Last year's Splashy will stick in people's minds because of the huge controversy surrounding the drug bust. This year it will be remembered for the right reasons: great music, amazing weather and the fat party that everyone had. And no, despite the rumours, Jack Johnson was not able to make it again this year, let's all hope he sorts himself out before 2007!

The police clamped down hard after last year's fiasco involving the arrest, and subsequent escape, of a certain hippy who was selling magic mushrooms in chocolate form. The Daily News, in a typically sensationalist and inaccurate manner ran the headline story entitled “Splashy Drug Bust", which told of sordid dealers plying hundreds of pre-pubescent girls with drugs. The facts of course were greatly exaggerated, as I have learnt from those involved last year. Still, the hippy in question was back this time, on the guest list, and was thankfully not dealing a single drug.

We were stopped in a roadblock on Wednesday afternoon on the way up, and we were waved through another on Monday on the way back. There weren't any sniffer dogs and the cops didn't do a very good job of searching the car. You'd have to have a few kilograms of weed lying around for them to actually find it! Most people would've easily got through with a personal stash, but someone I know was arrested for a small amount. He threw it out the window as they approached the block instead of stashing it inside a frozen chicken like a normal person would. Silly bugger!

S.A.B. was back as the main sponsor this year, selling the famous “only at Splashy" Black Label draught. They also set up the Chuck Valley (yes, Chuck Norris) which was a beer tent where you could test your manhood by competing in egg-and-spoon races and other crazy drunken activities. They did a good job providing beers to everyone, but they also insisted that nobody be allowed to sell ice at the festival this year. Which meant that all of us trusting people who brought our own drinks and food weren't able to keep them cold, and thus we were forced to buy the supplies we needed there. It's a real low blow and it smacks of huge greed on the part of S.A.B! I bought up a case of Hansa, which is their product anyway! I had to have them lukewarm during the day, because someone up the ranks is so money hungry that they think it's okay to screw customers. I'll be switching to Windhoek permanently from now on!

Photograph this!The official Splashy website photographers came around to our campsite and announced that they'd be taking a photograph, and would we mind please hiding all the alcohol away. I thought this was a bit ridiculous and told them to piss off! Who are the organisers trying to kid? It seems that they're pretending that Splashy is a wholesome family experience where people are well behaved, sober and clean cut. Nothing could be further from the truth, in fact the whole festival consists of mostly 18-30 year olds partying harder than they will for the rest of the year. Copious amounts of alcohol are consumed, everyone is drunk and high and it's really wild. Guys wrestle in the mud, howl at the moon, mosh for 5 hours, run naked across the hill, vomit in tents, funnel beers and smoke weed. Face the facts Splashy, your target audience is no longer folk-loving hippies who just wanna peace out and chill, it's a younger, crazy group now who just wanna get wasted and listen to their favorite South African bands. You should tell it like it is!

The weather was great, and barring Wednesday afternoon when we arrived, it hardly rained at all. The full moon was out on most nights and was absolutely stunning. By morning the sun was back and cooked you in your tent if you tried to sleep past 9 AM. The antics at the river during the day were hilarious, some guys set up a slip-n-slide and were riding down it on their blow-up-mattress and massive inflatable octopus. It didn't look like fun at all, as they wiped out onto the grass every time, but it was highly entertaining. Swimming in the river is great, nothing sorts out a hangover like a 5 minute dip in freezing water!

Fokofpolisiekar were my overall favourite rock act, those guys are phenomenal in both their music and ability to play it flawlessly while rocking out ridiculously hard. They jump all over the stage and headbang constantly without dropping a single note.

Dan PatlanskyDan Patlansky was mind-blowing, and was my top non-rock performance. He's a young South African blues musician who can make a guitar do things that you never dreamed were possible. I love his style and he's by far the best guitarist I've ever seen in my life. Please go and see him before he heads back to do the American blues circuit, you won't regret it.

Lark are a two piece outfit from Cape Town, with a female vocalist who has a superb voice and sings in a style similar to Bjork. The other member is a guy who does the drumming and controls the backup tracks on his mixing equipment. Definitely worth seeing if you like chills down your spine from her haunting, opera-style voice.

Michelle, Habit ToThe Diesel Whores are a group who are a bit of a cross between The Pixies and Tenacious D. I loved their song “5FM is not your friend" which I feel hits the nail on the head with the line “5FM has done more to destroy South African music than anyone else". Excellent and hard-hitting performance.

Habit To were really awesome, it's the first time I'd seen this local act and they are superb. Michelle has a great voice and the riffs are catchy and the music intricate.

BhoraThe free stage this year wasn't a separate stage, instead they used the main stage during the afternoon. Bhora were definitely my pick of the lot, and they were once again promoted to the Grant Erskine stage to perform in the finals. The second set was even better, with the sound from Brett's vocals being the biggest improvement. These guys have come so far since their first gig at last year's Splashy, and they have the potential to become huge.

Sydney Rash And The CreamSome of the guys from various groups decided to enter a made-up band onto the free stage, so about eight of them banded together to form “Sydney Rash and the Cream" and got a twelve o'clock slot! The idea was to act completely seriously, and just bash out any riffs and beats that came to mind! It was hilarious and the crowd were loving the mish-mash mess of eight good musicians making it up as they go along.

The portaloos this year were serviced once a day, in the morning, when the sanitation service would clean them spotlessly. What a huge difference that makes. No more overflowing, disease-breeding stink pits; just a pleasant experience whenever nature calls.

Those who've been to Splashy before will remember the grass enclosure by the beer tent that served as a urinal. Well, they've found something more awkward than having the general public stare you in the eyes while doing your business. It's a four way portapotty, and it puts you so uncomfortably close to three other guys that you almost feel obliged to make small talk. I still can't decide which of the two options I prefer, maybe it'll take some getting used to. Apparently they have them on the streets of London these days too. Whatever happened to taking a McPiss at the nearest McDonalds? Now you have to stand in the street with people watching and nowhere to wash your hands! Yuk!

So anyway, just a personal thank-you from me to everyone involved in putting this together. Despite my nit-picking, it was an absolute marathon of a party which I wouldn't trade for the world. Six days, five nights of madness in the mountains! Leaving is always so difficult, you can't bear to accept that it's over, going back to real life is the most awful thought. The best consolation is that the next one is only 360 days away! Let the countdown begin...