'Ferryman' by Claire McFall

*This review will contain spoilers!*

To me, 'Ferryman' is one of the prime examples of why you should never pick up a book just because the cover is absolutely gorgeous. Do you see how stunning this book is?! It's even more beautiful in real life, with an opalescent sheen that makes the book sparkle in a really alluring way, making it impossible to resist reading. Surely, a book with a cover this pretty should be amazing?

The answer to that question is a resounding no. 

'Ferryman' tells us the story of Dylan, a teenager who is on a train to meet her father for the first time in years, but is involved in a train crash. She emerges on the Scottish hillside and finds an attractive, handsome, sexy (blah blah blah) teenage boy called Tristan sat waiting for her. Ooh, spooky spooky.

Predictably, Tristan is the ferryman referred to in the book title meaning that, you guessed it, Dylan died in the train crash. But despite the fact that it's completely predictable and I worked out the entire story line within about three chapters, the first hundred or so pages are the only interesting bits in the entire novel. As the two characters go on their journey to cross the wasteland, I could only sit here thinking how repetitive and irritating it was. 

Wake up. Walk. Slight danger. Danger avoided. Safe. Sleep. 

Over. And over. And over. 

Furthermore, the danger was always completely contrived and not at all realistic. At one point, Dylan stops paying attention and their boat capsizes which results in her nearly drowning. In a realistic situation I'm pretty sure a teenage girl terrified of drowning would most definitely not let her guard down during a boat journey. It just seemed like there was nothing interesting happening, so some action needed to be shoved in to make the story more exciting, but if anything it just made it drag a hell of a lot more than it needed to. 

The last sixty pages seem to pick up again (well, kinda), but for the middle hundred and something it was one of the hardest novels I've ever had the displeasure to struggle through. Riddled with spelling and grammar errors (counting fifteen, at least) the flow of the novel was consistently broken up with the issues that should have been corrected in one of the many proof reads that novels usually go through, but this isn't completely the authors fault so I could almost have let that slide if the rest of the novel had had any positives at all. 

However, it just didn't really seem to. The plot was unusual but not very well executed, there were loopholes in the mythology and it just seemed too long and too unnecessary. I've never found myself reaching the middle of a book and groaning because I've got to read the same length again, I'm normally groaning because it's not long enough. But groan I did, five or six times throughout the last half of the novel. 

Dylan, our main protagonist, is the most annoying character I've ever had to read - she's consistently whiny, needy and childish (I've never known a character stick her tongue out this many times in a novel, it was verging on idiotic) and there are no redeeming factors about her at all. At the start of the novel she's complaining about her mothers negativity towards her visiting her father, while never stopping to consider the fact that her mother could see it as a massive betrayal and could be extremely hurt by her actions. She just seems to focus upon getting her own way with no time to think about how it affects other people. Later on in the book she always needs so much validation from Tristan, which grated on my nerves so much - you shouldn't base your self-worth on the opinions of a boy you only just met three days ago! Similarly she keeps referring to how much she's changed, how at the start she "pouted, whined, complained" but it doesn't really feel as though she's gone through any character development. From the first page to the last page she constantly pouts, whines and complains, so if she thinks she's stopped doing it she's highly mistaken. 

On the other hand, Tristan, the ferryman, is the only good character in this entire novel and he still has his issues. However, his particular brand of brooding is a welcome relief from the onslaught of complaints from Dylan so his negatives become positives in relation to how absolutely terrible the only other character in the entire first half of the novel is. But in my opinion there isn't enough focus just on Tristan. I understand that's the point in a novel with a relationship as the main focus point, but I genuinely think a book of Tristan's memoirs would be way more interesting. Can you imagine having to live an entirely transient life; always looking differently, always with different people, never allowed to have one day of normality? (But then if you really want to read that in a novel I'd seriously recommend 'Every Day' by David Levithan; A's character is more interesting and at least the love interest in that story doesn't make you want to tear your hair out with frustration). Actually, the entire love story in 'Ferryman' made me want to tear my hair out. The angst-filled romance just didn't seem at all solid to me. The will they/won't they to-ing and fro-ing was rendered completely obsolete because we had pieces of both characters internal thoughts, meaning there was no question at all for the audience, making most of Dylan's worries seem completely superficial and ridiculous. 

The concept of the ever changing, individual wastelands made Tristan's past extremely intriguing, which was one of the main reasons I actually persevered with this novel, but then a plot hole occurs when he's ferrying another soul and they go from a city centre to mud flats in the space of a chapter. That just demonstrates that it's a good idea but it's not a well executed idea. The valley is constant in every souls wasteland, but surely it would come in different guises? Dylan experiences the valley as being between two mountains, but the soul from the city centre could have experienced it as a long underpass to make it more appropriate to their context. 

As well as the repetition of the travelling throughout the novel, there are also extremely unusual words repeated to death (namely 'undulating' and 'zenith'). Never in my life have I seen zenith used in a young adult novel, but after reading it five times in 'Ferryman' I never really want to experience it again. 

I've never given up halfway through a novel, but I was extremely tempted to during 'Ferryman'. If the book had perhaps been better edited I may have enjoyed it more, but when the genders are consistently getting mixed up or minor characters names are being spelt incorrectly it's beyond annoying. With the plot getting mixed up in a similar way (were the names crossed out of the book because they were lost in the wasteland or because they left the afterlife? It was never clarified but both were implied separately, not concurrently). 

All in all, 'Ferryman' is a great novel if you're looking for a slow, dragging read with lots of errors. I was extremely excited to read a novel based on the souls journey from this world to the next, as it's not something you see as much of as witches or vampires or other paranormal beings. Next time, I won't count my chickens before they hatch, or count my good books before I read them, or something along those lines. 

Invictus Games Closing Concert - 14/09/14

The message behind the Invictus Games is that we are all equal and so prejudice is unnecessary, and I feel that came through extremely strongly with the line-up for the closing concert. If you can show me another concert that can feature Rizzle Kicks, Ellie Goulding and Foo Fighters seamlessly and perfectly, I will be majorly surprised. 

But that's exactly what happened here.

Starting off with the pipes and drums from the Brigade of Gurkhas was traditional, but mixing it up by involving the drummers in the first dance from Britain's Got Talent alumni Diversity was a stroke of genius the likes of which I haven't seen in a long time. It was an unexpected and intelligent decision that made me a lot more excited about what was going to develop throughout the course of the day. Diversity then went on to perform a second dance, inviting vocal group Urban Voices on stage to sing 'Cry Me A River' by Justin Timberlake. I will admit, I was slightly disappointed by Diversity; their performances look a lot more impressive on TV, but I have never seen a dance troupe live before so this might be a regular issue in a live environment.

Next up, surprise special guest Bryan Adams whose set was short but sweet. Playing 'Run To You', 'She Knows Me' and 'When You're Gone' meant that he didn't perform any of his best known songs, but with the set being performed acoustically he demonstrated a raw talent that seems hard to beat in the music scene of today.

Setlist:
Run To You
She Knows Me
When You're Gone

Following an absolute legend with Rizzle Kicks shouldn't have worked, but they were brimming with exuberant energy and, while they definitely weren't the most on point performers of the day, their set was completely fun. Excluding 'Down With The Trumpets' from their set in favour of new release 'Tell Her' seemed unusual, but 'Mama Do The Hump' had the entire crowd screaming and dancing along, showing that Rizzle Kicks are greatly appreciated despite being relatively new on the scene.

Setlist: 
Tell Her
Mama Do The Hump

An event like Invictus Games couldn't go ahead without the inclusion of the Military Wives Choir, who seemed pretty average. I don't mean for that to sound harsh, I've just never really seen the appeal with the group. I do think it's admirable that they have taken their negative experiences and turned them into something positive and enlightening and they are indeed inspiring, I just don't think they're that impressive vocally.

