Festival Review: Tramlines Festival, Hillsborough Park, Sheffield (Day 3 – Sunday 28 July 2024)

Together in Electric Dreams: “Don’t You Want Me” Sheffield? The Human League Homecoming Party wins Tramlines 2024 and they weren’t the headliner?

Words and photos by John Hayhurst

I’ve said it before but this year’s Tramlines at Hillsborough Park in Sheffield was more than a hit compared to last years monsoon and mudfest, however anyone booking or deciding on the posters needs to shake their head . Leaving aside the borefest of Paulo Nutini friday, and the bizarre grunts of Jamie T (which scratched its audience last night as well), if then put Snow Patrol fronting one of the biggest 80’s bands ever to come out of Sheffield, then something is drastically wrong or it’s been done remotely without really knowing the locale. Whoever you are, I hope Sarah Nulty (Tramlines Founder) haunts you in your dreams, you would have done this for Arctic Monkeys, Pulp, Def Leppardeven Richard Hawley or Heaven 17 and A B C? Then why do it Human League? Who were undoubtedly the highlight and the biggest crowd-pulling band on the Sarah Nulty Main Stage over the weekend.

We start the day with a contrast of styles, Alt-Rock/Dance band Static Lives they are local to the area and have the worst set time, literally 5 minutes after the doors finally open on sunday morning, only the aficionados are here, but it doesn’t stop there Lori from walking on stage with her big smile and even bigger voice until their set closed, a healthy crowd was happy for that morning workout. On the main stage the sweetest noise heard all weekend in the form of Philippa Zawethe sun shines like Zawe she lifts us all up with her melodious and melodious voice, giving us serious Joan Armatrading vibrations (albeit an octave or two higher). You can tell how powerful her voice is as she has to pull her head back from the microphone before unleashing another heavenly crystalline note.

A beautiful precursor to The linden garden on the Leadmill stage, a band I’ve followed since seeing them at the Brudenell in Leeds, supporting Sunflower beans, pre-covid days. Their debut album ‘One More Thing’ is full of danceable tracks that they like to call ‘Wonk Rock’, whatever that means? Today is also guitarist Leila Deeley’s birthday, so the band are in top form as they blast through their set in front of a sizable crowd who probably saw them here 2 years ago. I watch their whole brilliant set, ‘Clockwork’ and ‘Love Song’ two of my favorite songs and then unfortunately they have to leave early in the afternoon as they have a long journey back to Brighton, my scheduled interview has been postponed. at a zoom call later this year.

The Leadmill stage at the Tramlines now has a refreshments tent next to it selling some nice craft beers, Farmers Blonde a favorite is being gulped down by pints as people are keen to get out of the afternoon sun, it’s certainly the hottest day of the weekend. Paul Smith of Maximo Park wearing a suit black jacket and hat and still running around the main stage, this won’t last! and of course the jacket is removed after 1 song to reveal a white “No War” t-shirt. I can’t believe I’m becoming a legacy act (20 years +), but those mid-2000s anthems from “A Certain Trigger” are still strong and fresh, and Smith is still “the crazy guy jumping in a suit” that the band had previously employed. they even knew if he could sing! Maximo Park are still a great festival band every time I see them.

We speed to the other stadium to catch New father, a band we caught at the end of their Glastonbury show. They play some really nice indie rock, mind you Wolf Alice mixed with a bit of cure, speaking of which they have a majestic version of “Just Like Heaven” and win the award for the most smiling band, especially when their contemporaries haven’t smiled in years. This Galway band is worth catching in its own right and as they’re also playing at Kendal Calling next week I think I’ll be doing just that.

To have a good view for Human League you have to be there early, it’s full on the main stage, the most crowded I’ve seen all weekend, what a surprise! I mean who would have thought we were in Sheffield and a lot of people want to see Sheffield’s multi-platinum sales Human Leaguea band that David Bowie declared to NME after seeing them in 1978 that he was “the future of pop music” – he was right, of course, as he was about most things. Dare is an iconic album and in most 40s and 50s vinyl collections.

The stage is decorated in a white style, and the backing band with synths, keytars and drums also wears everything in white. The girls (! Now 61!), Susan Ann Sulley and Joanne Catherall are the original schoolmates discovered by Phil Oakey at Crazy Daisy Nightclub in Sheffield in 1980. They appear wearing stylish black outfits and shades, looking cool, rocking out -aside, Phil Oakey then appears in a fashionable black jacket and matching black flared trousers, although it looks a bit like he left the clothes rack in his jacket. He will change the charts after every few songs, as will the girls – especially for the finale in some. stunning silver glitter outfits.

