Day 2

After a 2 hour wait for one of the campsite's 5 communal showers, and unwittingly breaking the bathing suit rule, it was back into the fray. The heavy hip hop rock sound of yet another Limp Biskit wannabe band, Trick Turner, was not really what I wanted to listen to on a sunny afternoon. I moved onto the White Stage where the clean-cut Dillinger Escape Plan sucked me in, but left me with no escape plan once they turned death metal on me, and I found myself fighting to swim out of the mosh pit.

©Yuki Kuroyanagi ©Sumie Inoue

I was fairly sure I wouldn't befall the same fate watching Billy Bragg. Clad in brown polyester pants, ball cap, and now sporting a beer belly, he did one of my favorite shows of the festival. The largely foreign audience made for a different feel, with more crowd interaction, while Bragg spouted his political ideologies and lyrically complex ditties. We were even treated to some "dad dancing". Later, another blast from the '80s, The Pet Shop Boys, later played to a much larger audience. One fan said she got so excited that she had to have a little lie down after the show, but was disappointed the duo weren't as lively as usual, and didn't seem to have packed any of their trademark funny costumes. Frankly, I still don't get the appeal.

Going back even further back in time, Patti Smith was, for the second year in a row, one of the few female artists performing at FRF. Patti has done a lot lyrically and has stuck to her guns for nearly 30 years - an artist through and through. During the quiet moments when she wasn't spitting or mussing up her hair, Janis Joplin style, "Patti we love you's, and "Patti say something"s - peppered the air. The crowd's warmth was so strong I almost felt inclined to sway my lighter to "Because the Night" - almost.

The Chemical Brothers, now Fuji regulars, drew one of the largest crowds of the weekend and had everyone tranced up and vibin' to their wicked dance tunes and hypnotic light show, and capped Saturday for me. I wanted to continue in the dance vibe at DJ Shadow's show, but my legs were about to give so I headed for the tents while half of the Fuji goers partied until five in the morning. I fell asleep to the sounds of the Rookie a Go-Go stage, mixed with sounds from the Red Marquee and the motorbike circus acts.

08/2002 Krista Sheen