After a poorly attended yet enjoyable revival of the historic Isle Of Wight Festival in 2002, the organizers were bold enough to repeat the event twelve months later, but this time spread over two days.  As with last year, the "Rock Island " event is the centrepiece of a two-week festival of music throughout the island.  Whoever decided on holding Rock Island during the middle weekend of the festival deserves a thorough pat on the back - the weather is gorgeous, with bold displays of uncovered flesh, bikinis, and (later) sunburnt torsos.

Saturday's line-up is devoted mainly to Indie artists, with newcomers The Nautical Theme, Psychid, Balasco and The Burn opening the show with brief, nondescript sets that really should have had a louder volume level to carry across the whole site.  Events really begin in the mid-afternoon with current NME darlings The Thrills promoting their wares.  The ubiquitous use of a 'The' prefix to their name provides a srtong hint that this band will be the next in line to pick up the lo-fi seventies-influenced baton, but their melodic, well-rehearsed band sound is more easily listening and bright than anticipated.

The Cooper Temple Clause have, up until now, often sounded like a harder-edged Oasis, more than anything due to the tonal qualities of their vocalist - who has obviously spent many months practicing to sing like his idol, Liam Gallagher.  The only thing that distinguished The Cooper Temple Clause from Oasis was their sometimes experimental use of synthesizers and sampling technology.  With a new album on the way, the band have thankfully relied even more heavily on samples, electronic beats and keyboard sounds to progressively move them away from earlier comparisons.  Although they lack any distinctive "anthems" their compressed, punchy sound impresses, providing the first inspiring performance of the day.

Next up is John Squire, former Stone Roses guitarist, and now a solo performer in his own right.  He rightly devotes most of his fifty minute set to the Roses' back catalogue, giving the audience plenty of time to get a drink in and chat while he plays his little-known solo material.  In recent interviews, John Squire expressed insecurities about his singing voice, and rightly so, based on his performance today.  While Ian Brown was not the most adept live singer, John Squire positively slaughters some of the back catalogue, to the extent of making the listener desire instrumental versions of the tunes, or at least a hired session vocalist.  The guitar work is, of course, immaculate, but John Squire may have done better by transposing some of The Stone Roses' songs up a tone or three to match his vocal range - he simply can't hit the same low notes as Ian Brown.  It's a shame, as some of these songs are classics that still sound as musically tight as they were some fourteen years ago.  Hard to believe that a live rendition of 'Fools Gold' ought to provoke shivers down the spines of the audience, rather than winces in their faces when the vocals begin.  Something a little lame about the whole thing, really.

You truly know you're at a festival when Iggy Pop bounces onstage: old enough to be your Grandfather, but lively and fit enough to put your own feeble muscles to shame.  He bounds around the stage as if his male menopause never happened, but leaves you wondering if he's more famous for being Iggy Pop than he is for the quality of his frantically shouted portfolio of songs.  An hour of material only heralds two songs that the bulk of the crowd seem to know ('A Wanna Be Your Dog' and 'The Passenger'), and leaves you wondering how many die-hard, completist fans Iggy actually has.

If last year's Isle Of Wight Festival had one revelation, it was Starsailor's transformation from a popular act suited to modest indoor venues into a band with a promising future as a stadium act.  If last year suggested future greatness, this year surely confirmed it.  Rightly moved from 2002's forth-highest-on-the-bill placing to this year's headline support slot, Starsailor made good use of their sixty minute performance to play though a set of what have already become "greatest hits" while premiering many accomplished new songs from their eagerly anticipated new album.  What is striking about today's performance is their hugely increased confidence.  Sure, James Walsh still sounds a little shy when speaking to the audience, but when he sings, not a note is flat and the crowd is captivated.  The older songs appear to have been rearranged somewhat, giving them space to breathe and develop.  Highlight of the set 'Tie Up My Hands' has been slowed down and beefed up, giving the chorus build-up an ominous crashing quality to it, akin to Radiohead's 'Creep'.  The new material hints at further future greatness.  Each new, as yet unreleased tune could easily be single, with most being extremely memorable on first listen.  There appears to be a wider selection of influences on the new songs, with rhythmic elements of seventies disco, and even some nods on the keyboards towards American East Coast R'n'B in one number.  Starsailor are unique in that they appeal simultaneously to fans of Indie and conventional pop music.  It's no surprise to hear their tunes on commercial, middle-of-the-road local radio stations, while they often feature in the pages of the "alternative" music press.  Their new tunes imply that they view this fact as one of their strengths, and are following a career path that could see them performing regularly to festival and stadium audiences, as their upcoming support slot for The Rolling Stones demonstrates.

With the sun set, and the temperatures cooling nicely, Paul Weller takes to the stage for a headline show of his knowledgeable, slick sounds.  Covering the many bases of his career, Paul and his band progress through as almost languid set of tunes that bring the day to a relaxed and professionally performed end.  While Paul Weller's solo material has never enjoyed an all-encompassing commercial success, songs such as 'The Changingman', 'You Do Something To Me' and 'Peacock Suit' are received warmly by the audience.  Several Style Council songs are performed, but quite how Paul Weller resists the temptation to blast through The Jam's 'Eton Rifles' or 'Down In The Tube Station At Midnight' remains a trade secret." At this stage in his career, he propbably prefers to let his back catalogue speak for itself and satisfy the audience with a very adept performance of his more recent material, demonstrating his skills as a vocalist and musician on guitar and keyboards.

This first day of Rock Island went very smoothly, with some fine performances from both new and established acts.  The attendance appeared greater than the previous year, with an estimated 28,000 people attending over both days.  Starsailor were perhaps the day's finest hour, and the success of the festival (and the fabulous weather) should ensure that the Isle Of Wight Festival becomes a regular event in the British music calendar.  Here's looking forward to Starsailor's headline slot in 2004!   Let's just hope that Wightlink Ferries have the foresight to lay on some later catamarans and not leave festival goers stranded after the last one leaves at ten to one in the morning!

Review: Andrew Morrison
(Extracts from this review also appear at The Cooper Temple Clause's official website CooperTempleClause.co.uk.)