2017 festival

[Andre91]

The signing woman at Leeds was going MENTAL when Eminem was on. Properly putting everything she had into it. I enjoyed watching her more than what was going on on the stage (for the 10mins I was there before I went to see While She Sleeps flatten the tent). 

[Andre91]

Jesus bloody Christ am I glad I didn't bother going along to At The Drive In. My friend watched then at Leeds and said they were crap and now I'm watching the Reading footage and sound dreadful. Cedric is a parody of himself. 

Frank Carter who I instead went to see, on the other hand 

[Reece1617]

I don't tend to post much on here but figured I might as well express my views of the weekend at Leeds. 

Friday: Started off with X Ambassadors, considering how big of a following they have I was surprised they weren't further up the bill. They were pretty decent and Sam Harris really can sing. Then stayed in NME for QOTSA who were quality. They played quite a few new tracks as expected, which were pretty well received. Then moved down to Main to see VANT who were okay, a little high up the lineup for what they were though. Then back to NME for Fickle Friends who were really good, had to check them out as I missed them last year for Frank Turner. They didn't disappoint. Went to see Architects, they sounded Massive on the main stage, a smaller crowd than I expected and the pits were pretty weak but that didn't stop their energy. they were mint. Then went to check out some Festival Republic acts, Will Joseph Cook - Saw him last year and it was almost an exact repeat but was a fair performance. Then Picture This who, although their music is quite generic, were pretty good. Released their debut album that day too which made the show seem quite special. Good little band. Then went to see Milky Chance. Clemens' voice is a treat for anyone who likes something unique with a bit of character. It was a great performance to a pretty full stage. Then The Prettyboys-  Crowd was so energetic and was a great little set. Then headed down to the main stage for the rest of the day. Liam Gallagher was boring, his attitude ruins his fairly decent music for me. Wall of Glass did sound pretty good though. Muse were good but better at Download 15', nothing special about their set, played a very standard setlist. 

Saturday: First went to see YONAKA who were full of energy and played well. Look forward to hearing more from them. Then went to see Marika Hackman who was disappointing, she played a lot from her new album which imo is much weaker than ‘We Slept at Last’ which she barely touched. The Amazons were, performance wise, pretty good but their mix was a bit crap, not enough bass- making the ears ring. Then moved down to the Main Stage for the rest of the day. Rat Boy was okay, although it seemed as though he didn’t know how to tune a guitar properly- their songs are decent but could use a bit more practice. Then Circa Waves who were really good, the sunshine + T-Shirt Weather was a perfect fit. Even if they were trying too hard to get people to mosh to their music which imo didn’t need it. Then JEW who did not get the audience reception they deserved. They would have been much better received as a Lock Up Headliner. It just seemed as though everyone was waiting for The Middle rather than enjoying the other (pretty good) songs they have. Two Door were great, massive crowd at Leeds as expected and can definitely see them rising to sub (maybe even co-headline) after another album. Bastille were fairly good but it felt like Dan was very distracted throughout. Kasabian were ace. They seemed very emotional during most of their performance and they felt like they really wanted to be there (unlike a lot of bands who just seem to be in it for Reading). Though I can’t understand why they didn’t swap a filler like ‘treat’ for Club Foot.

Sunday: Started with Wolf Alice (Secret Set) which I didn’t really expect Leeds to get. Wasn’t as full a stage as I anticipated but was a good performance nevertheless. Then went to see Moose Blood who I’d seen a few times before and this was the weakest I’ve seen them. They were very shy and I felt they weren’t really ready for playing the Main Stage. Then The Pretty Reckless. When Momsen isn’t stripping naked on stage she really doesn’t have that much going for her. The music was okay but nothing more to it. PVRIS next who also kinda disappointed me. At Leeds, we aren’t used to the heat and Lynn got pretty stressed out about that with no one wanting to jump around. It started to pick up from there though. Frank Carter was ace. Running around the NME like a stampede was a highlight of the weekend for me. Then Sundara Karma who were fairly good but ketamine fuelled kids made it almost unbearable towards the front. Then went to see the rest of Korn who were awesome considering the sorts of people the main stage attracted that day. Went to see Grouplove who I expected to attract a bigger crowd considering their size in the states. They were pretty good, not a big fan of their new song ‘Seagulls’ though. Then went to see Everything Everything who were phenomenal. Watching videos of them playing I was a bit skeptical but they were so good. Higgs’ voice is amazing and their new songs sounded great live. Then stayed for Glass Animals who pulled quite a small crowd but the energy was amazing and the stage design was beautiful. Eminem was decent but I’m sure that’s been discussed enough already. Went to catch a few songs from While She Sleeps in the middle though and that was really intimate and fantastic. Really looking forward to seeing them with Architects next year now.

