As before seemingly all shows at The Red Marquee this year, the screen at the back of the stage displayed all kinds of prophylactic measures, while an MC listed them off, and also told the crowd that the show was “non-smoking”.

Then, the MC left, and the stage screen went black, before presenting The Bawdies’ logo in white.To the funk of a James Brown track, the stage’s overhead lights burned bright red, while a disco ball spun, and white searchlights hit it from five different angles. Then, the band’s members walked on stage.

The Bawdies christened their set’s start with a vamp befitting a stadium show’s ending, before diving into their first number; an old-school rocking romp with 21st-century freshness; like Jet’s “Are You Going to be My Girl,” at a more frenetic pace, and with more intensity. Respecting this year’s festival’s rules against excessive dancing, audience members frenetically threw their arms up in the air, to punctuate the music.

Pausing for two seconds before the next song to warn the audience about the risk of infection, The Bawdies then launched into another rollicking rock’n’roll affair without pretense, and full of rock’n’roll fervor. Hundreds of happy fans threw a hand up in the air to punctuate the phrases of its chorus. A happy female attendee behind the sound desk’s cage nodded her head happily in time with the music, as red and blue lights pelted the audience.

As the track came to an old-school stadium ending, the audience applauded as The Bawdies dove headlong into their following number, with a lead guitar befitting Lenny Kravitz, if Lenny Kravitz was on speed. As the song hit its chorus and the stage’s overhead lights flashed furiously to the beat, the whole audience pogoed with one fist in the air. They then clapped in unison above their heads to a brief breakdown, before pogoing again for one chorus after another as the lead singer wailed with rock’n’roll possession. As the track came to a thundering conclusion, the audience clapped in unison again, as if they were all friends.

The Bawdies’ lead singer howled, “Arigatou!!!” into the mic and the whole crowd clapped warmly again. As the band’s vocalist asked if the audience wanted to hear a brand new song, their fans cheered enthusiastically. And, although the drum intro seemed reminiscent of “My Sharona,” the band could be forgiven; they are not aiming to be cutting-edge, this band is here to bring a good time; and that they do in spades. The chorus blasted like something familiar, yet still possessed freshness. Even the band’s onstage uniforms – befitting private schools of yore – proved that The Bawdies are here to entertain.

Treading the fine line between a vintage vibe, and fresh newness, a few songs into their set, the bawdies brought a tune which combined a surf vibe with an element of Cheap Trick, and a freshly-cut element that clearly belongs to the present. Even the guitar solos shred tastefully, with just the right blend of old things and new elements. By the seventh song of the set – a 60’s-like number with immaculate harmonies – most audience members leaned from side to side, with their arms in the air for the choruses.

The eight track opened with a thundering kick drum riding the downbeat, and a bass line reminiscent of The Jackson Five’s “I Want You Back” before evolving into a mix of country and folk for the verses, and a cutesy “doo-doo, doo-doo” singsong chorus. During one chorus, the lead singer encouraged the audience to clap over their heads in time with the beat, and most in attendance were happy to oblige.

Thirty minutes into their set, The Bawdies’ lead singer called out “Arigatoooo!” and the audience cheered in return. He explained that his band had their debut at Fuji Rock on the Rookie stage many years ago, and now they were playing on a much bigger stage, and he thought that many people could trace their love of music to a festival’s history. He also said that, since these festivals are precious to us, we should obey their rules well. The bawdies then dove into their most raucous number so far “T.Y.I.A” to which many attendees rocked out by dancing in place.

Thirty-six minutes into their set, the lead singer and the guitarist on stage right engaged in a light-saber battle, pretending to be Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker in The Empire’s Strike’s back, while the guitarist on stage left proficiently impersonated Yoda. Once the skit was done, the band launched into a rollicking rock’n’roll number to which almost the entire audience bounced up and down. Some attendees even pumped a fist in the air while they did so.

With twenty minutes left in their stage time, The Bawdies dove into what seemed like a medley of pop-culture hits, with the intro to The Bangle’s cover of “A Hazy Shade of Winter” and lyrics from The Jackson Five’s “ABC”. Their fans loved every minute, rocking out in place as hundreds of heads bobbed up and down. As the band’s set drove to a close, rather than petering out, the audience’s energy seemed to increase as they fed off of the frenetic music, in rhythmic clapping games with the lead singer during one song’s breakdown. As the band thanked the audience after their final number, the crowd applauded warmly, and then dispersed in orderly fashion.