As camping commences and timings for the acts are slowly announced, Reading festival is a mere few days away. It has now become a task of working out how to create a suitable outfit with a pair of wellies I can’t even remember the colour of.
The following concert I went to was for 5 Seconds of Summer at Wembley Arena. After attending both the Friday and Sunday show, these are definitely shows I could ramble on about forever but I will try to refrain from doing so. Not being from London and wanting to make a weekend out of it, we stayed in a hotel close to the arena.
So for the Friday show, we had managed to bag ourselves VIP tickets, something huge for us as we’ve never been able to get tickets like that before. Ever. Naturally we queued early and had a blast even though we were all ever so tired, it was without a doubt worth it! As previously stated, I am naturally a very awkward person so it was a surprise to me that we made friends and spoke to the girls in front of us who were really lovely.
Photos; Jade Bird 2015
The VIP tickets gave us early entry to the concert and viewing of some of the sound check along with a Q&A session. Again, naturally awkward, I didn’t have the nerve to actually ask a question. After a bit of trouble with lining back up, we were back at the front to head in for the actual concert.
I would be lying if I said I was looking forward to seeing Hey Violet but after watching them perform I was sold! I really enjoyed their performance and loved their cover of Taylor Swift’s Blank Space and their own, This is Why. With their fun personalities and quirky dress sense I was more than happy to be wrong with my original thoughts of them.
Photo; Heather Best 2015
It was absolutely insane once the Australian four piece arrived on the stage, the build up making me nervous. Slightly disappointed that I couldn’t see Ashton, it was more than made up for with having Michael stood smack bang in front of us. The skill and energy that the boys emitted throughout the performance was mind-blowing. Their casual conversations and dancing around showed that they were there to put on an enjoyable show that they too enjoyed; clearly still loving being on a stage. As much as many will say that the fascination with the band is all down to their good looks; I was more focused on Michael actually playing the guitar than I was with his face. With a strong love for Wrapped Around Your Finger, I was always going to be 100% focused on the lad in front of me, Michael singing the song incredibly. Their, at the time new, song Permanent Vacation, had the whole crowd involved as we tried to do Michael’s na na na’s and clapping in time with Luke (which was harder than it looked when doing both at the same time). We were also lucky enough to have Ashton step out from behind the drum kit and perform Pizza whilst John Feldman played the drums. I’ve never really been able to say which concert I preferred but this could very well be it! I don’t think I’ve ever felt so at home when at a concert and it was somewhat heartbreaking to see it come to an end.
Photo; Jade Bird 2015 (1,2 and 3). Dawn Bird 2015 (4).
Sunday’s show was a bit of a scare. With the incident with Michael taking place the day before, we were unsure if the show would go on. Luckily, Michael was okay and carried on like a trooper. During the day we tagged along to a Hey Violet acoustic hangout; outstanded by the sheer mass of people their to see them.
Photo; Jade Bird 2015
Our tickets for this show were seating and pretty far back but it was safe to say we still had just as much fun as we did two nights before hand. Michael seemed to be okay and despite the stage being set out differently (the flames taken out) it was just as good. I was in absolute awe with the intro to Everything I Didn’t Say as Calum stood playing the bass; this time being able to see all of it and fully experiencing the crowd turning silent.
Photo; Dawn Bird 2015
I would happily relive either of these shows, instead I will just have to (im)patiently wait for their new album to come out in October and hope for tickets to the tour that hopefully follows!
Jade x
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