Overall a pretty decent weekend.  

 

Edited August 28, 2017 by Reece1617

[TornShaun]

19 minutes ago, Andre91 said:

Jesus bloody Christ am I glad I didn't bother going along to At The Drive In. My friend watched then at Leeds and said they were crap and now I'm watching the Reading footage and sound dreadful. Cedric is a parody of himself. 

Frank Carter who I instead went to see, on the other hand 

Frank Carter was brilliant at Reading 

[Andre91]

5 minutes ago, TornShaun said:

Frank Carter was brilliant at Reading 

Frank Carter is brilliant ALWAYS. 

[Mattymooz]

TBH I was really surprised by the crowds too, much more interactive and up for it than they have been previously (though the near constant moshing was baffling, it was still better than people just stood there). And I don't know if it was due to the more bag searches this year but imo most of the people completely off their tits on drugs were on the campsite, saw very few people who were bad in the main arena. My highlights of the acts though were:

The Amazons - I know people said that their Glasto set was pretty meh so was kind of dreading it but they really threw down and had a massive crowd.

Declan McKenna - Wasn't really expecting much as his album is quite mellow but god damn this kid is a good showman. Really got the crowd going and into it.

Two Door Cinema Club - Was a really great set tbh even though I haven't listened to anything from them other than their debut. Still don't understand moshing to them but there we go.

Defeater - Kind of accidentally stumbled into the pit while they were on. I don't really do screamo usually but if you got past the vocals they are pretty great.

EDEN - Again was expecting a more mellow set be he threw down pretty hard anyways. He had a suprisingly large crowd too.

Glass Animals - Wooooow. Crowd was amazing for this set and their frontman has such a great personality. Also makes me admire how freaking great the NME is imo my favouirte stage now I think.

Noisia - Dissapointed I missed Collider as I was at the glass animals set but at least I got to hear Tentacles. Tent was empty as well which was pretty upsetting given how good they were (but people may have left as eminem had just come on)

Flume - Was more of a D set tbh than a live set but was still amazing. Mixing was on point as were the visuals. The chanting of "Fuck Eminem" before he came on stage was amusing too.

X Ambassadors - Unfortunately only caught the last few songs by them. Their kind of carried by their singer a bit but it was still very enjoyable. Thought the new song they played was pretty dull though so maybe not too much hope for them in the future.

Fickle Friends - Amazing as per usual. Glad to see they drew a lot larger crowd than they did when they opened the stage last year. Can't wait for their album to come out early next year, hoping it will bump them up the lineup a long way (esp. as Glue is getting a fair bit of radioplay)

Against The Current - Only caught they very end of their set but was pleasantly surprised that their singer sounded like she did on the record. I had always assumed there was autotune on their stuff so.

Muse - Surprisingly a quality set. They got Dig Down out the way at the start which was much appreciated and very little of 2nd Law and Resistance were played which was idealllll. Not to mention Black & Black which was such a great surprise. However, he only threw his guitar 2 times this time (rather than 4 times when I saw them in London) so really sub par in that regard

[WFD]

15 hours ago, DGrant261 said:

Given just how reliant the event now is on day tickets I think grabbing big name repeat booking headliners off the touring circuit is the way the event to keep going (Leeds at least), on this ground I can anticipate Foos & Killers getting booked next year and both selling well for the day. 

Agree with this - RHCP day last year and Eminem day this year were very similar in that there was a huge increase in numbers from people of day tickets, having a big day out at a fairly mainstream artist and spending big at the bars. It's clearly a key part of the overall income for the weekend but will only work for a narrow range of acts - I don't think the Killers and Foo Fighters will both be booked next year but they were the two most likely candidates I thought of for next year's Reading Saturday / Leeds Sunday slot.

Meanwhile, I went (to Leeds) for the weekend for the second year with my teenage kids and firstly the weather was a big help in terms of enjoyment and logistics. I still expected a repeat of last year's Monday morning car park exit from hell but it was a breeze getting out and they changed the route back to the motorway so we went from starting the car to on the motorway in 10-15 minutes compared to nearly 2-3 hours last year. Much better, obviously.

Got to see most of what I intended and was rarely let down - Marika Hackman probably the most disappointing, fairly flat in an early slot, and agree with an earlier comment that the heat on the Sunday afternoon flattened the atmosphere for the run of bands on main on Sunday afternoon (Moose Blood, Pretty Reckless and Pvris) where most people were happy to sit in the sun with a drink. Architects exceeded expectations the most, and saw some decent sets in FR (Grouplove, Phantogram, Off Bloom, Pumarosa and Districts) even if the crowds were modest (saw the end of Vallis Alps playing in there to hardly anyone). Had a good weekend overall, good varied line up for me and got round all the stages. 

