Photo Credit: Tom Sunderland
Words: Ariana Boga
Sheffield’s Tramlines Festival returned for another year, showcasing local and worldwide talent across the July 24th-26th weekend, bringing together music, culture, and community in Hillsborough Park. With a stacked line up of headliners including Fatboy Slim, Courteeners, and Wolf Alice, Tramlines appeals to seasoned indie and rock lovers, as well as giving a platform to the future of these genres in the form of artists such as The Clause, The Royston Club, and Florence Road.
Friday 24th July
To kickstart a beautiful Friday afternoon on The Sarah Nulty Main Stage, Birmingham-born The Clause opened with ‘Nothing’s As It Seems’ from their debut album ‘Victim of a Casual Thing’, riling up the crowd with intoxicating riffs and basslines to breathe life into Hillsborough Park. This was shortly followed with ‘White Lifelines’ – one of the band’s firm crowd pleasers with chants of ‘‘Why, Oh, Why?’ alongside stylish frontman, Pearce Macca. The Clause continued their set with an expert blend of Technotronic’s ‘Pump Up The Jam’, leading into the band’s very own ‘I Don’t Care’, an unapologetic and passionate track that centres not comparing your life to the achievements of others, and living in the present moment. Bittersweet anthem ‘Elisha’ followed shortly after, blending earworm guitar riffs with sparkling synth to encapsulate the feeling of being tethered to a first love years later. To round off their set, The Clause finished with the explosive peak of ‘In My Element’ – their most streamed track to date. Macca introduced other band members – Liam Deakin on guitar, Jonny Fyffe on bass, and Niall Fennell on drums before thanking the audience for a remarkable reception to a set right at the beginning of a stacked line up.
Etta Marcus delivered a spellbinding set on the Leadmill Stage – a stage committed to highlighting the very best up and coming acts. Her set guided the crowd through an atmospheric arc of raw vulnerability and alt-rock power. She captivated listeners with the bright, uplifting energy of ‘Girls That Play’ – a celebration of female friendships, before shifting into the darker, weightier textures of ‘Slaughterhouse’. ‘Teenage Messiah’, with its deeper and more sombre tones followed, until the performance reached a thrilling climax with ‘Theatre’, bringing thrashing rock and all-consuming lyricism.
Over on T’Other Stage, Keo delivered a commanding set that seamlessly blended 90s grunge, shoegaze, and modern alt-rock. Fronted by vocalist Finn Keogh, the four-piece showed off the band’s signature dynamic shifts and abrasive grit with ‘Hands’ and ‘Pistol’. The band continued with ‘I Lied, Amber’ – their most streamed track to date, which primarily focuses on feigning trust – and ‘Thorn’. They continued to elevate the crowd’s energy with the heavy distortion shifts of ‘That’s Me’ from their upcoming album, ‘Put A Smile On For Me’. Ending with the unreleased ‘Black Dress’, followed by recurring chants of “KEO, KEO, KEO”, Keo proved they are one of the most compelling live acts on this year’s festival circuit.
Shortly after, The Vaccines delivered a relentless set packed with pop-rock hooks and frontman Justin Young’s magnetic charisma on The Sarah Nulty Main Stage. Kicking off with the punchy ‘Blow It Up’ and the short, frantic ‘Wreckin’ Bar (Ra Ra Ra)’, the band threw the crowd into an uproar. They continued their set with defining 2010s indie anthems like ‘Post Break-Up Sex’ and ‘A Lack of Understanding’ – both songs centred on confusion in romantic relationships. The band roared through the infectious ‘If You Wanna’, featuring the buzz of its iconic upbeat pop melodies. The Vaccines’ finale came in the form of a euphoric of ‘All My Friends Are Falling in Love’.
Just before the final act of the day, Indie-rock veterans Kaiser Chiefs commanded the main stage with boundless energy, leading with ‘The Factory Gates’ to immediately set the pace before continuing with the popular synth-led ‘Everyday I Love You Less and Less’. Classic favorites like ‘Ruby’ and newer highlights including ‘Hole in My Soul’ and ‘Reasons to Stay Alive’ built the momentum on the main stage before they continued with a raucous cover of The Ramones’ ‘Blitzkrieg Bop’. The band made space for their defining riotous ‘I Predict a Riot’ that paints a chaotic picture of late-night club club culture. Kaiser Chiefs ended with ‘Oh My God’ – their first official single, which later featured on their breakthrough 2005 album, ‘Employment’.
