CARLING WEEKEND 2006 - The Reading Review

In Part One Dan Jones checks out the Main Stage and some of the smaller stages...

Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Another year, another Carling Weekender; and in the absence of this year's Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds this year became hot tickets for the more eclectic rocker, with the likes of Muse, The Raconteurs, and Pearl Jam all signing up to headline tents. Last year's Unsigned Tent returned to Leeds again, and this year also saw the Lockup Stage expand to two nights of the weekend - heaven for the punks and the hardcore kids alike. As per, Rock Midgets.com headed along to sample the heavier flavours of the weekend.

In Part One Dan Jones headed along to the Reading Festival site to catch the Main Stage, plus a few bands from the rest of the festival.

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Dan's Reading Verdict

To read our report from Leeds Festival, CLICK HERE.
To read our report on the Leeds Riots and the Love Not Riots campaign, CLICK HERE.

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Friday

They may look like a pack of c*nts, be unable to string a coherent sentence together, and have stolen all their moves and attitude from watching old Sex Pistols tapes, but Towers Of London manage to translate their dirty rock'n'roll shenanigans from the confines of their usual sweaty clubs to more cavernous surroundings of the main stage with unexpected aplomb.

Whilst still happy pillaging the post-hardcore rulebook to the letter, Fightstar will probably never fully emerge from the shadows of that former band, but are still afforded a generous reception by a growing crowd. Although a seemingly worst for wear Charlie Simpson has his repeated requests for mosh pits largely fall on deaf ears. Dashboard Confessional certainly aren't the band who are likely to start one either, especially given the fact that their set starts with Chris Carrabba's microphone refusing to play ball. At least new single 'Don't Wait' pushes some of the right buttons, but you can't get past the niggling feeling that their emotive outpourings would be far better suited to the cosier surroundings of a tent rather than the open arena.

Boysetsfire go out with a bang (Leeds)
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

There's an air of almost intangible excitement emanating from the crowd even before buzz band Panic! At The Disco take to the stage, but the young heartthrobs barely make it past the minute mark before frontman Brendan Urie is struck in the face by a flying bottle and collapses to the ground in a heap. After a couple of minutes of deep concern at his welfare, Urie shakily takes to his feet and announces "You can't take me out... Lets see how well you guys do with my left side" before the band valiantly battle through a set that contains a cover of Radiohead's 'Karma Police' and a corking run through of 'I Write Sins Not Tragedies', all of which ensures that P!ATD are one of major talking points of the entire weekend. Quite what The Subways are doing this high up bill is anyone's guess, and after all the excitement of Panic! their energetic pop-rock never quite comes close to igniting the crowd.

Playing the penultimate British festival show of their careers over on the Lock Up Stage, Boysetsfire were never likely to just roll over and go through the motions. Despite severely injured guitarist Josh Latshaw recuperating at home, the band still manage to give us something special to remember them by. Taking to the stage and promptly getting the whole tent pumping their fists in unison, Rise Against's frenetically paced punk-rock barely lets up for the duration of their highly impressive set.

Rise Against - perfect follow-up to BSF (Leeds)
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Back on the main stage, in between the lengthy (also read highly annoying) banter of bassist Pete Wentz, Fall Out Boy unspectacularly reel through their well-known collection of cotton-candy coated pop-punk hits with the only real spark coming when Wentz divides the crowd into two for a left versus right trash throwing contest during crowd favourite 'Sugar We're Going Down'. Belle and Sebastian keep things cooking along in their usual unassuming way, with their summery upbeat numbers seemingly finding their perfect home at various festivals throughout this summer, before Yeah Yeah Yeahs hit the stage running with 'Cheated Hearts'. Singer Karen O may immediately draw the audience's attention in her unusual half Ziggy Stardust, half Godzilla outfit, but it's the simplistic yet brilliant guitar lines of Nick Zinner that leads the band through a triumphant showing.

Get yourself a famous singer, mix together with a heavy sprinkling of clichéd metal riffs and OTT solos, and it seems in this day and age you have yourself a successful act. Featuring none other than Ice-T on vocal duties, Bodycount and their highly derivative rap metal only serves to remind you of how great Rage Against The Machine really were, who did all this a decade ago but with infinitely better results. Meanwhile, frustratingly continuing to be a better prospect on paper than either live or on record, Eagles of Death Metal race through their sexed up offerings over on the Carling stage without ever quite exploding as they really should.

