Glastonbury Day 1: Kings Of Leon step up

United Kingdom | | 28 June 2008

Kings Of Leon bookmarked themselves at rock's top table as they performed a breathtaking headline set on Glastonbury's Pyramid Stage on Friday night.

The band wowed more than 50,000 fans as they tore through songs from their three albums, including two new tracks, opener 'Crawl' and 'Sex On Fire', which was played as part of their encore.

Most songs were lifted from second album 'Aha Shake Heartbreak' although two of the stand out moments were ‘Trani’ from their first and recent hit 'Charmer'.

The most glaring omission was 'Soft', which proved one of the highlights from last year's Reading set. But the hits came thick and fast with 'Milk', 'Molly's Chambers' and 'On Call' receiving some of the biggest cheers of the night.
A man of few words,

Caleb Fotherhill delivered a rare speech for the gathered masses. "I don't usually talk much but this is Glastonbury. We played our first ever festival in 2003 and that festival happened to be Glastonbury. We've worked our way up to get here. It's without doubt one of the best moments of our lives, so thank you."

Other highlights from the day included Editors on the Pyramid Stage, who delivered a typically epic set, and Foals, on the Other Stage, who took the festival by storm.

They may have started with a self indulgent intro, but proved they deserved it as they tinkered and toyed with their album. Highlights included 'Cassius' , 'Two Steps' and an energetic 'Hummer'.
Vampire Weekend pulled a huge afternoon crowd, kicking off with 'Mansard Roof' and finishing on 'Kids Don’t Stand A Chance'.

But despite their singer sporting a pair of summery, neon sunglasses, the New Yorkers couldn't hold off the rain, which persisted in patches throughout the day.

Franz Ferdinand played a secret gig up at the Park Stage, while Jimmy Cliff, The Subways and Patrick Watson proved some of less unexpected highlights.

Despite the rain, the vibe of Glastonbury remains one of the best there has been in years with revellers wrestling in mud, donning fancy dress and staying up until the crack of dawn. It all continues for another two days.