The energy soon picked up again though, with The Vamps bursting onto the stage to perform 'Somebody To You', 'Last Night' and 'Cecilia'. While they haven't yet got One Directions fan base or global appeal I can't see it taking too long, as they seemed truly grateful to be there and attempted to interact with the crowd as much as possible, even if the audience didn't seem to be too receptive to their efforts. But their songs are catchy and with 'Somebody To You' recently getting re-released with a guest vocal by Demi Lovato I can see them going to high up places fast.

Setlist:
Somebody To You
Last Night
Cecilia

On the other hand, comedian Terry Alderton was absolutely disgusting. I understand that topical comedy is a big-seller and usually I would have found his jokes funny, but the Invictus Games are more of a family event than the types of rooms he'd usually be playing. Telling jokes ranging from kidnapping to commentary about the missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, this brand of comedy was just too topical for a family environment and while he seemed to be reveling in being boo'd off stage it's not something to celebrate; it just made the entire crowd feel uncomfortable and definitely dampened the mood on what had otherwise been a faultless day.

Another performer who couldn't have been missing from the closing concert was James Blunt. It's well known that he was in the military for six years so I'm sure the Invictus story was extremely close to his heart and it definitely seemed to be as he beamed his way through his entire set. His set may only have been five songs but he managed to squeeze in three songs from recent release 'Moon Landing' (namely 'Stay The Night', 'Heart To Heart' and 'Bonfire Heart') and the happier lyrical content and the upbeat music demonstrates perfectly how content James is with his life at the moment, following his recent marriage to Sofia Wellesley. Interspersing his new songs with smash hits 'You're Beautiful' (during which the screen focused upon a teary military man singing along, which was poignant and heart-warming) and '1973', which concluded with James climbing into the crowd and crowd-surfing, filled with the energy that's more usually expected from a five year old.

Setlist:
Stay The Night
You're Beautiful
Heart To Heart
Bonfire Heart
1973

Following James Blunt was a surprise appearance from folk punk singer Frank Turner, who played three songs: 'The Way I Tend To Be', 'The Next Storm' and 'I Still Believe'. This is the second time I've seen Frank Turner but he was completely spot on vocally and musically. There is something special about this man and, while I can't put my finger on what that is, we were lucky to have him appear.

Setlist: 
The Way I Tend To Be
The Next Storm
I Still Believe

Next up, Ryan Adams and the Shining. Starting off with recent single 'Gimme Something Good' got the crowd involved, but over the course of the next four songs he seemed to lose both attention and interest. 'Gimme Something Good' is the only song of his that I've heard before, but after his performance it's still the only one I can remember, which tells me something about the fact that he does have a talent but it's not outstanding or remarkable; it's verging on average and forgettable. Being the only artist not to mention Invictus or to thank Prince Harry he didn't really seem to get into the spirit of the concert, which was very disappointing after such an amazing response from the other artists.

Contrasting completely to the failure of Terry Alderton earlier in the day, Gina Yashere and her brand of comedy were very well accepted by the crowd at the event. Throughout the day presenters and special guests were performing on a smaller stage to the right of the main stage while it was being set up, but Gina quickly went against the status quo, sprinting from one end of the stage to the other shouting "Keep up with me camera man! I'm gonna make you work for your money!". If you've never seen a performance by Gina before I would highly recommend checking her out because I think she's absolutely hilarious. The rest of the crowd seemed to agree with me, with her entire set being filled with laughing, clapping and cheers, which was a welcome relief after the uncomfortably terrible performance from Terry.

I didn't think I would enjoy Ellie Goulding's performance. I've never really understood the appeal with her music, with 'Starry Eyed' and 'Explosions' being what I would describe as whiny and annoying, but I was pleasantly surprised with her set tonight. Starting off with 'Figure 8', a song I'd never heard before, I was automatically impressed with her stage presence, bounding around the stage with a frantic energy and she didn't let up for the entire set she played. Featuring massive hits 'Anything Can Happen', 'Need Your Love' (during which she showed off the fact that she was using a partial backing track in a massive middle finger to the haters who accuse her of lip-syncing) she slowed it down for 'Lights' then jumped back in with 'Burn', the lead single off of re-release 'Halcyon Days'. With time off coming up quickly to work on a new album, I'm extremely excited to hear what Ellie Goulding does next, because she's managed to convert me.

Setlist: 
Figure 8
Anything Can Happen
Need Your Love
Lights
Burn

I'm extremely biased towards both of the final two acts. This was the first time I'd seen Kaiser Chiefs live, after an extremely long time of wanting to, and I was not left disappointed (well, apart from the short set that they played, only comprising of five songs). 'Ruby' incited a massive gang singalong, with 'Never Miss A Beat' getting everyone up and dancing the most that they had all night. New single 'Coming Home' didn't get as much of a reaction, but it also didn't fall short, showing that Kaiser Chiefs fans are extremely supportive of their music and don't care which direction they go next as long as they keep making new music. 'I Predict A Riot' had the best reaction, but with vocalist Ricky Wilson creating three Mexican waves in a row during 'Oh My God' it was a very close call.

Setlist: 
Ruby
Never Miss A Beat
Coming Home
I Predict A Riot
Oh My God

Before Foo Fighters performance was the fourth and final medal ceremony, featuring the athletes from Great Britain and a very special speech from Prince Harry (including a Mexican wave and a "message from Granny") which really pulled the focus back on to the athletes and the reason that we were all there. With one of the veterans exclaiming "without your support we'd be in pieces at home, instead we're here today, kicking the arse out of life" and there was no better way to describe exactly what the Invictus Games did for these amazing men and women. Despite the fact that I only managed to attend the closing concert I really wish I'd managed to make it to some of the games, because the adversity that these people have managed to overcome have proven to me that you really can get past anything if you have enough determination and it's definitely changed my perspective on life. I hope the Invictus Games continue for many years to come, because Prince Harry has created an inspirational and inclusive event that will help push the general public in a firm way towards acceptance for all.

But then, for the main event; Foo Fighters. Of course, a normal Foo Fighters headline set lasts between two or three hours, so many of the massive hits were missing from this set list, but it still managed to span most of their career and fit in some lesser known songs as well. Kicking off with 'All My Life' they demonstrated what they do best by extending the instrumental in the middle of the song for three or four minutes and, despite the fact that in a recorded environment it could be described as over doing it, in a live environment it's an absolutely flawless decision. Dave Grohl will always have the crowd eating out of his hands no matter what he does: extended instrumentals, sharing funny stories - the crowd loved every single second of it. Playing eleven songs is never going to be enough for a Foo Fighters set, but every second was faultless which is exactly why they're both the biggest and the best rock band on the planet right now. Despite their short set time, they still played 'Cold Day In The Sun', giving drummer Taylor Hawkins his chance to shine on the vocals, despite getting the giggles halfway through after swearing live on the BBC. The entire crowd were screaming along with the words to almost every song, proving that even people that had attended with a preference towards one of the other artists were still affected by Foo Fighters. Their reach is extreme; if you ask anyone on the street they will know at least one song and that's the appeal with them. I've never heard anyone utter the words "I don't like Foo Fighters" and, I can assure you, I will not be hearing them after their performance at this closing concert either. Foo Fighters are on top of the world and that's exactly where they're going to stay, and with new album 'Sonic Highways' out in November and their twentieth anniversary celebrations quickly approaching, the only way is up.

