LIVE REVIEWS
“We been together so long you’d think we’d get sick of fucking each other,” Josh Homme smiles, “but that just ain’t the way.”
The ‘we’ in question, it seems, is the fandom that’s stayed with Queens of the Stone Age for 27 years and to whom he pays repeated tribute during this contradictory arena show. In some ways, this is the Homme of old, shorn of the grey goatee he donned around the release of brilliantly brutal new album ‘In Times New Roman’ and throwing moves – one leg cocked, his arms pointed campily to the sky – that remind you they used to call him ‘the ginger Elvis’.
Yet that album capped off a period rocked by what he euphemistically described to NME as the “extreme ups and downs of life”, and he exudes a curious uncertainty tonight. At one point, he admits he’s “fucking nervous”, which is some distance from the barking ringmaster persona that defined a Glastonbury 2023 performance so incendiary that footage of its seething circle pit went viral. There, he demanded the crowd “fuck shit up together”. Here, he ruminates on the difficulty of love (“I’m terrible at it”) and precedes one gooey monologue with the confession: “When I get scared or unsure, I talk too much.”
Musically, of course, he’s on firmer ground: there’s no denying that the five-piece are one of the greatest rock bands on the planet. He cackles dirtily before scything through new track ‘Carnavoyeur’, pounds out a ‘No One Knows’ so massive the audience bellows its riff as though it’s a football chant and decorates ‘Straight Jacket Fitting’, another newbie, with a fresh pyschobilly jangle. The 50-year-old even manages to maintain his word-perfect delivery of the latter when he surfs the front few rows.
It’s this well-honed crowd-pleasing, perhaps, that earns QOTSA the right to extended jam band makeovers, which are by turns immersive (a swampy ‘Better Living Through the Chemistry’) and politely received. Has anyone gone to a gig, ever, and thought, “I hope they do a drum solo in the encore”?
Still, the unifying ‘Make It Wit You’ and breakneck closer ‘Song for the Dead’ easily redress the set’s balance and it seems a performer of Homme’s charisma can’t help but entertain. “It’s only because of you that we’re here tonight,” the frontman gushes, before catching himself. “If you think that’s cheesy,” he adds, harnessing that ringmaster energy once more, “go fuck yourself.”
‘Regular John’
‘No One Knows’
‘Smooth Sailing’
‘My God Is the Sun’
‘Emotion Sickness’
‘If I Had a Tail’
‘Carnavoyeur’
‘The Way You Used to Do’
‘Better Living Through Chemistry’
‘The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret’
‘Paper Machete’
‘Domesticated Animals’
‘I Sat by the Ocean’
‘Straight Jacket Fitting’
‘Make It Wit Chu’
‘Little Sister’
‘God Is in the Radio’
‘Go With the Flow’
‘A Song for the Dead’
LIVE REVIEWS
The closing hours of Reading 2026 have finally arrived. Florence + The Machine brought the rain during ‘Dog Days Are Over’ at The Grid, opening the heavens and leaving the festival site completely soaked. The weary fans who have stayed behind are wet, exhausted and clearly feeling the effects of the weekend. What they need now is one final enormous celebration to make the wait worthwhile.
The Gallery tent comes alive as the speakers blast ‘Favourite’ by Friday’s headliners and fellow countrymen Fontaines D.C., receiving the kind of reaction usually reserved for ‘Mr Brightside’ at a drunken wedding reception. Moments later, Kneecap display their familiar statement accusing Israel of carrying out genocide against the people of Palestine and Lebanon, with support from the UK government. It captures the Belfast rap trio perfectly, combining serious political messages with an unapologetic party atmosphere.
“We use our platform to talk about what we believe is right,” Mo Chara explains during the performance, before recognising those who “aren’t so fucking lucky” and whose voices have been suppressed. He soon encourages the audience to roar “fuck Netanyahu” and “free free Palestine”. Later, he starts a powerful chant of “Aaaaaa-ndy Buuurn-ham’s a waaaaaaan-ker” to the melody of ‘Seven Nation Army’, targeting our new Prime Minister over his claim that “a united Ireland is off the table”. Laughing, he asks: “The BBC won’t broadcast that, or will they?” As it turned out, they did not.
Away from the headlines and the controversy, there is no denying the connection Kneecap have built with their audience. Politics may shape the conversation, but the crowd also came to enjoy themselves, ready for a rave after the rally. The performance begins carefully with the heavy rumble of ‘Smugglers & Scholars’, before exploding during the Grian Chatten collaboration ‘Better Way To Live’ and the threatening energy of ‘Sick In The Head’. “Are ya ready for a mad one?” Mo Chara shouts. The response is already obvious.
The atmosphere becomes increasingly chaotic as the hip hop rhythm of ‘Cold At The Top’ and the hypnotic trance sounds of ‘An Ra’ send the entire tent into motion. The trio jokingly thank the UK for everything it has given Ireland, listing UKIP, fish and chips, a mental health crisis, Jimmy Saville, HP Sauce and Bloody Sunday. However, the show reaches another level once the second half begins. The explosive ‘Sayonara’ brings the ‘beef’ to ‘IBEEFA’, while ‘Get Your Brits Out’ and ‘Guilty Conscience’ give the crowd every reason to obey Móglaí Bap’s demand to “oooopen up the piiiiiit”.
Anyone watching closely may have questioned why the cameras continued to focus on Móglaí Bap and Mo Chara. The pair eventually reveal that they have spent recent weeks performing alongside a “provisional” DJ Próvai. Wearing the familiar tricolour balaclava, the temporary replacement handles his role as the crowd agitator with confidence while their bandmate enjoys some paternity leave. “Some things are more important than music, and that’s family,” they explain. How sweet. Móglaí Bap quickly destroys the tender moment by adding: “As you might know, the Brits took all our potatoes from Ireland; they took all our cocaine,” before declaring, “but we still have all our caaandy.” The group then charge directly into one of the biggest tracks ever written about extremely powerful ketamine.
‘Liar’s Tale’ sparks another huge reaction with its response to Keir Starmer, “genocide armer”, while the group warn that “you’re not getting away with doing nothing”. It is a politically charged message hidden inside an irresistible anthem from musicians who have experienced the “belly of the beast” through the legal system. Their latest album, ‘Fenian’, has helped Kneecap fully embrace the celebration that has always been part of their identity. Their live production now feels capable of filling arenas, blending the intimacy of a late night lock in with the rhythmic force and visual scale of The Chemical Brothers, the reckless electronic punk spirit of The Prodigy, and the fearless political honesty of Public Enemy. The spectacular visuals complete the experience.
Kneecap fans at Reading 2026. Credit: Andy Ford for NME
Kneecap fans at Reading 2026. Credit: Andy Ford for NME
Closing with the powerful combination of ‘Fenian’, ‘H.O.O.D.’ and the enormous ‘The Recap’, Kneecap bring our final celebration at Reading to a thrilling conclusion while also finishing their last festival appearance of the summer. “It’s been a pleasure to spend it with you mad c**ts,” Mo Chara says before leaving the stage. The feeling is mutual.
Return to NME here for the newest reports, reviews, photographs, conversations and further coverage from Reading & Leeds 2026.
