Yikes! Bad luck there Wicked. Standing on a field with a couple of thousand disinterested punters watching your favourite artist going through the motions and taking the chequeis no way to go. OK there'll be quite a few familiar with QOTS but I expect PJ will get hit the stage at about 5pm to a pretty lukewarm crowd unfamiliar with her work. Of course, this is no reflection on her (I really like virtually all of her albums) but festivals in general. Save yer shillings for the next time PJ comes to town for an indoor gig.

I know! I really am tempted to save my shillings and wait to see Harvey solo. It's just that the last time she played Ireland was Christmas 1998 and this may be my only opportunity to see PJ play these shores this year. I'm just hoping and praying that she'll do a few sideshows in Dublin, say at the Olympia maybe, to coincide with the Slane gig, and if so then I'll give my Slane tickets away and just head to the solo show. I'm really being put off by the idea of a few thousand Chili Peppers and Foo fans who have no idea who she is, talking through her set and shouting the occasional "Show us your tits luv!" at her! And if the punters start getting that rude or disrespectful towards Polly, I'll have to kill them. No, I mean... REALLY! lol On an interesting side-note, I wonder if PJ and QOTSA will perform anything together at the Slane gig? She is currently in LA recording some new music with QOTSA frontman Josh Homme for his next Desert Sessions album, and with his QOTSA bandmate/ex-Screaming Trees singer Mark Lanegan for his forthcoming solo record. Should be interesting. PS: Cool handle Vent My Spleen. I'm guessing it's a Placebo reference? I was just listening to that Without You I'm Nothing song today, I love it. Their new one Sleeping With Ghosts is out next month...

Ouch again Wicked. Usually for the big gigs there is a clause that keeps the bands from playing other gigs around the time of the festival. Not sure if it would be in place for acts down the order like PJ Harvey but it usually is the case. When there is a decent line up at Slane and Witnness, it usually means the gigs dry up quite badly late summer. And yes, I am a Placebo fan all right.