How many sets is too many for one festival? If you’re Enter Shikari the answer is no amount of sets – especially when you mix it up and play a surprise intimate acoustic performance on the smallest stage.
The St Albans dance rock mob were already due to play four sets across the Reading and Leeds weekend, but surprised fans by dropping in on the BBC Introducing Stage for a surprise acoustic show. Frontman Rou Reynolds promised walls of death at their full-band performances on the Main Stage and Lock Up tent on Sunday but bought a more relaxed atmosphere to the striped-back performance.
The band effortlessly turned their usually sprawling arrangements into minimal acoustic jams, complimenting the sweltering heat perfectly. The jams in question included ‘Red Shift’, ‘Constellations’ and a haphazard version of ‘Arguing With Thermometers’ written over a simple chord progression.
Enter Shikari performing on the Main Stage in 2014. Their acoustic set today did not look like this.
However, the highlight was a mash-up of ‘Live Outside’ and Oasis’ ubiquitous ‘Wonderwall’ during which Rou commanded each half of the crowd sing a different section.
Catch the band tomorrow on the main stage. If you miss that, fret not, Enter Shikari headline the Lock Up stage on Sunday. That’s a lot of sets.