Setlist: 
All My Life
Times Like These
The Pretender
Learn To Fly
My Hero
White Limo
Arlandria
Cold Day In The Sun
Walk
Best of You
Everlong

'Tomorrow, When The War Began' (Tomorrow Series #1) by John Marsden

*This review will contain spoilers!*

There are not many books that I've run to purchase within the first fifty pages, but I was so sold on the Tomorrow Series that I purchased all seven of them within an hour of starting this book.

(And just because I want to show off, look at how much prettier the cover is on my purchased copy!

No offence to Caitlin Stasey, who is absolutely gorgeous, I'm just an avid non-believer in film editions of book covers so I was so excited to find the entire series for an amazing price and with a beautiful cover set. The dove for peace, the red for danger, the barbed wire for oppression; ahhhh the metaphorical resonance!)

I was so dubious about starting 'Tomorrow, When The War Began' that I've been putting it off for... about seven years. Or at least it's been seven years since it was recommended to me by a good friend; only a couple of months since I went through the effort of tracking it down. But now I've read it, I really can't understand why. Perhaps it was because I just didn't see the appeal in this genre of novel back then. 'Tomorrow...' is about a war, as I'm sure you've gathered, but it's more on the realistic and emotional side of the spectrum to most of the dystopian fiction that I've seen people draw parallels to. It tells the story of seven Australian teenagers (Ellie, Corrie, Kevin, Homer, Fi, Robyn and Lee) who take a last minute trip to the bush before the end of the school holidays and who, after returning from that trip, find their homes abandoned and their town invaded and attacked.
If, like I was, you're automatically feeling put off by the words 'war' and 'invasion', you need to give this book more of a chance. The characters all mature and change so quickly it could almost be described as a coming-of-age novel and, despite the fact that it all occurs under such harrowing circumstances, they are much better people at the end of the novel than they were before the events took place. It even feels current, despite the fact that it was first published nearly twenty years ago. Some books start to feel out-dated almost immediately after publication but, ignoring the multiple references to the ancient device of the Walkman, this still feels like it could be happening somewhere in the world right now. Another aspect that makes it feel recently published is that, even though it's a life or death situation, there is quite a bit of romance (examples being the relationship with Corrie and Kevin, Homer's growing feelings for Fi and Ellie's torn feelings between Homer and Lee) demonstrating that, despite the fact that it outdates them quite starkly, it's in the same vein as the 'Divergent', 'The Hunger Games' and 'Eve' trilogies.
The fact that it feels like it could be going on somewhere in the world right now caused me to automatically draw links to the more stereotypically violent countries: namely Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan. However, John Marsden's writing is unique in the fact that he never (at least, not before the end of the first book) reveals who has invaded the country. We know that the friends don't know their language, so we know that they are from a foreign country, but it doesn't turn into a propaganda like attack on a country that the author has a personal vendetta against which really impresses me. Not that I'm saying it's likely that every author has an agenda in mind when writing a novel, but a lot of them take inspiration from George Orwell and his Russian socialist attack in 'Animal Farm', so it's easy to anticipate it.
In the novel, the action really starts around fifty pages in (a quick note; if you like animals and hate it when bad things happen to them in films, just stop after the first fifty pages. It gets pretty horrible pretty fast) but the beginning sets up such an interesting enigma that you have no choice but to power through to find out what happens. An example of this is the fact that in the first chapter our protagonist, Ellie Linton, goes from telling us that she hopes "Chris doesn't mind [her] being chosen to do [the narrating] instead of him" and on the next page informs us that Chris is not permitted to go on the trip that she's organising, putting the question of when Chris joins them at the forefront of my mind for the entire first half of the book. Similarly, it gives you a completely false sense of security. In war novels I'm always so tense and on edge in case my favourite characters die, but in Ellie's introduction (borderline prologue, but still included in the first chapter) she refers to Robyn and Homer as still being with her, causing me to presume that all of the characters would survive the first book at the very least. But with a book set in a war, casualties are unavoidable. The ending of the book isn't exactly left on a cliffhanger, but there are so many unanswered questions that I can't wait to read the second book in the series, 'The Dead of the Night'. With lessons in morality scattered throughout the book it's definitely a worthwhile read; anyone who writes it off as children's book couldn't be more wrong as it would definitely appeal to a much wider and older audience.
On a final note, something I would definitely recommend while reading 'Tomorrow...'; keep dictionary.com open at all possible times. The amount of Australian slang that is completely untranslatable is ridiculous (how was I to know that a slater was a woodlouse?!) but looking up all of the terms really gives you a deeper appreciation of the culture that the characters have developed in and makes you feel way more involved in the novel.

'Black Ice' by Becca Fitzpatrick - Book Trailer review

Well I never in a million years imagined I would be sat here writing a trailer review, because I always like waiting until the finished product is released so that I can make a complete judgment, but oh my god I can't even resist. 

I have never seen a book trailer before (yep, here's me, living a sheltered existence!) and I didn't actually even know they existed until I saw Becca Fitzpatrick, the author, posted the trailer earlier. I will admit, I was kinda unsure on whether it would be a good idea or not. I usually hate reading books after watching films, because I already have an image of the lead character in my head that contradicts with what I want to imagine. Similarly, I usually object to people being pictured on book covers, but the 'Black Ice' cover is absolutely gorgeous (something I don't say lightly, it takes a lot for a book cover to impress me) so it's already completely gone against my belief system, but I think I love that. 

Another thing I'm going to admit, that I am extremely embarrassed about; I didn't know Becca Fitzpatrick had another novel on the way. I absolutely adored 'Hush, Hush' and the follow up novel, 'Crescendo', but then life got in the way and I still haven't managed to read 'Finale' (I might have read 'Silence', it's shockingly bad of me but I can't actually remember...) but the first two books in the series are that good that it's extremely high up on my favourite YA series of all time list. So, as you can imagine, I went into this trailer feeling nervous but absolutely and utterly excited. I hadn't heard anything about this book, so I was entering into it completely blind, but it was all the much better for that. As a media student I am so used to having to absolutely tear apart and evaluate trailers that you could almost call it my forte, but I'm gonna try not to use too much terminology cause I get very wordy very fast. 

The beginning of the trailer starts off so enigmatically, it completely grabs you. Watching, from what I can only assume to be the killers point of view, as he cuts out newspaper clippings about the murders, looking pictures of the girls and having a necklace that I'm equating up to a trophy for his kills? Equal parts creepy and absorbing, establishing the plot line automatically with the writing "Three green dots, three abandoned shelters, three dead girls, one killer." The music is creepy as hell, with what sounds like a jangling of chains sending a shiver running straight down my spine and the effect on the video is reminiscent of multiple true life crime dramas that I've watched throughout my life. 

I'm assuming this is a YA novel based on Becca Fitzpatrick's previous work but this trailer is creepy as hell. A girl staying in a cabin in the woods with strangers in the middle of a blizzard is a recipe for disaster. But that just makes it all the more better as a book trailer. While we know hardly nothing about the characters in this brief two minutes it's just so enigmatic that I want to know more. Yes, you can tell that the trailer was made on a low budget as the acting isn't so hot and it has a very definitive home movie atmosphere to it, but that isn't as much as a negative to me as it might be to other people. If this had been a film trailer it wouldn't have worked but, remembering that I have no previous knowledge in the medium of book trailers, this is exactly what I would have expected to market a book. It gives away enough of the plot without making it easy to predict what is going to happen which, when combined with the tagline on the book cover of 'Falling in love should never be so dangerous...', then gets turned completely on its head making it even harder to work out. 

This trailer is equal parts revealing and confusing but it's already convinced me that I'm gonna need to purchase 'Black Ice' as soon as it hits shelves at the end of October. 

