The excitement surrounding Reading and Leeds each year is palpable and with good reason. The festivals bring some of the biggest names in music from around the world to play, so its understandable that more a few thousand people want to be there. With this in mind you'd think I'd have managed to be on time, but that wasn’t to be. The Skints opened things up on the NME / Radio 1 Stage, big billing for one of the UK’s best, and I was understandably gutted to miss out. The same goes for Lonely The Brave. The Cambridge band have gone from strength to strength over the past twelve months; their slot opening the main stage signalling their arrival to the masses. Where was I when this was happening? Still waiting to get on site. So the moral of this story is that punctuality is important, timing is everything and that rocking up later than planned to the biggest music event in the North of England might mean you miss two of the bands everyone is raving about.
Right then, that’s enough of the pity party. I thoroughly messed up, but to be all ‘woe is me’ isn’t in my nature. However, I felt like a brief timeline might help to outline the manic nature of this weekend. Leeds Festival is the most brilliantly hectic time of year for us at Team Ruckus and, if it wasn’t for being organised (from this point on, anyway), I doubt we’d get half of the stuff done that we do.
Bag dropped, I ran giddily towards the main stage in time for Against Me! As far as I’m concerned, these guys are one of the best live bands around. They’ve got so much energy and a real “fuck you” attitude, but I was concerned that the ‘real’, exciting and in your face Against Me! would be swallowed up by the all-engulfing main stage. I needn’t have worried, however, the Florida punks brought everything they had and more. In doing so they proved that, whilst the Lock Up may be a shell of its former self (we’ll get to that later), punk rock is well and truly alive in those fields. With a Cheshire Cat grin plastered across my face, I watched as the band charged through ‘True Trans Soul Rebel’ and transitioned seamlessly into ‘Pints Of Guinness Make You Strong’. Yet again Against Me! proved themselves to be the tightest live band I've ever seen and if their intention was to destroy my throat two songs in it worked. A quick look at the people around me confirmed I wouldn’t be the only one feeling like I’d eaten a Brillo pad the next morning either. It's as if we're all compelled to belt these songs out as loud as possible. Songs like ‘White People For Peace’ and particularly ‘Walking Is Still Honest’ move me to blow out my voice like few others and singing these songs whilst Against Me! ruled the main stage at Leeds Festival felt incredibly special. What's more, it gave Against Me!, and Laura Jane Grace in particular, a massive platform for positivity. Laura used the few gaps in what was an unfaltering set to let this huge crowd know what Against Me! stands for - anti-homophobia, anti-racism, anti-transphobia and anti-ableism amongst many other causes - and the wave of support she and the band got back was overwhelming.
Photo: Moose Blood performing at Leeds Festival 2015 © 2015 Sophia Kaye
In what would set a trend for the entire weekend, I remained at the main stage for the set that followed. The Gaslight Anthem were next up to perform for what may be the last time at Leeds. The New Jersey band would go on hiatus following their set at Reading two days later and it was great to be able to see them one last time. They looked like they were having a blast too, frontman Brian Fallon was all smiles throughout the set, seemingly unphased by the occassion. A spirited “Thank you!” at the end of the set said it all really. Sure, whilst it’s unlikely to be goodbye, this was a farewell of sorts. Opening with ‘Handwritten’ they immediately had the crowd singing along and that rarely seemed to stop. The band played a ‘greatest hits’ set of sorts, with just two tracks (‘1,000 Years’ and ‘Underneath The Ground’) coming from their most recent album Get Hurt. ‘1930’ was one that won over the punks, although it was ‘The 59 Sound’ that was the real crowdpleaser; that driving lead riff sounding bigger and more iconic than ever. The band bowed out with, massive set closer, ‘The Backseat’ and it’s here that it got a little emotional. The words “if you never let me go then I’ll never let you down” rang truer than they ever have before and the idea of not seeing The Gaslight Anthem for a while hit me quite hard. It was almost as if news of the hiatus hadn’t fully sunk in until that moment and I know I’m not the only one eagerly awaiting their return.
I spent the majority of my time from here on out at The Pit. Now extended to two days, reducing the legendary Lock Up to to just one, this was where you were most likely to find the best alternatives to what was going on at Leeds’ two biggest stages. I made my way over there initially for Moose Blood. One of the more mellow acts to grace The Pit over the weekend, Moose Blood’s catchy and heartfelt emo sound has earned them quite the following. Heavily influenced by Brand New, they’ve got an almost Anglo-American sound to them that can take a little getting used to, but they left little time to ponder it having opened with an absolute banger in ‘Bukowski’. The nod to the late author is just one of many pop-culture and literary references Moose Blood have strewn throughout their songs, a trait that first drew me (and undoubtedly countless others) in. Of course, there’s more to Moose Blood than just that. Not only do they have the fundamentals of great pop-punk and emo songwriting down - delicate riffs and absolutely massive hooks coming as standard - they just seem to know what works, as noted by the screams that went hand in hand with the opening chords of ‘Chin Up’ and ‘Boston’.
On the opposite end of The Pit’s spectrum is Frank Carter and his new band The Rattlesnakes. The veteran punk rock frontman appears revived by his new project and performed what I immediately hailed as “of the best sets of the festival” even at this early stage. And you know what? I was right. Now of course I’d say that but, seriously, Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes are one immense hardcore monster. The songs bubble with pent up rage, they’re violent and yet melodic at the same time. Blistering hardcore and melodic punk and roll combine, allowing Carter and his band to hit like a ton of bricks (‘Juggernaut’), but also show off a much smoother sound when they want to (‘Fangs’). In many ways it feels like a combination of what Carter was doing with both Gallows and Pure Love, but it truly is it’s own beast and watching it let loose is beautiful. Frank is a delight to watch, one of the best frontmen in punk for sure, and he wasn’t going to let a measly barrier stop him having fun with the crowd. At one point he was egging crowd surfers on, handing one of them the microphone and smiling as the fan resisted being dragged away by security with everything he had. Basically he was orchestrating some of Leeds Festival’s most memorable moments - yet another tent engulfing circle pit was in the script too - all without giving a single fuck. The crowning glory, however, for Frank and The Rattlesnakes came at the close of the set. The way Carter delivered ‘I Hate You’, the most loathsome ballad I’ve ever heard, was electric and to punctuate a set with a capacity crowd tunefully bellowing “I fucking hate you and I wish you would die...” was a work of genius.