For once it seems the gods are against Kaiser Chiefs, as no sooner have they launched into their dreary hour-long set on the main stage, than the previously perfect weather turns into a downpour, sending many in the crowd running for cover. Once it relents, a dragging set that is littered with a smattering of uninspiring new songs is finally kick started somewhat by 'I Predict A Riot' and a guest appearance by Ryan Jarman of The Cribs for a run through of 'The Modern Way'.

Thursday - still one of the most electrifying live bands around (Leeds)
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Thank f*ck then for Thursday who proceed to ride in to save us from this quagmire. They may have long since been surpassed in terms of commercial success by their friends My Chemical Romance, but Geoff Rickly and company couldn't be happier in their return to the more welcoming confines of the Lock Up tent. Seamlessly mixing old familiar classics with a smidgen of newer tracks, they thrillingly finish things off with a storming rendition of 'Jet Black New Year' aided by a brief cameo from Aiden's WiL Francis.

The honour of bringing the first night of Reading 2006 to a close falls to Franz Ferdinand, who take to the arena to the familiar tones of 'Michael' and proceed to get every last drunkard in the crowd bopping along to the likes of 'Matinee' and 'Do You Want To', the latter complimented by some nifty visual work on the giant screens. Joined onstage by no less than eleven drummers from an encore run through of 'Outsiders', Franz Ferdinand close the day in their usual consummate, if far from thrilling fashion.

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Saturday

"I want this to look like a scene from Braveheart" shouts frontman WiL Francis as he orders the crowd to split in half and charge at each other during 'I Set My Friends On Fire'. Fresh from picking up a Kerrang! award for Best International Newcomer a few days earlier, whatever their many detractors may have to say about them, Aiden certainly can't be accused of not knowing how to work up an audience as they kick start Saturday's main stage offerings.

Flogging Molly similarly have no problems in getting the huge crowd gathered before them jigging along to their frantically paced Irish punk, whilst slower number 'Whistles the Wind' provides a great spectacle with the watching thousands swaying their arms aloft.

Promising to get "medieval on our asses", the air guitars are out in force for the Zeppelin-esque riffs of Aussie trio Wolfmother, who quickly deliver on their promise. Improvising and extending the likes of 'Woman', sure they're hardly doing anything new, but Wolfmother a rare band who are actually going some way to living up to the NME induced hype surrounding them.

The Bled - conquering the Lockup Stage (Leeds)
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Despite never quite reaching top gear, The Bled still manage to rip up the Lock Up Stage like few others can. Not going too near the more melodic offerings on last year's Found In The Flood long player, their hard hitting hardcore battering goes down a treat, aided in no small part by livewire vocalist James Munoz who ends the show screaming on the shoulders of the crowd halfway into the tent.

Back on the main stage, exuding all the charisma of a particularly charmless bin man, Ryan Jarman proves to be far from a perfect focal point as The Cribs labour through their brand of pedestrian indie-rock. Thankfully, The Futureheads have sing along harmonies in such great quantity that they more than make up for it, with 'Skip To The End' proving to be a perfect festival song for the jubilant beered up crowd.

Major label dealings or not, Florida's Against Me! remain one of the most interesting and important punk bands about at the moment, with a great display over on the Lock Up Stage crowned by a mass sing along to 'Don't Lose Touch'. With Carl Barat still recovering from his highly publicised broken collarbone, Dirty Pretty Things take to the main stage with an extra member in the shape of guitarist Josh Hubbard of The Paddingtons, as the band turn in a solid if fairly workmanlike performance.

Alexisonfire - New album, same blistering show (Leeds)
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Armed with a new album that some critics are hailing as their finest work to date, Alexisonfire come to Reading in fine fettle, and the Canadians soon have the whole Lock Up tent in the palm of their hands with every chorus sung back to the band twice as loud. On the other hand Feeder have long since completed the evolution from respected rock band to fully fledged MOR act, but most of the hordes gathered in front on the main stage care not one iota, with 'Buck Rogers' getting everyone way back to the soundboard singing and bouncing along together. Ever since they first rose to prominence, The Streets have always been the marmite of UK music, but whatever side of the fence you sit, it's certainly far from the wisest decision to lopsidedly pack the second half of your set with all the hits, as by which time most of the crowd have already lost interest.

