Leeds city centre was bustling from 11am with eager festival goers desperate for a day filled with live music.
For many people the day began with a surprisingly early secret set in the basement of The Wardrobe. These kinds of intriguing mystery performances are always guaranteed to attract larger crowds, and this one was no different. As you walked in the low-lit room you were fronted with merchandise for indie figureheads The Sherlocks, this was when the excitement truly began to set in.
The Sherlocks strolled nonchalantly on stage and naturally played one of the most impressive sets of the day. Whether they were playing new songs like ‘Falling’ or closing with fan favourite ‘Chasing Shadows’, the crowd never once drew for breath. This was just the right vibe to start off the day.
As far as classic festival bands go, The Vistas are definitely up there. Festivals are their kind of crowd and boy do they know how to own it. They opened their set with ‘Everything Changes’ and the O2 Academy instantly erupted in to bouncing and circle pits. The neon strobes and just general feel-good songs were an instant mood boost, and this set flew by in the blink of an eye.
The energy across the festival only got stronger after this, with Larkins and Sports Team leading the way. Despite a slight technical hitch during ‘Sugar Sweet’ in Larkins’ set, they came back even stronger and delivered one of their most polished performances yet. Frontman Josh’s swagger was off the wall with sensual pouts and hip thrusts filled with attitude, he really knew how to work the crowd. This was followed into Sports Team’s set which was by far one of the wildest performances of the day. The pits were ruthless, and the band approached every song fearlessly. As if entering the stage to ‘Let Me Entertain You’ wasn’t enough, frontman Alex climbing the framing of the stage was sure to finish everyone off.
After such a full on set it was nice to wind down with a performance from The Academic. Their chilled yet cheeky Irish temperament really matched the laid-back vibe of the crowd and made for a really memorable set. The band seemed to be having the time of their lives and were constantly making jokes and keeping spirits high throughout the set, whether that be through getting out frontman Craig’s ‘pandemic bod’ or with a passionate conversation about Greggs. Either way, their set flowed perfectly in to crowd favourites Circa Waves, who were performing their last show of the year. These guys knew exactly what they were doing and the queue outside the building was evidence enough of how eager everyone was to catch a glimpse. Each song flowed seamlessly in to the next, and despite a long day of trekking around Leeds, everyone was instantly up and off their feet – it was not a set to be missed.
One of the best things about Live at Leeds is that the range of venues allows you to fully immerse yourself in the local music scene. Each venue has a completely different vibe from the last and attracts a whole different crowd, yet that classic grassroots feel is still there. Nearly every band we saw commented on how epic a crowd Leeds always is, and can you blame them?