First on, not easy, is it? What to expect at 12pm on the main stage? Loads of sunburned teenagers mostly, apparently. We had a chat with Kawala, who happened to be fresh off that exact slot, to see how Reading is treating them.
Hello! How’s it going?
Daniel: It’s good, we’ve just done a pretty large show, so that was surreal.
Biggest show you’ve ever played?
D: Biggest stage we’ve ever played, at least. Very surreal.
Jim: I’m quite a tall man, and it still seemed very big. The sound desk, it’s bigger than my house.
How was it being first on of the whole weekend?
J: Zero expectations.
D: First of all, thanks to The 1975 for closing for us. No, haha, it was cool. I didn’t really know what to expect, it was all a bit of a blur.
J: It massively helps with it being really nice weather.
D: There was definitely one person singing along.
It looked like you got people dancing though, not easy at 12 on a Friday.
D: Yeah, again it was just a bit surreal. We’ve done quite a lot of festivals this year, and there’s a couple of shows we’ve done this summer that’s support stuff, but I think we’ve had our first experiences this summer with playing on big stages to big crowds, but it doesn’t get any easier.
J: Still have no idea how we managed to get this far.
D: Yeah, who’s getting fired for getting us on the main stage?
So, you guys went to uni in Leeds, right?
D: Leeds College of Music for a year, yeah.
J: I looooove Leeds, great city.
I take it you’re looking forward to Leeds tomorrow, then?
D: I think it’s gonna be funny. We’re Londoners but have such a personal tie to that place, even if it was just a year of our lives, I feel very connected to Leeds in a way. Going up and doing the show there is gonna be interesting, it’s gonna be good fun. Also, I feel like the crowds get rowdier the further up you go.
Anything you wanna tell us about what else is happening in your world?
J: We have our own tour in October, all over the country, if anyone wants to come.
D: Please come. Please. Desperately, please.
You’re too used to these big stages now.
J: No, I love a room of 100 rowdy drunk people.
D: It’s so funny because our guitarist Dan, after we did some supports with George Ezra which is really surreal, and then after we did our own shows and he was like, “bit small, this”. I was like, hold on mate you’re getting a bit ahead of yourself.
Words: Abigail Firth
