Reading Festival,Richfield Avenue,Reading RG1 8EQ
Tuesday, 10 June 2008
Reading Festival overview
On this final day of The Reading-Leeds festival of 2003, I share my recollections of Reading 2001. It was in fact an advertisement for Reading that initially ignited my European festival obsession. A yellow, black and red ad in Q Magazine for what’s known as “The Carling Weekend” (comprised of simultaneous shows at Reading its sister site at Leeds) had caught my eye in July of 2001. Then, over the course of the next week or so the thought running through my head changed from, “Wow, that looks like an incredible lineup” to “I sure wish I could go,” to “Who says I can’t go?” and finally to, “I’m gonna go, damnit, come hell or highwater!” In that first summer of festival-going I’m glad I got a taste of both the V Festival (which I’ve already written about) and Reading because realized from the start that all festivals have distinct personalities, which of course drove my desire to attend all of them eventually. The V-Festivals are a good first festival for beginners. They’re fairly safe and tidy, and not so big as to be overwhelming. On the other hand, Reading is traditionally muddier, definitely more hip and there’s just something about it that’s just plain awesome despite the fact that at around 50,000 people it’s still only a third the size of Glastonbury or Roskilde. Reading seems consistently to have one of the highest quality lineups of any festival in the world and draws a somewhat rougher, rowdier crowd. Still Reading is friendly and hospitable, and crime is still relatively low. The only violent crime reported during that 3-day weekend in 2001 was a single sexual assault. Granted even one may be one too many, but most arrests were for drug related charges; including some that purportedly involved hash brownies. This year there’s an apparently hellish experience getting there by train due to construction – on Reading weekend no less – as the trains between Paddington and Reading are shut down. Otherwise, travel by train from London is typically a breeze. Arriving at Reading train station in 2001 I needed no city map to find the festival grounds; I simply followed the massive crowds through the streets. Along this rag-tag parade route there were plenty of dodgy hucksters selling counterfeit Reading goods. (I bought two such un-authorized t-shirts, which despite several cat calls of “10 pounds for shite!” by potential consumers, have held up quite well.) It was a long walk from the station to the festival--at least a couple miles--and even once we reached the edge of the grounds it was still a good haul alongside the campground that ran along the festival wall to the actual entrance. I was overjoyed to final arrive inside. And the first thing I saw was some guy half passed out on the grass, perhaps one example of the differences between Reading and the V-Fests. Like I said Reading is definitely rougher and less of a place to take the kids—though that didn’t stop some of the English from bringing theirs along. (I’m not exactly sure what would.)
Reading UK
I wandered aimlessly for a while around the stands and stalls between the smaller stages with the main Reading stage off in the distance. After eating the bad food at the V-Festival I was first appalled by, then resigned myself to the fact that the same companies supplied the grub at Reading as well. There are usually one or more acts each year that make Reading the UK Festival to be at, and 2001 was no different. The act of that year was most likely the Strokes, who were to be making their first UK Festival appearance. You may have seen the cover of NME the week before with the photo of the Strokes and the caption “The One Band You Must See this Weekend.” I would have been green with envy to have received a copy of the music magazine in my mailbox in Minneapolis, but it was somewhat smugly that I picked up my copy of NME that week at a London newsstand with a ticket to the sold-out festival in my pocket. In 2001 there was some controversy regarding the Strokes appearance which only added to the media hype even though the band was already unquestionably the biggest buzz band in the world at the time. The Strokes were scheduled to play the Radio 1 Evening Sessions Stage, which is in a tent that holds only about 8,000 people. Festival organizers refused until the last minute to move the Strokes to the main stage. Wisely they ultimately gave in. The Strokes were a definite festival highlight when they played Friday afternoon few bands away from Iggy Pop. Other Friday Highlights were New York’s the Moldy Peaches (friends and tour mates of the Strokes) in the Evening Sessions tent whose song “Please Pass the Crack” was one of the catchiest fun songs of the summer. The final day of the festival (Sunday) may have been the most full of music for me. I took a liking to a band called Lowgold who sounded awesome live but upon my return to the States I found their import-only studio material lacking in some important areas, one of which being that the lyrics were just plain boring and cliché. The Cult played an intense, energizing set and as if on queue it actually rained during “Here Comes the Rain.” Queens of the Stone Age bassist Nick Oliveri played the entire QOTSA set stark f’ing naked with nothing covering his privies but his uh, instrument.
