Bowing To The Bottlers
Last year Kids In Glass Houses made their festival debut at Download on the third stage. A year later and with a lot of airplay under their belts plus their constant rotation on the music channels, the Welsh lads have seen themselves promoted to the second stage, a fate that may not bode too well for their somewhat pop based rock.
As soon as they come on stage KIGH are met with a barrage of bottles that instantly have the band dodging back and forth, at times seeming to cling to the back of the stage to avoid the projectiles. Only one song in and front man Aled Phillips has already had enough of the reaction they have caused, asking the crowd “what the fuck is with the bottles? Is it fun?” Getting only a cheer in response, Phillips comes to the conclusion that perhaps the best step is to bait the crowd, challenging them to actually throw properly if they're going to do it at all that again gets a half hearted response. With their sound suffering from the openness of the tentless second stage, it is only their recent singles that really stir the crowd with ‘Easy Tiger’ seeing the first signs of movement as Phillips darts around and the crowd jump with a touch of enthusiasm. Old live favourite ‘Raise Hell’ entices a subtle sing along but it is the catchy beats of ‘Give Me What I Want’ that really saves KIGH’s set, with Phillips’ vocals picking up and the crowd finally warming to quintet.
Last year KIGH were an unknown commodity that only the curious and true fans seeked out. This year, they’ve suffered slightly from their new found popularity that doesn’t fit Download’s heavy core and although it's not their own fault there’s a sense that they could have done more to try and win over their tormentors rather then giving up before the first song was done.