Leeds Festival - Braham Park, Leeds - 27th - 29th August 2010 - Part 1

Important Festival Fact #1

There were a large amount of girls wearing more make up and less clothing than you see on an average night in Salvation, but who considered themselves "dressed down" by virtue of wearing wellies. Ken Loach really should make a film about it.

Part 1 - Day 1 - Friday

Modest Mouse This alternative band has been doing the rounds for a while now but just when they were getting into their set there was a horrible rainstorm, which evaporated just as everyone was vanishing to get ponchos. Nevertheless they persisted, and performed a by-the-numbers performance with some great brass interludes. 6/10

Maccabees I’ve seen this band before and am a big fan, especially of their second album, and obviously wasn’t the only one, judging by the amount of 14 year old boys moshing into me being REBELLIOUS YEAH (don't shout it, but they might have smoked some WEED! Oh how Daddy will be angry!). They combined the indie post-punk guitar riffs of Bloc Party and Franz Ferdinand with dreamy, vast soundscapes that evoked early Arcade Fire, combining it into songs that mixed urgency and intimacy very well. I particularly liked the weirdly balaclava-clad saxophonists and trombonists. Highlights include ‘Can you Give it’ and ‘Love you Better’. The crowd singing was tremendous, especially on ‘Toothpaste Kisses’. 8/10

Darwin Deez Well while we’re on the subject of getting the crowd going, I can’t ignore these guys. A large amount of people in the Festival Republic Tent had crowded in to watch the performance and we all soon saw why. I only knew one song, 'Radar Detector,' but they got the crowd going. The lead singer high-fived everyone at the barrier, told everyone to chant "Reading sucks dick", and then broke into an impromptu 'All The Single Ladies' dance – all of these, especially the last one, stick in the memory. It didn't disguise the fact that they were a bit short on songs but an impressive performance nonetheless. 8/10

Dizzee Rascal Did what he did best - got the crowd going. 'Bonkers' was, well, bonkers. A little cover of 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' was nice too. Dizzee is a traditional trope at festivals now, well on his way to being an Ethnic Minorty National Treasure like Moira Stewart. His mix of guitar and rap, safe enough for middle-class parents worried about knife crime, but edgy enough for chavs, didn't really do anything different but when what he does works so well, why change it? 8/10

Libertines Oh dear. Oh dear. I used to love the Libertines - listened to their two albums more times than I care to remember. I used to wake up to 'Narcissist' every day (don't ask). But I have never understood the adulation heaped on them by the UK music media and especially by some of their more rabid fans. If you were to believe them, Pete Doherty, with his opium-smoking poetic ‘talent’, is a rival to Shelley and Wordsworth. He's not. He has moderate talent for writing songs, which, based on the offerings of his last solo album, he has entirely burnt out. At worst, he simply mouths platitudes that Bono would think to be trite. And this performance, in its limp, often turgid, glory, was the worst I saw all weekend. Much of the crowd loved it (I was in a part that was running a sweepstake on when he'd walk off - 3-4 songs in he did, but he did come back so I didn’t win), even though the songs lacked any pace compared to in studio, being lifeless, sexless joyless versions of the originals. It picked up some pace – 'Can't Stand Me Now' was alright I suppose - but then it dragged on and on until they finally put the set out of its misery. Shambling, not in a good way. 2/10

Arcade Fire I have waited to see this band longer than I care to remember – Funeral is one of the most played albums on my iTunes like the good little alternative kid I am. They really didn't disappoint. There were less people there than there were for the Libertines – which says a lot about the Libertines mythos rather than their talent – but as the set went on the place filled up. I'm not a big fan of the new album but live it came to life – 'Ready To Start' was a perfect opener, surprise surprise. They played a lot of old Funeral songs, 'Neighborhoods 1,2,3', 'Crown of Love', 'Rebellion (Lies)', 'Haiti' and of course 'Wake Up' and the favourites off Neon Bible, but a lot of their new stuff, 'Month of May' for example, held up very well. I thought 'Rococo' was out of place at a festival, channeling Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen a little too much and 'Sprawl II' couldn't compare to the fragile brilliance of 'Haiti' as a Regine song but every song was performed with cathartic gusto. The backdrop, a suburban billboard complemented the set perfectly. Outstanding. 10/10

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