is less a vivid dreamscape than a stoned slumber after the good times you won't remember.

Conversations veer more toward anticipating the rest of the weekend's line-up as opposed to reminiscing about the bands who have already played. Lack of noteworthiness seems to be the theme of the day's acts, but ATP is still ATP - fun is at the forefront and music a background bonus. On this warm-up day, whether the glam-mysterious Serena Maneesh are ultimately unmemorable because of their repetitive repertoire or the So' Co' becomes irrelevant.

Day 1 In Photos

Photos: Tom Moriarty