Another year over and what a year it’s been. As the festival wraps up and the Berskhire and Bramham Park sites begin to empty, here’s the full story of a truly exhilarating weekend of live music. Till next year, Reading and Leeds…
So what happened at Reading and Leeds this year? Well, Mumfords confirmed their rock chops with a powerful headline set, Metallica dished up the riffs in spades and The Libs brought the indie dream home, with massive sets from the likes of Jamie T, The Maccabees, Wolf Alice and Boy Better Know in between…
Hometown heroes The Cribs were in action at Leeds Festival on Friday. Someone should probably let Ross Jarman know it’s actually a lot easier to drum sitting down.
Baltimore pop punks All Time Low were another popular draw on this year’s Main Stage across both sites. Shout out to guitarist Alex Gaskarth for not letting a little thing like being mid-show get in the way of a selfie opportunity.
Drenge are fast climbing the bill at Reading and Leeds – last year it was the Radio 1 tent, this year it was low down on the Main Stage. Here they are, snapped backstage. That’s not a big chair by the way. Drenge are actually just very, very small.
Eoin Loveless of Drenge surveying his people as the group slay it on the Main Stage.
Fresh from hitting the Number One spot with new album ‘Marks To Prove It’ (well done lads), The Maccabees did a celebratory victory lap for an eager Leeds Festival crowd.
The only Mr. T that really counts, our man Jamie was back on the Main Stage where he rightfully belongs.
2015FrankCarter_Leeds_CP_07_280815-2
Ex-Gallows man Frank Carter getting in the midst of it on The Pit stage with his new band The Rattlesnakes.
2015Gengahr_Leeds_CP_05_280815-2
Gengahr with their newly-adopted tiny purple fifth band member. He’s a killer on the synths.
Run The Jewels having a little playfight on the NME/ Radio One Stage at Reading.
Kendrick Lamar, who played right before The Libertines on Friday at Leeds, was one of the biggest hip-hop names of the weekend, and didn’t disappoint. Just look at him, the happy little scamp.
After their somewhat flat last appearance at Reading and Leeds, The Libs were back with a vengeance this weekend in their headline slot. Here’s Pete and Carl at Reading, getting up close and personal. The fan fiction writes itself.
Marcus Mumford, silencing the doubters of their banjo-toting hoe-down rock with one of the weekend’s largest crowds.
2015PEACE_NME STAGE_03_WO280815
Harry Koisser’s wet paint coat in all its glory.
See this platinum thing right here? Fred Durst doing it all the time. So you better get some better beats, and uh, get some better rhymes. Limp Bizkit, everyone!
The best thing in tight white jeans since Razorlight, trappy rap duo Rae Sremmurd delivered one of the most energetic sets of the weekend.
Straight outta Toronto, it’s the lush Alvvays, whose ‘Archie Marry Me’ sparked one of the best singalongs of Reading and Leeds 2015 on the Festival Republic stage.
2015DJANGO DJANGO_04_WO280815
Why, it’s only Django bloody Django, who brought new album ‘Born Under Saturn’ and some seriously snazzy outfits to Reading and Leeds.
Are Alt-J future headliners? They certainly strengthened their case to top the bill here with two stunning sets on the Main Stage this weekend. Melvin Benn, are you watching?
Sunday’s Leeds Main Stage openers Babymetal in action. You didn’t see these kinda moves in Mumfords’ set.
Who saw Foals’ insane secret sets coming? Well, okay, a lot of people – their new album came out on Friday, and the rumours were all over the festival site by the time Friday’s action kicked off. But that didn’t make it any less intense. Smashing through six tracks, including new album title track ‘What Went Down’, frontman Yannis was a frantic ball of energy back in the Radio 1 tent…
Radar favourites The Districts getting a pizza the action backstage.
Brooklyn slacker dudes Parquet Courts bringin’ the noise, also on the Radio 1 / NME stage.
Hip-hop punk crossover newcomers Ho99o9 were what you might call a hair-raising experience for these Reading fans.
Canadian punks Alexisonfire turning back the years with a scintillating career-spanning set on Leeds’ Main Stage on Sunday.
Circa Waves in the mist. The Liverpool lads were a smash on the Radio 1 / NME stage.
New material? Tick. Sabbath cover? Tick. Massive arena rock hits? Tick, tick and tick again. Royal Blood busted out a set to remember on the Main Stage at Reading on Saturday.
Spice Girl fan and Wolf Alice badass Ellie Rowsell getting up close and personal with fans. Mel B never got this sweaty and raucous.
Bring Me The Horizon – headliner potentials? You better believe it – their set at Reading and Leeds was a brutal exercise in experimental metal carnage.
Charli XCX was a sugar-pop revelation at Reading, bringing giant inflatable guitars and tonnes of mega infectious dance bangers to Berkshire.
Here’s The Cribs striking a pose for NME cameras backstage.
2015AZEALIA BANKS_03_WO290815
Azealia Banks had to pull out of Glastonbury earlier this summer but was back with a bang here, turning up in a snazzy red dress to power through an hour or so of big dance-rap anthems.
Mumford and Sons in full flow at Leeds. The folksters raised a few eyebrows when they announced they’d be headlining at this year’s Reading and Leeds, but their set on the Saturday Main Stage at Bramham Park was full of spine-tingling moments.
2015AGAINST ME_07_WO_300815
Against Me! were another undoubted highlight of the weekend for many, bring their ‘Transgender Dysphoria Blues’ to the Main Stage with aplomb.