Playing their biggest show to date, if Arctic Monkeys are nervous about this evening they certainly don't show it, arriving onstage to their breakthrough hit 'I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor'. Fears of this high billing being too much too soon for the young act are quickly allayed as the four piece race through hits from their record breaking debut Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not with minimum of fuss, before we make a brisk run back over to the Lock Up Stage for the last time this weekend and all too briefly catch Anti-Flag and their excellent brand of politicised punk.

Anti-Flag - if only Boris Johnson would do the same
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

If Arctic Monkey are about minimalism, Muse are all about sheer unadulterated flamboyance. Born to play shows of this magnitude, this weekend may well have turned up a few contenders to their throne, but a fantastic showing - buoyed by some stunning pyrotechnics and moving video screens - illustrates that Muse are the true kings of British rock. Straight from the off the trio unleash the monstrous 'Knights Of Cydonia' before everything from new tracks taken from Black Holes & Revelations to older number 'Showbiz', the only number plucked from their underrated debut go down a proverbial storm. However, the biggest ovations are reserved for Origin Of Symmetry classics 'New Born' and 'Plug In Baby', as Muse give one of the most spectacular headline slots that Reading Festival has seen in its recent history.

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Sunday

Is there are finer way for a metal fan to wake up in the morning than to the rampaging prog stylings of Atlanta behemoths Mastodon? Taking the opportunity to premier material from their eagerly anticipated new opus Blood Mountain, alongside storming set staples like 'Blood and Thunder', their intricate compositions may well fly over the head of the many newcomers gathered resulting in a slightly muted pit, but those of us lucky enough to already be in the know are utterly enthralled by one of the best acts on the planet right now approaching the top of their game.

"Last night I f*cked all your moms with a piece of firewood, then set her hair on fire". Could these introductory words really come from anyone else in the world other than Killswitch Engage axeman Adam Dutkiewicz? (You didn't hear what he said about what he wanted to do on the ferris wheel on Friday - Ed.) In between rants on tigers, castles, playing hide the hotdog and eating delicious "oysters", Killswitch somehow find time to fit in one of the displays of the weekend, with epic metalcore anthem 'The End of Heartache' sounding absolutely immense and a cover of Dio's 'Holy Diver' thrown in for good measure.

Against Me! - totally in touch with the crowd (Leeds)
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Certainly one of the better ways to spend a gorgeous August afternoon, Taking Back Sunday's feel good mass sing-a-longs hit all the right spots. While frontman Adam Lazzara's increasingly camp and limp wristed stage persona is more than a little distracting, and they may have dropped the ball slightly by failing to air their greatest moment to date 'This Photograph Is Proof', but the other massive emo hits are all present and correct. Festival veterans on both sides of the Atlantic, Less Than Jake certainly know all the tricks of the trade, whether it be conducting a Mexican wave or getting everyone to remove their shirts and spin them around their heads, LTJ are highly entertaining, if not hardly indispensable viewing.

Whatever you think of Adam Dutkiewicz and his onstage antics, at the very least he manages to avoid the list of great metal clichés, which is a lot more than you can say for the increasingly dire Bullet For My Valentine who seem intent on ticking them all off in one neat go. Sandwiched snugly between the showmanship of Less Than Jake and the legend that is Slayer, they were always likely to struggle in this slot and so it proves as a dwindling audience quickly lose interest in BFMV's stale riffs and utter lack of anything remotely approaching originality.

Flogging Molly - so good, they played it twice (Leeds)
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Slayer have long since been the sacred cow of metal, with many fans attending Reading purely to see them and them alone. But as they plough through their legendary back catalogue, with special emphasis placed of course on prime cuts from Reign in Blood, maybe it's the glorious sunlight that doesn't quite sit right or their too low a billing, but the expected mass destruction is missing with the pits oddly restrained.

With just the very mention of their name bringing incessant booing throughout the day, you can't help but be slightly worried for My Chemical Romance. Pummelled by fruit, golf balls and the bottles for the full duration of their 50-minute set, admirably the peroxide blonde Gerard Way and his band refuse to back down and in between giant emo hits like 'I'm Not Okay (I Promise)' they take the chance to reveal new tracks 'Dead' and 'House Of Wolves' from the previously hotly guarded The Black Parade album. However, for an all too brief moment Way does manage to unite the crowd in chanting "F*ck the Daily Mail", following their recent ludicrous article which called both themselves and Green Day pro-self harm and suicide "cults".

