When The 1975 were first revealed as the Reading & Leeds headline replacements for Lewis Capaldi, it was announced the band had something special up their sleeve – a dedicated performance celebrating ten years of their eponymous debut album.
As promised, a leather-clad, cigarette-brandishing Matty Healy and co. turned back the clocks this weekend, indulging hardcore The 1975 fans with a setlist that wouldn’t have looked out of place on a 2013 Tumblr user’s dashboard. A culture-defining LP for young teens at the time, The 1975 was, in Healy’s own words, trying to capture “the apocalyptic sense of being a teenager” and remains emblematic of an era where a very niche subculture, characterised by black and white imagery of Dr. Martens and fishnets, provided a new online audience with a sense of identity.
Listen to The 1975’s live rendition of 2013’s “Heart Out”:
As evidenced by the huge crowd at Reading on Saturday, the record clearly continues to resonate with young people even today, with deeper cuts such as “Pressure” or “She Way Out” – songs which are rarely, if ever, played live – prompting enthused singalongs from an enamoured audience. The fact that a portion of the festival’s attendees made up a new wave of listeners, didn’t go unnoticed, either, with Healy acknowledging:
“This album, I don’t know, it feels quite relevant now, and you all look very young and you’re all enjoying it – it feels like the internet’s working in the way it should do.”
The frontman is correct in assuming that his band are as relevant as ever: their latest album landed them a TikTok hit in “About You” – a song which harks back to the sonic landscape and romanticised aesthetic first explored on their debut album. The group’s early hits, however, are still equally as potent, with crowd-pleasers “Sex” and “Robbers” showcasing The 1975’s enduring influence on fans.
Check out their live performance of “Robbers” below:
Meanwhile, Healy was quick to appreciate his band had been gifted an opportunity at the expense of a certain Scottish pop singer:
“Well, first of all can we have the loudest round of applause in our set for Mr. Lewis Capaldi who couldn’t make it tonight.”
Capaldi, who has been struggling with Tourette’s syndrome, was initially set to headline Reading, but was forced to cancel a number of shows including the bank holiday weekend festival due to his wavering health.
In honour of its 10 year anniversary, The 1975 will be releasing a special edition format of their self-titled debut album, due to hit stores on September 1. The 1975 (10th Anniversary) is available for pre-order here.
For their full set at Reading 2023, head to BBC iPlayer.
