Fresh from his festival sets at Glastonbury and TRNSMT, and wielding a black and white striped guitar, Sam Fender came on to greet the Geordie masses who had descended on Finsbury Park for the biggest gig of his career on Friday night. A forty-thousand strong crowd brought the atmosphere on a boiling hot day, as Fender opened with Will We Talk, singing out to a sea of black and white Newcastle flags, and a few ‘Sam can I get a kiss?’ placards.
Flashing signs throughout the day (the event kicked off at 3.30pm, with solid support coming from several acts including Fontaines D.C and Declan McKenna) urged attendees to drink water and wear sunscreen, but the heat did little to dissipate the energy as the band fired through fan favourites Getting Started and Dead Boys, with the latter dedicated to Fender’s hometown of North Shields. The broad generational appeal of Fender’s music was on show as dads danced with daughters towards the back, and acapella singalongs were led from the front.
