Starry Eyed: Stereoboard's Reading And Leeds Setlist
Tuesday, 20 August 2013
Written by Sam Jones
Reading and Leeds, you beautiful things. For the lucky few the August bank holiday will ring to the sounds of alternative music's finest, with nary a thought to washed out barbecues with the in-laws.
Headlining this year are Green Day, Eminem and Biffy Clyro, who preside over a bill offering eight stages and a heady mix of future stars and established heavyweights. Here, we run through the bands we're expecting to dominate proceedings.
Nine Inch Nails – Main Stage - Friday (Leeds), Sunday (Reading)
Nine Inch Nails have been gone for a while, what with Trent Reznor winning Oscars and the like, but now, thankfully, they're back. This new line up has plenty to live up to, but as their recent set at Fuji Rocks showed, they're already hitting their straps. The band's new album, 'Hesitation Marks' will be with us in September, so expect plenty of cuts from that as well as some truly iconic tracks from the band's back catalogue. Oh, and an amazing live show. What more could you ask for?
Deftones – Main Stage - Friday (Reading), Saturday (Leeds)
Chino Moreno and pals have just kept the quality coming in recent years. 'Diamond Eyes' was a massive return to form, while 'Kai No Yokan' also didn't miss a trick. Live, Moreno's energy and signature bark is backed up by a wall of noise from guitarist Stephen Carpenter. A must-see for any discerning metal fan. But then, you knew that already.
If there's any justice in the world, this lot won't be playing tents for much longer. Their new album, 'Pedestrian Verse', is a hulking great slice of indie-rock and one that is perfectly suited to enchanting the festival masses. If you like your tunes well-crafted and delivered with passion, look no further.
Nathan Williams' surf-rockers don't want for hype but underneath the bluster is a set of songs to get any festival tent moving, blending post-punk rhythms with plenty of slacker charm and Williams' drawl. Their fourth album, 'Afraid Of Heights', landed earlier in 2013 among a squall of feedback, and offers hooks to back up their scuzzy guitar attack.
This electro-pop thing is here to stay, and it's bands like Fenech-Soler who'll make sure of it. With some massive beats and hip-shaking synths, their forthcoming album, 'Rituals', is set to tip them ever closer to the limelight. It's a good time to catch them at the dance tent, as they might not be there for too much longer.
Ghostpoet – also known as ObaroEjimiwe – released his second album, 'Some Say I So I Say Light', earlier in 2013 and delivered another dose of glitchy, atmospheric hip hop. With his weird imagery and beat-poet delivery, Ghostpoet is one of the most interesting MCs around.
Alkaline Trio are old hands these days, as their latest album, 'My Shame Is True', proved earlier this year. With some of the best punk tunes of the last 20 years in their back catalogue, their headline set on the Lock Up stage could be one for the ages.
Shikari Sound System – Rock Stage - Friday (Leeds), Sunday (Leeds)
Enter Shikari have been blurring genre lines for years now, but this is the first time that they've made the leap into dance music in a live setting. It's going to be really loud. Really loud. “There'll be all sorts of flavours of electronica in there, and a lot of thought into the atmosphere as well as the bass and beats,” frontmanRou Reynolds told Stereoboard earlier this year.
The Bronx – Lock Up Stage – Saturday (Reading), Sunday (Leeds)
Make no mistake, the Bronx are one of the best live bands in the world. With frontman Matt Caughthran inciting all sorts of mayhem with his mix of melody and throat-shredding screams, they're an absolute riot. This year's album, 'IV', added another batch of super-catchy hardcore punk to their arsenal, and come stage time this weekend they won't be afraid to use it.
One of the UK's hardest-touring bands, Parquet Courts will bring their lo-fi brand of indie to Reading and Leeds on the Festival Republic stage. Their new EP, 'Tally All The Things That You Broke', arrives at the start of October, meaning that you'll probably get a couple of new tunes mixed in with some overlooked gems.
Quicksand – Lock Up Stage – Friday (Reading), Saturday (Leeds)
There are only a few bands on this year's bill who can claim to be as influential as Quicksand. Led by the legendary Walter Schreifels, they'll deliver a set bursting with classic, crushingly-heavypost-hardcore. With grooves. This is a real, solid gold once-in-a-lifetime chance to see them play.
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