A fine mix of established, and up and coming, guitar bands might just make Truck the best indie music festival in the country.
Clearly we are rather biased about Reading Festival round here, but there is no doubting that if we look at festivals purely on line-up, then Truck is one of the best fits with music we love and support. This year is no different and we will be on site to keep you updated on all the goings on!
Thursday
Thursday has a shorter music session, with fewer stages open, to get the party started. What a party that will be curtesy of Thursday night headliner CMAT! Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson has conquered all in the last year. Her mix of guitar based pop music and country (the Euro Country of the last album title) has been all over the radio, her performances winning her new fans wherever she goes. Olivia Rodrigo even covered her on Radio One’s Live Lounge. Her outspokenness on important issues, like so many of her Irish compatriots, has been refreshing in an age where decent politicians seem afraid of speaking out to do the right thing. Whisper it, but it might end up being the best headline set of the whole week.
Also not to be ignored on Thursday is the innovative art-pop with a message of Everything Everything. For those arriving early enough exciting new Indie guitar band Leazes are on the This Feeling stage at 5:00pm. If you aren’t too tired out dancing to CMAT then The Slates are headlining This Feeling at 10:15pm.
Truck stage:
- O’Phantom 4:30 – 5:00pm
- Marie Franc 5:30 – 6:00pm
- Etta Marcus 6:30 – 7:00pm
- Everything Everything 7:30 – 8:15pm
- CMAT 9:00 – 10:15pm
This Feeling:
- Heidi Eldest 4:00 – 4:30pm
- Leazes 5:00 – 5:30pm
- Montello 6:00 – 6:30pm
- Lizzie Esau 7:00 – 7:30pm
- The Cases 8:15 – 8:45pm
- The Slates 10:15 – 10:45pm
Friday
The recently reformed The Maccabees are your Friday night headliner. After disbanding in 2017 they got back together in 2024, playing a handful of big events last year and have carried that on into this year. No new music yet, though it has definitely been discussed.
Elsewhere, it is a toss up between Get Down Services and English Teacher for the can’t miss band of the day. We may end up, ironically, missing the start of English Teacher if the legendary Primal Scream are performing anywhere close to their best, as they are a formidable live act. We will be sprinting over the moment it finishes though. English Teacher’s debut album was a defining moment of 2024. Get Down Services are not your usual band but their live shows are phenomenal. A genre bending blend of rock, pop, disco and eighties sounds. They know how to have fun but are socially conscious with it.
Girl In The Year above are a very new band, but caused a stir after getting a Massive Attack cover featured on the soundtrack to the recent Peaky Blinders film.
My First Time were a real highlight of this year’s Are You Listening? Festival and might end up being this generation’s Blur. A fantastic live presence.
Divorce are an exceptional band and are a must see. This current run of dates are the first since Adam Peter-Smith and Kasper Sandstrom left the band, but the core singing duo of Tiger Cohen-Towell and Felix Mackenzie-Barrow remain in place.
There is an ugly clash between Good Health, Good Wealth and Joe And The Shitboys. Choose the former if you are a fan of The Streets and the latter if punk-garage-rock is your preference.
Indie darlings The Cribs are on fine form right now, touring an excellent new album and enjoying playing as much as they ever have.
Under normal circumstances we would be suggesting We Are Scientists, who are fantastic value live, but up against English Teacher there is only one winner for us. Also on at the same time are The Bracknall, a band who have a very dedicated live following and are decent if you want to pretend the 90s never actually ended.
The late withdrawal of Sia Raw (still on the merchandise) has led to the last minute inclusion of Cheap Suits on the This Feeling stage. This young Wallingford band are one of the best new acts in the region and well worth a look.
