July 22, 2006 1:23

Pixies forced to halt Benicàssim set

An exuberant crowd forces a delay

Pixies were forced to halt their set at the Benicàssim Festival tonight (July 21) after a barrier broke in front of the stage.

The band were seven songs in when their performance was abruptly stopped during 'Monkey Gone To Heaven'. It took festival organisers a further half-an-hour before the problem was eventually fixed and the show could go on, much to the delight of one of the biggest crowds the Escenario Verde has ever witnessed.

Frontman Charles 'Black' Francis later told NME.COM that a barrier had been the problem, and they could not continue their set until the safety of the crowd was guaranteed.

Earlier, Babyshambles were joined onstage by Pogues legend Shane MacGowan for a version of the Ewan MacColl classic 'Dirty Old Town' on the Escenario Fiberfib stage.

The Ordinary Boys played in intense heat on the Vodafone Fib Club, causing the band to go for a refreshing dip in the backstage pool afterwards.

Back on the Escenario Verde, The Strokes played a set mixed with favourites from all three of their albums. Among those watching were actress Anna Friel and her husband David Thewlis, The Kooks (arriving a day ahead of their set), and The Futureheads, who had opened up proceedings on the same stage earlier in the evening.

To read our regular blog entries on the festival, and view our picture gallery, go to nmefestivals.com.

Click back tomorrow for all the news on Benicàssim as it happens.