Now, to go and Youtube book trailers for the rest of the day, strictly for "research purposes"...

If I Stay

*This review will contain spoilers!*

This is not a review of the brilliantly beautiful book by Gayle Forman, this is a review of the film adaptation of said novel. If you haven't read the book, please don't watch the film until you have! The book is absolutely amazing and while the film is extremely true to the novel I just think it's so much more affecting if you read it instead of watching it. (This might just be me, but I cried three times during the book and nearly once during the film so I do find the novel much more emotional.)

'If I Stay' tells us the story of Mia Hall (played by Chloe Grace Moretz) whose family get into a car accident on a snowy road while travelling to visit family. Mia has an out-of-body experience, watching herself lying comatose in a hospital bed and hearing pleas from family and friends for her to come back to them, but the entire film revolves around the question of 'If your life was going to be irreparably changed and you had the choice to get away from it, could you stay?'. She has her grandparents, her best friend Kim and her boyfriend Adam to go back to, but are they worth it?

I'm gonna admit I'm finding it hard to review this play, because I found the book practically faultless and it was SO LOYAL TO THE BOOK IT WAS UNREAL. Well, Adam's band name was changed from Shooting Star to Williamette Stone (which sounds way more rock 'n' roll) and there's less gore at the car crash and less swearing at the end of the book than I'd expected, but they were all good changes to allow for the ratings and to help the film appeal to a larger audience. But the attention to detail was spectacular; the 'I <3 Yo Yo Ma' stickers in Mia's locker, the Debbie Harry costume she wears to the Halloween concert, even down to what I'd imagined Adam's songs to sound like. It was just felt so flawless. A book adaptation done right.

I did read the book about a year ago (I didn't have time to re-read it before the film as I'd intended because I didn't realise I was going to see it today until late last night) so I can't remember if absolutely everything was included or if the flashbacks were in the same places, but the film was so absorbing I didn't find myself thinking about the book that much at all. The casting is perfect, the costume design encompasses the characters personalities amazingly and the soundtrack is one of the most ear-pleasing things I've ever experienced (and they need to release it as a physical copy and they need to release it NOW).

I'm sure that if 'If I Stay' didn't matter so much to me as a book I would not be singing the praises of the movie so highly, because there were some issues. One minute there are no visitors allowed in the Intensive Care Unit to visit Mia, the next minute there are montage shots of lots of people loitering around in her room and even though that was explained in the book it wasn't in the film so it could have been confusing for some watchers. Similarly, a major part of Adam's speech to Mia at the conclusion of the novel was missing; when he says "If you do need me to go away, I'll do that too [...] maybe it'd be easier for you to erase us" in the novel it perfectly demonstrates how much Adam loves Mia, but that's missing from the film (probably to perpetuate the myth that teenage relationships that start in films will always last forever and cannot possibly be ended due to grief and difficulty coping with the loss of ones entire family). 

But, despite these issues, it just seems like such a triumph for a young adult film adaptation to feel so true to the novel. Yes, 'Divergent' did a good job and 'The Fault In Our Stars' had all the right bits in the right places, but there were things in both that just didn't seem right to me (possibly the casting of Shailene Woodley... I just don't think that was the right casting choice for either film, but that can be discussed another time). I was extremely worried about 'If I Stay', but I shouldn't have been worried at all. The trailer made me cry, so I was expecting it to make me a lot more emotional than it did, but I'm almost glad that it didn't because it would have detracted from the impact that the book has upon me every time I read it. I'm going to be reading the sequel, 'Where She Went', soon, so it will be good to see how the characters of Adam and Mia develop over the time period and see if it's worth following their story even further because I'm almost more nervous about the follow-up than I was about the movie. 

'Betrayal' (Empty Coffin #2) by Gregg Olsen

*This review will contain spoilers!*

'Betrayal' is the second novel in the Empty Coffin Series by Gregg Olsen. If you haven't read 'Envy' I would definitely recommend reading that one before this one; they aren't exactly intrinsically linked but there are a few referrals back to characters and developments in the first book that are sort of explained but are better to experience. 

'Betrayal' focuses on the story of a English student, Olivia Grant, in the sleepy town of Port Gamble (well, ex-sleepy town). Olivia gets murdered at a Halloween party, police investigation ensues. So far, so predictable. However, here enter the characters who make 'Betrayal' a bit more than just a teenage murder mystery. Hayley and Taylor Ryan, the twin protagonists who we follow throughout the story, have some psychic powers (I don't know if you'd describe them as psychic, they're premonitions and seeing images and scenes from the past so I guess it could be loosely described as that?) and they attempt to solve the crime that is developing in their town. 

If you've read 'Envy', you'll know that it sounds exactly the same as the first book, but that's where you're wrong. Much of this book, rather than focusing on the murder of Olivia Grant (which the twins don't actually end up solving), focuses on the twins discovering more about their past: finding out that the bus crash was caused on purpose, discovering more about their mother and why she keeps secrets from them. Because most of it is focused on the twins personal life, the murder-solving part of the novel does seem to drag on for longer than necessary, meaning you're left with a constant yearning for closure that gets neglected throughout. 

Furthermore, the viewpoint jumps all over the place (which was interesting in 'Envy' but just seems overdone and irritating in 'Betrayal') so at points it was just hard to follow who we were with, where and why. I would describe myself as a fast reader but hot damn I struggled to carry on at points in this novel.

As well as the viewpoint jumping all over the place, so did the time frame and date that we were working with. At one point the twins informed us that the murder suspects, Drew Marcello and his girlfriend Brianna Connors, had gone on the run and had been missing for days, then multiple chapters later we see Drew and Brianna getting a car and setting off. Similarly, chapter 29 jumped from a Tuesday night to a Saturday morning in the space of a paragraph. I understand that not all time that passes in the novel can be included, but normally large jumps of time are the new chapters so you have the understanding that there is a break and then a recommencement. 

Despite the negatives of the novel (which also include getting the twins confused by referring to Hayley's visions as Taylor's multiple times) there were also some positives. An old wives tale gives us the origination of the series title which is interesting and quirky. Putting segments from the killers viewpoint throughout keeps up the enigma and makes you guess and second guess who you think the killer can really be. There are some unexpected character deaths that leave you feeling genuinely shocked and a little bit betrayed. 

Overall, the murder plot in the novel is very good and it's an enjoyable read. About thirty pages before the end you can completely work out what happened, but it's still good to read the reveal and get your suspicions confirmed, with the story of Olivia Grant wrapping up nicely. However, I sincerely hope Gregg Olsen is planning on writing another Empty Coffin novel ('Betrayal' was released two years ago and I can't find any confirmation of a follow up anywhere) because not all of the questions are completely answered. We find out an awful lot more about the bus crash that the girls were involved in at five years old, but we don't find out why it was caused. It's easy to assume it was because of the girls talents, but it would be good to find out exactly how and why the Text Creeper attempted to have them killed. By the end of the novel, we still don't even know Text Creepers name, so there is a lot to merit a follow up. 

Reading Festival 22-23-24/08/2014

I'm not gonna write this like a normal review; examining and cross-examining all of the acts I saw in this, the best weekend of my life, because that would take the fun out of things. At festivals, I think one of the best things to do is to have fun, make friends and investigate new bands you've never thought to listen to before, all things of which I did a lot of. 

However, as I have this review blog, when it came to bands I loved and had seen before, or bands that I had (usually inaccurate) preconceptions about, I thought it would be much more beneficial for you for me to talk about things that I feel I am an expert in the field of. Am I an expert of dance music? No. 100% not. So am I reviewing any of the (snippets of) dance songs I discovered this weekend, while running from the NME/BBC Radio 1 stage to the main stage? No. Do I feel as though I'm an expert in rock music? Hell yes. So that's what you'll be getting from this review. Now you know this, it feels like time to jump in, so let's start with... 