Recollections of England's Reading Festival 2001
Recollections of England's V-Festival 2001 (Chelmsford, 2001) Photo: Wheatus on the second stage at V2001 (Click for full size.) Photo: The big tree by the second stage provided a respite from the rain. (Click for full size. I'm sitting at home in Minneapolis today listening to the V-2003 Festival highlights on Virgin Radio over the internet as I clean my house. I try to make a habit of being exactly where I want to be at all times, but as the live festival began at 2 PM Minnesota time today, (8 PM in Chelmsford) I do feel a bit of a yearning to be there in the English countryside, even if it was just a month ago that I returned from this year's jaunt to the European rock festivals. The V-Festival was my first foray into the non-US festival world. (Lollapalooza in the US was my first true festival experience.) I had worked most of the day on the Friday before the festival at my job in Minnesota. I was helping an English customer get setup for a videoconference at just before noon and was in bit of a rush to get him up and running. "I have to be in Chelmsford by 2 p.m. tomorrow," I mentioned in passing, figuring that would get his attention. I also wanted to make it clear to him that I would simply not be available that afternoon if things went awry once his conference started. Festival-going the way I do it makes for a truly dream-like experience due to the combination of jet lag and sleep-deprivation that accompany the first legs of my journeys. First I fly all night on Northwest flight 44, and I don't sleep well, if at all on overseas flights. I land in England at Gatwick Airport in the morning and smell the diesel of the trains mixed with cigarette smoke on the train station platform while catching the Gatwick Express into London. I arrive at my hotel too early for check-in because although check-in is at 11, your room typically isn't ready until 2. After a bit of bargaining, I usually get into my room around noon, leaving enough time to shower, shave and catch a bus or train a hundred miles or more to my ultimate destination. As I get off the train and ascend into Chelmsford, the local police have setup an amnesty zone where we are encouraged to drop off our "gear" in a bin, no questions asked. “If you proceed into Chelmsford and caught with drugs, you will be arrested,” we are warned. “The dogs caught two people earlier today,” is tacked on for additional emphasis. Fascinatingly, people comply and dump bags of pot and other substances into a small garbage can right next to the police officers and proceed on their merry way. This is a far cry from the underhanded entrapment schemes devised by the US police at festivals. (See this article in yesterday's Star Trib as an example.) There's been no division of a night's sleep between the workday the day before and suddenly and suddenly I'm walking through the gates of a major music event on the other side of the world, amidst thousands of people, many of whom camped overnight the night before or who commuted a lot less far than I did. In 2001 tears literally came to my eyes as I walked into the grassy area of the main stage at Chelmsford and heard up close the first strains of music that had only been represented by a glossy ad in Q Magazine just 6 weeks before as I sat in my Minneapolis backyard. It may have even been David Gray onstage, running through "Please Forgive Me" as I dried my tears. It could have been Neil Finn, or the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I don't recall for sure, as they were all there that year--as was Placebo, Wheatus, Nelly Furtado, The Foo Fighters and a host of others I won't even begin to name as you already get the picture. I'd flown myself straight into a music lover's heaven, and I knew it.
Reading Music
Guardian Unlimited Music is at Reading and Leeds to review the music, as that is what we do. But we've also been walking around with our eyes open, noting what's been happening on site and, even, writing it down. Here's what was happening on day one:
This year's favourite Reading pastime: defacing the giant posters by the main stage. Someone has clearly raided the autograph tent's marker pen cupboard, and has had a gay old time making Johnny Borrell look almost as much of a tool as he really is. Razorlight has become Razorshite, and a speech bubble coming out of the self-regarding singer's gob says "I love cock and chips".
The Pigeon Detectives, meanwhile, have become, you guessed it, the Penis Detectives. Their forthcoming single, Wait for Me, has been given a bracketed addendum "... (to Get Hard)", and the poster decorated with lots of bus-stop penises. Kids, eh?
A lotta bottle: As mentioned elsewhere, vollied projectiles are a key part of the Reading/Leeds/Carling Weekend experience. And so it was, that when Fall Out Boy were performing at Leeds on Friday evening, they were surprised at the lack of missiles being hurled at them as they played.
