Alberta Cross

I joined a group of friends to see Alberta Cross. They are a fairly laid back blues rock with a strong sense of momentum. I’m not likely to go out of my way to see them again, but I did enjoy their show and may check them out again when in a mellower mood.

2:54

Along with Savages on Friday, 2:54 is the other band new to me that I’m going to keep an eye on after the festival. Building and occasionally brash without being overstated, this indie act made an impression. Their front-woman was striking and commanding of the audience’s attention whilst their music ebbed and flowed between loud and soft.

Gallows

I saw the first half of the Gallows‘ set. They are a well respected hardcore punk act for good reason. A bit too straight up for my tastes I avoided the brawl, but they were good to see. Having recently changed singers doesn’t seem to have reduced their appeal. Although, when your lyrics start to reference things like the 4th of July its time to question your credibility as a British band.

Foo Fighters

The Foo Fighters were the headliner act. They couldn’t really be anywhere else on the bill. Even them playing earlier in the weekend at Leeds seems as though it would be out of place. It’s a shame I don’t care that much. I like some of their material and they’re hard to avoid, but really I wasn’t there for the sing along. I meandered between the stages to see what was on, but I ended up watching most of the Foo Fighters.

Dave Grohl is a good frontman and the band were really tight. They had all their show pieces worked out and were definitely entertaining. But I find most of their stuff benign at best. That said, I did sing my heart out to Everlong and had secret wish for them to play Stacked Actors (if the did I missed it in my exploration). It was a good end to a good weekend, but my preference seems to be for small bands. The way in which big bands work the crowd, whilst an art in itself, isn’t really my thing. The Cure didn’t suffer from this as they were all music and very little persona. Yet, for that very same reason they would be less suited to playing in the Sunday slot.

Its a tough slot to fill as the site tends to get more crowded as the weekend progresses. That’s a lot of people to please. They may not be my favourite headline to play that slot (Radiohead or Muse might be it for me), but they played it ably. And with charisma to spare.