Originally written by Sean Adams · 16 August 2014
Are you ready to mosh? Are you ready to dance? No??? You will be after you listen to this.
On the August Bank Holiday weekend, the annual beer, sweat and slippery noodle fest that is Reading (AND LEEDS) will once again disrupt the Berkshire almost-countryside with rumbling bass and burning pizza boxes. With bands from all over the world boarding planes to come Bring The Noize, it's time for you to get yourself prepared.
Whilst picking up toilet rolls and wet wipes may be important, so is knowing who to cram into your three days. DiS has compiled a 50-song playlist to get you clued up and even more excited than you probably already are about seeing [insert name of your favourite band] and [them], [and them!] and [oh yeah I can't wait to see them]!
Didn't get a ticket? Don't be emo, watch it live on the BBC.
Before we get to the epic playlist, the six acts you musn't miss are:
JIMMY EAT WORLD
Reading: Friday Afternoon, Main Stage & Friday Night, Lock Up Stage Leeds: Saturday Afternoon, Main Stage & Saturday Night, Lock Up Stage
It's weird to think what modern rock and pop would be like without JeW. Bleed American (which was renamed in the wake of 9/11) had all of the heartbroken mallrat magic of Weezer and the blistering radio-friendly riffs of Foo Fighters. In fact, it might be a huge overstatement to say that - much like pop-punk behemoths GreenDay - a lot of the biggest hits of the past decade from Taylor Swift and Katy Perry to Postal Service/Death Cab and Paramore owe a lot to this band's rewriting of the pop formula. The inspiration they took from 80s rock-pop acts like Tears for Fears and Duran Duran, and the way they spun it through the pop-punk 'pit may seem a little bit obvious now but something about what they did ricocheted through the ether and affected popular music's DNA. Revisiting their records these past few weeks, the result is still as breathtaking as the first time I heard 'em, and I couldn't be more excited about seeing them again. They play once on the main stage and again later on that evening headlining the Lock Up tent. If you don't catch them at least once, you weren't really at Reading (or Leeds!).
BLOOD RED SHOES
Reading: Friday Early Afternoon, Main Stage Leeds: Saturday Early Afternoon, Main Stage
With a bajillion air miles, a kajillion gigs, several day-time radio playlisted singles, and four albums under their belt, the UK's most constantly awesome duo will take to the main stage of Reading once again. Since the last time they hit Reading & Leeds' biggest stage they've left main stage audiences wondering 'how do two people make THAT MUCH noize???' at almost every major festival around the world including Lowlands, Pukklepop, Hurricane, Southside, Dour, and that's not to mention fests in Portugal, Spain, Indonesia, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand... They've become one of the UK's biggest exports and now they're coming back to British rock's spiritual home with their assault that will rattle those huge speakers. As one of only two females who'll step foot on Reading's main stage (Hayley Williams is the other lady), Laura-Mary's helicopter-lifting-off riffs will likely be eleven times as loud as the rest of the line-up... and then there's Steven's incredible drumming! Bring it on!
Related: Steven Ansell: Is music becoming a passive experience? and Hard Times for Guitar Music? by Steven from Blood Red Shoes
LIZZO
Reading: Friday Afternoon, BBC 1Xtra Tent Leeds: Saturday Afternoon, BBC 1Xtra Tent
Whilst Reading's line-up this year may be somewhat lacking in ladies, Lizzo and her smart 'n' snarky rhymes and party-starting rhythms will readdress the gender imbalance and then some. If you wanna party, you won't want to miss Lizzo who's so much more than the new Missy/Nicki/etc.
Related: 8/10 review of Lizzobangers.
FAT WHITE FAMILY
Reading: Friday Afternoon, Festival Republic Tent Leeds: Saturday Afternoon, Festival Republic Tent
There's a weird sort of buzz around this band. Some say they could be the new Fall, whilst others make them sound as if they've contracted a disease that they refuse to seek a cure for. Either way, with their nudity and other-such antics, as well as some damn fine tunes, they're going to be one of the most talked about bands of the weekend.
