THERE’S less than two weeks left before Are You Listening? Festival brings a plethora of bands and performers to venues all over Reading.
Among the myriad musicians making appearances is Thomas Headon, who says that this is only his second time playing such a diffuse festival.
“The first time, ironically, was Leeds, but that was really cool.”
AYL will also be his first festival booking of the year as the season kicks off in earnest in the spring.
“It’s quite exciting; I love Reading, and small festivals are just so great– it’d be really cool to see more smaller towns pop up with festivals like this.”
Despite lockdowns and pandemics, he says that people are still seeking a more rough and ready festival experience, but that cost plays a big part in prospective festival-goers’ choices.
“The cost of things means it’s likely things will become more local, but it’s always been going up; we’ve been moving to cities since the ’60s.
“But there’s such charm in audiences and acts being from those places, and I think you can tell when that’s the case.
“Especially in older audiences, and it means a lot to hear from an older crowd.”
As an artist, however, he also admits there’s less time to catch up with fellow musicians sharing the bill.
He’s hoping that the festival will be an exception, though: “There’s a bunch of acts at AYL that I know, and I will have to time to go and see, without having to have a certain type of wristband and a 300-mile walk.”
Headon’s music is not confined to any particular genre, which is possibly a result of the attitude he takes towards his work as an artist.
“You have a decision to make each day about what you’re going to put together; it can be overwhelming having 100 different ideas, just as much as having none.
“How you do it is up to you in the moment– chase what you think is worth chasing.
“I find that I’m in a bit of a battle of deleting and redownloading Twitter; there’s just so many apps, even outside of music, it’s really hard not to be overwhelmed.”
As to how it effects his relationship with his creative output: “It’s different for everyone, but I’m really proud that my latest EP was really personal.
“But it took the fun out of it– even down to making the artwork, it had to be right, so all of the creative and marketing choices had to be right.”
Though he was born in the UK, he has spent much of his life so far in Australia, the influences of which often show through in the more sun-drenched of his songs.
His latest, i loved a boy, is no different, despite its more ponderous, reflective subject matter.
He explains: “Up to now, we’ve only really considered whether something was fun or whether we liked it, and I’m getting back into it now.
“Maybe I’ll get back to a personal place again, but for now I don’t want to take myself too seriously.
“I’d rather have fun and make dumb-ass TikToks, and playing live is the reason I play at all.”
Like many musicians, his love of being in the audience informs his love of performing: “I’ve always loved going to gigs.
“Everyone in the room is having fun, and that’s the atmosphere I love and that’s how I prefer my shows.”
Are You Listening? festival celebrates its 10th birthday in May with Thomas Headon joining the likes of Uncle Peanut, OSP, and Radio X’s John Kennedy for a packed-out summer party.
Headliners Black Honey and Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage will also be taking to the stage in a day of live music across Reading.
Face Bar, Oakford Social Club, Purple Turtle, The Rising Sun Arts Centre, St Laurence Church, South Street Arts Centre, and Sub89 will all see a full day of live performances.
There’s also a warm-up party in St Laurence Church, where headliners Dream Wife will be joined by Divorce, Doops, Heartworms, and The Pink Diamond Revue.
Are You Listening? takes place on Saturday, May 6th, following the warm-up party on Friday, May 5.
The full line-up and access to tickets are available via: areyoulistening.org.uk
