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Published: 15 July 2010
by DAN CARRIER

IT started out as a little barbecue thrown to celebrate his birthday: now, eight years on, it's become the hottest boutique festival of the summer. As the finishing touches are being put to the lay out and line up of this year's Standon Calling, the man behind it, Alex Trenchard, could be forgiven for feeling a little flustered: after all, it's not every day you invite 3,000 people round,.

It's all in  hand,” he says as he oversees the gigantic task of creating a party wonderland in the depths of the Hertfordshire countryside.
 

We have the same team working on it each year and by now, we all know our jobs well.”

And while in an increasingly crowded market, festivals have to continually up their game, Alex does little in the way of marketing. He concentrates on booking break through acts and the odd big name, making sure there is a huge dose of fun injected into the proceedings without any of the pretentiousness many festivals get clogged down by, and simply relies on people returning each year and telling their friends too.

It;'s all word of mouth,” he says. “There's no need to do it any other way, and it also makes for a better atmosphere – every one is a friend of a friend of a friend.”
 

While the festival has many highlights – Alex is  proud to have given big festival breaks to bands that are now household names, such as Florence and the Machine and The Friendly Fires – there is a Sunday night headline act that he's still pinching himself to have got.

I'm really looking forward to seeing the Buena Vista Social Club,” he says.

I was really, really happy to get them.”

He says booking the Cuban jazz legends is part of a policy that has developed since the party became a festival.

We always try to do some thing on a Sunday night of this type,” he says. “It's the perfect way to finish off the festival.” Last year Sunday saw Femi Kuti take the stage, and Alex invited his near-neighbours over to see what the fuss was about. He'll be doing the same this year, and finding a band that both the hardened festie goer will groove to after a 48-hour party, and be appreciated by people in the quiet village of Standon, who have been remarkably calm about the fact one of the UK's most respected festivals has sprung up on their doorstep, is part of the idea. That, and of course, booking such highly regarded musicians is basically what it should all be about. “For the size of the festival, it is a real coup,” he adds.
 

Each year, Alex has a theme – last year, to celebrate 400 years of the Galileo telescope and the 40th anniversary of the moon landings, things got all spacey. This time round it's like a giant Agatha Christie novel, a murder mystery weekend, which suits considering this is in the grounds of your classic English country home. One area is being turned into Camp Alcatraz: essentially, it's a rave in a prison, with a few camp touches to make it more homely, such as comfy pink bedding in the cells.
 

And Standon has a real Camden flavour to it. Beat poet and singer Salena Godden, who lives in Kentish Town, is hosting a three day extravaganza in the Book Club Boutique tent. With loads of acts ranging from literature to rap, live music and the BCB's resident DJ's, they'll be converting a whopper of a yurt into a Speakeasy and keeping the midnight flame burning. Spoken word stuff includes Sara Stockbridge  -Vienne Westwood's wordy muse – Amber Marks, the writer who happens to be Howard's daughter, and the unbelievable Kate Tempest, who appears to rap for eight minutes at a time without having to breathe.  Last year, they were in a  tippee and it was so packed the BCB have gone for an upgrade. It shows Standon is not only about the music: the site is currently being given a make over, with such attractions as interactive theatre provided by the Heritage Arts Company who are bringing a full on copy of Baker Street for sleuths to wander down. 

See www.standoncalling.com for more information.