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Bucket hats, floral shirts, and many bright white Nike Air Force trainers abound...it can only be Reading Festival 2021. Following a year off, the iconic Berkshire musical extravaganza returns fired up, vibrant and ready to go with an almighty bang. 

With the face paint tastefully applied and the drinks poured to devilishly alcoholic levels, the festivities get underway. Casting a glow across the rolling fields of Richfield Avenue, the lights of the mainstage ignite, and Essex riff maestros Nothing But Thieves cruise spectacularly through a thunderous set of fan favourites and crowd-pleasing gems from 2020 album Moral Panic. 

Punters now warmed up and eager to party, London's Sea Girls arrive onstage to applause and gleeful wails. A band whose steady rise saw their debut album reach number three in the charts last year, they look confident and keen to make their mark on the festival. Vocalist Henry Camamile—donning an ambitious punk hairdo and white denim sleeveless jacket—boasts all the expected stylings of a rock star and leads the crowd's joyful jumping through big-hitting songs 'Violet', 'Sick' and the brilliant 'Damage Done'. 

With Friday's predicted overcast skies appearing overhead and a spell of chilly weather breezing in, the day needed a splash of lively optimism. And so, one of the year's breakout stars Mabel sashayed her way onto the Mainstage East. With her infectious uptempo pop echoing across the festival, the celebratory vibes continued elsewhere. 

Over on the Mainstage West, Sam Fender eagerly bounded on stage, instantly captivating the growing-by-the-minute crowd. Fender, a previous attendee of Reading's sister festival Leeds, launched into 'Will We Talk?' a track it appears was designed for bringing together people at such an occasion. The jangly guitars and heavy reverb percussion so prominent in his work have become a key element of the modern festival sound and the memorable melodic choruses of stratospheric single 'Hypersonic Missiles' tick all the boxes of what an audience of this epic scale deserves. 

Shortly after, kicking off a well deserved sub-headlining set, British hip-hop icon AJ Tracey starts his show offstage. Then, the giant screens on either side of the main stage spark into life, and Tracey appears backstage spitting the opening bars of 'Triple S'—a stellar example of his signature rapping style. Bursting onto the stage, Tracey storms his way through a set-list crafted for maximum impact. 

With the darkened night sky fully descended, there could only be one act suited to take the crown of the Friday night headliner. Having played a now-legendary set at Glastonbury back in 2019, Michael Ebenazer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr., aka Stormzy, held the audience in the palm of his hand from the minute he graced the stage. With the lyrics from tracks like 'Shut Up', 'Return of the Rucksack' and 'Big For Your Boots' spouted word for word by most audience members, it was clear that grime and adoration for Stormzy are as exciting and alive as they ever had been. There could be no other fitting end to such an electric day. 

As the temperature picked up for Saturday, so did the energy. Following Creeper's last-minute drop-out, Weybridge heroes You Me At Six were called up to action to bring their British indie-rock charm to the main stage. Tracks such as 'Underdog' and the recent 'Suckapunch' from the chart-topping album of the same name gave the audiences the second-day injection of stamina. 

The past two years have seen multiple artist's trajectories excel at breakneck speed and none quite like beabadoobee. A gem in the ever-growing Dirty Hit crown, beabadoobee's set at Reading Festival felt like a coming together of many demographics: those curious about her, those familiar with her, and the dedicated fans alike. 

Later on in the afternoon—as the grey weather prevails and the clouds roll back in—eighteen-year-old Australian hip-hop artist The Kid LAROI strides onto stage with impressive gusto. Having collaborated with Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber, to name but a few, LAROI appears before a crowd of thousands eager to see the 'Stay' chart-topper do his thing. Baffled by the size of the crowd, a reel of expletives is regularly dished out in between songs and adds to the excitable and jeering nature of the relatively young audience.

With LAROI's brand of new wave hip-hop tickling particular fancies, the screech of indie guitars is heard over on Main Stage West, where noughties indie rockers The Wombats erupt into the first song, 'Moving To New York'. As lively as anything, the Liverpool trio serves up a setlist of danceable pop tunes still as joyful and endearing as the year they were released. 

