Saturday 23/08/08 The Killers, Justice, The Ting Tings @ Reading Festival, Berkshire

Saturday kicks off with another familiar face with The Subways on the main stage. After a long wait for their new album they now seem to be frantically playing live everywhere to finally get it out there. You can’t fault Billy Lunn’s effort but for all his shouts of “are you ready to rock Reading?” you can’t help but want him to stop sounding so American and get on with playing the tunes. Their music is also very Americanised, but not half as bad as the hyperbole spilling out of Lunn’s mouth. ‘Alright’ is their new sing-along anthem while live staple ‘Shake, Shake’ is the perfect wake up call for a field full of semi-conscious people. ‘Rock n Roll Queen’ offers a fitting finale to the effort put in but the overriding fear for the Subways is that they need to introduce something new to their stage show to stay this high on the main stage.

Mystery Jets are an altogether different prospect clad in their 80s next. The opening siren propels hundreds of revelers off their behinds and fixes their eyes firmly on the stage. The droning keyboards and smooth guitar are nothing spectacular but the band work on pure energy for the early part of their set. They soon hit their straps with ‘Half In Love With Elizabeth’, a track surely destined for single success. It also prompts the crowd to join in on the sing-along chorus. Unfortunately technical gremlins dog ‘Diamonds in the Dark’ but predictably ‘2 Doors Down’ takes this struggle and transforms it into an 80s pop heaven. This song alone represents the Mystery Jets’ success in reinventing their image and being the indie renaissance boys of 2008.

Next up a roaring reception and much larger crowd is afforded to The Ting Tings. It’s a nice touch that they don’t worry about opening with ‘We Walk’, one of their lesser known but arguably strongest tracks. For a front-lady who only learnt the guitar last year Katie White seems very confident in front of the crowd of thousands. Her legs are firmly planted wide apart, she sings every note with conviction and even stands higher up on the drumming plinth to demonstrate they are ready to conquer. ‘Great DJ’ struggles early on before exploding into life and ‘Keep Your Head’ sounds crisp and perfectly delivered. The addition of four gymnasts to the stage as they close with ‘That’s Not My Name’ seems a bit farcical but the Ting Tings can be happy with a display which should see a promotion up the order next year.

Foals are absolutely stunning. There is no other way to put it. ‘XXXX’ is a build up track that sets the tone, ‘Olympics Airways’ is a gentle and yet pacey song which somehow sees the crowd descend into chaos with crowd surfing and mosh pits all over. Surely when Yannis Phillipakis wrote “sun down, now we have built our place, an aviary forever” he didn’t imagine thousands of sweaty campers baying at him, but bay they do. ‘Hummer’ is the perfect festival anthem, spiky and danceable with a chorus which begs for a sing-along. They finish with ‘Electric Bloom’ a magnificently atmospheric track which fills the NME/Radio 1 tent easily. Foals can quite simply be as big as they want to be on the basis of this summer’s festival displays.

Justice don’t drop the pace at all and prove to be one of the displays of the festival too. Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay have an iconic stage set up with stacks of Marshall amps flanking their giant illuminated cross. Their instantly accessible dance tracks ensure the crowd are onside from when the first beat of ‘Genesis’ drops. The key to Justice is they drop their best tracks almost like a rock band and with perfect timing. ‘We are your friends’ and ‘D.A.N.C.E’ cause the sweaty to get sweatier down the front and ‘Phantom’ ghosts in before taking control and obliterating the stage.

There’s just enough time to pop over to the main stage and see The Killers take their latest big step into superstardom. Unfortunately it’s more of a small shuffle than a giant step. The Killers cannot control the swirling wind and the low volume levels as they launch into ‘For Reasons Unknown’ and it subsequently feels like an understated start. ‘Somebody Told Me’ and ‘Bones’ both sound average at best though Brandon Flowers does his best to rally the crowd. It takes nearly half the set until ‘When you were young’ explodes into life. Oddly they decide to play more than a few songs from B-sides album ‘Sawdust’. This seems a suicidal move considering a festival crowd will likely be dominated by casual fans that are unlikely to own a rarities album.

In fairness to Brandon and co. when they get it right they fully justify their spot at the top of the bill. ‘Mr Brightside’ and ‘All These Things I’ve Done’ are wonderfully executed pop gems which desperately attempt to resurrect the dying momentum. ‘This River Is Wild’ means they nail the encore and leave fans with some satisfaction but the weather, lack of momentum and general absence of enough quality means the Killers are subdued rather than superb.

To see Leeds Festival in stunning, exclusive pictures featuring Metallica, Rage Against The Machine and more, click on the links below:

Leeds Festival - Day One
Leeds Festival - Day Two
Leeds Festival - Day Three