Clifton Downs, Bristol
Joe Talbot dominated the Bristol band’s post-lockdown homecoming with spring-loaded unpredictability
It’s an eternal question: is it a faux pas to wear a band’s T-shirt to one of their shows? The implied answer from thousands of Idles fans wandering the rolling fields of Clifton Downs is no. This is a sprawling event, featuring 16 acts on three stages, plus bonus late summer sunshine, and yet a reminder of who’s topping the bill is never more than a few feet away.
“We haven’t done this in a while, and neither have you,” vocalist Joe Talbot says from the stage, the afternoon’s disparate gatherings having coalesced into one heaving mass. It’s only a white lie. After travelling down the M4 like a 10-legged version of Phil Collins, this is Idles’ second outing of the day, following a lunchtime appearance at Wide Awake festival in London. That engagement apparently blew any cobwebs away.