Arcade Fire

[Reading Local]

I will remember that incredible/amazing/epic/magical.... performance on Saturday night for as long I live...definitely a Reading folklore moment. Was so chuffed that they decided to play 'Modern Man' as well

Was even more ecstatic when I got back home and saw that BBC 3 broadcast the whole Arcade Fire set & so I can relive it over and over again

Obviously the full set is still available to view on the iplayer for a week, but also on the red button tomorrow (Tuesday) will be highlights of their headlining set

Edited August 30, 2010 by Reading Local

[SomeDay]

I would like to know the average age of the Arcade Fire crowd tbh.

I thought it would be a lot of the older people, and me and my friend would be the youngest there... but there was quite a few young people about for them.

[D-Low]

Arcade made my weekend.

Incredibly amazing! I was quite far back so didnt really notice if it was a small crowd but nonetheless amazing. Its a shame if they did get a small crowd.

[JC-Mo'Fucka]

The biggest crowds at Reading were Blink, Paramore, Lostprophets, Limp Bizkit and Dizzee Rascal.

Libertines crowd was tiny compared to what I expected and it got smaller as people left halfway through. Arcade Fire was pretty small for a headliner, but I guess Pendulum, Ash and Bad Religion all have quite a big draw.

[Role Model]

Best band of the weekend along with probably Weezer for me, right at the front and loved every minute of it.

[Lubic]

At Leeds...

Libertines, Enter Shikari and Arcade Fire were all amazing. In fact I played it perfectly for myself. I was right at the front for Libertines, and then managed to make it through the thick crowd to the NME and get in front of the barrier for Enter Shikari in 10 minutes! And then I made it back to the main stage in time for Arcade Fire's 3rd song, with pint in hand!

After the frantic pit action of Libertines and Shikari, Arcade Fire were the perfect band to watch on the hill supping a pint. The crowd for Arcade was ok considering a lot of the kids left to go watch pendulum, and some of the oldies went to watch Ash. It wasn't tiny - but was a bit spread out around the lighting / sound box (whatever it is) in the middle. It meant I could casually stroll closer to the stage and really take in the atmosphere, sound, and visuals. Really enjoyed the experience - it reminded me why I love festivals so much.

Edited August 30, 2010 by Lubic87

[sjp_121]

I was there, and I'm 14, could have been a contender for youngest, still had a great time .

[Diamond Solitaire]

I thought it was a stunning performance. Pretty much everything about it was incredible. For my money they are the best band around right now and they definitely proved it Saturday night at Reading. Really hoping there are some tickets left for the Cardiff show by the time I've managed to get some money together as it could be a long time before they're back in the UK again

[Vieuphoria]

Got out of Ash and went to watch the end of Arcade Fire. The crowd was tiny, which is such a major shame. They sounded great too.

[rivalschools.price]

The biggest crowds at Reading were Blink, Paramore, Lostprophets, Limp Bizkit and Dizzee Rascal.

Libertines crowd was tiny compared to what I expected and it got smaller as people left halfway through. Arcade Fire was pretty small for a headliner, but I guess Pendulum, Ash and Bad Religion all have quite a big draw.

[Vieuphoria]

We need to add in The Libs to biggest crowds too peeps.

[lharris92]

limp bizkit was one of the performances of the weekend for me... we were standing way back but it was packed... being drunk does help too!

anyway heard arcade fire did good

[liam]

i couldnt believe the size of the limp bizkit crowd,it was absolutely massive.the funniest thing is the fact that nobody was wearing a limp bizkit t shirt,its like they are everyones guilty pleasure.everyone wants to see them but no-one wants to admit it.ha ha.

Edited August 31, 2010 by liam

[rivalschools.price]

Got out of Ash and went to watch the end of Arcade Fire. The crowd was tiny, which is such a major shame. They sounded great too.

[Jailbreak]

surprisingly, i think Bad Religion reduced the size of the arcade fire slightly.i know its only anecdotal but quite a few people in the lock up tent said they would have probably watched arcade fire if Bad Religion werent playing.this surprised me as they are so different.

[j...rox]

Arcade Fire blew me away as much as Radiohead last year. If Glasto got them and Radiohead to headline I might actually keel over in excitement.

[Vogue]

I wasn't there, but watched the coverage on BBC3 and arcade fire looked brilliant. I still think that many people still have no idea who they are, which is surprising considering the size of the venues that they play.

I spoke to a friend who was at Reading, she is the ex-emo-wants-to-be-'indie' type, and told me she didn't watch the libertines or arcade fire because she didn't know who they were....

Absolutely wasted on some people, I would have loved to be there.

[kev1664]

Doesn't matter it was brilliant. Size of the crowd was small, but every song they gave there all, at times the libertines looked to be going throught the motions (Leeds)but AF were energetic all the way through and played note perfect.

[Asher7]

I will remember that incredible/amazing/epic/magical.... performance on Saturday night for as long I live...definitely a Reading folklore moment. Was so chuffed that they decided to play 'Modern Man' as well

[rexclark]

I was very surprised at how small the crowd was for Arcade Fire. I felt bad for them but it was great getting so close and not having to worry about crushing and having space for a dance.

[sjp_121]

Just saw the Reading set on TV... god I want to be at Leeds watching it again

And they seemed to get a bigger crowd at Reading than at Leeds, but you are right, they are wasted on so many people... but yet they've sold out the O2 arena for December I believe...

Alot of day ticket holders went to Arcade Fire, I barely saw anyone with a camping wristband around where we were near the front.

[rockinthecasbah]

I hope reports of a relatively small crowd both nights don't put FR off booking similar acts, or taking a bit of a risk on headliners in the future, especially as I'd say the Saturday had the strongest set of headliners. There won't be many who were there who argue that the set was anything less than a triumph.

[angrymammal]

They were outstanding though I'm not convinced they're best suited to a festival stage, I think their best Reading show was in the NME tent. I think the set fell a bit flat in the middle section but that's hardl surprising given their material. They certainly brought it back together towards the end and the finale was storming.

They were one of a number of gambles by FR that paid off this year.

[theramm]

I hope reports of a relatively small crowd both nights don't put FR off booking similar acts, or taking a bit of a risk on headliners in the future, especially as I'd say the Saturday had the strongest set of headliners. There won't be many who were there who argue that the set was anything less than a triumph.

[jonwl89]

The crowd was definately the smallest for a headliner I've seen but my god, what a set. I cam away feeling that the rest of the weekend was an irrelavancy because I had already seen the band of the weekend. Loved Blink, loved Weezer, LCD, Modest Mouse and Biffy, but my god their set was utter perfection. Destroyed The Libertines who were on before them and really showed them up as a band that never really had the class to headline or even sub a festival and do it justice, and this is coming from a huge Libs fanboy.