Saturday 27th July 2024 was truly ‘A Glorious Day’, and it’s a day that I’ll hold with me for a long time to come.
The sun was shining brightly in Leeds as I arrived at the broken yet breathtakingly beautiful ruins of Kirkstall Abbey, a place I had visited briefly before but never properly appreciated until now.
As I checked into the venue I could hear the sounds of Leeds’ legends CUD breaking into their track, and a personal favourite of mine, ‘Rich and Strange’ from their third album ‘Asquarius’ released in 1992. Joining CUD was a stellar line up of established acts including Sleeper, Ash, Ocean Colour Scene and finally, the night’s headliners, Embrace, celebrating 20 years of their fourth studio album released in 2004.
Inside the actual ruins of the Abbey was the Premium Area which included a bar, a Sicilian Street Food stall from Poco, picnic tables, a floral wall, a number of green and blue bean bags and a large deck chair from Camden Town Brewery promoting their Eazy IPA. After buying a pint, I headed over to the main stage area to see what else the day had to offer.
Over at the main grounds were various different food stalls ranging from Indian Cuisine all the way down to Donuts. After clocking a sea of Embrace t-shirts around the site, I made a beeline for the merchandise stand, walking away with a bargain priced red and white Embrace tote bag.
Sleeper
Up until this day I had yet to see Sleeper live and it felt like it had been a long time coming since hearing their rendition of ‘Atomic’ (originally performed by Blondie) featured as part of the soundtrack to one of my favourite films, ‘Trainspotting’.
Sleeper’s set was packed full of hits taken from their 90’s catalogue and their newer albums released since their reunion in 2017.
Before dropping into ‘Inbetweener’, frontwoman Louise Wener reminisced on filming the music video for said track inside of a local shop – claiming that “it doesn’t get more Brit-pop than that”.
Their set boasted pure Brit-pop energy, with chorus-drenched guitar lines, luscious synth and vocal melodies which were all topped off by an energetic and locked-in rhythm section.
A stand out moment for me came from hearing the crowd singing in unison when Sleeper threw in an unexpected and very well received version of Joy Division’s ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ during the bridge of ‘Atomic’.
Louise and co. were a true joy to watch on stage and I could feel their unity as a band through each member’s differing yet cohesive performance styles.
Ash
Following Sleeper were Northern Irish trio and veteran rockers, Ash. When entering the stage they were met with huge admiration and applause.
Having only heard a few of their well known singles I didn’t know what to expect from Ash in a live setting, but they certainly didn’t disappoint.
Kicking into their first song ‘A Life Less Ordinary’, their energy as a band was immediately evident and radiated throughout the crowd.
Having a huge live sound is an impressive feat for any band, but it’s even more impressive when that sound is achieved by a trio.
Equipped with effortless stage presence, a diverse catalogue of hits and flying V guitars, Ash were in full form.
Ending their set with a double whammy of their two biggest hits ‘Girl from Mars’ and ‘Burn Baby Burn’ was a sure-fire way to lift the crowd’s energy to new heights as they geared up for Ocean Colour Scene to eventually take to the stage.
Ocean Colour Scene
Gracing the stage after Ash were Birmingham quintet and Brit-pop staples, Ocean Colour Scene. I had been familiar with a handful of their stand out tracks but nothing could’ve prepared me for the set they delivered.
They kicked off their set with their hit track ‘The Riverboat Song’, and as they began the iconic riff I could see the audience begin to move and sing along.
By this point the majority of the site was full of people, from the stage barrier all the way to the main bar at the back.
After performing another handful of tracks, OCS wowed the audience with their well known take of The Beatles classic, ‘Day Tripper’. This was a particular stand-out moment for me as that specific track continues to be one of my favourites from the Fab Four.
Observing the crowd, the love for OCS and their music was truly felt. It was amazing to experience a sea of different people smile and sing along to almost every word.
One of the most powerful moments of their set was witnessing the warmest reception to their last track, ‘The Day We Caught The Train’. It was hard not to be caught in the wave of people singing along to the catchy ‘Ooo La La’s’ in the song’s memorable hook.
All in all, Ocean Colour Scene delivered a varied set packed to the brim with familiar guitar hooks, crisp acoustics and anthemic singalong moments. With a catalogue and legacy spanning over 3 decades, it’s no surprise that the audience were in complete awe and hanging on to every note.
Embrace
Embrace emerged onto the stage around 8:30 pm and the band was greeted by the largest round of applause and cheers from the crowd. Frontman and vocalist Danny McNamara took centre stage and began to lift his arms in order to further boost the crowd’s morale.
They started their set by playing ‘All You Good Good People’, a track from their first album ‘The Good Will Out’, released in 1998. Immediately myself and the rest of the crowd began to immerse ourselves in the melodic sounds the band had to offer. Their first track dissolved and we were now in Embrace’s hands, ready for the rest of their set to unfold.
Two more tracks from the band’s debut, ‘Come Back To What You Know’ and ‘One Big Family’ saw the crowd begin to warm and move even more. Danny McNamara then went on to explain that they’d be playing the entirety of ‘Out of Nothing’ live to commemorate the 20th anniversary of this career-defining album, before bursting into the passionate track ‘Someday’. ‘Looking As You Are’ followed, a track that holds a lot of significance for me, so I was absolutely enthralled by the vocal harmonies and musical brilliance on display.
Before going into ‘A Glorious Day’, Danny McNamara made it clear that this particular show was a significant moment for himself and the rest of the band. As he looked into the audience he began to give shout outs – first to his parents and then to his best mate of 47 years Dean, who is currently in remission. After bearing witness to this special moment the crowd began chanting “Deano” in a supportive and endearing manner.
Witnessing ‘Gravity’ and ‘Ashes’ live was truly a moment I’ll never forget. Having been introduced to Embrace by my dad and this particular album ‘Out of Nothing’ within my childhood, these two tracks hold a lot of weight for me. It ended up being a rather emotional and cathartic moment being amongst the crowd, and being a part of a 5000-strong choir each singing back these tracks in a way that resonated with them.
They closed off their set with a 4 song encore consisting of tracks, ‘We Are It’ and ‘Never’ from their more recent releases and finally ending with the title track from their 1998 debut, ‘The Good Will Out’.
From start to finish, the crowd’s energy never wavered and it was as strong as ever for the final singalong of the night.
When watching Embrace perform it was extremely clear that they were no stranger to the stage. Throughout the entire set their stage presence was larger than life but remained evidently humble.
They captured the hearts of many that evening, including mine, with an authentic set full of pure adrenaline, pure appreciation and pure powerhouse anthems
All photography by Emma Gibbon Photography.
