Following an early summer riddled with tension between vocally political bands speaking out and actual politicians trying to shut them down, there’s an overt sense of unity and protest to the artists that take to the stage in Finsbury Park for Fontaines DC’s long sold out, 45,000-strong victory lap forlast year’s fourth LP Romance. Kneecap – still at the centre of much of the furore – are given a hero’s welcome. “It’s great to be back in London and not be in court,” deadpans the band’s Mo Chara, who’ll return to the stand next month to face the verdict of his recent highly contested terror charges.
Firebrand Aussie punks Amyl and the Sniffers dedicate Some Mutts Can’t Be Muzzled to Bob Vylan, whose singer is currently under criminal investigation for his anti-IDF chants at Glastonbury Festival last week, while both Kneecap and Fontaines DC project varying messages in support of Palestine on the screens throughout their sets. “Israel is committing genocide. Use your voice” reads the statement at the culmination of the headliner’s set, following climactic penultimate track I Love You.
