Even before they took to the stage, at the end of a scorching day at Riverside Festival, it was clear this was going to be no ordinary show.

Among the keyboards, guitars and assorted percussion instruments stood three shop mannequins. Or rather, two mannequins and a lower-half — brutally truncated at the waist.

“Candy’s here!” laughed drummer Mike Monaghan, as he picked up one elegantly-dressed complete dummy.

The Candy in question is the all- seeing, non-playing member of Oxford art-pop group Candy Says, the model gazing vacantly off stage alongside bandmates Juju and Ben Walker. And tonight she looked great, sporting fairy lights and a summer hat, a wise choice on what had been one of the hottest days of the year.

As they launched into their set, the presence of those shapely plastic legs became clear — keys man Ben, then Juju, taking their places behind the makeshift stand for slow-burning opener Dead on Arrival.

“Let’s ramp it up,” says Juju as they lift the pace with the swaggering pop of trademark tune Favourite Flavour. “We started with cool boogie, now here’s some dance boogie,” she grins, continuing the fizzy and richly layered dance-pop and expansive electro-disco with a delicious We are not Kings.

“Join me in a one-handed clap” says Ben as hundreds of sun-burned festival-goers raise single arms in the air.

It would have been weirdly Zen-like if we were behaving, but we weren’t; we were dancing like loons. All of us. Even, I was delighted to see, Juju’s mum Annemarie, who with her arms in the air would have won any boogie prize going.

Oxford Mail:

Blooming lovely: Olly Wills of The Epstein

In fact there was a dancing competition, but not until later when headliners The Epstein took to the stage for a shimmering set of Americana-flavoured country rock — fresh tunes from their forthcoming new album holding up well among old favourites.

They held the crowd in their hands, all of us breathlessly hanging on frontman Olly Wills’s every phrase in an emotion-wrought set featuring the exuberantly-heartfelt Held You Once and beautiful Chimes.

While Candy Says had us bouncing, and the day’s previous bands Zurich, The Shapes, Dubwiser, King B, Tom Like Colours and The Madcaps made us alternately nod, bop and skank, The Epstein drew us in, held us close and, as they rounded off with their hushed anthem Leave Your Light On, there was barely a dry eye in the field.

We trooped out, delicately strummed acoustic guitars still ringing in our ears, ready to do it all again the next day, all toasting the organisers of this wonderful, and amazingly free, celebration of summer.