Truck Festival Didcot, Oxon When I heard that my first visit to Truck festival, near Didcot, would be plagued by thunderstorms and lightning, I was more than a little anxious.

But far from the extreme weather ruining the festival's vibe and spirit, Truck proved all its doubters wrong and gave us one of the South of England’s best festivals.

The main appeal for me was the line-up, especially the headliners, the mighty, mighty Cribs. But with only four stages to occupy, the organisers managed to book an incredibly diverse range of the newest and most exciting bands out there right now.

Nordic Giants were probably the most unusual booking of the weekend. The only way to describe them is as if Sigur Ros met David Lynch and Edgar Allen Poe. The duo have incredibly worked up a frenzy around them, and rightfully so. They powered through their set donned in enormous feathers and black make-up, all the while accompanied by dark, confusing and downright scary short films and animations. I knew nothing about them, but reckon they are hands down the most intriguing band to grace our shores this summer.

See them live as soon as possible, before they retreat back into the darkness from whence they came. If Nordic Giants were the perfect soundtrack for the weekend's thunderstorms, Superfood were the same for the sun. The Birmingham quartet have only been around for a year and a half but already have a feisty repertoire of tunes at their disposal.

Hits such as Bubbles and TV were met with huge sing-a-longs, whereas the newer songs such as Right On Satellite got the entire crowd grooving. Superfood succeed in writing jarred but incredible danceable tunes that are perfect for the summer weather. My only gripe with the band's set was that a cloud that appeared midway through their last song!

That said, the only band that mattered to me were The Cribs. I saw them by myself years ago and had the best time at a gig I've ever had to this day, so I was perfectly happy when my friends chose not to come and see them with me. Despite being considered a 'cult band' and only famous for to their brief stint with Johnny Marr as their guitarist, the Jarman brothers managed to double the size of the audience after the first chorus of Our Bovine Public had ended.

The band play an insane headline set, churning out hit after hit after hit, spanning 10 years and five albums’ worth of tunes. Ryan Jarman's guitar riffs were replaced with a couple of hundred people singing every note back to him, to the point where he ceased to play and allowed the crowd to dictate the song for him. I’m probably biased, but everything about The Cribs brings people together and, in my view, they deserve to be bigger.

This festival was about more than just the line-up, however. The detail that went into the organisation was outstanding. Unlike Truck's bigger neighbour, Reading, the bars weren’t devoted to selling £20 half pints of luke-warm lager, but instead sold themed drinks and incredibly cheaply. I' sheepishly admit I spend large amounts of my weekend drinking cocktails in a deckchair at Mussel Beach Bar or playing poker and drinking whiskey in a real saloon.

The Truck experience proved to me that independent, smaller festivals like this one give you far more for your money than the bigger ones. When the rain came down and winds threatened to blow most of our tents away, we just laughed and danced and then went to check out the next new band that we knew we’d love. I told you those cocktails were good! - GEORGE TOMPKINS