Mirror shades for “Mirror Man”, a good opening choice, one we all know. However, we soon realize we know all these songs, ‘banger after banger’ as the reverend would say, as Phil Oakey is quick to remind the crowd that he used to live 200 meters from Hillsborough Park, this is a massive homecoming show. proportions like ‘Sound of the Crowd’, ‘Tell Me When’, ‘Human’ and ‘The Lebanon’ all delivered with impeccable sound. Highlights were a stunning version of ‘Love Action’ with that synth opening 30 seconds designed to take all the mums and dads out there on a nostalgic trip back to the discos and clubs of the early 80’s – when everyone they had cool hair and fashionable clothes.

Then came what I would suggest is the highlight of Tramlines 2024, the whole audience singing and clapping along to Electric Dreams, “We’ll always be together, no matter how far it seems” Oakey sings as if this is a tribute to his hometown and people who came to see them today. Then the opening to “Don’t You Want Me” starts with two keytar players following this huge audience singing the first verse and chorus while Oakey and the girls are still changing, they must have heard us because we were loud.

They come back on stage and start the first verse in full, thankfully none of them are holding the mics for us to sing crap, I hate that – we paid to hear you sing, not the other way around. A few more choruses were happily sung and it was all over ‘Enjoy Snow Patrol’, jokes Oakey as he leaves the stage knowing the band have just played a set worthy of headlining and the mass exodus to food vendors, toilets and breakout areas were very visible at the end. For many, this was the end of Tramlines 2024 – get an early bus or tram and beat the crowds.

On the Leadmill stage Magic Tape they were billed as playing their last gig and had an introduction from a shirtless guy with a pint in his hand, probably fitting ‘The End’. It’s a shame because they produced some of the best pop guitars with catchy hooks this side Weezer, but for whatever reason it didn’t work for them. That said, they had a decent crowd at the Leadmill to witness, and tears were shed from the front row when it was over.

You have your choice of final display title as both are on at the same time, although if you have energy left you can manage 3 songs of Snow Patrol and then “Run” to t’Other stage (see what I did there) to catch Court actwhich is exactly what i did. Snow Patrol they’re great and I’d suggest they were the only valid headliner, but they shouldn’t go on after Human League in sheffield that was a travesty! However, no one can deny that Gary Lightbody & Co have a few songs up their sleeve and, crucially, they know how to work a festival crowd – when to pump out your big hits ‘Run’, ‘Chasing Cars’, ‘Shut Your Eyes” and “Chocolate”, all carefully arranged in the setlist – (Jamie T – please learn) and don’t insult your audience (Jamie T – please learn)

Then Court act you know how to get the party started because james smith is everywhere, like he’s on a massive invisible rubber band that pulls him from one side of the stage to the other, almost spilling his can of guinness at one point. ‘The Trappers Pelts’, ‘Trenchcoat Museum’ and other crazy songs with names have lyrics that aren’t designed to be sung backwards, but this Yorkshire audience does just that, Court act they might be from leeds but sheffield are happy to claim them as yorkshire, no amount of football club rivalry is going to stop that. During the new song “Down By The Stream”, the key lyrical subject Jono Steadman actually crowd surfing the audience here, in the song Smith admits he bullied Steadman, but “We were all good in the end though, I guess he never held it against me.” Then the title track ‘The Overload’ from their first album brings hysteria to the t’Other stage, I love it, any one of their songs should be a poem studied at GCSE level, the wit and live delivery is second to none in this game. This made it a worthy end to a brilliant weekend.

I know the weather can make or break a festival, but Tramlines sees through it all, it really is a shining beacon of how a metropolitan festival should work, loads of amazing up and coming artists playing live on stage, to we recognize that – apart from Jools Holland’s Where’s Live Music on TV?, that’s why these festivals are crucial to the industry, a chance to showcase real talent in a live setting to a potential new audience. Replicate this in every major UK city and the music industry here will grow. Tramlines 2024 was another fantastic weekend of discovery, influence and nostalgia, keep it up and of course I’ll be back next year – no matter who headlines!