Friday:

First up was the highly anticipated 'global debut' (actually the third global show, but a festival debut is pretty decent boasting too) of ex-My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way. With the release of 'Action Cat' just two months ago, many of the songs featured in the set were unknown, but that didn't make it any less fun or any less compelling. Gerard Way is a frontman and a half; charismatic, charming and filled with boundless energy. Wearing the blue suit instantly recognisable from the recently released 'Hesitant Alien' album artwork, the crowd in the well-filled tent were automatically bouncing along to the opening notes of 'Bureau', followed by the singalong 'Action Cat'. His third song (which I've since found out was titled 'Zero Zero' was captivating and it's not often you see a crowd so enthralled with unknown songs. Breaking it up with 'Millions', the track that started the rumour mill about a solo project so many months ago, is a stroke of genius, keeping the crowd interested throughout 'Juarez', 'Drugstore Perfume' and 'Get The Gang Together', which featured Gerard screaming like a man possessed, exuding everything that made My Chemical Romance so spectacular. The lyrics to 'No Shows' were released last week and despite that being relatively recently fans were already singing along as though the album had been released. Finishing the set up with The Jesus and Mary Chain cover 'Snakedriver' might have seemed like an odd move, but I think it puts a nice comma in the sentence that is Gerard Way's new chapter. And with US shows in October just announced and the promise of UK shows in November, we'll be seeing more of Gerard Way soon, and that can never be a bad thing.

After a bit of a wander about and some encounters with bands I've been meaning to check out, I arrived at main stage to see Deaf Havana who, sadly, just didn't seem to be in best form today. Their headline show at Oxford in April was absolutely superb but today James Veck-Gilodi seemed to be struggling through the songs, making '22', 'Boston Square' and 'Anemophobia' seemed strained and messy which was a real shame.

Contrastingly, after running across field to Mallory Knox I couldn't have been more pleased. Arriving in the tent for my personal favourite 'Wake Up' I was surprised and proud to see such an amazing crowd reaction for the band who were main stage openers last year. With 'Asymmetry' coming out in just two months time I was expecting a good mix of new and old material and I wasn't disappointed, with the set consisting of 'Death Rattle', '1949', 'Hello' and 'Lighthouse', dispersed with new song 'The Remedy' and recent release 'QOD II'. When I saw Mallory Knox at Slam Dunk in May I felt a little disillusioned, with them not really living up to my expectations, but give them time to have a break and a stage like this and they certainly do shine. With their upcoming November tour featuring support from Frnkiero and the cellabration it was already worth checking out, but if you're only going for Frank, please stick around for an amazing performance by Mallory Knox.

Following Mallory Knox, with another run across the field, I arrived at Jimmy Eat World's main stage set in the middle of 'Praise Chorus'. With their second set, headlining the Lock Up Stage later in the day, rumoured to be the tenth anniversary playback of the 'Futures' album in full, I wasn't sure what to expect from this set, but I saw a brilliant mix of the best of an underrated band. For most of the set (comprised of 'My Best Theory', 'Big Casino', 'Chase This Light', 'Let It Happen', 'I Will Steal You Back' and 'Authority Song') there was little to none crowd reaction, but finishing up with two fan favourites, 'Sweetness' and 'The Middle' saw people running to the stage to dance to songs they would have been craving to hear live ten years ago. Jimmy Eat World might be one of the most experienced bands on the bill today, but they're definitely not one of the most disappointing.

The same can be said for Glaswegian rockers Twin Atlantic. After (yet another) trek back up to the NME/BBC Radio 1 tent, I managed to hear the end of 'Free', followed by the beautifully soul-touching acoustic 'Crash Land'. 'Make A Beast Of Myself' had the entire crowd singing along, mimicking vocalist Sam McTrusty's accent on the word 'universe' proving how much the fans care about this band. Wrapping up with 'Heart and Soul', the first single from their recently released third album 'The Great Divide' (which went into the UK Official Album Charts in a brilliant sixth position) was predictable but memorable and I will definitely be catching these guys again.

Next up were Enter Shikari who, sadly, were not having a great day. Due to distortion and mic problems, it just wasn't their finest house. With drummer Rob Rolfe wearing a 'Love Syria' shirt and singer Rou Reynolds focusing on educating and inspiring the crowd to 'Say no to homophobia. No to sexism and misogyny. No to the slimy 1% who own 50% of the world's money', the music side of things is just lacking. 'Sorry, You're Not A Winner' evokes the expected crowd response of clapping and chanting along and 'Arguing With Thermometers' makes people go crazy, but other than that the set seems odd and unrecognisable. But this could have just been the distortion and mic problems, with sound fluctuating between loud and quiet and an inability to make out which song was being played at points throughout the set, as I've never seen a bad Shikari show.

Later on in the day, the second Jimmy Eat World set was revealed to be the highly anticipated 'Futures' in full, showing a much better reaction from the crowd that was mostly comprised of hardcore Jimmy fans. Sadly, I only caught the beginning of the show, as I was beyond excited to see Paramore, but they seemed to be performing better than they did in their earlier set.

Before I even start writing about Paramore, I'm gonna be completely honest and say this is going to be biased. Paramore have been one of my favourite bands for as long as I can remember and I've never managed to catch any of their live shows. So I obviously found their performance completely flawless. I'm sure you've already heard about the sound issues during 'Ignorance' and the acappella performance of 'The Only Exception', but those issues just made the show a once in a lifetime experience. Yes, it was a shame that the headline set that should have been an absolute triumph was riddled with issues, but it just showed what professionals Paramore is comprised of. Instead of taking a break, leaving the crowd booing and unhappy, they carried on despite the fact that everything was against them, and they battled through and came out on top. Anyone who has ever accused vocalist Hayley Williams of lip-syncing could completely eat their words, because her vocal performance was completely on form and utterly free of pitching issues. I've already admitted that I'm completely biased, but I like to think it was rightly so. All of my preconceptions about Paramore were absolutely confirmed. They truly are one of the best bands on the planet.

Setlist:
Still Into You
That's What You Get
For A Pessimist, I'm Pretty Optimistic
Ignorance
Pressure
Decode
The Only Exception
Last Hope
Brick By Boring Brick
Misery Business
Let The Flames Begin
Part II
Proof
Ain't It Fun

On the other hand, fellow co-headliners Queens Of The Stone Age just weren't Reading material. Playing their most popular song, 'No One Knows', second in their set caused a large chunk of the crowd to flood away to other stages, or to even leave the festival early. Singer Josh Homme seemed too introverted and melancholy after the absorbing stage presence of Hayley, making the set feel long and boring. It feels like they are a band much more suited for a headline slot at Download or Sonisphere. While most people were doubting Paramore's suitability as a headline act, it seems that people should have been worrying about Queens of The Stone Age's ability much more. Without even thanking the crowd or saying goodnight the set ended rather abruptly, making the conclusion of Friday night rather anti-climactic.

Saturday: 

The first band I had previous knowledge of on the Saturday were Lonely The Brave, who played at Warped Tour UK back in November and performed on BBC Radio 1 Rocks back in June. Their set at Warped Tour was pretty forgettable and they were completely overshadowed at Radio 1 Rocks by the other superb bands who were performing in that week (namely Of Mice and Men, Mallory Knox and Lower Than Atlantis). And no matter how much I wanted Reading to tell a different story, it was just much of the same. The start of the set seemed stronger than usual, with vocalist David Jakes communicating with the crowd and proving his soaring vocals are something that sets them apart from the rest of the upcoming British rock scene, but after ten minutes every song in the set sounded exactly the same. Maybe, when they have a few albums under their belt, they'll have more of a variety, but at this current time they really aren't living up to their potential.