So surprised were they that Pete Wentz was forced to address the crowd: "This is our last song, so if you've been saving up any bottles to throw at us, now's the time to do it."
Cue a snowstorm of plastic cups and bottles being hurled from and across the crowd. The storm lasted the entire song - a cover of The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and The News.
It appears you can now take in your own booze - overturning a ban which was the bane of previous festivals. Facing a threat to their alcoholic monopoly, Carling have responded by offering an amnesty: give them your warm can of beer of any (red) stripe, and they'll give you a cold Carling instead. It's up to you to decide whether that's a fair swap.
Overheard in the press tent at Reading: "Take it to the Razorlight compound." Razorlight compound?!? What, is Johnny Borrell's cult of personality on the level of David Koresh's now? Is Reading destined to become synonymous with Waco?
In any case, it seemed unusual terminology. "Do all the bands stay in 'compounds' or just Razonlight?", we asked an official.
"Usually just the headliners", they replied. "But some are more compound-like than others." Amen.
Leeds promo of the day: Kate Nash flags. On one side they read "Get drunk, get dancing" thus making sure they are eagerly snapped up by the enormous throng inside and outside the Carling Tent waiting for her appearance. Lo and behold, flip them over and they carry a not-subtle-at-all plug for her new album. Perfectly fun and perfectly cynical in equal doses. Like Kate, who really should be surnamed Allen.
This year's favourite Reading pastime: defacing the giant posters by the main stage. Someone has clearly raided the autograph tent's marker pen cupboard, and has had a gay old time making Johnny Borrell look almost as much of a tool as he really is. Razorlight has become Razorshite, and a speech bubble coming out of the self-regarding singer's gob says "I love cock and chips".
The Pigeon Detectives, meanwhile, have become, you guessed it, the Penis Detectives. Their forthcoming single, Wait for Me, has been given a bracketed addendum "... (to Get Hard)", and the poster decorated with lots of bus-stop penises. Kids, eh?
A lotta bottle: As mentioned elsewhere, vollied projectiles are a key part of the Reading/Leeds/Carling Weekend experience. And so it was, that when Fall Out Boy were performing at Leeds on Friday evening, they were surprised at the lack of missiles being hurled at them as they played.
So surprised were they that Pete Wentz was forced to address the crowd: "This is our last song, so if you've been saving up any bottles to throw at us, now's the time to do it."
Cue a snowstorm of plastic cups and bottles being hurled from and across the crowd. The storm lasted the entire song - a cover of The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and The News.
It appears you can now take in your own booze - overturning a ban which was the bane of previous festivals. Facing a threat to their alcoholic monopoly, Carling have responded by offering an amnesty: give them your warm can of beer of any (red) stripe, and they'll give you a cold Carling instead. It's up to you to decide whether that's a fair swap.
Overheard in the press tent at Reading: "Take it to the Razorlight compound." Razorlight compound?!? What, is Johnny Borrell's cult of personality on the level of David Koresh's now? Is Reading destined to become synonymous with Waco?
In any case, it seemed unusual terminology. "Do all the bands stay in 'compounds' or just Razonlight?", we asked an official.
"Usually just the headliners", they replied. "But some are more compound-like than others." Amen.
Leeds promo of the day: Kate Nash flags. On one side they read "Get drunk, get dancing" thus making sure they are eagerly snapped up by the enormous throng inside and outside the Carling Tent waiting for her appearance. Lo and behold, flip them over and they carry a not-subtle-at-all plug for her new album. Perfectly fun and perfectly cynical in equal doses. Like Kate, who really should be surnamed Allen.
Reading Festival line-up
Another huge chunk of the Reading Festival line-up has been confirmed by the festival organisers.
Friday
Main Stage
Rage Against The Machine
Queens of the Stone Age
The Fratelis
The Enemy
Biffy Clyro
Serj Tankian
Dizzee Rascal
Taking Back Sunday
Get Cape Wear Cape Fly
Anti-flag
NME Tent
Babyshambles
Wombats
Vampire Weekend
MGMT
Jake Penate
One Night Only
The Duke Spirit
Be Your Own Pet
Blood Red Shoes
Make Model
Lock up
Less Than Jake
Pennywise
special Guests
GoldFinger
The Unseen
H2O
Frank Turner
The Loved Ones
Hexes
Looks Like its going to be an awesome festival!
