by Andrew Trendell | Photos by WENN.com

Tags: Reading Festival

Reading Festival 2013 gets off a warm and sunny start

While She Sleeps and Skindred kick off event

 

Reading Festival 2013 gets off a warm and sunny start

Photo: WENN.com

 

Reading Festival 2013 has kicked off, as tens of thousands of music fans enjoy some hard rock and sunshine.

Yesterday's rain relented as festival-goers basked in warm sunshine with temperatures in the mid-20s. The band to open the Main Stage were While She Sleeps, who pulled an impressive crowd and led the vast audience into a relentless set of moshpits and crowd-surfers, as frontman Mat Welsh stagedived into the audience on several occasions. 

Next up were Skindred. Frontman Benji Webbe was in a striking outfit of spikes and red leather as he led his bandof hard-rock veterans through some rip-roaring thrash-metal that inspired the first circle-pits of the weekend. They also covered 'Sad But True' by Metallica - to rapturous response from the audience.


Skindred covered 'Sad But True' by Metallica at day one of Reading 2013

The festival continues with the likes of Deftones, System Of A Down and Green Day on the Main Stage, and Frightened Rabbit, Bastille, A$AP Rocky, Skillex, Wiley and Chvrches elsewhere.

Despite their being aorund for nearly 10 years and their standing as UK festival veterans, Frightened Rabbit have never played Reading and Leeds before. 

"I have no idea what to expect," frontman Scott Hutchison told Gigwise. "We tend to head into something with a pessimistic idea and then be pleasantly surprised. I've always heard good things about the crowds there, but we're here it's going to piss with rain unfortunately. Actually, we're playing in a tent so fingers crossed that it does!"

Check back at Gigwise for the latest news, reviews, interviews and photos from Reading and Leeds Festival 2013. 

Below: the 23 coolest bands to see this weekend at Reading & Leeds

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