Isle Of Wight 2015 on Sky Arts

[michelej1]

Virtual Festivals, June 15, 2015

http://www.virtualfestivals.com/latest/news/15511

Fleetwood Mac made festival history by closing the final night of the Isle of Wight Festival 2015 - their first UK festival appearance in more than a decade.
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Ending days of rife speculation, Mick Fleetwood walked out on the Main Stage at Seaclose Park with an expression that seemed to say ‘what were you so worried about?’.

Cancelling two shows earlier in the week due to an undisclosed illness within the band, it was only fitting that Fleetwood Mac closed this festival with all the talk and Rumours centred firmly around them.

Show 90 of the world tour and the full Fleetwood touring machine didn't seem at all tired through the process. Dressed in the gothic black and trad-folk threads we’ve come to expect, Fleetwood Mac appear exactly as you’d expect and sounded even better. Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham walk out hand-in-hand to a vast sea of flailing arms and cheering fans.

The reception for opener 'The Chain' was perhaps the loudest Isle of Wight Festival has ever witnessed and surely got the sound monitors flickering.

"Welcome back Ms Christine McVie." Nicks said, beckoning over to the newest addition of their touring band, sat behind the keyboard. "Let's get this party started."

McVie - once the missing piece of the seminal Fleetwood Mac line-up - is utilised to the fullest tonight and, beyond anything else, allowed the island festival to enjoy a sing-along to ‘Everywhere’ and ‘Little Lies’.

"It's safe to say we're not just pleased to be here tonight, we're thrilled to be here!" Lindsey reassured the crowd, doing his best to not look too enthused by the whole process.

Watched on by Geri Halliwell and Ronan Keating, Fleetwood Mac's two hour headline set seemed to race along, leaning heavily on Fleetwood Mac's 1975 self-titled record, 1977’s ‘Rumours’ and 1979’s ‘Tusk’.

Dedicating 'Landslide' to a recently incapacitated Dave Grohl, it seemed an odd tribute but everything about the huge headline spectacle seemed bizarre tonight. Rarely a band for a stand-up crowd, Fleetwood Mac worked the additional numbers perfectly, switching between lead roles, they gave everyone from the front barrier to the rear fairides a moment to take home as their own.

The encore, cut down from the traditional tour setlist - perhaps due to overrunning on the festival's curfew, was a crowd-pleasing rendition of ‘Don't Stop’. A rather apropos title for the closer which saw so many hanging around just hoping, believing that Fleetwood Mac would never stop.

Fleetwood Mac’s headline set brought to a close of weekend of live music at Seaclose Park, Newport, Isle of Wight which has featured sets from The Prodigy, Blur, The Black Keys, Pharrell Williams, Paolo Nutini and James.