Bodycount - disappointing (Leeds)
Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Only managing to get through a couple of songs before a broken guitar amp forces them offstage for close to quarter of an hour, Placebo certainly don't get off to the most auspicious of starts. Once they finally resume with a set that's somewhat weighted too far towards newer material, we're reminded of just how many huge songs the band have accumulated over the past decade. Finally accepting that his receding hairline is never growing back by sporting a freshly shaved skinhead, frontman Brian Molko is far from his usual chatty self which is perhaps indicative of a hit and miss display. Closing inevitably with the great milestone around their neck, 'Nancy Boy', bassist Stefan Olsdal smashes his flying V to pieces, in a gesture that's no doubt half celebratory and half one born of frustration at their earlier misfortune.

After vowing to never play at a festival again following the tragedy that occurred at Roskilde back in 2000, when an emotional Eddie Vedder first comes onstage and makes a heartfelt plea for the crowd to look after each other, you can't begin to imagine what a difficult decision it must have been for Pearl Jam to agree to close Reading 2006. Any thoughts of the band holding anything back though are rapidly debunked as they launch into one of the moving headline slots Reading has ever witnessed. For close to two hours Seattle's finest delight in throwing out era defining classics by the handfull, be it the gentle building beauty of 'Better Man', an extended 'Even Flow' which comes with lead guitarist Mike McCready and drummer Matt Cameron indulging themselves fully and doubling its usual running time, or the giant sing alongs of 'Alive' and 'Jeremy'.

As a tearful Vedder takes to the stage alone with ukelele in hand for their first encore and plays a ramshackle version of Black Sabbath's 'Iron Man' giving us one of the fesitval moments, it's only then that you realise just how lucky you've been to see a band that are destined to go down in the history books making an all too rare British appearence, as Pearl Jam provide the perfect ending to three days of blood, sweat and tears.

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Dan's Reading Verdict

With the ever elusive golden ticket of Glastonbury appealing to the more eclectic of mind, V bringing in the middle England families by the droves, and Download recently reasserting Donington Park as the beating heart of the British metal scene, previously regarded as the premier rock even of the calendar, for one of the first times in its illustrious history Reading now finds itself confined to the uneasy middle ground of British festivals.

For those of us with a penchant for all things fast and heavy, bar the excellent Lock Up Stage, where The Bled, Anti-Flag and Thursday shone especially brightly, there was precious little to grab attention on the first two days of the festival, chiefly on Friday with the main stage being closed in unspectacular fashion by Kaiser Chiefs and Franz Ferdinand.

Earlier in the day, Panic! At The Disco provided us with one of the main talking points of the entire weekend, with frontman Brandon Urie receiving a nasty blow to the face courtesy of one of numerous flying bottles hurtling in his direction. Attending numerous festivals this summer, it's safe to say I've noticed the emergence of a strong emo backlash rearing its head, with bands like Aiden, Panic! and especially My Chemical Romance bearing the considerable brunt of the hostility this time around. You really have to wonder if these bands may restrict their British festival appearances to more "emo friendly" audiences in the future, limiting their appearance to the likes of Give It A Name, which would be a real shame for the open minded of us.

Despite the ideal weather conditions deteriorating somewhat on the Saturday, the weekend took a turn in the right direction, with Muse playing what may well be looked back on in years to come as a spectacular career defining show. However, Sunday was the undoubted pinnacle of the entire three days, from Mastodon setting the day alight at mid day, Adam D and Killswitch Engage serving up an entertaining meal of first-class metal with a side dish of puerile humour and Pearl Jam gloriously closing the festival with an awe-inspiring run through of their era shaping classics.

All in all, it's easy to see exactly why Reading is considered as one of the legendary festivals on the world circuit, and while this years vintage may not go down in the history book as one of the very best, it certainly provided us with enough incidents, unforgettable festival moments and a little something for everyone, whatever their musical tastes.

To read our report from Leeds Festival, CLICK HERE.
To read our article on the Leeds Riots and the Love Not Riots campaign, CLICK HERE.

by Dan Jones

Further links

Mean Fiddler.com

Portal for the Reading and Leeds festivals and the rest of the Mean Fiddler organisation.