Slaves slot right in amongst the metal on Reading 2016’s main stage

Saturday’s main stage at Reading 2016 is ruled by riffs. From the stoner rock sludge of Clutch, to the chuggery of metalcore titans Parkway Drive, it’s a distortion lover’s dream. When Slaves rock up, they might seem an outlier. It doesn’t take long for them to bed themselves into the carnage though.

“What the fuck happened?” asks Isaac Holman from behind his kit after ‘White Knuckle Ride’ lives up to its name. “Never did I think I’d be saying these words on this stage, but we’re Slaves and we’re from Kent,” the ’t’ of their home country lost to its accent.

It’s chunky chaos from then on - they’re every bit as heavy as anything Reading offers up today, all guttural screams and a thuggish attitude. They’re sweethearts, really - Isaac’s brief moment of earnesty earlier proving as much - but as mosh pits erupt and one particularly over-excited punter attempts to crowdsurf inside a paddling pool (to adequate success), it’s bratty, bolshy and a little bit bonkers.