A REGULAR festival is set to return to a historic venue in Reading this weekend as Down at the Abbey is finally back in the shadow of the Abbey Ruins.
The festival sees major bands and indie darlings alike performing across two stages, as well as hosting street food favourites and beer from Berkshire’s own Siren Craft Brew.
AK:DK will kick off Friday’s proceedings on the Main Stage from 7pm, bringing shimmering synth and upbeat energy.
With heavy splashes of new-wave and math-rock sensibilities, AK/DK bring a danceable disarray to the fore, with ethereal vocals and infectiously alien asides occasionally falling back to reveal a rocky core.
W. H. Lung follow from 8.15pm, when they’ll break out their powerhouse combination of synth-pop and neon-drenched guitar rock.
The band mixes punchy, staccato vocal style with a momentous, forward-facing rhythm for an exciting and evocative sound which has seen them perform on stages at Glastonbury, South By SouthWest, and End of the Road festivals.
The Comet Is Coming will close the evening’s Main Stage from 9.45pm, in a flurry of punchy, alsmost space-age instrumentation befitting their name.
Their fusion of jazz, funk, electronica, and psychedelia is as beguiling as it is surprising, adding an almost club-classic element to their otherwise nebulous outlook, reminiscent of bands like Sea Power.
With three albums and performances at Glastonbury and Coachella under their belts, the trio will be at home in the shadows of the ruins as they bring something of the stars back down to Earth.
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Meanwhile over on The Second Stage, Hatty Taylor will start the show from 6.30pm.
Fresh from their recent appearance at ReadiPop, Taylor brings dream-like, languid soundscapes which are haunting and hopeful in equal measure.
Their work with former outfit Vienna Ditto is clear, as their laconic but considered songwriting is at once open and otherworldly with an earnest and personal outlook.
They’ll be followed by Maria Uzor from 7.45, whose avant-garde, alien pop is both spacey and sultry.
Uzor’s techno-electro and dub sensibilities are layered with enticing and intoxicating attitude and dripping with an affable but cool detatchment.
Driving beats and funk-filled compositions make Uzor an instantly arresting stage presence, well matched by their flare and style.
When Naha Ruby Ra closes the Second Stage from 9pm, they’ll bring their foreboding, sultry mix of melodic chamber pop.
Naha Ruby Ra’s music includes nods to math-rock arpeggios, clarion-call alarms, and industrial bass lines as well as an often laconic vocal style.
Down At The Abbey Continues tomorrow with BC Camplight, Los Bitchos, Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage, Ziyad Al-Samman, Tiger Mendoza, The August List, and Madalisto Band.
Full details of this weekend’s festival are available via: downattheabbey.co.uk
