The set was confirmed by the festival on Thursday but still took some festival goers by surprise, even though the indie legends had previously hinted at a possible return to Reading and Leeds last month on Twitter (X).

If only there was a way we could play this on stage @OfficialRandL this year let’s work something out https://t.co/RGHxqQTqzA

— Bombay Bicycle Club (@BombayBicycle) July 21, 2023

The North London based indie heavyweights blasted their way through an eight track setlist, incorporating well-known classics like “Always Like This“, “Luna” and “Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing But You)” with material from their upcoming album, My Big Day, set to be released later this year on October 20th via Island Records, including the lead and title track from said album, “My Big Day“.

Frontman Jack Steadman, perhaps referencing their previous Reading and Leeds set back in 2014 when they played to an empty tent, admitted part way in the set, “We weren’t sure anyone was going to show up”. This time, however, the gates were well and truly open and the indie legends filled the dance tent with ease, with Steadman offering his thanks for making this a reality, saying, “This is wonderful. Thank you, guys. It’s good to see you”.  Watch footage of Bombay Bicycle Club’s opening set below:  

@officialrandl Welcome back @Bombay Bicycle Club ❤️ #randl23 #readingfestival #festival ♬ original sound – Reading & Leeds Festival

The full setlist can be found below:

“Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing But You)”
“Shuffle”
“My Big Day”
“Lights Out, Words Gone”
“Evening / Morning”
“Luna”
“Carry Me”
“Always Like This”

Earlier this week on Wednesday Bombay Bicycle Club also released a brand new single, “I Want To Be Your Only Pet“, another track, the third released to date after “My Big Day” and “Diving“, a Holly Humberstone collaboration, that will feature on the band’s upcoming sixth studio album.

The indie rock group, consisting of Jack Steadman (lead vocals, guitar, piano), Jamie MacColl (guitar), Ed Nash (bass), and Suren de Saram (drums), formed in 2005. After releasing demos of songs on Myspace, the band entered the music scene for good after winning Virgin Mobile’s “Road to V” competition in the summer of 2006, enabling them to perform at the 2006 V Festival with the opening slot. And now here they are opening Reading and Leeds to a set of adoring fans, the very definition of full circle.

Our sixth album, My Big Day, is coming out Oct 20. It is a shared endeavour with old and new friends and we can’t wait to share it with you. The title track is out now and you can preorder the album here – https://t.co/7DjzS4qaEj pic.twitter.com/xqTCyS12wy

— Bombay Bicycle Club (@BombayBicycle) June 14, 2023

The North London based band have also shared the title track from the upcoming LP, complete with an absurdist music video that combines frontman Jack Steadman (or Mr Jukes as he is known by those who know) as a newscaster, the song’s lyrical content and wacky headlines and stories.

Watch the music video for “My Big Day” below:

The indie rock group, consisting of Jack Steadman (lead vocals, guitar, piano), Jamie MacColl (guitar), Ed Nash (bass), and Suren de Saram (drums), formed in 2005 with all but Nash attending the same secondary school, with Nash joining the band a year later. After releasing demos of songs on Myspace, the band entered the music scene for good after winning Virgin Mobile’s “Road to V” competition in the summer of 2006, enabling them to perform at the 2006 V Festival with the opening slot.

Bombay Bicycle Club then released their debut EP, The Boy I Used to Be, in 2007 and recorded their debut album, I Had the Blues But I Shook Them Loose, the following year, eventually releasing it in the summer of 2009. The LP received a reasonably positive reception, peaking at number 46 on the UK Albums Chart, and the lead single, “Always Like This“, released two months prior to the album, reaching number 97 on the UK Singles Chart.

Watch the music video for “Always Like This” below:

The band’s next album, Flaws, an acoustic dive into indie folk, came in 2010, reaching number 8 on the UK Albums Chart, marking a significant increase in the group’s popularity. The group then returned to their electric guitar based indie rock beginnings with their following two albums, with A Different Kind of Fix released in 2011, and So Long, See You Tomorrow in 2014.

Bombay Bicycle club announced an indefinite hiatus in 2016, with Steadman and Nash each releasing solo material, before returning in 2020 with the group’s fifth studio album, Everything Else Has Gone Wrong. 2020 also saw the band release a charity EP, Two Lives, covering Bonnie Raitt, release a live album wherein they performed their debut album in full at Brixton, and perform a virtual livestream at Konk Studios. They also headlined Latitude Festival in 2021. Their sixth and most recent album, My Big Day, will be released on October 20th and you can pre-order the album here.

See below for summer tour dates:

15/06/2023 – Concert Hall, EartH – London
16-18/06 – Festival 8 2023 – Vilnius
24/06 – Hangar 34 – Liverpool
06-08/07 – Mad Cool Festival 2023 – Madrid
07-09/07 – Otherside 2023 – Slane
26/07 – Project House – Leeds
28-30/07 – Low Festival 2023 – Benidorm
28-30/07 – Y Not Festival 2023 – Matlock
17-20/08 – Pukkelpop 2023 – Kiewit-Hasselt

You can purchase tickets for these live shows here.