Reading Recap

It has been ages since I've written here, but I've been on a holiday of sorts. I also experienced a glorious 4 days at my first Reading Festival. Admittedly, I enjoyed Isle of Wight Festival in June a bit more because it was more chilled out and there were fewer kids with attitude, but Reading certainly has its perks.

For one, Smashing Pumpkins played. They have been my obsession since I was about 11 years old and for the first time, I got to see them live, even though they are not completely the original band. Three people from front and centre, I found myself swept a few metres to the side without even touching the ground, then elbowed in the face, then squashed up against the armpit of the man in front of me. Bruised and sweaty at the end, I came away satisfied and in a Billy Corgan influenced bubble of happiness.

The rest of the weekend, we ate Ribena ice lollies, saw Beth Ditto strip to her skinnies, danced to CSS, rocked out to Albert Hammond Jr and The Enemy and chilled in the grass while The Shins and Arcade Fire played. The line up wasn't the greatest in the world besides the Pumpkins in my opinion. There were a lot of bands I liked, but not a lot I loved. The alternative tent did bring a few new discoveries like Jeremy Warmsley who had on-stage makings of music videos that they played on screens to the side.

The food was expensive but tasty. The weather was gorgeous. The company was excellent.

After five days sleeping in a tent with gas canisters exploding around me and no shower, I was happy to be home.

And now that I've been paid, I will be back to exploring this fabulous city shortly. But for the moment, it's back to work...