"Worst festival ever" vows to return
Despite a number of acts pulling out because they weren't paid, unhappy punters and some slightly miffed venue owners, the organisers of the Zoo8 festival have said that the event was a "qualified success" and vowed to return next year.
The festival's co-director Danny Blanche said in a statement: "Our biggest problem was one of miscalculation over cash-flow. This required us to make the pragmatic decision to cancel a few acts. Thankfully, with some vital assistance from Port Lympne Wildlife Park, we managed to keep the show on the road, with the vast majority of the popular acts appearing".
Responding to complaints made by many of those who attended the event, he said: "We have had feedback that people were unhappy with the length of time they were waiting to get into the event, and the toilets on the campsite. People turned up much earlier than predicted on Friday causing delays, and the campsites became busier than expected which caused some infrastructure problems. These are all areas that we dealt with as best we could as they arose. Obviously, none of this was ideal or planned - and not the quality of experience that we had aimed to deliver - and for that we unreservedly apologise to all those affected by the situation. We want to stress that this was our first festival and that we have dealt with all problems directly and will continue to do so in preparation for next year".
Co-director Matt Dice added: "Three other festivals went under this very weekend - we're operating in seriously tough market conditions but we'll rectify everything from this year and definitely be back for Zoo9".
Having had a quick scan of the blogosphere, I don't think those who have been ranting about Zoo8 have been especially placated by the official statements. Personally I'm not forming any opinion until we hear from the giraffes - it's always their viewpoint that seals it for me. But what do you think? Given the bad press Zoo8 has got this week, and given how much boutique festivals are struggling this year, is it really worth these guys having a second go? Will any artists agree to play next year? Or should we be giving these guys credit for not pulling the plug at the last minute despite the increasingly difficult festival marketplace, and help them get their event established long term? Hmm, lots of questions. You know where this is leading right? Tell us what you think...
-- Taken from today's CMU Daily, www.cmudaily.co.uk
