Tonight, one of Britain’s most beloved bands made the ultimate step-up to the next level. Foals headlined Reading Festival for the very first time, bringing with them a ton of hits, flashy production and emotion. It would probably have been a brilliant night without half of that, but, with it, they outdid themselves and put on a hugely triumphant night.
Fire, fire and more fire
What would a Reading headline set be without a fuck load of fire? Absolutely nothing. Luckily, Foals brought an impressive amount, with flames rocketing towards the sky during ‘My Number’, ‘Inhaler’ and ‘What Went Down’. Each time, the crowd grew more and more excited, heating up the atmosphere to white hot levels.
When Yannis Philippakis reminisced on the band’s first time at Reading
Ahead of ‘Spanish Sahara’, the band’s leader took a moment to reflect on just how far he and his friends have come. “We grew up down the road and this was the first festival to give us a chance,” he said. “We played in 2007, I think, on the Carling stage. It’s pretty overwhelming to see all of you out there. Let’s make it magic.” A heartwarming moment that was testament to all the band have achieved.
When they played ‘What Went Down’
Foals have always had massive songs, but tonight the Oxford band made the case for ‘What Went Down’ being their biggest. With monster riffs and a dynamic build-up, that track alone justified the group’s top billing and their frontman whipped up the euphoria it provoked even more by launching himself into the crowd.
When they took it back to ‘Antidotes’ with ‘Cassius’
“This is the place for us,” announced Yannis one song into the encore. Reading’s reward? A song Foals rarely play these days from their first album ‘Antidotes’. It was a brilliant reminder of where they began and where they’ve come from to get to topping the bill at the twin festivals, as well as being a huge crowd pleaser to boot.
All the confetti and streamers and pyro for a massive climax
After a set full of peaks, you can’t go out with a whimper. Yannis and his boys made sure they didn’t. Final song ‘Two Steps Twice’ had everything you could possibly want – guests (Guy from Disclosure joined Jack Bevan on drums), a massive drop and an industrial load of confetti and streamers turning the space in front of the Main Stage into a blur of colour. If that wasn’t enough, you also got Yannis yelling into the mic things like “give it to me!” and “Come on Reading, get up” as if it was the last thing he would ever do.