Truck Stage:
- Southern Heights 12:15 – 12:45pm
- The Love Buzz 1:15 – 1:45pm
- Girl In The Year Above 2:15 – 2:45pm
- Eighty Eight Miles 3:15 – 3:45pm
- Divorce 4:15 – 4:45pm
- Brooke Combe 5:15 – 5:45pm
- The Cribs 6:15 – 7:00pm
- Primal Scream 7:45 – 8:45pm
- The Maccabees 9:30 – 10:45pm
The Market Stage:
- Shale 12:45 – 1:15pm
- The slow Country 1:45 – 2:15pm
- The North 2:45 – 3:15pm
- My First Time 3:45 – 4:15pm
- The Lilacs 4:45 – 5:15pm
- Good Health Good Wealth 5:45 – 6:15pm
- Getdown Services 7:00 – 7:45pm
- English Teacher 8:30 – 9:30pm
The Nest:
- Adore 12:45 – 1:15pm
- Twat Union 1:45 – 2:15pm
- Love Rarely 2:45 – 3:15pm
- Projector 3:45 – 4:15pm
- Slag 4:45 – 5:15pm
- Joe & The Shitboys 5:45 – 6:15pm
- Delta Sleep 7:00 – 7:45pm
- We Are Scientists 8:45 – 9:30pm
This Feeling:
- Daisy Peacock 12:45 – 1:15pm
- Cheap Suits 1:45 – 2:15pm
- Camille Jansen 2:45 – 3:15pm
- Hannah Robinson 3:45 – 4:15pm
- Breeze – 4:45 – 5:15pm
- Danny Mellin 5:45 – 6:15pm
- Alright 7:00 – 7:30pm
- The Bracknall 8:45 – 9:15pm
V & V:
- David Gibb 10:45 to 11:45am
- Indiya 12:00-12:30pm
- Bear Trap 1:00 – 1:30pm
- Frannie B 2:00 – 2:30pm
- Suspire 3:00 – 3:30pm
- Josephine Illingworth 4:00 – 4:30pm
- Mount St. Helen 5:00 – 5:30pm
- Abi Farrell 6:00 – 6:30pm
- Mazawattee 7:00 – 7:30pm
- Tino 8:00 – 8:30pm
- Kanadia 9:00 – 9:30pm
Saturday
Two Door Cinema Club from Northern Ireland pretty much defined the sound of indie in the early noughties with fast paced indie-rock married to easy-listenable synth-pop. Their set here is celebrating fifteen years of brilliant debut album Tourist History. It is a hit laden monster that has seen its reputation improve over time, there were a lot of surprisingly average reviews back on release. Anyone going for Two Door will also enjoy Friendly Fires, who have a very similar vibe.
At 1:45pm we highly recommend checking out Florence Road on the Truck Stage. Guitar bands are officially back this Summer and this all female Dublin four-piece are right at the forefront of the new pack.
One of the most brutal clashes of the weekend is Lottery Winners at 2:45 to 3:30pm on the Truck Stage, whilst Bleech 9:3 are on the Market Stage 3:15 to 3:45pm and The Rosadocs are on at the same time in The Nest (edit – due to late changes The Lottery Winners are now not clashing, yay!) If you haven’t seen Lottery Winners, they are a highly entertaining for all the family indie-pop live act who we thoroughly recommend. The difficulty here is that The Rosadocs are also a very fine indie guitar live act and Bleech 9:3 are an absolute hype-monster that need to be caught prior to achieving huge venue lift off. Bleech 9:3 are another Dublin born band, they specialise in a fine line of alt-grunge rock. Fans of Keo and Wunderhorse will be very happy with these guys.
Adult DVD are another must catch, a pulsing blend of hook laden indie married to electro grooves and the odd hint of acid-house. The Vaccines and Kaiser Chiefs are usually fantastic. If you have seen Kaiser Chiefs too many times then Radio Free Alice provide a good alternative on the Market Stage. The Australian band mix new-wave and post-punk vibes into a very melodic package. We caught them at Reading Festival last year and very much enjoyed the set. It would be remiss not to mention The Royston Club from Wrexham, who are at this point one of the best young indie bands in the UK, already battle hardened by extensive touring.
Truck is well known for providing a range of entertainment. Whilst The Rockin’ Chair is mostly home to comedy you can find legendary band The Ogretones there at 8:00pm should you want to indulge your kids with their energetic play through of songs from the Shrek soundtracks . Sadly, Nick Cope couldn’t make it this year.
Truck Stage:
- Oxford Symphony Orchestra 12:00 – 12:50pm
- Florence Road 1:45 – 2:15pm
- Lottery Winners 2:45 – 3:30pm
- Freindly Fires 4:00 – 4:45pm
- The Vaccines 5:30 – 6:30pm
- Kaiser Chiefs 7:15 – 8:15pm
- Two Door Cinema Club 9:15 – 10:45pm
The Market Stage:
- Pia Rose 12:00 – 12:30pm
- Pixie McCann 1:15 – 1:45pm
- Brooki 2:15 – 2:45pm
- Bleech 9:3 3:30 – 4:00pm
- Adult DVD 4:30 – 5:00pm
- Arkayla 5:30 – 6:00pm
- Radio Free Alice 7:00 – 7:45pm
- The Royston Club 8:30 – 9:15pm
The Nest (updated 24th July):
- Cozyjoe 12:00 – 12:30pm
- Sterling Press 1:15 – 1:45pm
- Bloodworm 2:15 – 2:45pm
- The Rosadocs 3:30 – 4:00pm
- Saint Clair 4:45 – 5:15pm
- Silver Gore 5:45 – 6:15pm
- Madra Salach 7:00 – 7:45pm
- Black Honey 8:45 – 9:45pm
This Feeling:
- iiis 12:00 – 12:30pm
- Casual Smart 1:15 – 1:45pm
- Opal Mag 2:15 – 2:45pm
- Office Party 3:30 – 4:00pm
- Long Island 4:45 – 5:15pm
- The Cavs 6:30 – 7:00pm
- Cruz 8:15 – 8:45pm
V & V:
- David Gibb 10:45 – 11:45am
- Barricane 12:00 – 12:35pm
- Bedd 1:00 – 1:40pm
- The Prohibition Smokers’ Club 2:05 – 2:45pm
- Mr Fogg 3:10 – 3:50pm
- Luke Tuchscherer & The Penny Dreadfuls 4:15 – 4:55pm
- Joanna Serrat 5:20-6:00pm
- Thomas Truax 6:25 – 7:10pm
- The Schla La Las 7:35 – 8:20pm
- The Clubhouse Allstars’ Tribute to Neil Young 9:00 – 10:00pm
Sunday
Like an appearance from the Oxford Symphony Orchestra, it just wouldn’t be Truck without a Sunday morning workout courtesy of broadcasting legend Mr Motivator. Whilst we aren’t listing all the comedy over the weekend, Reginald D Hunter is at The Rockin’ Chair at 2:15pm. A nice opportunity to have a break from the music if you don’t mind a bit of controversy.