A band who were living up to their potential are American Authors, best known for song of the summer 'Best Day Of My Life', who absolutely smashed their first UK festival appearance. A lot of the songs were relatively unknown but that didn't stop the crowd from bouncing along at every opportunity, showing that these guys really are ones to watch.

Running from American Authors over to the BBC Introducing stage for their secret set, it was an utter disappointment to approach the tent and discover Jake Bugg wailing out his so-called 'hit songs'. For a secret set the crowd turn out was appalling and I wasn't about to add to it, leaving immediately to catch the end of Royal Blood's set (who, despite being a band I'd never listened to before, blew me away).

Next up, Lower Than Atlantis, who have been throwing out hits left, right and centre in the lead-up to their self-titled album release next month. The set started off much the same as any Lower Than Atlantis set; 'If The World Was To End', 'Love Someone Else' and 'Motorway of Life' evoking the same usual, amazing singalongs, followed by 'Marilyn's Mansion' which seemed like an odd choice for a festival but got everyone moving more than I expected it would. 'Deadliest Catch' kept the tempo up and continued the throwback to older tunes, followed by 'Another Sad Song', with the lyrics "we all make mistakes from time to time, unfortunately for me, being me was mine", giving a heart-breaking look inside the head of vocalist and lyricist Mike Duce. Following this touching moment with 'English Kids In America' perfectly exemplifies the development that the band have gone through in the last three years, with 'Beech Like The Tree' inserted between the new songs, meaning that 'Here We Go' closed their set. This was a complete triumph for a band who have gone from strength to strength and can only get stronger. If Lower Than Atlantis are performing at Reading Festival next year, they need to be on main stage and they need to be pretty high up on the bill; it's only what they deserve.

Setlist:
If The World Was To End
Love Someone Else
Motorway of Life
Marilyn's Mansion
Deadliest Catch
Another Sad Song
English Kids In America
Beech Like The Tree
Here We Go

Following Lower Than Atlantis, over on main stage, were The Hives. I've only ever known two songs by The Hives; 'Tick Tick BOOM' and 'Hate To Say I Told You So', so I didn't have any expectations from their live performance, but it was the weirdest thing I've ever experienced. Period. At the halfway point in 'Tick Tick BOOM' all of the members froze on stage for a good minute or two, while ninjas swapped members guitars. Singer Howlin' Pelle Almqvist got all of the crowd sitting down, shouting "Don't stand up, I'll tell you when to stand up! I said sit down, don't take a picture!" before taking a selfie with a fan and running further and further out into the crowd, with a worried security guard tailing him the entire way. The banter was impeccable ("Everybody shut up for a while!") and despite the fact that it was completely bizarre and one of the most random things I've ever witnessed, I'm not gonna be forgetting The Hives live show any time soon.

Back over to the NME/BBC Radio 1 stage and it's time for one of my all time favourite bands, Don Broco. Starting off with a partially acoustic 'Yeah Man', before exploding into fan favourite 'Thug Workout', singer Rob Damiani was quick to establish "I don't want anyone getting squashed, take care of each other alright!" and while the push-up squad might not have been out in full force today there were still a hell of a lot of people who turned out to see this magnificent performance. Despite the fact that the microphone disconnected quite early into the set, the crowd carried them through the issues meaning that everything was resolved before it became a nuisance. The problem was fixed before they jumped into 'The Whole Truth', following it up with a new song that includes everything we've learnt to love in a Don Broco song; woah-oh singalongs and drummer Matt Donnelly performing backing vocals. The rest of the set comprised of everything you'd expect from Don Broco: 'Priorities', 'Fancy Dress', 'Let's Go Back To School' (with a pre-song call out to Lonely The Brave, Marmozets and Lower Than Atlantis for being with them in the school of upcoming rock), 'Actors', finishing with 'You Wanna Know', the song that had been out for less than a week last time they played at Reading Festival. If you haven't heard of Don Broco you need to check them out right now, as they've been announced as the headliner for the Kerrang! Tour 2015 and their new album is going to be absolutely fantastic.

Setlist: 
Yeah Man
Thug Workout
The Whole Truth
New Song
Priorities
Fancy Dress
Let's Go Back To School
Actors
You Wanna Know

Both Foster The People and Imagine Dragons did rather predictable set closers; the former finishing with their biggest two hits 'Pumped Up Kicks' and 'Don't Stop (Color On The Walls)' and the latter performing the extended version of 'Radioactive' that has become well known on the festival circuit in the last year.

I was excited about seeing Issues and was not disappointed, even with only knowing a couple of the songs they played. The sing-along for 'King Of Amarillo' was a brilliant show of how they are quickly growing to have a huge fanbase and, with the announcement that they're supporting Bring Me The Horizon on their debut show at Wembley Arena, that fanbase is only going to get larger.

Jake Bugg and Arctic Monkeys are both acts that I would never have willingly gone to see out of a festival environment, so I was extremely hesitant about attending either during Saturday night. But with no one else to see, that's exactly where I ended up. Jake Bugg and his wailing vocal had not improved from his earlier acoustic set, much to my dismay, so fighting through bleeding ears I hung around for the end of his set before taking a break to go and listen to Band of Skulls, who played the uplifting and catchy as hell tune 'I Know What I Am' which cheered me up immensely. Arctic Monkeys were, surprisingly, better than Jake, playing a lot of songs that I actually recognised: 'Do I Wanna Know?', 'Arabella', 'Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair' and, my personal favourite, 'I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor'. Despite the fact that I absolutely detest the band I can't discredit from their ability to headline a festival of this stature, even though it absolutely pains me to say that it was a pretty decent set.



But there was no way I was staying for the rest of it, because that would have meant missing Of Mice and Men. And that was just not happening. Kicking off with 'Public Service Announcement', the opening track from newest full length 'Restoring Force', showed screamer Austin Carlile bursting into action and the high energy lasted through the rest of their fifty minute set. Since the release of 'Restoring Force' back in January I've been saying it's one of the best albums I've ever heard, and that doesn't change in a live environment. The set was flecked with older songs, such as 'OG Loko' and 'The Depths', but the majority was comprised of their new release, with 'Feels Like Forever', 'Bones Exposed', 'Would You Still Be There?' and 'You're Not Alone' all included in the set. Newest addition to the band, Aaron Pauley, proved how invaluable he is with his spectacular vocal performance and showed everyone that this might be a heavy band but they can have their emotional moments. With this being their first time playing Reading festival it was brilliant to see such a great crowd reaction and these guys are definitely one of the biggest cross-over bands from this genre into the mainstream. If they aren't back at Reading festival in the future, it'll only be because they're too busy headlining Download or Sonisphere.

Sunday:

Opening main stage on the Sunday were The Story So Far, a band I didn't have much previous knowledge of but had always intended to listen to, who put on a great performance and had a good crowd turnout for such an early band on the final day of the festival. With the recent stunt that Parker Cannon pulled on Warped tour (if you don't know what I'm talking about check it out) everyone had been talking about this band and they were definitely worth arriving early to experience. Despite the fact that I didn't know any of the songs I still had a very enjoyable time, and with Parker saying "Thank you for supporting us when we sucked! Well... We still suck," it shows that this band have got a long way to go before the understand the talent that they possess.

