Fiction Plane Takes Flight

A few facts about Fiction Plane: The alternative rock trio is from the U.K. It's the first band playing on V-Fest's South Stage. Its singer-bassist is Joe Sumner, who happens to be the son of Sting, who happens to be headlining the festival tonight with the Police. Oh, and Fiction Plane has a song about nepotism, "Running the Country." Hah.

Opinion? The first thing that struck me about Sumner -- son of Sting -- is that he sounds an awful lot like daddy in terms of vocal timbre. When the kid started singing the opening song, an anti-war screed by the name of "Death Machine," he might as well have been his pops up there. Later, during "Two Sisters," when drummer Pete Wilhoit started playing a jittery reggae backbeat behind Seton Daunt's scratchy rhythm guitar as Sumner sang in a high, slightly pinched voice about being in love with two sisters? Pure Police.

But that band isn't the only data point for this young trio. The band also played a proggish, Pink Floyd-like stomp, and there were punk-funk guitar freakouts and chiming, Coldplay-style anthems and even a blast of power pop.

There was also a lot of humor, at least between the songs. "The best thing about being the first band is we can make the first joke about virgins," Sumner said. (And that, by the way, was the joke.) During one break, as music wafted over from the North Stage, Sumner said: "It's the Fountains of Wayne! Awesome. I'm really pissed that I'm
missing their set. OK, it's not true. But give it up for 'Stacy's Mom!'"

Or, how about giving it up for Sting's son!

-- J. Freedom du Lac

By Maura McCarthy |  August 4, 2007; 1:16 PM ET  | Category:  Saturday's Festival
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