Eminem was the only main stage headliner I watched in full, initially from in front of the accessible platform but it was packed solid and after an incident where a girl collapsed and her boyfriend got shoved around and drink thrown at him for trying to get her to the stewards at the fence (people thought he was just pushing through), we moved out the edge for the remainder.

Camped in Green and it was mostly ok, would still like Brown (and its portaloos) back next year though.

 

[charliehughes97]

First weekend festival I've been to and it was the best weekend of my life. We found a cracking spot in yellow next to "Hello friends, happy Reading" guy (those in the know loved him.)

Friday had been the day I was most looking forward to. I was surprised at first The Amazons were put on such a small stage, and the crowd was huge for them. Circa Waves just get better everytime I see them, they're incredible live and again didn't dissapoint. As much as I love Two Door I was slightly dissapointed with their set list,  I just wish they'd play more of their older stuff. Kasabian were Kasabian, Serge is a genius.

Saturday ended up being the best day of the weekend, spent near enough the entire day out in the arena and managed to see 14 different acts. Wolf Alice and their secret set were great, and they had a decent crowd. Love Get Inuit but was surprised they were on the R1 Dance stage, and even more surprised there was about 40/50 people watching when Sigrid was on after. Still, they were one of the highlights of the weekend. Grouplove create so much energy it's hard to not be impressed with them. Everything Everything were class, and Glass Animals gave me the greatest hour of my life. Props to the people climbing the sound towers during Eminem, must've had a good view...

Highlights on Sunday included Fickle Friends who are improving with every gig they play. I don't think Nat can keep calling them "A little pop group from Brighton" for much longer! The Sherlocks had a cracking crowd. Was slightly dissapointed with Blossoms because I just didn't think they sounded all that great, and everyone around me was there for LG, which was a shame. And Muse closing the weekend were incredible, everything in their set was great.

Will 100% be returning next year, the weather obviously helped make it a good weekend, but I had an absolute ball.

[Mattymooz]

Just now, charliehughes97 said:

Will 100% be returning next year, the weather obviously helped make it a good weekend, but I had an absolute ball.

Just a little heads up, I wouldn't commit to next year just yet. At least see how the line up shapes up. I know after your first weekend fest you can't wait to go back but don't end up getting stuck going to a festival with a pretty meh lineup (especially as there are so many other weekend fests that will all raise their game next year due to no glasto)

[charliehughes97]

3 minutes ago, Mattymooz said:

Just a little heads up, I wouldn't commit to next year just yet. At least see how the line up shapes up. I know after your first weekend fest you can't wait to go back but don't end up getting stuck going to a festival with a pretty meh lineup (especially as there are so many other weekend fests that will all raise their game next year due to no glasto)

Thanks for the advise! Some of the people next to us literally only went to the arena for Eminem and LG. Sounds nuts, but I'd be happy spending half the day at the camp.

[Andre91]

My top 10 of the weekend at Leeds: 

'The Prettyboys'- Just the best set of the whole weekend by far. The tent was rammed. The place went absolutely nuts for half an hour and Broco were as incredible as ever. Ending on Thug Workout was insane. Such a great band, such a great surprise. I think they'll be back a lot higher next year, either NME headliner or fourth down Main. 

Neck Deep- The best set I saw on the Lock Up/Pit all weekend. They're just the best Pop Punk band the UK has ever produced. I was a little gutted they didn't play anything from Wishful Thinking but the LNOTGY stuff is their best and the new stuff sounded massive, especially In Bloom. Getting Sam Carter out was awesome, too. I'm so tempted to go to their tour after that because there's so many songs they still could have played. Perfect end to the Friday night. 

Architects- Untouchable. Absolutely untouchable. The crowd was rubbish and the pits were weak as hell, but I still went mad and had the best time. Lost my voice for the rest of the weekend after their set. Lovely tribute to Tom from Sam and I am so, so excited that they're playing Ally Pally. They deserve it so much. Also, who doesn't love pyro and CO2? 

WSTR- A set of Pop Punk bangers in the sunshine with beer. The whole tent was singing along and it was so much fun. The Red, Green... material sounded incredible. The beers were just starting to kick in at this point so I had the best time. 

KoRn- In the form of their career. They absolutely smashed it. It was really funny to see so many glitter clad teenage girls absolutely shit their pants when they started playing. The crowd was sizeable and not that into it (as expected) but down the front where I was standing was loving it. The pits were great for Falling Away From Me, Blind and Freak On A Leash. I unfortunately hurt my leg really badly during the second song so I had to sit out (after being carried out of the crowd by some lovely gentleman because I physically couldn't stand up on my leg) but I still enjoyed it. They should headline Download. 

