Leeds Festival – fest of indie & alt rock

Written by Carol Ferndale

The weather is slowly warming up, the clocks have sprung forward, and it’s only a mere few months before the Leeds Festival gets underway. Come August you can forget the purgatory of work, study, the recession, or whatever gets your goat, and grab yourself three days of heaven over 28-30 August chilling out in the sun to some of the best that indie and alt-rock has to offer, as well as metal, punk and dance.

Bank Holiday weekend at Leeds Festival

Yes, it’s time to think about wristbands, headbands and punching the air under blue skies to some serious music. The Leeds Festival, held ten miles east of the city at Bramham Park, is twin to the long standing Reading Festival, and both take place with the same line-up over the three days of the August Bank Holiday weekend.

Leeds Festival lineup

On Friday the fest opens with some pretty high energy stuff that culminates in highly acclaimed Sheffield indie/post punk band Arctic Monkeys, preceded by The Prodigy (you don’t get much more high energy than Keith), Maximo Park, Ian Brown, The Courteeners, Enter Shikari, and American garage rock band Eagles of Death Metal, (who actually don’t play death metal at all, but that’s another story). The NME Radio One Stage is just as good too, with the upfront political band The Gossip and Scottish alternative rockers Glasvegas.

On Saturday is somewhat more soulful and electronic with Radiohead headlining, and before that you’ve got some spiky guitar work with Bloc Party, from New York there’s a trio of bands: the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Vampire Weekend, and Brand New. Over on the NME Radio One Stage you have hardcore punk band Gallows, and Welsh alternative metal band Lostprophets will be making a return to the Leeds Festival and doing an exclusive preview of their much anticipated fourth album.

Kaiser Chiefs return home

The final day of the Leeds Festival is headlined by Nashville alternative rocksters Kings of Leon, preceded by none other than Leeds’ very own Kaiser Chiefs, alt-rock outfit Placebo, Illinois punksters Fall Out Boy, Californian alternative metal Deftones, and prepare for some screamo with post-hardcore band Funeral for a Friend. On the other stage you’ve got more alternative and post-punk with White Lies.

Music for all tastes

The festie is not just about big names either, every year some six spots on the Unsigned Stage go to local bands who have battled to win their place at a BOTB at Leeds venue The Cockpit. If you don’t feel like sleeping after all the excitement of the evening, don’t worry – there’ll be a tent with music for you to dance the night away till six in the morning. If you think you have the makings of a cool DJ, then newbies are being given the chance to have a go.

Added to all this there will be several bars and beer tents serving a variety of real ale, cider and other drinks, so there’ll be plenty of liquid refreshment to wet your whistle while you take in all the great sounds. Plus there’ll be loads of food stalls selling everything from doughnuts to kebabs, curries to salads.

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