Next up, Emily's Army on the Lock Up stage. Drummer Joey Armstrong, son of Green Day's legendary singer Billie Joe Armstrong, is the reason that most people know about this band but they aren't as similar as I had expected. You can definitely see the influence, don't get me wrong, but there are also vibes from The Beach Boys which make Emily's Army an amazing combination. Again, I didn't know any of the songs (apart from their cover of 'Dancing On My Own' by Robyn) so I can't really assess whether they lived up to their songs in a live environment, but the show was fun and absorbing so I can't really fault it anyway.

I checked in on Tonight Alive for two songs: 'What Are You So Scared Of?' and 'Listening'. Quite frankly, I wish I hadn't bothered. After the show at Oxford I was feeling so much more enamored with Tonight Alive, because I'd never really managed to see the appeal that's caused such a huge fan base growth so quickly for them. At their Oxford show Jenna McDougall seemed so down to earth, wearing jeans and a t-shirt, but walking around stage in yellow jumpsuit trousers and a humongous hat paired with dreadlocked hair, it was just so far removed from that performance. Before anyone starts ranting, I don't judge musicians ability on their looks, it was just one of the many reasons I was confused by this sudden alteration. Her voice seemed shrill and off pitch and it just didn't live up to what I'd seen only five days before. One of the reasons I could see the appeal of Tonight Alive was because of how normal and easy to relate to they seemed to be, but that's completely changed now.

Another thing that completely changed was my opinion of The Neighbourhood. Don't get me wrong, I adore The Neighbourhood. I don't think I can explain how much, or why, but something about this band just absolutely grabbed me. Their full length album, 'I Love You', is one of the smoothest debuts I've heard since 'A Fever You Can't Sweat Out' by Panic! At The Disco hit the shelves back in 2005, but I just didn't expect it to translate to a live performance. I always felt that the album was slightly auto-tuned... I don't know if it actually was, but on 'Sweater Weather' especially you can definitely hear an effect. So despite the fact that The Neighbourhood are one of my favourite bands at the moment, I was absolutely terrified about seeing them live. But all of my fears were completely dissipated. 'WDYWFM?' saw people flooding into the tent at a speed that I hadn't witnessed since the performance by Gerard Way, 'Jealou$y' was well recognised despite the fact that it wasn't on their full length release, while finishing up with 'Sweater Weather' (introduced with the no fuss statement of "We're gonna do the sweater one,") and 'Afraid' was both predictable but perfectly executed.

Going from The Neighbourhood back over to main stage, I finally got to witness live the new Young Guns song that I left during their performance at Gloucester Guildhall. They performed the two new, previously unheard, songs (since revealed to be titled 'Memento Mori' and 'Rising Up', according to the BBC 1 setlist) one after the other which was an amazingly ballsy move for a festival set, following them with well-known crowd favourites 'Towers (On My Way)', 'Dearly Departed', 'You Are Not (Lonely)' and 'Bones'. Young Guns always perform without fault and I can't wait to see them again in the Wembley Arena environment in December, supporting Bring Me The Horizon (alongside Sleepwave and Issues, whose Reading set I reviewed earlier).

After the disappointing secret set on Saturday, I didn't get my hopes up for the secret set on Sunday, but I was pleasantly surprised when You Me At Six walked out on the stage. I've always been an advocate for them releasing an acoustic album (or at least another acoustic EP) following 'The Acoustic Sessions' they released in conjunction with Banquet Records for Record Store Day 2011, so an entire acoustic set was like heaven for me. On the one hand, I did find it frustrating that all of the songs were taken from their most recent album, 'Cavalier Youth', which I think is the least impressive album they've created, but it was good to hear newer songs arranged in a different manner. The set was only five songs long: 'Lived A Lie', 'Fresh Start Fever', 'Cold Night', 'Wild Ones' and 'Room To Breathe', but it was one of the most beautiful and unmissable moments of the weekend, so you should probably go and watch it, or order the special edition of 'Cavalier Youth', out in October.

Due to staying at the You Me At Six acoustic for a little bit too long, I did miss the beginning of Papa Roach (but a reliable source has informed me that I only missed 'Infest', as I arrived for the end of 'Between Angels and Insects') but the rest of their set was pretty impressive. I'm gonna be honest and admit that I haven't listened to much Papa Roach since the release of 'Metamorphosis', so I didn't know 'Where Did The Angels Go' or 'Burn', but watching the energy that vocalist Jacoby Shaddix was putting into the entire performance really made me want to catch up on their recent releases. 'Forever' was an unexpected inclusion in the set list, made all the more enjoyable for that, but 'Scars' was an anti-climax, with backing vocalist Jerry Horton completely over-powering Jacoby, making the moment less heartbreaking and more irritating. The only recent song that I recognised was 'Kick In The Teeth' (due to it being completely over played on Kerrang! in the weeks following its release) but it had a much better atmosphere live. I didn't know 'Silence Is The Enemy' or 'Still Swinging' but watching Jacoby running up and down the barrier in front of the crowd, randomly jumping on them or high-fiving them, was an experience I don't think I'll ever forget. With a brief interlude to pick out people in the crowd (among them someone carrying a large... erm... male instrument) Jacoby gave a quick impromptu cover of 'All Star' by Smashmouth after seeing someone dressed in a Shrek mask, declaring "Ugh, I hate that song, that shit makes me wanna throw up. I hate you Shrek," followed by '...To Be Loved', 'Getting Away With Murder' and the popular, anthemic 'Last Resort'. If there was such a thing as not liking Papa Roach, any doubters in the crowd would have been converted with this set.

I didn't catch all of Neck Deep, but it's better than I've ever managed before (having missed them two times already) and I was pleasantly surprised. I'm not such a fan of the new pop-punk resurgence, filled with more punk than pop, but having heard such amazing things about Neck Deep and seeing their supremely fast growth in America over the last year I was eager to see them in a live environment. I wasn't disappointed. 'Losing Teeth' and 'Crushing Grief (No Remedy)' were extremely well executed and even though I didn't know many of their songs I had an all round good time. Breaking up their set for a quick run over to Sleeping With Sirens (I was desperate to hear 'If You Can't Hang', don't judge) I managed to get back just after 'A Part Of Me' started and it was great to hear such a good singalong for the homecoming heroes. With the Intercontinental Championships tour next February, Neck Deep are cementing their name as the best band in British pop punk and I don't think anyone is surprised.

Back to Sleeping With Sirens for the very last word of 'Congratulations', I will admit I was fangirling just a little bit. I've been a fan since the acoustic EP 'If You Were A Movie This Would Be Your Soundtrack' and seeing them live feels like it's been a long time coming, even if it's been just over two years. Playing 'Here We Go' followed by 'Low' proved to be a slow procession into the set, with 'Trophy Father's Trophy Son' and 'Tally It Up, Settle The Score' proving, in my opinion, that 'Let's Cheers To This' was a much better release for the band. Squealer (well, with that high pitched vocal can you really call him anything else?) Kellin Quinn was superb, hitting notes that I had no idea existed, but breaking up a fast paced and fairly heavy set with the acoustic rendition of 'With Ears To See and Eyes To Hear' (following the hilarious "I like your giant cock, thank you for bringing that with you!") was a stroke of genius, showing everyone that this band aren't just popular due to the astonishingly high vocals; they genuinely do have substance. This was proved even further with the arrival of new song 'Kick Me', with it's repetition of 'Shit, shit, shit' easy to remember and catchy as hell. Wrapping up with 'Do It Now, Remember It Later' and, the only song performed from their first album, 'If I'm James Dean, You're Audrey Hepburn' shows why this band are so far up on main stage and will be so much further up next year.

