Life's a beach for Fickle Friends at Reading Festival

A year ago, Fickle Friends took on the BBC Radio 1 Stage at Reading without so much as a full-length to their name. A year on, and they’re back - twelve months older, wiser and packing that all important album. It’s not that the 2017 vintage had any holes to fill - they were doubtlessly one of the festivals highlights - but the extra confidence that comes with a top 10 record is easy to see. Potential fulfilled, they fizz with raw pop energy. Stalking round the palms littering the stage, Natty refuses to stand still for even a second, yet remains note perfect at all times. From the bubbling swagger of ‘Glue’ to the raw honesty of ‘Hard To Be Myself’, they might be following a surprise set from one of 2019’s potential headliners, but it’s Fickle Friends who feel like the real deal. Words: Stephen Ackroyd