MUSIC PREMIERES
Well, what fun we’ve had. As the sun set on Day Four of Mad Cool 2024, punters enjoyed performances from all across the musical spectrum: house, pop-punk, indie and more. A huge lineup, new names and cool vibes throughout made for a brilliant final day of this year’s festival.
The Killers gave us a headline show to remember, Bring Me The Horizon made sure to spread the love and Arlo Parks shared a sense of intimacy with her crowd. Over and out, these were our favourite moments…
Words: Liberty Dunworth, Hollie Geraghty, Laura Molloy, Sophie Williams
The bass vibrations from HoneyLuv’s pulsating set sent shockwaves beneath our feet before we were even inside Mad Cool’s transportive dance venue, The Loop. Beneath neon zigzagging lasers, the DJ and producer threw a party fitting for last day festivities with a sizzling mix of tropical dance tracks. A set highlight came in the shape of her remix of Cat Dealers and Lukas Vane’s ‘Hey Hey (Heard You Say)’, which she switched-up with an intoxicating trance twist. (HG)
As soon as she bounded onto the stage donning a Nine Inch Nails t-shirt, it was clear Arlo Parks was here to pay homage to 90s rock – a welcomed continuation from the more alternative soundscapes that defined her 2023 album ‘My Soft Machine’.
“This has been one of my favourite fucking gigs ever,” Katherine Parlour shouts into the microphone as Picture Parlour wrap up their set over at the Mahou Cinco Estrellas stage. There was a quiet confidence from the band throughout the performance as they effortlessly broke out renditions of tracks including ‘Norwegian Wood’, ‘Face In The Picture’ and even some unreleased material.
Start to end, they commanded the stage, and made sure to solidify themselves as one to watch out for next time around. (LD)
Avril Lavigne (8:15pm, Mad Cool)
“Here’s to never growing up,” toasted Avril Lavigne before spraying champagne all over the fans parked at the main stage’s barrier. Launching into her defiant track of the same name, there was a palpable feeling of elation from fans that we’re still getting to watch the punk-rock icon do her thing 22 years later.
Wrapping up the last European date of her ‘Greatest Hits’ tour under a perfect blue sky, she performed favourites like ‘Girlfriend’, ‘Complicated’ and ‘I’m With You’ for the sprawling Madrid crowd, before we were showered in a sea of red confetti while rocking out to ‘Sk8er Boy’. A truly joyful Mad Cool highlight. (HG)
“Sorry if we were late, it was not our fault. Well, it wasn’t the band’s fault,” said Oli Sykes by way of introduction to Bring Me The Horizon’s electrifying appearance on the Region Of Madrid stage. Arriving almost 30 minutes later than scheduled – with no real clarification as to why – the band still put on a blockbuster show, replete with confetti and flamethrowers galore.
But even with all the supersized production, the band remained self-aware, preventing proceedings from ever getting too cartoonish. A triumphant rendition of ‘Drown’ made for a real emotional highlight: wearing a fan’s fluffy Kuromi hat, Sykes exchanged hugs and selfies with the front row, making core memories by the second. (SW)
What better way to bring in the end of Mad Cool 2024 than with a huge set from Las Vegas rock icons The Killers. The band were on top form, with frontman Brandon Flowers delivering powerhouse performances of hits including ‘Somebody Told Me’, ‘Mr Brightside’ and more.
To top it off, the band even continued their longstanding tradition of inviting a fan onstage to perform ‘For Reasons Unknown’. After a finale like that, we’re already counting down the days to the 2025 edition. (LD)
MUSIC PREMIERES
Four years on from the ‘Actual Life’ series lifting him into the mainstream spotlight, Fred Again.. continues to feel unavoidable. The London producer and DJ born Fred Gibson has moved at a relentless pace, bouncing between sold out stadium dates in New York and surprise appearances at Sheffield’s 1,000 capacity Forge, while also making history as the first electronic artist to top the bill at Reading and Leeds in 2024.
Where the ‘Actual Life’ releases and his fourth album, 2024’s ‘Ten Days’, leaned into warmth and joy pulled from ordinary moments, Gibson has also sharpened his instinct for high impact club weapons rooted in garage, dubstep and jungle. That side of his output lives on ‘USB’, an “infinite album” first imagined in 2022 as a home for tracks that exist outside any fixed universe, including defining moments like ‘Rumble’ and ‘Jungle’.
‘USB002’, the second vinyl only chapter of the ‘USB’ project, brings together 16 recent tracks, many of which surfaced gradually on streaming services over a ten week stretch. The music was shaped live, in step with ten unannounced DJ appearances across the world from Dublin to Mexico City. Even with a Glastonbury style registration system in place, The Times reported that 100,000 people tried to secure tickets for the opening night in Glasgow.
Appropriately, ‘USB002’ feels alive and constantly in motion, helped along by contributions from close collaborators such as Floating Points and Sammy Virji. The rigid, techno driven pressure of ‘Ambery’ echoes elements of Floating Points’ 2019 album ‘Crush’, while Gibson’s take on ‘The Floor’ builds like the slow climb of a rollercoaster before dropping back to earth without warning.
The guest list stretches beyond the usual dance circles, with two Australian guitar bands popping up in unexpected ways. ‘You’re A Star’ reworks Amyl and The Sniffers’ ‘Big Dreams’ into a breakbeat driven rush, while ‘Hardstyle 2’ pulls the experimental post punk edge of Shady Nasty into an Underworld adjacent space alongside Kettama. Gibson’s real trick is his ability to connect with anyone. These tracks are not reinterpretations but full takeovers.
The visual world wrapped around the ‘USB002’ rollout reinforces the instinct behind the music. Phones were prohibited at shows staged in vast warehouse spaces under sweeping light rigs, while Gibson’s team shared striking black and white footage and created artwork for each single on site. Bottling that sense of urgency, the project is rooted in the thrill of the present moment, something Gibson seems able to summon simply by turning up.
If the ‘Actual Life’ series and ‘Ten Days’ captured passing snapshots of experience, ‘USB’ is defined by constant movement, a space where boundaries are removed entirely. Sitting somewhere between an album and a playlist, ‘USB002’ underlines why Fred Again.. feels so dominant right now, and suggests that his current run may only be the beginning of something much bigger.