Setlist: 
If You Can't Hang
Congratulations
Here We Go
Low
Trophy Father's Trophy Son
Tally It Up, Settle The Score
Scene 5: With Ears To See and Eyes To Hear
Kick Me
Do It Now, Remember It Later
If I'm James Dean, You're Audrey Hepburn

Following Sleeping With Sirens on main stage were A Day To Remember. I've only ever seen them once, acoustically, so I had literally no idea what to expect from a live performance. I will admit, after the album 'Homesick', I kinda gave up with A Day To Remember. I don't know why, it just seemed to happen. Starting off with 'The Downfall Of Us All' automatically had me hooked, as it was one of the best songs on that album, but I lost my focus again throughout '2nd Sucks' and 'Right Back At It Again', meaning that even the triumph that was 'I'm Made Of Wax, Larry, What Are You Made Of?' didn't completely redeem the set in my mind. Honestly, I'd written them off completely, with 'Why Walk On Water When We've Got Boats' seeming an odd fit to the set and 'All Signs Point To Lauderdale' sounding so much like so many other songs I've heard recently. However, my mind completely changed when they played 'If It Means A Lot To You'. It's the song that, I think, is clearly the best song A Day To Remember have ever written. Following it up with 'Homesick' was a stroke of genius, with frontman Jeremy McKinnon zorbing across the crowd and making sure that everyone was having an amazing time. He's amazingly charismatic and his stage presence is completely absorbing (get it, cause he was zorbing?...) and it's undeniable what an amazing live band they really are. I still wasn't sure on 'End Of Me', so the new songs are going to take some time to get used to, but 'Sometimes You're The Hammer, Sometimes You're The Nail' was so completely them that it's easy to see the influences from their earlier albums are still very much in play now.  'All I Want' caused one of the biggest singalongs of the weekend, by far, while finishing with 'The Plot To Bomb The Panhandle' was unexpected and more exciting because of that.

Setlist:
The Downfall Of Us All
2nd Sucks
Right Back At It Again
I'm Made Of Wax, Larry, What Are You Made Of?
Why Walk On Water When We've Got Boats
All Signs Point To Lauderdale
If It Means A Lot To You
Homesick
End Of Me
Sometimes You're The Hammer, Sometimes You're The Nail
All I Want
The Plot To Bomb The Panhandle

I don't know enough about The Kooks to form a solid opinion, but if you want a nice nostalgia trip with a bit of recent pop chucked in they're a safe bet. With favourites 'Naive', 'Seaside' and 'She Moves In Her Own Way' scattered about the set and newest singles 'Around Town' and 'Down' at the beginning of the set, there was nothing really missing from this performance (apart from what I believed, apparently wrongly, was their biggest hit 'Always Where I Need To Be') and it seemed pretty well done even though I had nothing to really base an opinion on.

Having missed the surprise guest appearance from Alex Gaskarth of All Time Low, the end of You Me At Six's set was much the same as any You Me At Six set; all the songs sound pretty good but they just don't get me excited anymore because of the fact that the conclusion is always so predictable. Playing 'Room To Breathe', their newest release, along with 'Bite My Tongue' and 'Lived A Lie', there was nothing that shocked me, which meant it was a pretty average set to wander along to. I'm glad I saw the acoustic set, because it was something unique, but if You Me At Six don't shake up their set list a bit more before the co-headline tour with All Time Low I'm going to be majorly disappointed.

Talking of disappointed, that's exactly what I was with Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. Or rather, I was disappointed with the crowd's reaction to them. If you go to a festival and there are bands/acts you don't want to see, just don't go along! Even if it means you aren't close enough to your idols during their set, just don't put yourself through the torture. From where I was stood, Macklemore was putting on an amazing performance; he ran through all of his major hits (namely 'Thrift Shop', 'Same Love' and 'Can't Hold Us') in the first half of his set, while also giving us a listen to his new hit 'Arrow', but when they showed the crowd on the screen more than half of the people at the front just had no interest at all, which really bugged me. I'm not the biggest Macklemore fan. I only know the names of a few songs (to be precise, four songs; the four I just talked about) but I know that when you go to a festival you go to have a laugh and to have some fun and if you can't dance along to 'Thrift Shop', I don't know what you can dance along to. I would have stayed for more of the set if I hadn't been such a big letlive. fan (and I still only managed to catch their last song) because it was a massive laugh and it was a very entertaining set, one of the most entertaining sets of the weekend to be precise.

Following my (brief) attendance of letlive.'s set, I skedaddled across to the Festival Republic stage to watch Mayday Parade, a band who have never managed to succeed in the mainstream but still have rather a dedicated fan following. No discredit to them, but it was a predictable set. Having seen and reviewed them back in February, it's now six months later and I have nothing different to say. Frontman Derek Sanders was still lovable and energetic, but there's still no spark that will grant them the success they've been working hard towards for nearly a decade.

Setlist: 
When You See My Friends
Jamie All Over
Three Cheers For Five Years
12 Through 15
Ghosts
Black Cat
Oh Well, Oh Well
Jersey

Next, with another predictable set closer, were The 1975, who finished with their massive hits 'Chocolate' and 'Sex'. Vocalist Matt Healy seemed squeakier than usual, but no-one really cared at the end of the night; a good song to dance to is a good song to dance to, with or without vocal issues.

Finally, the main event. Closing the entire three day weekend of Reading Festival is a big feat for any band and none seemed better equipped to handle it than Blink-182, what with it being their second time in five years. As with any good Blink-182 show, it did not go as smoothly as anyone had planned. Tom DeLonge was stumbling over his words more than a drunk guy attempting to get home, fumbling through intermission speaking and even getting the words to 'Always' muddled up. His pronunciation still hasn't gotten any better either, but if it had would we really have been attending a Blink-182 concert?! Again, the only word to describe the set list would be predictable with a little sprinkle of weird; no one was expecting snippets of covers or new lyrics for well known songs. But with no new album released since 'Neighborhoods', the album that filled most of their last Reading headline set, it seemed a bit premature to reinstate them at such a high degree. Don't get me wrong, this is a band I will respect eternally for birthing such a diverse and impressive range of new acts. But tonight just didn't seem to be their night. Yes, they played all of the hits (I'll insert the set list below, I don't really have any specific comments on specific songs) but they didn't seem as sharp as usual, apart from drummer Travis Barker who doesn't seem to have an off switch to his perfectionist playing. The banter seemed a bit off-kilter and just didn't flow as easily as a usual show, which made the entire experience a little bit vexing. However, it was still an amazing performance. It might seem like I'm saying a lot of negative things but out of the three closing acts that performed this weekend, Blink-182 out shined them all, without a doubt. Interacting with the crowd, getting people dancing and jumping along, it was all out party season and it definitely felt like a welcoming to a band who might have been slacking a little bit recently but still have a solid collection of fans to fall back on. The introduction to the encore seemed abrupt, with vocalist Mark Hoppus shouting "that's it, that's the end," before the band left the stage for what felt like an hour and then exploded back out with 'Violence', 'Dammit' and 'Family Reunion' (followed by a drum solo by Mark that was absolutely amazing) but with a band the size and calibre of Blink-182 they're allowed to make some oddball decisions. How many bands would play a headline set at Reading Festival and turn out the lights at the midway point to play a song called 'Happy Holidays, You Bastard' in the pitch black? Not many, which is why I believe they're one of the best headliners that could have been chosen despite vocal issues and a bunch of dud notes.



Setlist: 
Feeling This
What's My Age Again?
The Rock Show
Up All Night
Down
I Miss You
Dumpweed
Wishing Well
Happy Holidays, You Bastard
Always
Stay Together For The Kids
Asthenia
First Date
Easy Target
All Of This
Hybrid Moments
Man Overboard
Ghost On The Dancefloor
All The Small Things
Carousel
Violence
Dammit
Family Reunion