You Me At Six- Went along after watching 30mins of Kasabian on the off chance they'd play some TOYC material. They were bloody excellent from start to finish. Sounded great. Save It For The Bedroom was my highlight of the night, I sung my heart out and so did the entire crowd. I can't explain how loud the YES was that I gave out when they said that they are going to be touring TOYC in full next year. It was also cool to see them headlining the NME after seeing them at my first Leeds in 2010. Really nice surprise. 

While She Sleeps- The perfect end to the weekend. Small but very, very committed crowd. Everyone in that tent knew all of the words and was having a ball. No band has as many riffs as WSS. Really looking forward to them supporting Architects at Ally Pally.  

Frank Carter- The best frontman in the game. He knows how to work a crowd ridiculously well. The circle pit going out and around the tent was badass. I can't believe he didn't play Juggernaut but ending on I Hate You was just awesome. Can definitely see him coming back next year to play a mid main stage slot. 

Giggs- Well what a surprise. BANGING. As soon as Architects finished the crowd just expanded and expanded. It was MASSIVE. It looked so fun in the centre, too. Loved every second of it. I'm not even that old (24) but it was awesome to see all of the younger people losing their minds and actually getting involved. 

Major Lazer- Really fun. The sound was awesome. Massive crowd. Dropped some absolute bangers. If it was on the Friday or Saturday I'd have been in the middle having a good old dance.

 

It was actually one of the best years I've been. A very pleasant surprise. 

[BeddingatReading]

I guess I might as well give my opinions. As everyone said, much more lively crowd and not the stereotypical pill taking teens that are usually associated with festival. I've said earlier in the forum but the moshing was way too much and unnecessary to certain bands IMO. I'm not against people having a good time but one of my friends got a broken nose simply because she wanted to be near the front for one of her favourite bands (Sundara Karma). 

Anyhow all in all a good weekend and my review of the bands we saw are as follows. 

Freak - he was very strong and played an array of hits. Shame the sound cut out during his biggest song and he did throw a bit of a tantrum smashing up his guitar but hey - rock n roll!

The Amazons - very very good start to the weekend, I said it before the festival for months and stuck by it, they were way too low. I think they got taken advantage of because they loved the festival and didn't get the high booking they deserved. First time I've seen them and am very impressed. Packed out the tent and expect them to be much higher next year, mid NME or FR headliner IMO. 

Circa waves - good performance from them, really managed to get the crowd going, although I'm not a huge fan I have seen them a lot at festivals and they seem to just be getting better. 

Anne-Marie - I caught the second half of her set after being talked into it by my other half and she saved the hits that I knew until the end. We saw her at V fest last week and I wasn't that impressed, in the NME tent she sounded amazing and the crowd were brilliant. 

Two door cinema club - although they've been going for a while I've only been getting into them recently, they seemed really good live and had a good singalong, I still can't work out how people managed to mosh to them but was still very enjoyable. 

Bastille - I thought they weren't very good personally, Dan's vocals were very poor and it just seemed a bit much for them. Backdrop was very good though and they put on a good show, even if it wasn't musically the greatest. I heard a few people around us speaking highly of their performance though so maybe my opinion isn't representative of the majority of the crowd - I personally don't think they're big enough to sub and they didn't seem ready either, but I still wouldn't be surprised to see them co-headline from their next album. 

Kasabian - They put on a very good show once again. Tom didn't seem that up for it, possibly due to his illness that made them pull out of Belfast, but he did manage to entertain the crowd by making "back from the dead" jokes - although maybe a bit too much. Serge was just Serge, really knows how to put on a show. 

King no one - A very good young band that I've been following for a little while now. Played an early slot on the NME to a very small crowd. They seemed like they really wanted to be there and did play with a lot of passion, the singer sounded like he was struggling though and couldn't hit a lot of notes. Not sure if he was getting ill, nervous or if he just can't handle all the gigs they've been doing. 

Moose blood - One of the bands I've been looking forward to most on the bill but live they did let me down a bit. The crowd didn't seem that into them and probably shouldn't have been on the main stage yet. Would have been really good and in their element near the top of the bill in the Lockup/Pit but not a main stage band yet. 

The pretty reckless - very strong. I think they are exactly what the festival were looking for - a strong band with a highly confident female singer. I only really went because of my other half, was a proper throwback moment for her and even though I've never been a huge fan of the band it's hard to deny how good they sounded. 

Sundara Karma - Great to see a local band doing so well. A lot of unnecessary moshing again in the crowd (broken nose for my friend as I touched on earlier causing her to have to leave put a bit of a dampener on the performance). Musically sounded good though but they didn't interact with the crowd too much. Singer seemed nervous so maybe had something to do with it, concentrating on the music but didn't sound nervous though. 