Friday
Main Stage
Rage Against The Machine
Queens of the Stone Age
The Fratelis
The Enemy
Biffy Clyro
Serj Tankian
Dizzee Rascal
Taking Back Sunday
Get Cape Wear Cape Fly
Anti-flag
NME Tent
Babyshambles
Wombats
Vampire Weekend
MGMT
Jake Penate
One Night Only
The Duke Spirit
Be Your Own Pet
Blood Red Shoes
Make Model
Lock up
Less Than Jake
Pennywise
special Guests
GoldFinger
The Unseen
H2O
Frank Turner
The Loved Ones
Hexes
Looks Like its going to be an awesome festival!
Reading Festival News
The stage returns for second year following its amazing successes of its debut.
Highlights last year included a special night hosted by the uber hip Trangressive label, a rare showing of punk classic ‘American Hardcore’, a list of comedy and cabaret performers to die for and much much more besides.
This year we are set to better that inaugural year and are proud to announce two very special performers as the start of this year’s bill.A godhead of punk, a man of letters, an author, actor, poet, publisher, political activist, HENRY ROLLINS is all of these and more. A constant presence in the US arts and music scene and a worldwide household name, Rollins comes to the Alternative Stage for a spoken word set that is sure to be the talk of the sites and a huge draw for all those who value such an intelligent and provocative artist.www.henryrollins.comLike Rollins, JEFFREY LEWIS is an artist unaware of boundaries. A songwriter, performer (with the Jeffrey Lewis Band), comic book author, poet and spoken word artist, Lewis is fast becoming the modern renaissance man of the US alternative scene. With a huge reputation within the underground, expect these sets to be a highlight of the weekend for many at the dual sites.www.thejeffreylewissite.com
Highlights last year included a special night hosted by the uber hip Trangressive label, a rare showing of punk classic ‘American Hardcore’, a list of comedy and cabaret performers to die for and much much more besides.
This year we are set to better that inaugural year and are proud to announce two very special performers as the start of this year’s bill.A godhead of punk, a man of letters, an author, actor, poet, publisher, political activist, HENRY ROLLINS is all of these and more. A constant presence in the US arts and music scene and a worldwide household name, Rollins comes to the Alternative Stage for a spoken word set that is sure to be the talk of the sites and a huge draw for all those who value such an intelligent and provocative artist.www.henryrollins.comLike Rollins, JEFFREY LEWIS is an artist unaware of boundaries. A songwriter, performer (with the Jeffrey Lewis Band), comic book author, poet and spoken word artist, Lewis is fast becoming the modern renaissance man of the US alternative scene. With a huge reputation within the underground, expect these sets to be a highlight of the weekend for many at the dual sites.www.thejeffreylewissite.com
Reading Festival 2008 Reading
Much of Cradle's fundraising is done through the Festival Republic music festivals and concerts in the UK and Ireland. We have a loyal group of volunteers who form the 'Sound as a Pound' crew at the Reading & Leeds festivals and the Homelands festival each year.
Reading Festival History
The Reading Festival, where do I begin…………?My love of the festival began in 1983 when I attended for the first time; the weekend also being my first festival of any kind, ever.The standout moments for me of that weekend were the camaraderie in the campsite; the way that so my people with a similar taste in music could meet up for a weekend, once a year and have such great time. We made friends with people in the nearby tents and being a ‘rock’ crowd, there was no trouble or anger of any kind, just a lot of like minded people having great fun at what would be the highlight of their year!The bands that year were mostly Rock and Metal, but for me the stand out performance was by Hanoi Rocks, at the time, a little known band from Finland, who put in the show of the day on the Friday and gradually built a following after this gig. If they hadn’t imploded in the late 80’s they would have been as big as Guns ‘n’ Roses, who have cited them as a major influence. They are still playing today, who knows maybe they will grace one of the stages of the festival in the future? (This year is the 25th anniversary of their last performance).As the years have flown by, many performances have stood out, Wonderstuff in ’88, Nirvana in ’91 & ’92, Fishbone in ’93, Ben Folds Five in ’96, Metallica in ’97 & ’03 and My Chemical Romance in ’05. But, of all the bands I have seen and all the comedians I have watched, it all boils down to one thing…… It’s just an amazing weekend, dedicated to great entertainment and developed by a ‘spot on’ team of organisers. The festival doesn’t follow trends, it sometimes sets them, it doesn’t follow the latest fashions, it skirts around them and collects styles and types of music from all over the world. Where else could you watch Metallica on the mainstage and Asian Dub Foundation in a tent at the same festival? Reading that’s where!!!It was after 21 years that I decided to write the Official History of the festival (someone had to) and it has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career so far. Now, halfway through the second volume of the book, I am meeting up with bands and artists who didn’t make the first volume (for whatever reason), from Travis to The Twang, from Saxon to Seasick Steve and many hundreds of others, all keen to talk to me about their experiences at the greatest outdoor show of the summer.
