Vital Music

Recently Tennent’s Vital asked for our opinion about what could be done better for the festival in 2012 and it got us thinking of what we wanted to see. While we were delighted to welcome back Tennent’s Vital in 2011 having campaigned for it to return for several years at our old site, there is definitely room for improvement. Feel free to add anything that you feel we have missed in the comments section.

The Pit

One of our biggest complaints about Tennent’s Vital especially in 2006 and 2007 was that far too often the fans who got to the festival early to get near the front were often squeezed up against the barrier. Whilst this is a common complaint at any music event, Tennent’s Vital addressed it last year by introducing a pit area. This was a brilliant idea and certainly gave people an incentive to arrive early and enable them to leave to go stock up on food, drinks and other merchandise. There was however still plenty of open space in the pit and so for 2012 the organisers could increase the capacity without compromising on the benefits offered by the extra space.

The Next Stage

The Next Stage 2011

The next area which the organisers need to examine is the Next Stage where local bands play. This is especially relevant with the announcement of Tennent’s Untapped. It is brilliant that they let local bands have an opportunity to be heard by new fans but there were a few problems in 2011. Firstly the stage was too close to the main stage. This was not a major problem during breaks between the acts on the main stage. But whenever a band was on the main stage it was quite difficult to hear the local acts.  I imagine it is difficult problem for the organisers to solve. If they move the Next Stage to the other end of the festival complex they may risk reduced numbers going to the stage. Possible solutions would be to scrap the next stage altogether and instead put the local acts on the main stage before the bigger acts. This would mean opening the gates earlier but would mean more people get to see them. Alternatively keep the Next Stage but move it into a tent, that way the noise and music from the main stage will be reduced.

The Line-Up

This leads us onto the main stage line-up. While there is no doubting how impressive it was to get Eminem to headline in Ward Park, many people felt the rest of the line-up was a tad disappointing. Many people complained that The Script was a poor choice of headliner, not to say they are not a good band and they did previously sell out several nights at the Odyssey.

The Script - Tennent's Vital 2011

However the lack of balance between the two line-ups was perhaps highlighted by the numbers turning out for 2011. On day one of Tennent’s Vital 2011 (headlined by the Script) it was estimated that 15,000 fans turned up but on day two (headlined by Eminem) over 50,000 fans were in Ward Park. Quite a significant difference in those numbers so therefore in 2012 it would be good if there was more balance. 2007 is a good example of when the line-up was nicely balanced, the first night had Razorlight and the Manic Street Preachers and the second night had the Killers and Kasabian. For 2012 it would be nice to have this balance back, even if it means only one big headliner on each night, for example have the Foo Fighters headline the first night and the Red Hot Chili Peppers the second. Granted you can never satisfy everyone with the line-up but a line-up with more balance would be brilliant.

Tickets

One area that seemed to have been forgotten in 2011 was the two day tickets. In previous years fans had the option of buying tickets to both days of the festival at a reduced price. This is an easy way to boost attendances and help the organisers generate more money through their concession stands. It does not even have to be a massive discount but even between 10-20% would be a massive boost to music fans particularly in times where money is tight.

Conclusion

While this article may seem to point out plenty of faults in the festival, we would like to point out that we had a blast at Tennent’s Vital 2011 and cannot wait for 2012! Most of the points we have highlighted would be quite easy to change and in our opinion would further boost the reputation of it. Plus with pointing out what could be improved we did not get a chance to mention all things we love about the festival. We love that local bands get an opportunity to showcase their talents to a wider audience, the impressive variety of food outlets, the hard work it must have taken to bring Eminem to Ward Park in Bangor (even giving him a Koi Carp pond) and mainly we love the fact you brought Tennent’s Vital back at all after a 3 year hiatus!

Thanks Tennents!