Live Review

Leeds Festival Day 2 – Braham Park, Leeds

• 6th Sep 2010

Today is the day for punks and pop-punks alike and the majority of our day is spent at the main stage. Opening today are Motion City Soundtrack, who repeat their name after almost every song despite it being written behind them. They truly wake the crowd up after what Colin Murray describes as ‘a slow start’ at the main stage yesterday. Fists are pumping and everyone is really looking forward to the feast of alternative music this stage offers today.

The King Blues arrive onstage shouting and swearing, wanting the crowd to ‘GET THE FUCK UP’ and are astonished that Ska-Punk has made it to the main stage of major festival. You would think that their performance would be marred by the constant political rants and protection of he who runs the streets but it isn’t, mainly because every rant is aimed at the BNP and we all know they’re not exactly popular haha.

After an unmemorable performance from Thrice, so much so that all I remember is them being awful, All Time Low arrive on stage to a huge crowd and every track is sung along to almost religiously. However, in my opinion, the performance was ruined by the bands hunt for female participants in their dressing rooms, constantly asking to be shown breasts because it’s a festival and it’s what you ‘should’ apparently do does not make you entertaining, just stick to the music which is clearly being enjoyed.

You Me At Six returned to the UK with a bang. Although Josh was looking a little porky, probably due to the American diet he has been enjoying recently on the Warped Tour, they were fuelled by pure energy and whipped the crowd into 6 circle pits.

A sharp dash across the arena to the NME/Radio 1 stage was rewarded by an amazing performance by The Drums. Jacob flails and prances along to every song which shows he is in his own world and not concerned with the crowd. Jonathan is shaking and strutting like he’s the reincarnation of the Morrissey himself, despite Morrissey not being dead. The band even throw in an early evening encore which, after a set missing biggest track ‘Let’s Go Surfing’ , is finished with down beat ‘Down By The Water’ leaving the crowd perplexed as to why their biggest most recognisable track wasn’t played.

A short saunter via burger vans later we arrive at the best live show of the weekend, in my humble opinion, Weezer. The band arrive on stage all minus Rivers and start to jam, Rivers then emerges kicking a football around in a very sulky manner. This is looking like it’ll be a disastrous show……but then Rivers explodes!! For the next hour this man is the best front man I have ever seen! He is running about like mad, going to the barrier very early in, hugging the bouncers, dragging them along with him, singing with successful stage divers, mounting the security fence either side of the stage and eventually running out a door to stage right and getting mobbed by fans. All this, combined with a Wheatus cover and a MGMT/Lady Gaga mash up it was unbelievable. This is quite a clear message to Axl rose, beat this and you will be very well received!

However, the next band to appear on stage sucks all the energy that Weezer created out of the crowd. Paramore arrive with cheers and high expectations but bitterly disappoint by only playing five songs with little enthusiasm getting the crowd to sing the parts that you came to hear Hayley sing. It was shocking.

Now, to the main event… Blink 182, this reunion gets everybody excited. The banter between Mark and Tom is so sharply witty that it could cut diamond, has me in tears of laughter at times, between the songs that everyone shouts back with delight and the night is rounded off by the amazing feat that Travis pulls off. He is on a moving drum kit riser, rotating 360 degrees and even upside down, all the while drumming along to the beat. The one thing that really brought a warmth to my heart was that Travis was wearing a t-shirt commemorating the one year anniversary of the death of his best friend DJ AM.