Photo: Frnkiero Andthe Cellebration performing at Leeds Festival 2015 © 2015 Sophia Kaye
After a short break I returned to The Pit to catch what I could of Frnkiero Andthe Cellabration, his set clashing with Kendrick Lamar and his clashing with Manchester Orchestra. This right here, this is why timing is everything at a festival the size of Leeds. Manage it wrong and you’re missing out, but I digress… Iero, who made his name alongside Gerard Way as part of My Chemical Romance, appears to have made more of a lateral move than his former bandmate. Iero’s sound is definitely on the odd side on record, perhaps relying a little too much on what he had in the studio, but live it’s a completely different animal. ‘Joyriding’ had the feel of a raw and angry punk song, whilst ‘She’s The Prettiest Girl At The Party’ saw Iero heading in more of a twinkly emo direction. It just goes to show that you really don’t know a song until you’ve heard it live, regardless of whether you’re a fan or in the band yourself.
Ducking out of Iero’s set early, I couldn’t resist the draw of Kendrick Lamar over on the main stage. The hottest act in rap right now, Kendrick rocked the massive crowd that had gathered in front of the Leeds Festival main stage. ‘Swimming Pools (Drank)’ and ‘Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe’, both taken from the rapper’s acclaimed debut album Good Kid M.A.D.D City, made sure he had the crowd right where he wanted them. Soon after, Kendrick was captivating the audience with a cover of 2Pac’s ‘Hail Mary’ but I honestly think he could’ve been doing anything and the crowd would’ve loved it. That’s not to take away from his performance though, or that of his live band. Fully expecting to see Kendrick joined merely by a DJ and/or hype man, it was a treat that he had a full band (with a DJ) backing him up. The super tight band made this set for me. Not only because it felt special, but because they added to Kendrick’s performance - providing much fuller and more authentic instrumentals and mixing it up with a solo or two when required. It just felt special.
The final band in my three way clash was Manchester Orchestra. Would-be kings of American indie rock, they seemed determined to prove that they’re one of the best bands in the world and, during the short time I had with them, made it pretty clear that, really, they want to be up on the main stage. They’ve got the talent for it in spades and tracks like, the emotional and uplifting, ‘I Can Barely Breathe’ and the colossal title track of their last proper full length ‘Cope’, complete with it’s ‘Iron Man’ influenced riff, proved that. Vast and dramatic, the sound that Manchester Orchestra make is almost otherworldly it’s that good. There’s not many bands that do indie rock like they do, so to not have them somewhere bigger than the Festival Republic stage seems like a missed opportunity. That said, they definitely looked like they were having a blast and by the time their set was done they’d torn the roof of the place. Staggeringly awesome.
Photo: Refused performing at Leeds Festival 2015 © 2015 Sophia Kaye
This musical masterclass is something Frank Turner, as headliner, would have to follow with only Little Comets as a buffer. A solo set from Turner, a Reading and Leeds stalwart playing the festivals for a ninth consecutive year, was always going to be a major highlight, but even my expectations were passed. A career spanning setlist was on the cards with old favourites like ‘Reasons Not To Be An Idiot’ and the rapturous ‘The Ballad Of Me And My Friends’ fitting in well alongside newer material. Positive Songs For Negative People was well represented, as you might expect with it being just a few weeks old, but Frank knows his audience and made sure that the hits took precedent. Still, ‘Get Better’ and ‘The Next Storm’ caused the Festival Republic tent to erupt almost as much as it would for a hit like ‘The Road’ whilst ‘Song For Josh’ caused the entirely opposite effect, the crowd so silent you could hear a pin drop, something that felt like a real mark of respect for a man Frank cared for deeply. Solemn moments like that, however, were fleeting. The idea of this set seemed to be to have as much fun as possible, something that a cover of Queen’s ‘Somebody To Love’ illustrated at the end of the set.
Rather unfortunately Frank’s set overlapped with Refused (and The Libertines, but whatever). The Swedish hardcore legends were well and truly in full swing by the time I made it across the field to The Pit; with Dennis Lyxzen walking on top of the crowd before collapsing into the people below during ‘Rather Be Dead’. Having finished the song and climbed back on stage the band quickly moved into the thumping ‘War On The Palaces’ before returning to their seminal LP, The Shape Of Punk To Come, with ‘The Deadly Rhythm’, which also saw the band drop into Slayer’s ‘Reign In Blood’. Again Lyxzen was all over the stage, his movements wild yet controlled and his voice unparalleled by anyone doing anything similar. For a moment I turn around and see Frank Carter stood watching at the back of the room, smiling and clapping in sheer appreciation as the band wraps up another song. How could you not though? It was Refused.
Choosing Refused over The Libertines was most definitely the right choice and I ended the first day at Leeds Festival here and was more than thankful for the alternative. In years past, that’s something that likely wouldn’t have happened. As I left the site and looked back at the day that had gone, I noticed how very different it had been. Leeds Festival always provides variety, but this year felt even more diverse. Despite my initial apprehension and wondering whether it even catered for me and my tastes anymore, I left excitable and eager for what Saturday would bring. Which was, of course, The Lock Up.