VOLUNTEER AT READING FESTIVAL AND GET FREE ENTRY
Gain free entrance to this summer's Reading Festival by joining our Campsite Assistant Teams (CATs) or Helpful Arena Teams (HATs).
Typical duties of a volunteer include:
Assisting festival goes with directions.
Helping festival goers carry their belongings and pitch their tents.
Reporting back on any problems – such as litter and facilities.
In return for their efforts all volunteers are provided with:
A Crew Pass.
A CAT/HAT Pack.
A CAT/HAT Uniform.
A Secure Camping area.
Access to the Crew Café, Bar, Toilets, and Hot Showers!
All volunteers are welcome to enjoy the festival when they are off-shift.
To apply volunteers need to:
· Be 18 or over.
· Be available to arrive at the Festival site by midday (21:00 at the latest) on the Wednesday prior to the weekend of the event. Please note the shifts are allocated on a first come first served basis.
· Be available for a briefing at either 13:00 or 22:00.
· Be available to work 3 x 8 hour shifts at any time between 14:00 Wednesday (or midnight Wednesday if arriving for the 21:00 briefing) and 16:00 Monday.
· Wear a CAT/HAT uniform when on-shift.
· Report in every two hours to your area supervisor, or immediately in the case of any problems.
· Supply photographic ID on arrival.
· Provide a refundable deposit of £185.
The festival volunteers play a big part in creating a good atmosphere and helping all to get the most out of their festival. By being there helping people you will help us achieve this!
Typical duties of a volunteer include:
Assisting festival goes with directions.
Helping festival goers carry their belongings and pitch their tents.
Reporting back on any problems – such as litter and facilities.
In return for their efforts all volunteers are provided with:
A Crew Pass.
A CAT/HAT Pack.
A CAT/HAT Uniform.
A Secure Camping area.
Access to the Crew Café, Bar, Toilets, and Hot Showers!
All volunteers are welcome to enjoy the festival when they are off-shift.
To apply volunteers need to:
· Be 18 or over.
· Be available to arrive at the Festival site by midday (21:00 at the latest) on the Wednesday prior to the weekend of the event. Please note the shifts are allocated on a first come first served basis.
· Be available for a briefing at either 13:00 or 22:00.
· Be available to work 3 x 8 hour shifts at any time between 14:00 Wednesday (or midnight Wednesday if arriving for the 21:00 briefing) and 16:00 Monday.
· Wear a CAT/HAT uniform when on-shift.
· Report in every two hours to your area supervisor, or immediately in the case of any problems.
· Supply photographic ID on arrival.
· Provide a refundable deposit of £185.
The festival volunteers play a big part in creating a good atmosphere and helping all to get the most out of their festival. By being there helping people you will help us achieve this!
Reading Festival 2008
This year is special being our 20/10 birthday and the starting line-up reflects that. Across the stages we have every new buzz band you have read about this year, every band you want to hear play across the twin sites and three headliners of such colossal size and importance they are probably visible from space. All exclusive performances, you won’t see our headliners on any other festival stage in England, or indeed the UK in the case of two of the three. Away from the Main Stage expect some real surprises on the NME / Radio One Stage, the A to Z of punk, hardcore and ska that is the Lock Up Stage and the headliners of the future on the smaller stages. Last year was a secret gig by the Kaiser Chiefs at Leeds, the irresistible rise of The Enemy and The Pigeon Detectives on the NME/ Radio One Stage as both bands moved on to platinum album sales, a Kate Nash show on the Carling Stage that was packed to the rafters and three of the biggest bands in the world headlining the Main Stage. The Reading and Leeds Festival has always been the moment of the summer when bands rise to prominence and last year was no exception.
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