The Duke Spirit

Reading Festival 2005 review

By Scott Williams | Published: Fri 2nd Sep 2005

Reading Festival 2005

Friday 26th to Sunday 28th August 2005
Richfield Avenue, Reading, Berkshire, England MAP
£125 for weekend (including camping) - SOLD OUT, £60 any day
Daily capacity: 55,000

The five piece including the delectable Leila Moss on vocals start with a rockin’ number before upping the beat to ‘Fades the Sun.’ Her voice is pretty distinctive, dark and moody but the music at times drags rather than becoming more light and airy for the slower bits.

Lyrically they sound fine but it’s hard to hear the words over the pounding drums. I wonder if their album ‘Cuts Across The Land’ is as shambolic and has the drums up quite so loud. It’s rattling my ribcage.

Once they find their stride the blues/rock is pretty good and they build it spectacularly and it’s these moments the crowd really enjoy. Their sound may be still embryonic and clearly they’re developing the sound.

By the time they head into the second half of the set, Duke Spirit are clearly on familiar territory and it’s much more rocky and they build it to a fantastic crescendo. Definitely The Duke Spirit are a band to keep your eye on in the future.
review by: Scott Williams


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