Leeds Festival faces Blackout! (From Keighley News)

Leeds Festival faces Blackout!

9:06am Thursday 25th June 2009

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The Blackout opened the main stage at Leeds Festival last year -- this year day returning as a headliner.

The Welsh rock band will play into the night on the Festival Republic stage both in Leeds and at the sister festival in Reading.

They'll be at Leeds on Friday August 28, the first of three nights of festival frolics at the Bramham Park site.

As usual hordes of Keighley people will be among the thousands of music lovers at the sold-out event.

The Blackout, who played last weekend's Download Festival, will tour the USA before heading for Leeds.

They'll be sharing the Festival Republic stage with Bear Hands, Marmaduke Duke, La Roux, Bring Me The Horizon and Pulled Apart By Horses.

Local music fans will keep an eye out for Sonic Boom Six who open the main stage on the festival's final day.

The outfit, one of the biggest draws on the UK underground circuit, have performed several times in Keighley.

They regularly play gigs with Keighley's own Random Hand, who have played the Leeds Festival for the past two years. They're hailed as the UK's "most compelling soundclash" with their mix of reggae, jungle, ska, punk and hip-hop.

Returning to Leeds Festival several years after their first unannounced appearance playing on the Sunday -- are hometown boys Kaiser Chiefs.

Since then the band has become one of the UK's biggest with three top-selling albums and hits to add to anthems Ruby and I Predict a Riot.

The Chiefs been on the road with their third album since last year, and finish the heavy touring with the performances in Leeds and Reading.

Main-stage headliners on the Friday will be Arctic Monkeys whose festival performances of 2006 are regarded as legendary.

A festival spokesman said: "This will be the first opportunity for fans to see the band perform since they last toured the UK in December 2007."

Preceding the Monkeys will be The Prodigy who returned the limelight recently with number one album Invaders Must Die.

In years gone by then were one of the biggest and best live bands in the world, dubbed "original live pioneers and showmen of the highest order".

Fellow Friday main-stagers Maximo Park have gone from contenders to established act over the past four years.

The Newcastle band will be playing Leeds sooner after the release of their third album Quicken The Heart.

Saturday will see Radiohead -- "possibly the most revered group in the world" -- top the bill in their first-ever appearance at Leeds Festival.

The Oxford quintet are renowned for dazzling performances, and the Leeds/Reading appearances are their only UK festival bookings this year.

Sharing the bill will be Bloc Party who return to the mainstage after wowing the audience last year.

The band were the subject of the most pleas for an appearance at this year's festival on chat rooms and blogs.

Also playing Saturday are New York trio Yeah Yeah Yeahs following this summer's release of the follow-up to 2006's Show Your Bones. The new album, It’s Blitz, has already spawned the hit single Zero and over the years the band has built a reputation for incredible live shows.

Sunday's mainstage headliners are Kings Of Leon recently picked up Brit Awards for Best International Group and Best International Album.

The American band have achieved both critical acclaim and multi-platinum sales for the first three albums as well as selling out arenas and headlining many festivals.

Returning to Leeds are Chicago rockers Fall Out Boy who have grown from emo poster boys to become one of the biggest bands in the world.

Fans can expect lots of crowd-pleasing anthems like Sugar, We’re Going Down, Dance, Dance and This Ain’t A Scene, It’s An Arms Race.

Also Leeds veterans, and a great live act, are Welsh rock band Funeral For A Friend who return to the main stage on the Sunday.

They're back after gaining four Top Twenty albums, several hit singles and increasing their popularity in the USA.

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