Another festival regular for many years now, Two Door Cinema Club appear before an intriguingly large crowd. As of recent, the band have relatively eluded the charts and steered away from the limelight. However, a Saturday night Reading slot proved just why the public loved them only a little while ago. Opening with 2010 single 'I Can Talk', Two Door's frontman Alex Trimble, now sporting a tasteful moustache, spoke softly between songs before demonstrating his otherworldly falsetto on 'Bad Decisions' and fast-paced lyricism on 'Something Good Can Work'.

One of the rare non-domestic acts at the festival, America's Post Malone leapt on stage as Saturday night's headliner: a celebration of how far he and the specific hip-hop genre he represents has come in a relatively small amount of time. Post Malone worked hard, sending his vocals soaring across the arena with set-list openers 'Wow' and 'Better Now'. Whilst the performance was brave, a frisson was missing from the evening. Lacking the moment to pull off such an iconic slot, Posty's swagger could only take him so far and midway it was evident several punters were dropping off to seek other things. 

Nevertheless, as honest and unafraid to preach as they come, he addressed the struggles faced by many during the past eighteen months and professed his love and admiration for all who went down that evening: '"I love you more than words can ever fucking say." 

And so, Sunday morning and a slightly exhausted-looking but keen collective of weekend campers and single-day attendees were gleefully dosed with vibrant Queen-like charisma and energy when Derbyshire four-piece The Struts, desperate to prove their worth as stage openers, appear. Frontman Luke Spiller, dressed in silk and oozing '80s Glam rock sex appeal, navigates through a set-list laced with high energy riffs and audience-led chants which carry across Little John's Farm. A band built on fun and shared passions of high energy rock The Struts embody the stereotypes of glam-metal with forgivable glee, and it is wholly enjoyable to witness. 

Sunday afternoon saw Radio 1's hotly tipped Lauran Hibberd kick her way onto the BBC Introducing stage with all the drive and horsepower of a factory-fresh Ferrari. Bouncing her way through a robust set of alluring pop-punk, Hibberd excited the crowd with her signature high octane cheerful spirit and exotic collection of dresses. 

Over on the Festival Republic Stage, Baby Queen, who was celebrating only her sixth show ever, bludgeoned her way through her set-list like a freight train on Red Bull. With adoring fans packed in the tent, an eccentrically pattern-dressed Baby Queen runs on with enough immediate presence to shake a stick at. It's remarkable then that this is only at the beginning of her gigging career. 

By this point in the afternoon, one band was on everyone's mind. Starting from a successful campaign for the new album Blue Weekend, Wolf Alice were positively charged up for the occasion. 'Smile' sees such a spectacular reaction from the audience that it may well have guaranteed their billing as a festival headliner next time around. Breezing through their set-list, the band knew the exact ingredients for whipping up a delicious banquet of stadium-ready rock for the masses. Something unique wafted from the band's rapport with each other and the crowd. It was as if Reading's early embrace of Wolf Alice was paying off gloriously, and the London five-piece felt inclined to reward the festival and its attendees for sticking by them for so long. Closing with the frenzied 'Don't Delete the Kisses', it was evident Wolf Alice left everything out on that stage. 

As night-time fell the final time at Reading 2021, several Oasis T-shirt wearing festival-goers began to make their way to the Mainstage East. Liam Gallagher's headline set had been a long time coming. With two successful solo albums under his belt and multiple Oasis singles in need of live performance again, Gallagher had been teasing audiences for weeks on social media about the sheer spectacle of the show that was to come. True to his word, he delivered. Seeing off the weekend with a no holds barred barrage of Britpop classics and solo bangers, it was the finale that everything had been building towards. 

And that was Reading Festival 2021. A triumphant bank holiday party two years in the making. It may have taken a little longer than we hoped, but live music was most definitely back.

More about: Reading FestivalReading & Leeds