80. Kasabian

21^st Century Appearances: 2005 NME Headliner, 2004 Carling Headliner

The Defining Reading Moment: Headlining against the Pixies and drawing a monstrous crowd.

Back to back headliners, you don’t see that often at Reading, but that’s exactly what Kasabian were in 2004 and 2005, hopping straight from the top of Carling Tent to the top of the NME, and I’d be willing to bet, the next time they play Reading it’ll be a top the Main Stage.

That’s the future, let’s talk about the past, and let’s talk about 2005. The Pixies were the talk of the town, the big reunion, and they justified their billing with one of the greatest performances in Reading history. Kasabian weren’t so high profile, there wasn’t talk of Kasabian ruling the waves, but when push came to shove, they drew an absolutely mammoth crowd as the NME faithful were out in force to chant along to “Club Foot” and “Cut Off”. Kasabian’s performance flew under the radar, but this was Kasabian unmistakable statement of intent. David Hayter