Photo Credit: Monument Festival
Earlestown outfit THE K’S made a spectacular appearance on the main stage. The quartet began their performance in typical fashion with album opener ‘Icarus’ to get the crowd warmed up, followed by fan favourite ‘Chancer’ which only enhanced the energy in the tent immediately. After a minor technical glitch which haltered the show, the band resumed with ‘Heart On My Sleeve’ and were determined to get through their set no matter what stood in their way. Playing a ray of songs from their debut album, it was the song that put the band on the map, ‘Sarajevo’, that capped off the bands set in typical fashion as their fans bounced on the muddy surface to arguably the bands biggest hit.
Mid-90’s favourites DODGY continued their busy 2024 schedule with a performance on the second stage, met with a packed out tent to welcome the band back to the North East. As they descended on to the stage, ‘Staying Out for the Summer’ served as the perfect opener based off how humid it was under the big top, whilst fan favourites ‘Good Enough’ and ‘In A Room’ ensured that the crowd were still up for a singalong early in the day, with ‘Grassman’ concluding their welcomed appearance.
Prestigious Dundee indie band THE VIEW are no strangers to the festival stages, now on the verge of their 20th anniversary. Their most famous hit ‘Same Jeans’ made an appearance midway through their set, and to frontman Kyle Falconer’s enjoyment, the Sunderland crowd belted out the intro to ‘Superstar Tradesman’ that filled the tent with positive energy. The crowd were going wild throughout, and so were the band too as ‘Shock Horror’ closed out yet another festival appearance from the Scots.
Since reforming in 2015, Shaun Ryder’s BLACK GRAPE have gone on to release two full lengths, their most recent, ‘Orange Head’ kicked off their 2024 and with the wait for new music to be performed live, their slot from second stage headliner to now a main stage act under the new headliner, it served as the perfect opportunity to deliver songs both old and new with Shaun and Kermit donning the stage together once again. ‘In the Name of the Father’ opened the bands set, with their latest singles ‘Dirt’ and ‘Milk’ keeping the crowd on their toes all the way through until ‘Reverend Black Grape’ really got the place bouncing before bowing out to ‘Kelly’s Heroes’.
A last-minute line-up change saw JAKE BUGG top the bill after The Kooks cancelled earlier that day, and despite the late alteration, the Nottingham born man ensured his performance was worthy. ‘Simplest Things‘ kicked off JAKE‘s now-extended set, which was full of fan favourites and a selection of songs from his first album right the way through to his upcoming record ‘A Modern Day Distraction’. His new single ‘Zombieland‘ had the entire tent singing along, while songs ‘Troubled Town‘ and ‘Walk Away‘ were still as appreciated as they have ever been. As BUGG concluded his last-minute headline performance with ‘All I Need’, the Sunderland crowd made sure they showed their appreciation for saving the day as the tent was filled with roars from everybody in attendance.
MONUMENT FESTIVAL returns to Sunderland Herrington Country Park on 19th July 2025. Tickets available HERE.
Taped Magazine 