Glastonbury kicked off with its first full day of music on Friday – though Thursday was in a sun so fierce it was setting eyebrows on fire and turning faces to crackling by the time you’d fully unzipped your tent.
Not the complain though, for there’s nowhere quite like Glastonbury, and when the sun’s out it’s surely the most fun place on earth, a playground where the glee at being here is only outdone by the glee at all the celebrities around. This author in one walk between stages saw Aimee Lou Wood, Dominic West, Eddie Redmayne, Mel B and Paul Mescal. Not bad, eh?
But anyway, this is about the music, maaan, so here is what the Standard team made of Friday’s acts:
Lorde is the first secret set
Lorde treated the crowd to her latest album Virgin in full (Yui Mok/PA)
PA Wire
Lorde kicked off the festivities on Friday with an early 11.30am set at Woodsies that dragged bleary eyed campers out of their tents. The big top was already heaving an hour before she kicked off, with a crowd that stretched way back onto the grass. It was a special show for the New Zealand pop star, who released her new album, Virgin, today.
Instead of a typical set, she played the entirety of the new album front to back, catching a few people off guard. Only two of the songs — What Was That and Man of the Year — were released as singles, which meant that others had a slightly muted response. But the big hitters hit hard, and Lorde didn’t seem to care at all that people didn’t know the tracks. Ever an intense character, she writhed around on stage and stretched and pulled at her top to reveal her silver bikini.
This is an entirely different Lorde to the person she seemed to be during the tour for her last album, Solar Power. Raw, androgynous, and thrilled to be playing new material. “Thank you for being here on the day Virgin was born,” she told the crowd. Luckily for fans of Lorde’s older testaments, she also treated fans to some non-Virgin songs, Green Light and Ribs, which made the whole experience feel a lot more worthwhile. Inside the tent was pure emotion, with fans visibly weeping, welcoming her return with outstretched arms. – MM
Supergrass and CMAT bring the joy
CMAT performs on The Pyramid Stage during day three of Glastonbury festival 2025
Harry Durrant/Getty Images
Opening up the Pyramid Stage this year was Supergrass, who are the festival equivalent of Harry Kane. Ever reliable, they’ll just bang in hit after hit, and always leave audiences saying, “I forgot they had so many big tunes.” Well, here, with debut album I Should Coco now 30 years old – and their Glastonbury debut coming in 1995 too – the band decided to play it nearly in its entirety, leaving audiences to comment, “I forgot their debut album had so many big tunes.”
It really does though. Mansize Rooster, Lenny, Lose It, Caught By The Fuzz, all had a run out as well as less frequently heralded but absolutely dreamy Time and Sofa (Of My Lethargy). Gaz Coombes, who is seemingly ageless, was beaming in the lunchtime sun, marveling, “What a view this is.” Richard II, Moving, Sun Hits the Sky and Pumping on Your Stereo were straight-up classics and a reminder of Supergrass as one of our greatest bands.
And soon to be regarded as one of the world’s greatest acts is CMAT, who absolutely destroyed the Pyramid Stage with a performance of hilarity, hi-jinks and killer songs. Read our full review here, but if you haven’t watched it on the iPlayer yet, do so immediately. A superstar was born (even though, yknow, she’s been around for ages). – MR
Myles Smith, Franz Ferdinand and Doctor Who
Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP
Anybody for a euphoric singalong? Myles Smith delivers every time. The songwriter took to Woodsies just after Lorde for his 45 minute set, but was considerably more starry eyed. “This time last year I was playing to 80 people in a pub in Manchester,” he told the crowd. No matter: he delivered a lovely relaxed set full of crowd pleasing singalongs. And sing along they did. And clap along, and dance. All the big hits were there — Nice to Meet You, My Home and Blink Twice, delivered with Mumford and Sons style flair — and he finished things off with a rendition of his mega-hit Stargazing. Just the ticket.