To close a remarkable day of live music, legendary DJ Fatboy Slim turned Hillsborough Park into an open-air rave with a show-stopping headline set. The Brit and Grammy Award-winning icon proved why his career spans four decades by blending heavy beats with classic samples, such as the timeless ‘Mr Brightside’. The crowd was alive during tracks like ‘Eat, Sleep, Rave, Repeat’, ‘Right Here, Right Now’, and ‘The Rockafeller Skank’ as surreal pop art and live video manipulation spanned across the stage’s screens. Accompanied by a backdrop stating ‘Only Love Can Conquer Hate’, Fatboy Slim united the crowd with a massive, field-wide singalong to ‘Praise You’, which sought to celebrate both music and community.
Saturday 25th July
Saturday saw 80s legend Rick Astley walking onto the main stage with star-studded charisma and beginning his set with the fan favourite ‘Together Forever’. The crowd could be seen embracing, swaying and gleefully chanting alongside Astley and his backing singers. Despite stating that he was probably the oldest singer to grace the main stage, Astley launched into an extraordinarily energetic set with tracks such as ‘Waiting On You’ and ‘Dance With Me’. Much to the audience’s surprise, and unlike many performers, Astley gracefully handed the stage to his incredible backing singers, Dawn Joseph and Sofie Anne, who leapt into a remarkable rendition of RAYE’s ‘Where Is My Husband!’, with Astley accompanying on the drums. The soul-stirring ‘Cry For Me’ followed shortly after, showcasing Astley’s gospel influences before the singer pointed the mic to the crowd for the iconic ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’. The choral rendition of the 80s hit brought multiple generations together for an unforgettable moment.
From Stockport, Greater Manchester, indie pop mainstays Blossoms have been festival favourites since appearing on the scene in 2013 with their 80s-infused hooks. The band delivered a masterclass in showmanship on the main stage, opening with their quirky hit ‘Gary’ – a song about an eight-foot-tall fibreglass gorilla, with the band’s staging featuring a replica of the animal as a nod to their 2024 album. The band rolled into crowd-pleasers like ‘Getaway’ and ‘Honey Sweet’, elevated by frontman Tom Ogden’s infectious charisma. The polished track ‘Nightclub’ featured a local Sheffield nod with a voicemail message from popular pub, Fagan’s. 80s icon Rick Astley joined Blossoms onstage shortly after taking to the main stage himself for a sensational rendition of‘ ‘Joke About Divorce’ before the band continued with a debut live crowd performance of the new ‘Meet Me In Love’ – both tracks from the upcoming album ‘Songs From The Wedding Cake.’ Blossoms closed out with fan favourites ‘Your Girlfriend’, which featured the iconic cow bell intro, ‘There’s a Reason Why (I Never Returned Your Calls)’, and their massive breakthrough anthem ‘Charlemagne’.
Soundtracked by ‘Common People’ by Sheffield legends Pulp, Saturday’s headliner Courtneers took to the stage with swagger and purpose before diving straight into a high-energy run with ‘Sweet Surrender’ and ‘Cavorting’. Continuing their set, the band seamlessly blended vibrant new tracks like ‘Pink Cactus Café’ and ‘Solitude of the Night Bus’ with classics like ‘No You Didn’t, No You Don’t’ and the jangly indie guitar hooks of ‘Bide Your Time’. Midway through the set, frontman Liam Fray commanded the stage solo for an intimate interlude, stripping things back for emotional performances of ‘Weekend Shy of a Feeling’ and ‘The Rest of the World Has Gone Home’. In their triumphant encore, Courteeners closed out the night with ‘Modern Love’ and their ultimate indie anthem ‘Not Nineteen Forever’, igniting huge crowd singalongs, moshpits, and an atmosphere of collective nostalgia. Fray expressed his gratitude for such a responsive crowd, stating that each time the band comes back to Sheffield, they are treated like one of the city’s very own. Courteeners rounded off their incredible set with ‘What Took You So Long?’, cementing another legendary headline performance in Hillsborough Park.