Everything Everything - were very strong. The singer has a very strong voice. Crowd was very small for that time at night but what they did have he managed to get going -  most of the moshers had gone to Major Lazer I think so was able to just enjoy the music. 

Eminem - I had massive expectations for him and he met them and then some. Did he mime? Probably. Did anybody care? No. He managed to entertain the whole crowd and everyone was going nuts for him. Shame he didn't bring on any special guests with him, with Dido being local and Rihanna in the country but he managed to steal the show on his own so I guess he didn't need to. One thing I didn't get though is why he had two backup singers miming the female singers in his songs - either get them to sing themselves or just not bother. Surely he didn't think the crowd were stupid enough to think the singers sound exactly like Rihanna, Hayley Williams and everyone who featured on his songs - but that's one small negative in a very good performance. 

Fickle Friends - Not  necessarily my usual cup of tea, a choice of my partner again but they did sound good, got the crowd dancing in the early part of the day. The singer had a very strong voice. 

Sløtface - another band I'd been looking forward  to and they put on a good performance. A very good female fronted band who put on a very strong performance. Looking forward to the first album and in a few years time I can see them being much higher up on the bill. 

The Sherlocks - another very strong young band. Had a big following and the crowd weren't as bad as I was expecting. They sounded decent and will probably have a strong future ahead of them, the majority of the crowd were singing along to near enough every word of every song. 

Blossoms - A band I've seen many times before and a band I was looking forward to seeing, but this is the one time I wasn't very impressed. They don't suit an outdoor stage, they didn't have much stage presence and actually seemed a bit boring. The crowd probably didn't do much for them in all fairness as quite a few people around me said they were only there for Liam Gallagher and I seemed to be the only person who knew any of the lyrics. In all honesty, even though I am a fan I don't think they deserved the position they were in. Before, I thought with them being in this position on one album they could go on to headline in a few years but now I'm not sure. I thought the same about Jake Bugg in '14 and he's only gone downhill but I hope I'm wrong and I'd love to hear another good Blossoms album. 

Liam Gallagher - I said it before and I'll stick to it I don't think he deserved to sub before even releasing his first album. Admittedly he's one of the biggest names in British music history but as a solo act he's only released two songs, both of which didn't go down too well. Despite all this though he did put on a good performance and it was a great crowd sing-along to Oasis at the end. 

Charli XCX -   Another set I got talked into by my other half and In all honesty I can't remember much of her set but it seemed really good and the crowd got going a lot and she definitely put on a good performance. 

The Hunna - at this stage I'd had a lot to drink and for some reason went to go and see them with a few friends but the crowd seemed well into it. They seem like a very hard working band though who will be up the bill very quickly, with them doing the BBC intro set as well as the signing and their headline slot on the FR stage I don't think anyone can deny that they'll be in a much higher position next year. 

Please don't judge me for any bands that I chose to see, these opinions are my own on who I did see and obviously if anyone has any comments about what I've said feel free to chip in. 

[TornShaun]

Just a few of my highlights from Reading..... 

KoRN - My favourite of the whole weekend! Just as good now as they was when they started back in 1994! Amazing performance on the main stage and getting the crowd rocking! Great setlist too! SHOOTS and LADDERS!  

Andy C - What a closing night Saturday in the dance tent! By far the best Dn'B DJ in the business and never fails to smash his sets! So glad he dropped 'Origin Unknown' and 'Air force One' in his set. 

Architects - So glad these guys didn't give up when they lost Tom! It all got so emotional before the last song 'Gone With the Wind' with a fitting tribute of words from Sam about Tom! Only thing i wish is that i'd got closer in the crowd to watch!

Frank Carter - Never watched Frank Carter before but so glad i did! He was great start to finish and really got the crowd going!

Watsky - Not sure who on here recommended him to me but thank you! Loved it! and the only time i actually went into the 1 Extra tent.  

Jimmy Eat World - Third time seeing them, second time seeing them on the main stage at Reading and they never get boring. Great to just enjoy, especially soaking up the sun with a beer.

QOTSA - What an act for a secret set! Great watching them in the NME tent over the main stage this time! Great to hear 'The Evil Has Landed' live.

PVRIS - Never watched or listened to them before but i just missed The Pretty Reckless so i thought i'd stay and watch these. Really enjoyed plus the lead signed is hot!

Neck Deep - Good old Pop Punk, what more can i say. Was empty when i got in there, but soon filled up and the crowd was electric. Although i did leave early to get a burger as i felt sick and happened to catch Brian Johnson coming on stage for Muse so i watched the end of them. 

others that i enjoyed........

