Reading Festival - Saturday 27th August 2011
Described by many as the best Saturday line up at the festival in years, expectations were elevated with a rich variety of acts spanning numerous genres gracing the Richfield Avenue site. Such diversity of bands was epitomised by the two headliners; New York indie punk group The Strokes and Britpop icons Pulp.
Opening the main stage were North Welsh trio The Joy Formidable who released their first album The Big Roar to copious critical acclaim earlier in the year. Performing guitar driven alternative rock tracks such as A Heavy Abacus and Buoy, the band successfully invigorated an audience in spite of the ominous weather conditions. Showcasing fans’ favourites Craddle and The Greatest Light is the Greatest Shade; the band demonstrated their superb technical ability with Matt Thomas’ exceptional drumming being a notable highlight.
My personal climax of the set was Ritzy Bryan’s exquisite vocals durng the fantastic seven minute track Whirring, which culminated in her repeatedly smashing a giant gong.
Overall, I was very impressed with The Joy Formidable who delivered an excellent opening performance; I believe that they would find further success if propelled to a more prestigious slot on the main stage, however having only released one album and having played the BBC Introducing Stage for a couple of years in a row they have to be delighted with their ever increasing rise to prominence and their growing fan base.
I ventured to the NME/Radio One stage to see a band who I have been tracking for some time. Multinational quartet Yuck have captured my interest ever since their first vinyl releases of Rubber and Georgia in 2010. Having seen them play in Norwich earlier this year, I was excited to hear my favourite tracks from the acutely written self entitled album and was hopeful of hearing new material.
Commencing with their regular opener Holing Out, Yuck established the tone for the subsequent half hour; the moody vibe of Holing Out describes a cycle of a relationship tarnished by frequent break ups and attempted restorations which encapsulates the band’s somewhat pessimistic outlook. Throughout the set the quartet rarely acknowledged let alone addressed the audience, this was forgivable as their excellent melodies, Mariko Dois’ impressive contribution on bass and Daniel Blumberg’s gritty yet appealing vocals more than made amends. Sticking rigidly to their first album (with the exception of Milkshake, a B side on the single Shook Down), Yuck delivered a sturdy and reflective if not mind blowing set. They are definitely an acquired taste, however their talent is unquestionable and one can only hope that their future work retains the high quality just with a more progressive and varied sound.
My next decision was one of the most testing of the day; The Joy Formidable had announced an acoustic set on the intimate BBC Introducing Stage whilst Camden four piece Tribes were performing on the Festival Republic Stage. Torn between the two I opted for the latter and was comprehensively rewarded. To my surprise Tribes filled the tent with relative ease and delivered one of the most memorable sets of the day.
Playing tracks from their debut EP titled We Were Children and forthcoming album Baby (due to be released early next year); the band displayed a confident stage presence as they exquisitely rattled through their half hour set with vigour and finesse.
A particular highlight was the melodic and reflective Coming Age which acutely describes the difficulties and responsibilities associated with manhood, whilst retaining a youthful exuberance. Equally as impressive was the bass driven Girlfriend which considers insignificant trivialities of growing up and proved popular with the diverse crowd who bobbed along to the energetic performance. Tribes’ debut single Sappho which discusses sexual diseases and disappearing fathers, exemplifies their honest and accurate reflection of modern life which is sure to win them further admirers. This sounded excellent live as Johnny Lloyd’s witty lyrics successfully engaged the audience with the aid of Dan White (guitar), Jim Cratchley (bass) and Miguel Demelo (drums). The absorbing concoction of sounds produced by the quartet accumulated in fans’ favourite We Were Children concluding the set to the pleasure of those in attendance. The release of their premier album cannot come soon enough.
Upon the conclusion of Tribes’ exquisite set, filled with enthusiasm, exhilaration and numerous lagers, I made my way to the main stage to see one of the most ‘hyped’ bands of the last eighteen months. Two Door Cinema Club have captured public imagination with their irresistibly catchy indie-pop tunes from their highly successful debut album Tourist History. Attracting an extremely large crowd for a mid-afternoon set, TDCC joyfully played their entire album to the delight of dancing revellers.
Contrary to the majority of the adoring crowd members, I was disappointed with their performance. Having premiered new tracks Kids and Sleep Alone at Glastonbury barely two months earlier, I was unsatisfied with their repetitive, predicable and shallow regurgitation of excessively played tracks from their first album. I appreciate that they wanted to please the fans by performing familiar songs, but considering that their album is merely thirty minutes long it was anti-climatic to be denied the opportunity to hear new material from one of the most talked about bands in Britain.
I returned to the Festival Republic Stage to witness a band which I was particularly intrigued by. New York duo Cults formed by vocalist Madeline Follin and guitar and percussion player Brian Oblivion have attracted substantially less attention than their heavy West coast female led counterparts Warpaint and Best Coast. However, having downloaded their self titled debut album I was excited to examine their abilities in person. Playing tracks which included Oh My God and the simplistically truthful Never Saw the Point, Cults proved that they have wonderful potential and a genuinely unique sound with Follin’s soft yet powerful voice delightfully complemented by Oblivion’s array of musical talent.
My biggest regret is that I hadn’t listened to their album frequently enough to obtain as much enjoyment as their set deserved, however their performance of opening single Go Outside captured a glorious sense of summer laziness and relaxation which is most definitely a festival highlight which will live long in the memory.
