The set was good, but many of my favorite songs never were played during that set though I heard some in a later set as I was crossing the festival grounds (yes, the set that I would have seen had my schedule worked). Banter was at a minimum but “Handsome Pat” certainly seemed to enjoy the pickles. Which are very good by the way; try them.

Also, there was a bit of a Tina Turner moment- scary. I’m just grateful that none of them donned mini-skirts, though I’m sure that I’ve just given them an idea.

I had a few minutes afterward to wander, so I visited a few of my friends that have shops on the grounds and was hijacked to witness a proposal (everyone say “aww”). This made me a bit late to the Icewagon Flu (yes, again) set. Or so I thought. I ran around snapping pictures while the band announced that the new cd never made it to the show. I went up to the merchandise table and saw absolutely no cds! I asked the nice man behind the table, didn’t they at least have Off The Wagon? What a shame they didn’t have the new disc… He informed me that yes, they did have the new cd as well as Off The Wagon. The band that didn’t was Hunting McLeod. They were a few minutes over time, and Icewagon Flu would be on next. Lovely. I’d just told the band that I’d come to see that I couldn’t tell that the guys in kilts on stage weren’t them. (Hey, I’d assumed they’d dressed up since it’s a Celtic Festival and were playing songs from their new cd since I didn’t recognize them. I did say that I’m bad at faces…)

As humiliating as that was I am so glad that I didn’t miss their set. If you’ve never seen Icewagon Flu live- do it! Do it now! Not only are they energetic and fun live, but they’re completely insane. At one point I looked down to take notes, and when I looked up George Leo Smith 111 (aka “tall guy”) was on a bench in the middle of the crowd belly dancing, or possibly Bollywood dancing. They called two swing dancers up on stage while they sang Old Dun Cow, and Kevin Adkins (vocals/whistle) jumped in about halfway through. Kazoos and slide whistles were used; I kid you not.

If you do get to see them live there is one song that you absolutely must hear. Request Nudity. Trust me on this- it’s so good that a woman dragged her kids out of the crowd before they even hit the chorus.

Other events prevented me from getting to the other shows until Enter the Haggis’ last set of the day. I wish I could give you a some good tidbits about their show, but at this time sun poisoning had set in and I was unable to finish the show. I did get to hear several of my favorite songs, and the chess board made a good dance floor directly in front of the stage. They definitely seemed to be as popular as they should be; a large crowd was gathered around the board and a sizable crowd was gathered on the board- dancing away. They have a great sound live, and the crowd was into it. Unfortunately, the size of the crowd and placement of the chessboard kept me from getting close enough for a good picture.

While I didn’t see any other bands I could hear them everywhere I went. Glengarry Bhoys were excellent as usual, and the band that I believe was The Elders were very good as well. I completely missed Scythian and Screaming Orphans, though Scythian had so many fans in the crowd (and in the other bands) that I can only assume their popularity is for a reason. Ceann seemed rather enamoured with Screaming Orphans, but that could just be because they’re gorgeous young women. Though from the samples I’ve heard, it could just be because they’re good.