Meanwhile back on the special appearances front… Lewis Capaldi who? Rockers Franz Ferdinand did one better on the Other Stage after the singer songwriter made his reappearance to a massive crowd earlier. Coyly teasing the audience about “rumours”, front man Alex Kapranos teased the arrival of a special “Glaswegian… of Italian origin”. Who should walk on but actor Peter Capaldi, who led the crowd in a singalong of Take Me Out to raucous cheers. Two Capaldis in one day: bingo? – VJ
While everyone was having a nice time listening to pop in the sun, up on The Park Stage, OSEES had decided to pummel an already overheated crowd into submission. With two drummers, and one maniac frontman – John Dwyer is something else, I’ve never seen someone lick their guitar before, not the strings like Hendrix, but the body, as if its delicious – these LA underground legends were going to take the lucky ones who had ventured to see them on a psychedelic punk odyssey into hell. And boy, did it feel good. This was heavy. A mosh pit in this heat was something to be proud of and Dwyer visibly relished the mayhem he was causing; when he wasn’t licking his guitar he was wielding it like a tommygun, splaying his legs and bouncing around like the last true hardcore guy in town. Which he is.
Could Wunderhorse follow it? Yes. Attracting a much bigger crowd, the intensity came mostly from another frontman with serious edge. Jacob Slater. Shaven-headed, wrestling his guitar, he was impossible to take your eyes off as he delivered songs from Midas to a crowd who knew every word. Stadiums are calling for these guys, meanwhile OSEES are off back to the centre of the earth to wrestle dinosaurs. – MR
Truly original… PinkPantheress
PinkPantheress performs during the Glastonbury Festival in Worthy Farm, Somerset, England
Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP
Once famous for her low energy performances where she (hilariously) carried a purse and whispered into the mic, PinkPantheress’s Glastonbury set proved she’s moving from internet meme queen to actual pop star. Though it wasn’t without its silly moments – she was introduced by a video recording of Louis Theroux explaining the dictionary definition of Fancy, in reference to her new album, Fancy That. And for Boys A Liar, instead of bringing out Ice Spice, she brought out a tap dancer to dance during the rap section. She also teased a special guest by telling fans “you’re not going to guess who it is”, only for it to be Just Jack, who briefly came out to perform Stars in Your Eyes.
Illegal won the crowd over early, allowing everyone to say the viral line “Hi my name is Pink and I’m really glad to meet you.” She moved onto a new track which remixed Basement Jaxx’s Romeo, bringing up the tempo, and danced her way through I Must Apologise with a newfound confidence and stage presence. In a section where she spoke to the audience, she remarked on the youth of the front row and joked about fans giving “Kent Uni” energy, which was met with a big laugh. Pretty impressive, especially considering it was the 24-year-old’s first ever Glastonbury. All energy – no purse to be seen. – MM
Loyle Carner outdoes The 1975?
Headlining the Other Stage, while The 1975 are on the Pyramid Stage, Loyle Carner is emotional, damp-eyed, blown away by the size of the crowd, “the biggest we’ve ever played.” While Matty Healy and co bring the big show but tend to leave you cold, Carner strips things back and brings the warmth.
Truly, has there been a headline set this intimate? The set up for him and his band is them all gathered together at the front of the stage, facing one another. The lighting is minimal. And the cameras are all hand-held and on stage, with Carner often handling them himself. This gives an up close and personal approach that works incredibly well with his music, with his whole attitude. On song and up on stage tonight, he dares to make himself vulnerable, spilling his heart and revealing his soul. Tonight, as he shares some songs from his new album hopefully! it is particularly so. The record features him singing on a few tracks, and here he says, “this is the fourth time I’ve ever sung in front of other people… so be kind.” There’s no kindness required, it’s soft, cool, and utterly endearing.
This is a triumph for Carner, whose jazzy hip-hop and easy flow are a joy to the ear. This set flew by… did he beat The 1975? Technically, emotionally, and in pure songwriting terms, yes.