Marmozets, Himalayas, Noisia, Metrik, You Me & Six, Shy FX

 

[Gozpot]

Top 5 for me in no order:

QOTSA, Muse, Jimmy Eat World, Marmozets and Korn.

Casey, Danny Brown and Liam Gallagher were all also very good.

[Obiginnaw]

Favourite 5 in any order 

Yonaka- really impressed me live, great way to kick off the festival 

idles - the crowd was fantastic, they were hectic and it was an awesome sound to be at , first crowd surf as well so there's that 

frank Carter- I always fangirl over him, was a short set and without Fangs or juggernaut but still delivered for me 

Marmozets - 'Play' was very good live , which I wasn't expecting, and I've been meaning to see them for a while, they did not disappoint 

MUSE - well fuck. Simply speechless.

 

[TornShaun]

I did upload a few videos i recorded from the weekend for anyone whose interested...

My YouTube Channel

[peruvianjoco]

Went to Leeds for the first time this year on the Sunday (being a usual regular at Reading) and I thought the crowds were generally a lot smaller and more tame at Leeds. Of the acts I saw, Superfood, Everything Everything and Frank Carter were fantastic. 

Also was it me or was Eminem lip syncing throughout his set...?

[Rose-Colored Boy]

2 minutes ago, peruvianjoco said:

 

Also was it me or was Eminem lip syncing throughout his set...?

he does that at every show ever

[Chavmeisterdeluxe]

Friday

Started with Palisades. Not heard them before but sounded ok. Bigish crowd for that time of the day and they really got into it.

Saw a bit of Mallory Knox who were good, played to more people than I expected.

Moved onto Puppy after a few songs. Not the biggest of crowds which is a shame as this band are brilliant. Great set.

Stayed in the pit for a bit as I had a gap. WSTR were up next. Found these pretty rubbish but had a big crowd who were loving it. Seemingly only Neck Deep can do pop punk music well in this country.

Counterfeit were up next. A small role in Harry Potter will set you up for life. Tent full of screaming teenage girls. Performance was fine.

Over to main for Jimmy Eat World. Never fail. So many cracking songs in their arsenal, crowd wasn't that into them until The Middle.

Back to the pit. Caught the end of Tigers Jaw who sounded great. Never heard of them before but will checking them out.

Boston Manor were up next. Saw them at Download and they were good and were again at Reading. Still don't dig them enough to really check out and album though.

Arcane Roots are brilliant. Many more people in the crowd than I expected. Not sure I enjoyed them as much as the couple more or less having sex on the floor near me but still brilliant none the less.

Queens up next. Still amazed Josh can perform when clearly off his nut. Great as usual.

Saw a bit of You Me at Six who sounded good and had a bigger crowd than most here anticipated.

Finished the night with Billy Talent who smashed it, great crowd too.

Saturday

Moose blood were first band for me. Good performance, not sure they're suited to main stages just yet.

Pretty Reckless followed. Pretty naff. Massive crowd though.

Pvris were very good. Enjoyed them more than I expected.

Over to the NME stage for Marmozets. Sound started a bit muddy but cleared up and they put on a great show. New songs sounded impressive.

Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes absolutely tore the place a new one. Nice light show too.

Caught the end of At the Drive In from the back of their massive crowd....so about 6 rows back. 

Korn smashed their set, never been their biggest fan but really enjoyed this.

Major Lazer up next. Not my cup of tea but fine.

Watched a bit of Eminem but the crowd was quite unbearable where I was so we decided to head home.

[Andre91]

Boston Manor were bloody fantastic at Leeds. Laika might be my favourite song I've heard this year. Their crowd was fanatic. 

[dentalplan]

3 hours ago, Chavmeisterdeluxe said:

Counterfeit were up next. A small role in Harry Potter will set you up for life. Tent full of screaming teenage girls. Performance was fine.

He also looks very good. Nobody would be screaming for [white] Crabbe.

[rivalschools.price]

^{Had a fantastic weekend in Reaidng once again, my highlights - -}

^{Idles -First band i saw (other than 5 mins of Puppy) as i had overindulged the Thursday night.Fantastic, great crowd, great performance.Loved it.}

^{Broken Witt Rebels - Went over to the Jack Rocks bar to see these.Some clssic rock tracks,very enjoyble.Jack rocks was a cool little bar/stage by the way.}

^{Jimmy Eat World -  Same set that I've seen them do many times before at festivals but,if im honest, i dont really want them to change it.}

^{Tigers Jaw and Boston Manor - sort of half watched them both from the side of the tent.Both seemed top quality but not really my thing.}

