Louis Tomlinson has festivals down at Sziget 2024

A fearless masterclass in unifying rock & roll. Words: Ali Shutler. Photos: Frances Beach.

“Festivals are a new thing for me,” Louis Tomlinson admits onstage at Sziget, but you wouldn’t know it. 2022’s ‘Faith In The Future’ was full of the sort of rowdy indie anthems that are perfect for a sunset slot on a festival main stage and today, he’s every bit the swaggering rock star.

Kicking off with the thundering ‘The Greatest’, Louis delivers the soaring track with his arms outstretched, embracing the chaos that’s already unfolding in the heaving crowd. There’s an urgency to every slab of guitar-driven music, but there’s a confidence in how Louis and his band allow each track to build. It means the hammering ‘Kill My Mind’, the tender ‘Bigger Than Me’ and the unifying ‘We Made It’ give the show a real sense of dynamic colour, while the dreamy ‘Holding Onto Heartache’ sees Louis slow things down without losing any of that energy.

Despite the hulking rock anthems, Louis hasn’t forgotten his pop chops either. Covers of One Direction’s ‘Drag Me Down’, ‘Night Changes’, and ‘Where Do Broken Hearts Go’ are all delivered with a newfound bite, but those stadium-ready choruses are as sugary sweet as ever.

From the diehard fans who’ve been camping out at the barrier all day, to the impromptu dance parties that break out towards the back of the field, Louis’ set inspires a real sense of giddy community throughout the festival, and he’s there right alongside them. The entire thing feels like a celebration.

“I’m a big music fan, which is why I do what I do, and I love coming to festivals but I’ve not done this a lot,” he says, once again explaining how new the unpredictable beast that events like this are for him. “It’s an honour to play these spaces because I know how good it feels to be where you guys are,” Louis adds before breaking into the widest of grins, “Festivals are good, right?”

From the moment he released debut single ‘Just Hold On’, Louis’ solo career has been about taking risks and following his gut. It’s led him today, where he puts on a fearless masterclass in unifying rock & roll.

Sure, it’s another leap into the unknown but from the euphoric ‘Face The Music’ through the playful funk of ‘Written All Over Your Face’ to the punk-fuelled catharsis of ‘Out Of My System’, today’s set is a total triumph.