Atari Teenage Riot/ Crystal Castles/ The Horros @ Exit, Novi Sad, Serbia

DAY ONE

Comfortably nestled in the Petrovaradin Fortress gazing over the expansive Danube River in Novi Sad, Serbia’s second largest city is just over an hour away from the capital Belgrade. Here, Exit Festival becomes the playground for 100,000 festival goers for one weekend a year.

After following the stony labyrinth towards the main stage we reach the first band of the weekend: semi-biblical hardcore punks Bad Brains have carved out an influential 30 year career, and now the screaming ferocity of their early years has been replaced by the dub punk and the preacherman presence of singer H.R.

Indie hipsters Yeasayer draw a big crowd for a blistering and warm performance which covers both of their albums, the highlight being the disco stomp of ‘O.N.E’. The highlight of the day, however, is a rare outing for the enigmatic DJ Shadow, who is placed in a giant golf ball-shaped podium.

He treats the crowd to three new songs, which make a departure from previous material, creating a more blistering and frenetic pace. During what is a visually stunning set of dizzying projections, ‘Building Steam With A Grain Of Salt’ is the stand out moment.

As the World Cup reaches its climax, Die Antwoord are here to represent South Africa, with (what I hope) is a spoofed-up set of comic rapping, golden trousers and boxer shorts. The crowd, meanwhile, are sent more than a little bit bananas.

DAY TWO

As the evening sun begins to settle over the horizon, The Horrors fail to fill the main stage with any degree of comfort. Despite the critical praise their second album rightly attracted, the band's once-breathtaking live shows have been replaced by static nonchalance and a lack of energy, despite an extended performance of 'Sea Within A Sea' and later, 'Jack The Ripper'.


Germany’s Atari Teenage Riot deliver scissor kicks from the stage, as well as the frequent sight of singer Alec Empire's toned torso; some would call him narcissistic, others would be less complimentary. The fact is they’re an intense live band, with ‘Speed’ and ‘Start The Riot shaking things up despite a slight repetetiveness.

Playing for almost two hours, Placebo dip into their back catalogue to perform ‘Bruise Pristine’ , ‘Pure Morning’ and ‘The Bitter End’. Accomplished as they are, the songs tend to have very little variety. Kawasaki 3P, on the other hand, provide some interesting Balkan rock, while Kultur Shock take a leaf out of Gogol Bordello’s book, blending gypsy folk and dirty rock ‘n roll to become the liveliest band of the day.

With the World Cup finale in sight, Faith No More take to the stage 40 minutes late to see Spain triumph. Dressed in his trademark red suit, Mike Patton flits between a soulful croon and aggressive bellowing, while the band run through the obvious classics (‘Epic’) along with a cover of ‘Easy’. Addressing the audience as “Yugoslavia” however, doesn't go down too well.

Over at the Dance Arena, Crystal Castles ignite a sea of flailing arms and flowing bodies, all responding fanatically to Alice Glass’ frantic enticement. It seems the big stage hold no fear for the Tortonians.