^{Arcane Roots - What an amazing band! Seen them many times and their performance and songwriting is awesome.}

^{QOTSA -Can't believe how good this was.Amazing bonus.Was in the second row right in the middle.Brilliant.}

^{Billy Talent - Biggest surprise in a long time.Ive seen them before and listened them loads of times but they were absolutely amazing on Friday.Great performance and they seemed a step up in quality from the other bands in the Lock-up that day.Finished the day on a real high.}

^{Marmozets - What a frontwoman.Crowd loved it.Can see them getting big with their new album.Even their new single 'Play' which sounds a bit too polished on record sounded great live.}

^{Frank Carter - Seen him four times this year, still not bored.Unstoppable.}

^{At the drive-in - I must have different ears to everyone else.Everyone thought they were crap, everyone hated them, I loved them.I loved them last time they played(very drunk to be fair) and i loved their widely panned latest album.}

^{Korn - Brilliant.Never thought I'd see them at Reading.Loads of classics left off the setlist but i suppose thats to be expected.}

^{Turbowolf - Seen this band many times supporting almost everyone in Bristol.Never fails to entertain.I love this band.}

^{Carpenter Brut - For some reason I loved these.No idea why.Will check out again at a festival(prob wont pay to watch their own show though)}

^{Japandroids - Was going to watch half an hour of Eminem while I was waiting for While she Sleeps but the crowd for Eminiem ws HUGE and sound was terrible so watched Japandroids instead, good decision.Crowd seemed to grow as the set went on so seems like loads did the same.}

^{While she Sleeps - Real metal.More please.Can see these getting a good slot at Download next year.}

^{Muncie Girls,Culture abuse,Tired Lion - Nothing overly exciting about all three of these,lost interest in all three halfway through their sets.Only notable points were the fact that the  Tired Lion vocalists voice was grating on me and Culture Abuse had some sort of implosion at the end of their set.}

^{Breaking Benjamin- Wow! Packed tent, massive singalong,seemed like everyone in the tent knew every single word and screamed them at the top of their voices.Brilliant.}

^{Ash - Barely had time to clap Breaking Benjamin before rushing the short distance to the FR tent for Ash.This band is perfect for festivals.Classic after classic.Will never tire of watching these.Their tenth Reading, if they play another 10 I wont complain.}

^{Gnarwolves - Dont know if it was them or me but they couldnt compete with the Ash\BB double whammy.Still love them though.}

^{Muse - I know they arent everyones cup of tea but they have been amazing every time i have seen them and Sunday was no different.I'm resisting saying it is the best ive seen them cos i seem to say that every time i see them but they totally blew me away.Fantastic.Brian Johnson turning up for Back in Black just topped it, huge surprise.Best festival surprise guest ever for me.10/10}

^{General - Had a great weekend once again.Managed to avoid most of the idiots that many have mentioned on here.My top tip for avoiding dickheads is to avoid going near stages with 'radio 1' or 'dance' in the title, works for me.In fact, I would say tht the average age of festival goers was slightly higher than normal this year, though there was a lot of very young stewards and bar staff.Lovely weather helped make the weekend better and at some points people were complaining it was too hot.After 2016s Download and Glastonbury I'll never complain its too hot.}

Roll on next year

[devilman]

Excellent Leeds this year helped by brilliant weather. 10 mins of rain on Friday morning. Dust was the enemy rather than mud.

Lafontaines - early start for these. Tent empty to dtart with but filled up. Sound was initially shite but they got it right eventually. Tried hard and won the crowd over 7/10

QoTSA - Initially gave me TCV flashbacks from the most boring set ever but came good. 6/10

Architects -  Emotional. 7/10

Muncie Girls - Dunno if it was a bad set or they are just crap. Wasn't impressed. Also, that fringe. Just no. 4/10

Blossoms - Surprised how good they were. Not really my thing but they nailed it. 7/10

Don Broco - Wasn't initially sure it was them as singer had short hair the last time I saw them  Were v good 8/10

Breaking Benjamin - Killed it. wat too short a set 9/10

Ash - Always good 7/10

Muse - If teh fuckers had done Citizen Erased they would have got a 10. 9/10

Sat.