Related: DiS meets Fat White Family. // Fat White Family at Live at Leeds
EAGULLS
Reading: Friday Afternoon, Lock Up Tent Leeds: Saturday Afternoon, Lock Up Tent
Mangling The Cure's brooding, menacing, shadowland rock with brash punk-rock may seem like a recipe for Interpolian goth-rock, but Leeds' Eagulls have made the sound their own. You could say that the silhouettes of Bauhaus and The Badseeds can be seen looming over them, but this band's debut album has taken them into the big leagues of modern indie, with their juddering wall of squall and their singer in his sunglasses spotted on all the big TV shows, both sides of the Atlantic, the chances are you're already hip to what they do. America has really taken the band to its anglophilic bosom (see the below their session at LA's Guitar Center) and come year-end, this band are going to be at the top-end of every album list worth reading.
Related: Read Dom Gourlay's interview with Eagulls.
PARAMORE
Reading: Friday Night, Main Stage Leeds: Saturday Night, Main Stage
With about a third of last year's crowd wearing one of their t-shirts and with chart-topping singles a-go-go it does seem a little bit strange that they're playing second fiddle to a band who haven't hadn't all that many hits, can't sell out two nights at The O2 and who haven't released a truly great album in over a decade (revisit that last QotSA album from last year and have a proper listen to those lyrics...). It's a bit baffling that they're not headlining (again! Last time around the went on before The Cure, which seemed fair enough), but that doesn't mean they're not going to play like it isn't the biggest gig of the year as the sun goes down. Hit after hit will turn this patch of hallowed turf into one of the greatest sing-a-longs of the summer. Expect heartfelt emoting, humungous hooks and Jeremy's back flips!
Related: Paramore spoke to DiS about their self-titled 4th album
Spotify Playlist
This playlist is also available on RDIO.
Tracklisting:
Jimmy Eat World – Sweetness The Hives – Come On! Blood Red Shoes – Je Me Perds Drenge – Bloodsports Queens Of The Stone Age – Monsters In The Parasol Pulled Apart By Horses – Back To The Fuck Yeah Eagulls – Nerve Endings Wolf Alice – Moaning Lisa Smile Twin Shadow – Five Seconds Arctic Monkeys – 505 Metronomy – The Bay Paramore – Ain't It Fun Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop - feat. Wanz Sbtrkt – Wildfire (feat. Little Dragon) CHVRCHES – Lies - Ikonika Remix The 1975 – M.O.N.E.Y. Klaxons – Golden Skans Vampire Weekend – Diane Young MØ – Don't Wanna Dance Lucius – Turn It Around Lizzo – Batches & Cookies Brody Dalle – Don't Mess With Me Royal Blood – Little Monster Gerard Way – Action Cat Augustines – Kid You're On Your Own blink-182 – Dammit La Dispute – Future Wars Gnarwolves – Decay The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – Young Adult Friction Fat White Family – Bomb Disneyland The Wytches – Gravedweller The Front Bottoms – Au Revoir - Adios Happyness – It's on You Warpaint – Warpaint Temples – Shelter Song Childhood – Solemn Skies The Horrors – I See You Sbtrkt – NEW DORP. NEW YORK The Amazing Snakeheads – Here It Comes Again We Are Scientists – The Great Escape Enter Shikari – Sorry You're Not A Winner Papa Roach – Last Resort Sleeping With Sirens – Do It Now Remember It Later Every Time I Die – Decayin' With The Boys Drowners – Ways to Phrase a Rejection Darlia – Queen Of Hearts Deft – Emeralds Kove – Way We Are Saint Raymond – Everything She Wants - Prides Remix Marika Hackman – You Come Down
For more details visit readingfestival.com.
Photo by Burak Cingi.