Glastonbury Roundup 2016


Another fantastic weekend of music has come and gone on Worthy Farm as hundreds of thousands of people descended on the village of Pilton for what has become almost a pilgrimage for music fans everywhere. The line-up of this year's proceedings attracted criticism and praise in equal measures - depending on who you asked. Although, all three headliners - Muse, Adele and Coldplay put on an unforgettable show that have a strong possibility of going down in history. 

Stockport's very own Blossoms took to the Other Stage with an early morning slot on Friday. They reeled through the hits and dialled up the anticipation ahead of their debut album release in August, it will certainly be interesting to see what slot they're given at next year's festival. Over on the John Peel Stage, Half Moon Run brought their indie folk-rock delights to the masses, providing a refreshing change of pace shortly after Rat Boy's set, which sent the packed out crowd in the tent into a frenzy. 

Later in the afternoon, Two Door Cinema made their long-awaited return ahead of their third album 'Gameshow' and its autumn release. The new material they debuted was greeted with warm enthusiasm and it's clear the band charmed the audience thoroughly. Foals are truly a force to be reckoned with and the crowd threw themselves towards the stage in tandem as the band ran relentlessly through their discography. Their set was undoubtedly the highlight of the first day of music at the fest. 

Catfish and the Bottlemen's remarkable return to the BBC Introducing Stage may have been short and sweet but it reminded music fans everywhere that the Llandudno four-piece are at the top of their game right now. There's no stopping them anytime soon and if they continue progressing as they are, they'll run out of stages big enough for them eventually. 

Southampton outfit Band of Skulls added a dose of euphoria to the Other Stage on Saturday afternoon. On their latest album they delivered a record that was heavy, bold and undeniably theirs and it went down a storm live too. Wolf Alice are another indie foursome fast rising through the ranks. As front gal, Ellie Rowsell joked that she couldn't believe what they were doing up on the iconic Pyramid Stage, they had the crowd firmly in their grip. Their tracks burst with melody and playfulness and they certainly amped up the fun factor for their performance and reveled in every second of it. 

Arctic Monkeys' frontman Alex Turner is a bit of a pro when it comes to Glastonbury performances, although this time he dished up an alternative offering for festival goers. Turner and Kane who make up The Last Shadow Puppets tore through tracks from their latest release 'Everything You've Come To Expect' and dazzled the mud-drenched fields. 

A strong crowd gathered to catch the magic and madness of Aussie psych rockers, Tame Impala. The band may be on the fray of the mainstream but their early evening, pre-Adele set succeeded as a mammoth indie triumph, through and through. 

The final day of the fest saw a performance from Mystery Jets on the John Peel stage early on. The tent was jammed from edge to edge as they played their all-embracing anthems for fans. Elsewhere, Spanish rockers Hinds stormed the Park Stage with their rich, soulful vocals and light-hearted hooks. Their thrilling set creates an exciting aroma of musical stylings that had the crowd bopping around for the whole duration. 

The ultimate shindig of the weekend came from the mighty British band of the moment - Coldplay. Love them or hate them, they're undeniably a full-bodied beast of emotive pop rock that's just about captured everyone on the planet. Their chock-full-of-bangers set was the highlight of their entire festival and potentially one of the best headline sets ever seen at Glastonbury. The band paid tribute to Viola Beach, a promising band who were starting to make a name for themselves when their lives and talents were tragically taken from us. 

Coldplay have won people over on a global scale and their headline performance is what this year's event will be remembered for. The job of a headline act is to close the festival with a bang and give the crowd something memorable as they're on their way home and Coldplay went above and beyond the call of duty. Glastonbury 2016 was truly mesmerising, it's a place so unlike anywhere else. It's a place full of wonder, discoveries and magic - it's the holy grail of festivals that gets it right year after year and this year was no exception. 

Words Lauren Wade


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