Deap Vally - My love affair with the drummer continues 8/10

Mallory Knox - Sometimes hit or miss. They were a hit this time 8/10

Puppy - never heard of them, will check out now. Great performance. Find of the festival 9/10

Idles - I prefer my music and politics on separate plates please but otherwise outstanding 9/10

Jimmy Eat World - Seen live three times, never listened to any of their stuff really. Must change that. 8/10

*beer and "crisps" interval back at van. Stopped when we realised it was dark and we could hear Kasabian*

Billy Talent - Smashed it. Great set, great crowd. 9/10

Sun

Mooseblood - seemed less angry than I last saw them in the Pit. Good start to day 6/10

Pretty Reckless - Talented girl but lacks something. 6.5/10

PVRIS - Disappointing for me. Weak vocals and before long it really reminded me of how much I hated London Grammar when I saw them and had to walk away. So I walked away from this too. Shame as I quite like them on album. Or at least I did. 4/10

Tigercub - Good sound. Will check out their stuff now 7/10

Marmozets - Let down of the weekend. Was pumped for this but the sound in NME was shit. Listened to a few and decided that Vukovi might be better. Shame as when we went outside of NME and picked up different speakers it sounded good but we were now committed to going to Pit. 5/10

Vukovi - Fun band with good tunes. Really enjoyed them 7/10

Frank Carter - Someone else considerably less angry than the last time I saw him  Great performer. 9/10

Korn - Everything absolutely spot on. What surprised me was the amount of youngsters enjoying them. It's like at L/R 3rd down they are considered an exciting band on the rise but at Download as sub they are seen as an old tired band on the way down. Weather and beer may have something to do with these perceptions . BoTW 10/10

Turbowolf - Really felt for them as placing meant the tent was pretty empty but they went at it hard as flamboyantly as ever. 7/10

Carpenter Brut -  Was knackered by this stage so sat at back with a beer and listened to these for the 1st time. Don't get synthwave but I suppose it was ok back ground music as I chatted and people watched. 5/10

One OK Rock - Like a Japanese don Broco. Helluva talented singer and very tight band. It's a bit too boy band and contrived but no doubting the ability. 7/10

While She Sleeps - Had to choose between screamy band or talky man who mimes. Chose screamy band. Had seen them supporting BFMV and it wasn't memorable but this was. Great set, great atmosphere and the crowd were lapping up every second of it. I'm never going to like screamy stuff as my main intake but when I have to this lot will do. 8/10

I was in the campervan field again. It was moved this year but they ran out of room and had to improvise with other space. Dunno if there was a last minute rush on sales. Camping looked slightly more civilised than I've seen it before on the walk in. The arena felt as busy as i've seen it and bar queues were a bit daft on Sunday afternoon. I had water instead a couple of times FFS!!! 

 

[MontheBiff1997]

Anyone know why there are barely any videos of the sets on iPlayer? Usually there's several pages of acts but this year there are about 15.

[Sam217]

Went to the Saturday of Leeds, first time at the festival and I absolutely loved it. Weather was perfect and got to see some bloody amazing sets. Thought I'd share my thoughts on acts too

Judas: Got into the arena near the end of the set but sounded good to start the day. Personally I quite like their sound and I think they could get bigger and bigger -  7/10

The Amazons: Probably my second favourite set of the festival they were insane, packed out the tent and I still can't figure out why they were so far down the bill. Can't wait to go to a full show of theirs in October they kick started the day for me - 9/10

The Orwells: Some good songs but took them a while to get going. Pulled an okay crowd but I was more interested in the bands coming after them - 5/10

Declan McKenna: Very very good. He's an incredible showman climbing up the sides of the stage and putting himself right in the middle of his own mosh pit. - 8/10

Oh Wonder: Decided to see them instead of Circa Waves as I like their music and have seen Circa Waves earlier in the year. They were good very good stage lights and very passionate and my girlfriend loved them. Do like their music a lot I find it very catchy and am happy I saw them although the crowd was very small because of Circa Waves on the main stage - 7.5/10

Jimmy Eat World: Feel a lot of people did not appreciate them. Missed the start of their set getting food but they sounded excellent. Think they would've been more suited to headlining the NME stage but unsurprisingly The Middle was incredible - 7/10

Two Door Cinema Club: Saw them earlier in the year and I think I preferred them then to now. Still put in a very good set although missed some of my personal favourite songs by them. Where was sleep alone?! Crowd was massive for them but I don't think they're big enough to headline - 8/10

Bastille: Another band I'd seen on their earlier tour. Personally thought Dan was carrying a cold or something didn't quite sound himself but still put in a great set and were clearly very humbled to be that high up the lineup. Girlfriends favourite act of the day and she's now begging me to take her to see them in concert - 8.5/10

Kasabian: The band I was most hyped to see and they didn't disappoint. Also seemed to be the only band more excited to be at Leeds than at Reading. Very emotional throughout their set but played it to perfection. Only disappointment is the set length, I know them and Eminem are very different but he did 33 songs compared to their 18. Even so still my highlight of the weekend, cannot fault them - 10/10

Personally didn't have too many issues with clashes, only real clashes were Circa Waves, The Magic Gang and Reginald D Hunter but overall a fantastic weekend