I remained at the Festival Republic Stage for Cloud Control an Australian ensemble whose sound has coarsely and unfairly been compared to that of compatriots The Temper Trap. In my opinion, their 2010 album Bliss Release is superior and offers greater diversity than their more celebrated former tour partners. Appearing assured and inspired, Cloud Control delivered a breathtaking set with Alister Wright excelling in his role as lead vocalist with enchanting support from Heidi Leffner on keyboard and backing vocals. My personal highlight was hearing my favourite track on the album, There’s Nothing in the Water We Can’t Fight, being played to perfection. My sentiments were echoed by the highly appreciative audience who equally seemed to enjoy the beautifully written and captivating Meditation Song, which was especially noteworthy for Leffner’s delicate tones.
Speaking in between songs to confirm their jubilance at playing at the festival and about their upcoming UK tour, Wright and band continued to perform album tracks to aplomb, with the re-released single Gold Canary providing a welcome sing along for the contented spectators. Despite having a shorter set than I had hoped for, Cloud Control demonstrated their capability to produce a live performance which mirrors the high standards their debut release has set.
I returned to the NME / Radio One Stage for one of my favourite acts of the past few years. Despite having seen them on numerous occasions, my desire to see Bombay Bicycle Club remains as strong as ever due to their on stage flexibility and desire to experiment on the touring circuit.
Having recently recorded (and released this week) their third studio album A Different Kind of Fix, the vastly talented group seemed serene as they entered the stage before bursting into seasoned opening track Evening / Morning. Reverting between albums, BBC successfully provided a delicious balance of old and new; Bad Timing and principal single Shuffle were absorbed by an attentive and euphoric crowd, whilst indie classics such as Lamplight and the marvellous What If are still as enjoyable as they were three years ago.
The introduction of the immaculately talented Lucy Rose improved what was already an outstanding performance. Her contribution to BBCs’ acoustic album Flaws granted her the recognition her ability deserves and her performance of Ivy and Gold and Lights Out, Words Gone only furthered her ever enhancing reputation. She was not the only surprise guest, as shortly afterwards a small brass band joined an already crowded stage to participate in the culmination of the set, which was concluded with Bombay’s classic finishing track Always Like This. I was very impressed with Bombay Bicycle Club as usual; their adjustability to accommodate extra musicians and to alter the speed, timbre and even instruments justifies my belief that they are one of the finest British bands of the last decade. It shouldn’t be disregarded that they have only just released their third album and still have a huge amount of promise left to fulfil.
The penultimate headliner on the main stage was Jarvis Cocker’s band Pulp who have recorded seven albums since the band originally formed in the late 1970s. Having been just five years old when they released their most prestigious and highly regarded album, Different Class, I was wary that I would struggle to appreciate their set, whilst being well aware that many fans would metaphorically give their right arm to have the opportunity to witness their comeback gig. Unfortunately, my doubts were not allayed as Cocker talked endlessly about society, the history of the band and the meaning of each and every song, including the disturbing Pencil Skirt. All of which would have been of deep interest and relevance to fanatical Pulp followers, which I however am not. For the first time all day, I found myself drifting off and envisaging the immensity of the forthcoming set by The Strokes. Thankfully, Pulp did invigorate increased life into their set as they performed Disco 2000 to the delight of the majority of the crowd. I couldn’t help but think this song epitomised how dated Pulp are, to be singing about longing for the year 2000 seems a bit bizarre over a decade after we entered the ‘new ‘millennium. Pulp continued to meander through their back catalogue of hits with Cocker’s relentless running commentary. As Cocker introduced their final track by saying that if he was only ever remembered for writing Common People, he would be eternally satisfied, I sensed he had admitted that Pulp will only be remembered for their two tracks; an assessment which I thoroughly agree with.
Shortly after 10.30, the main event casually strolled onto the main stage with the outrageously cool Julian Casablancas donning his trademark leather jacket and aviators to the sound the audience screaming exuberantly. The Strokes opened with their first single on their debut album of the same name, to wild scenes of jubilation. Such jubilation only intensified as the excellent Fabrizio Moretti and the intoxicated Casablancas launched into the sensational New York City Cops. The elated crowd appeared delighted to hear songs from the laudable Is This It?, which celebrated its’ tenth anniversary only last month.
Popular but less established tracks from the latest album Angles were intertwined with favourites such as Someday and Reptilia which helped to retain the audiences’ engagement, as Casablancas lacked desire to interact directly with the audience, muttering a few words between songs and apologising after he mistimed his first line during You Only Live Once.
Anthem after anthem, The Strokes continued to rapidly blitz through their fantastic array of tracks – this in total contrast to Pulp’s set previously. It was evident that Casablancas didn’t need to ‘work the crowd’, make meaningless comments or bellow ‘Hello Reading’, the individual and collective talent on stage was comfortably sufficient to keep the crowd gazing enviously and dancing gleefully. As the set drew to a close, the opening rift to Juicebox was plucked. Having waited over five years for this moment, my excitement was uncontainable. The reverberation of Nikolia Fraiture’s bass sent tingles down my spine. Casablancas’ croaky voice as he screamed ‘Why won’t you come over here?’ added a sense of rawness and passion to the performance which any budding lead singer can’t help but be inspired by.
Obeying the crowds’ pleas not to leave the stage, The Strokes powered through Last Nite and Hard to Explain before concluding with their eighteenth and final track of the evening, Take It or Leave It. This was the perfect way to finish the incredible set and conclude a magnificent day of live music. Same again next year? You bet.