The Wombats are bringing live music to a close Sunday night. With their huge back catalogue of hits they are a great sing-along band. We very much enjoyed their set at Reading Festival 2024.
Co-headliner’s The Libertines are on before them for a full length set. All their on-again off-again dramas seem to be behind them now and the group are more at peace than they have ever been. They possess some of the most thrilling indie songs of the 21st Century. Both sets should be beautiful and celebratory.
There are many fine young guitar bands at Truck this week. If you are fan of The Coral and the great tradition of Liverpool indie bands then Keyside should be right up the top of your must-catch list. The other essential band are GANS. We have seen them three times in the last year, most recently supporting Pixies, it it has been an absolute riot every time.
The K’s are ever reliable in the live arena, one of those indie bands who are always around but deserve a bit more credit than they get.
Another of the most buzz surrounded bands present this week are Keo. We didn’t get a chance to catch their BBC Introducing set at Reading last year, however it was so good they have already been elevated to the Main Stage for Reading 2026. There is a lot of DNA crossover with Wunderhorse’s influences. This is possibly the worst clash point of the weekend though, both Westside Cowboy and Tom A. Smith are on at EXACTLY the same time. Both are artists we have seen this year and both are definitely also exceptional. Draw straws for it. Or break down and cry, gently rocking in the corner, until all three have finished so you don’t have to make this horrendous decision.
The other tough call is between Kid Kapichi and Finn Forster. Kapichi go in for socially conscious punk rock whilst Finn Forster is one of the best singer songwriters on the circuit right now. Forster will be an enormous star, I have no doubt about that.
Steady Habits, whether it be a full band or solo performance, are also worth a look on the V & V stage. An American born, but Oxford based performer, Sean C. Duggan does a nice line in country and Americana.
Truck Stage:
- Mr Motivator 11:30 – 12:00pm
- Sarah Crean 12:30 – 1:00pm
- Lemondaze 1:30 – 2:00pm
- Deco 2:30 – 3:00pm
- Vanessa Carlton 3:30 – 4:00pm
- Rizzle Kicks 4:30 – 5:15pm
- The K’s 5:45 – 6:45pm
- The Libertines 7:30 – 8:45pm
- The Wombats 9:30 – 10:45pm
The Market Stage:
- Chest 1:00 – 1:30pm
- Theatre 2:00 – 2:30pm
- Punchbag 3:00 – 3:30pm
- Freddie Halkon 4:00 – 4:30pm
- Willie J Healey 5:15 – 5:45pm
- Keo 6:45 – 7:30pm
- Circa Waves 8:30 – 9:30pm
The Nest:
- Matt Hennessey 12:00 – 12:30pm
- Creeping Jean 1:00 – 1:30pm
- Cat Ryan 2:00 – 2:30pm
- Keyside 3:00 – 3:30pm
- Picture Parlour 4:00 – 4:30pm
- GANS 5:15 – 5:45pm
- Westside Cowboy 6:45 – 7:30pm
- Kid Kapichi 8:30 – 9:30pm
This Feeling:
- Wooden dog 1:00 – 1:30pm
- Hestia 2:00 – 2:30pm
- Gina Larner 3:00 – 3:30pm
- Pedestrian Band 4:00 – 4:30pm
- CUSP 5:15 – 5:45pm
- Tom A. Smith 6:45-7:15pm
- Finn Forster 8:45 – 9:15pm
V & V:
- David Gibb 10:45 – 11:45 am
- Mary’s Garden 12:00 – 12:35pm
- Premium Leisure 1:00 – 1:35pm
- Alphabet Backwards 2:00 – 2:35pm
- Lucy Leave 3:00 – 3:40pm
- Steady Habits 4:05 – 4:50pm
- Robin Bennett 5:15 – 6:00pm
- The Ripples 6:25 – 7:05pm
- Danny George Wilson 7:30 – 8:15pm
- Ralfe Band 9:00 – 10:00pm
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