A PERFECT START TO FESTIVAL SEASON: LIVE AT LEEDS 2025
Leeds is remembered in the gig world for the elusive world of Leeds Festival, where live music meets raging northern crowds and tents often meet fire. However, before the August bank holiday, Leeds is treated to another celebration in the park of Temple Newsam Hall. 2025’s Live at Leeds lineup was one destined for success and despite brilliant big-name headlines, Bloc Party and Manic Street Preachers, it was the smaller stages for me that really held their own this past weekend.
The festival grounds itself were incredibly well organised, something you don’t find yourself thinking about. Shuttle buses from the city centre were efficiently run, stages were close enough to not be trekking too far but so the sounds weren’t merging and tons of water points, bars (‘no and low’ options too) and food stalls made for no queues and a really friendly atmosphere. Ever since Tramlines 2024 though, there is an absence felt in the lack of Peequals female urinals, they honestly changed the game for women’s festival lavorities.
After weeks of glorious, out-of-character British sunshine, the weather decided to kick off festival season with grey clouds and threats of rain. This was no deterrent to the crowds, however, starved for live music and a slightly pricey pint in the great outdoors. I caught rising Manchester boys Corella first, who put on a great show on the Main South Stage. Photographers swarmed the pit to capture born frontman Joel Smith and the boys. “Lady Messiah” was a cracking performance, almost with the sweetness of a viola beach tune and a The Clause-like rock undertone. Their drummer was mental, and they finished off the set with the classic “Barcelona Girl”. It was a brilliant start to the festival and set the bar high for others to come.
Sports Team have always been one to keep an eye on, and with their drummer hailing from Leeds, it was a pretty special show. With a great mix of synths, tambourine and screaming from an extremely well-dressed band the set was really enjoyable, even for the act We Are Scientists who were apparently in the crowd (despite having a show in about 30 minutes on the other main stage). We Are Scientists possibly got the record for the longest note held on the day in “Rules Don’t Stop” but another party was happening in the DORK tent.
I saw a massive crowd, heard Silver Springs and naturally sprinted towards the beauty that was WeetWood Mac. It was the performance for all the girls in bandanas, flowy skirts, crystal necklaces and for the dads who were there for a pint and a good time. They did all the favourites, highlights being “Seven Wonders” and “Gypsy”, and had the best crowd yet dancing along. Hailing from Leeds themselves, and with an incredibly talented lead singer, they had one of the most magical sets of the day. Every act in the DORK tent put on a brilliant show, with Chloe Slater bringing the crowd together to scream, Sunday (1994) bringing beautiful ambience and insane lads Brogeal causing an absolute uproar with a penny whistle.
Across the way, Natasha Bedingfield was strutting on stage with the confidence of Liam Gallagher, but singing with the pipes of, well, Natasha Bedingfield. The crowd swarmed for her high-energy renditions of “Pocketful of Sunshine”, “These Words” and “Unwritten” however, her interspersed covers really rounded out the set. Slipping in and out of Porterhouse, Billie Eilish and a beautiful “Zombie” cover, not to mention her dance contests with the crowd and hijacking someone’s Tinder, Bedingfield put on an incredible show, and I feel she should have been further up in the set times.
The Main Stage South hosted some of the best acts of the day. Jamie Webster brought the crowd together with his first gig of the year with his band and in response to a politically charged chant from the pit, spoke that we ‘look after each other, make our own community’ and took this into a meaningful performance of “We Get By”. ‘
Leeds natives The Pigeon Detectives had possibly the most out-of-the-box energy of the day. Lead singer AH strutted out clad in leopard print, starting the beloved “Yorkshire, Yorkshire”’ chant (to which a woman behind me shouted back “Yorkshire bloody tea”) and got increasingly more beer down him the entire set to the point where you could probably smell the Heineken by the North Stage. Fit with jazz splits, a celebration of new songs and mental mosh pits to classics like “Take Her Back”, they could have easily smashed a headline slot.
I feel the same for The Amazons who played a continuous quick journey of their new record 21st Century Fiction. The band were a complete ensemble performing hits like “Night after Night”, “Wake Me Up” and “Joe Bought a Gun”, which created a mosh pit like a whirlpool for a whole chorus. It was a constructed mess of rock and roll as frontman Matt Thomson professed to the crowd, “There is a place for rock music in 2025, and we’re trying to show you that”.
Honourable mention have to go to The Snuts in the DIY tent, whose crowd knew every word despite getting slightly gassed by a smoke machine on the left side. Also to Yard Act who, being a Leeds band, put on a brilliant show that emphasised they are in the business of making mega noise and proper statements.
First headliner Manic Street Preachers denied no one of their classics, taking us “back to the 90s” but there was definitely a better feel nearer the stage than further at the back. And whilst they rocked the South Stage, Barry from Eastenders aka Shaun Williamson, was closing “The Two Legs” public house tent, fit with interesting covers from participants and massive balloons being hit about the place.
Live at Leeds 2025 was a perfectly noisy showcase of some of the country’s best and coming and a look back on our already-risen stars. Bloc Party closed the party brilliantly with an “Eh up Leeds!” and a celebration of record Silent Alarm for its 20th anniversary. Tunes “Mercury”, “Banquet” and “Like Eating Glass” were a reminder of why these guys were on the top of the bill, and will always be up there as classics in the genre.
Whilst the headliners rocked their big-name spots, for me, it was the smaller bands in the tents and earlier slots that kicked off festival season in the best way. Seeing crowds as up and at ‘em for bands like Corella, Fickle Friends, and L’Objectif as they were for the later acts and headliners is always heartwarming, and this festival thrived on that beautiful community aspect. As a family-friendly event, Live at Leeds still rocked hard, despite grey clouds looming, thanks to unique performances from a wide range of artists, the odd touch of Barrioke of course and was the perfect starting gun for festival season.