Sunday 26th July
On the final day of Tramlines Festival, The Lilacs played to a packed crowd on T’Other Stage, beginning with the infectious ‘Where’ve You Been Hiding’ and the favourite ‘Sticky Dancefloors’ – a track about the thrill of spotting a love interest in a sea of strangers, and the sweaty realities of youth culture. After discussing the 2nd October release date of their upcoming album, ‘Keeping Up With the Joneses’, The Lilacs dedicated their next track ‘Grace’ to anyone in the audience who shared the name and the crowd erupted into a melodic rendition of the fan favourite. The band closed with the energetic ‘Vicarage Road’ – a track centred on the quartet’s North-West roots. The Lilacs were originally scheduled to play The Library Stage, but due to phenomenal demand, were moved to T’Other Stage and they certainly proved their need for a much larger platform.
Despite having technical difficulties that meant she had time for only four tracks, Brooke Combe bounded onto the T’Other Stage as soon as she received the green light and was met by an eager, receptive crowd. The soul singer leapt straight into ‘Talkin’ Bout Heartaches’ – a track centred on choosing inner strength, before continuing with ‘Tears Won’t Dry’, where the singer expressed her upset at being unable to play more for such a packed-out crowd. Combe continued her set with the emotive ‘How Can I Tell You? (To Love Me More)’, with the audience assisting in the melodic chorus notes. ‘Dancing At The Edge Of The World’ closed Combes short but sweet set that still managed to encapsulate her essence as a powerhouse vocal talent and songwriter.
One of the standout sets from across the weekend came from the remarkable The Royston Club, who played to fans who had been positioned at the barricade of T’Other Stage from the moment the doors of Tramlines Festival opened that afternoon. In recent years, the quartet – composed of Tom Faithfull, Ben Matthias, Dave Tute, and Sam Jones – have shot to fame, amassing 52 million streams and releasing two albums, with 2025’s ‘Songs For The Spine’ reaching number 4 on the Official UK Charts. The band opened their set with the urgency and high-energy of ‘Shivers’ before continuing with ‘Glued To The Bed’ that features some of the band’s most introspective lyrics, such as ‘I numb the constant ill with anything that won’t stay still.’ The cathartic ‘Spinning’ and emotive ‘The Patch Where Nothing Grows’ that features gritty riffs and soaring choruses were met with an uproar from the devoted crowd. The band continued with ‘52’, which centres on growing up and mental exhaustion, and Welsh-titled ‘Cariad’ that weaves together themes of love, loss, and longing into a deeply cathartic ballad. To end the set, the band extended the track’s last chorus and stripped back any instrumentation to allow the audience to feel its full, raw weight and embrace its vulnerability.
Sunday’s headliner ‘Wolf Alice’ took to The Sarah Nulty Main Stage exuding confidence and launching straight into the thrashing ‘Bloom Baby Bloom’ from their stylistic album, ‘The Clearing’ which is atypical of their previous releases due to its 1970s-influenced pop and piano-driven nature. A standout, intimate moment followed during ‘Just Two Girls’, when lead singer Ellie Roswell brought two thrilled fans up onto the stage to share the spotlight alongside her. Nostalgia swept through Hillsborough Park during the bittersweet anthem ‘Bros’, before the band continued with the lush harmonies of ‘How Can I Make It OK?’. The pace ramped up again with the punchy and noise-rock ‘Play the Greatest Hits’ which saw Roswell joining fans at the barricade and featured Theo Ellis’ heavy guitar bassline. The band then glided through the swirling textures of ‘Lipstick on the Glass’ – a song about restarting a relationship despite experiencing betrayal, before ending their main set with a massive, cathartic singalong to their cinematic masterpiece, ‘Don’t Delete the Kisses’, which has amassed over 186 million streams. Returning for a legendary encore, Wolf Alice kicked things off with 90s alt-rock ‘Moaning Lisa Smile’, before continuing with a blistering cover of the first verse and chorus of Nirvana’s ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’. ‘Giant Peach’, brought the band’s Tramlines set, as well as the weekend as a whole, to an unforgettable, earth-shaking finish.
Across the 24th-26th July weekend, Tramlines Festival 2026 encapsulated Sheffield’s thriving music scene, bringing together newcomers as well as seasoned indie and rock professionals. The event was a masterclass in culture, community, as well as show-stopping performance, and succeeded in furthering Sheffield’s rich musical history.
Pre-sale for 2027 is available HERE.
Taped Magazine 