Almost every city in the UK offers some sort of multi-venue festival over the course of the summer, and though they vary in size scope, all are pretty different from their rural counterparts. Taking place over the first weekend in May, Live at Leeds consistently offers up one of the most well rounded and contemporary line-ups on the festival circuit, with as much emphasis on homegrown talent, as there is on those from further afield. As a result of such a forward thinking ethos, this year's line-up sees Leeds' staples such as Hookworms and Menace Beach sharing stages with the likes Russia's Pinkshinyultrablast.

With such diversity on offer, and in keeping with true festival tradition, there's not much chance of seeing everyone you want to see, but it's almost certain that everyone you do see will be well worth the time and the travel between venues. With bands such as Dutch Uncles and We Were Promised Jetbacks bringing with them a host of new material, not to mention the multiplicity of smaller acts vying for a chance to make an impression on the inevitable A&R gang, you can be sure that as well as the established acts, there's always going to be something fresh and exciting happening somewhere.

Not pandering solely to those of an indie persuasion, Slaves, Rolo Tomassi and Eagulls will be there if the indie-pop of the likes of The Orielles becomes a little syrupy to handle, providing audiences with the post-punk and math-rock in all it's psychotic (Slaves) and grizzly (Eagulls) glory.

Kicking off proceedings on the Friday night however, are Pulled Apart By Horses supported by local lads Allusondrugs and Dinosaur Pile-Up. For those lucky enough to be there for the opening night, expact riffs and carnage in the highest order, there's a reason Allusondrugs are a buzz band at the moment and you'll definitely find out here.

Now in its eighth year, Live At Leeds continually brings together a plethora of acts in one of the UK's most exciting cities, with this year being no exception. And whilst their emphasis might be equally split between local acts, UK-based and international, there's definitely more emphasis on providing a spotlight to those acts on the up, and give them a platform that's crucial in keeping the UK's grass-roots scene alive. Long may it continue to do so.

More information and tickets to Live At Leeds can be found here.

There’s such a marked divide between the baggy-jumpered, yelping Idlewild of the mid-nineties and the corduroy-blazered, thoughtful Idlewild of today, it could be incongruous watching them play the prickly punk of 100 Broken Windows in between the anthemic rock of The Remote Part or Warnings/Promises. But the ebb and flow of the band’s setlist tonight at the Roundhouse has not just been thrown together, and as Roddy Woomble paces back and forth across the stage like Liam Gallagher while the other six members dance around him, it is perfectly obvious that Idlewild are as at home pogoing around to riffs as they are staring into the lights and harmonising.

They ease into the night with new song, ‘Nothing I Can Do About It’ before jumping into rock-compilation staple, ‘You held the world in your arms’ and the stomping beefcake of a single that is ‘Collect Yourself’. Guitarist Rod Jones dances around the stage grandstanding, eyes closed and guitar in the air, and as the band go from the chorus/anti-chorus of 1999’s ‘Roseability’ (‘GERTRUDE STEIN SAID THAT’S ENOUGH’) to the earworm off-beat of 2002’s ‘Live In A Hiding Place’, it becomes obvious at what point the change happened in Idlewild, when the spiky riffs and non-songs of 100 Broken Windows transformed into the smooth flow of the rock anthem.

Idlewild sprang out of the rather traditional nineties build-a-band approach of a few people meeting at a party and discovering they all owned the same records. And as a band, are steeped in tradition, homeliness. Despite all the swagger of some of their newer material, this is still a band that feels very personal, local no matter where you live. They are also unmistakeably Scottish in their bones, grounded in the earth, both in the band and around it. Edinburgh brewer Barney Jones is currently brewing a batch of Idlewild ale (‘Scottish Fiction IPA’) and Roddy still contributes a regular column about Scottish hillwalking to walking magazine The Great Outdoors. It’s called ‘Woomble’s Way’.

As the granite lilt of Scotland’s late poet laureate, Edwin Morgan forms the top bed of the barnstorming love-punch of ‘Remote Part/Scottish Fiction’ during the encore, the rafters of the Roundhouse begin to shake. As the lights turn out to the audience, it becomes obvious that it is not dominated by either gender, or any age bracket. Watching the crowd, it’s clear every person with their eyes closed and their fingers in the air has their own Idlewild. Because although Idlewild might have changed a lot over the course of the last two decades, they’ve never stopped doing that. Whether it’s bouncing around to ‘These Wooden Ideas’ or singing the chorus to ‘El Capitan’, Idlewild somehow always manage to write songs that become very personal to you, the songs you sing along to with your eyes closed, and your hands in the air.

Homecoming shows are always wonderfully exciting, yet tonight seems to transcend this somewhat as The Unthanks tackle the wonderfully grandiose settings of Newcastle’s City Hall. The evening begins with Adrian from the band taking to the stage, with a run down of how things were going to go. Shunning the traditional support, interval and main act in favour of a slightly more balanced approach.

So first to appear are Stockton’s The Young’uns who are to open both parts of the set this evening with short 10-minute bursts of excitement, something that may not be present in The Unthanks' set. Opening up with a Billy Bragg cover and moving swiftly on to a song about the filming of Benefits Street, with no instruments they do well to stun and silence this packed crowd and it’s a wonderful feat.

Their sense of humour shines through, alongside their excitement of being on such a wonderful stage. After a very short set they graciously announce the arrival of The Unthanks. As the band take to the stage, the crowd erupts though the mood is also somewhat subdued.

However, this isn't a problem playing tracks from the wonderful new album Mount The Air, which is a real treat. 'Last Lullaby' sounds astoundingly beautiful this evening, to me this first part of the set shows how The Unthanks so effortlessly throw away the meaning of genre. With their own style firmly in place, they fly through a beguiling first set, which closes with the most exciting track yet.

The album title track, played in its entirety of ten minutes, with its unrivalled beauty, is the perfect way to close out a set like this. As we’re left open-mouthed by the amazing music and dancing we’ve just experienced. The band exits for a short interval, ever the true professionals they spend their interval meeting and greeting the crowd in the foyer.

As we reconvene The Young’uns once again are allowed out to play. Another short blast of jovial excitement including some toilet humour is all over too fast as they finish off the second of their sets, with a rabble-rousing audience participation sea shanty. Yet it once again falls to The Unthanks to calm the audience, with yet another wonderful track from Mount The Air.

This time entitled 'For Dad', arguably the most touching song of the evening as a conversation between fiddle player Niopha Keegan and her father is aired, before a beguiling instrumental track ensues. Followed closely by the wonderful 'Magpie', this is arguably one of the highlights for me the harmony created between the three voices is otherworldly.

Its undoubtedly clear that The Unthanks have traditional North Eastern music coursing through their veins, yet they’ve taken that and applied so much more to it. As they’ve transcended the folk clubs and ploughed their own furrow, taking in a variety of exciting influences on the way. Culminating in their record entitled The Songs Of Robert Wyatt And Antony & The Johnsons.

Some of which are on display this evening, 'Out Of The Blue' is an instant hit as their beautifully orchestrated version makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. These musical chameleons take on any challenge; it’s hard to convey the plethora of musical ability and talent that every member possess.

There are so many twists and turns throughout this evening's set; there is no point in trying to pin them down as they’d probably rebel and do something different just to spite you, in a nice way of course. We found it easier to blindly follow, we’re so glad we did as we were taken to so many magical places in one evening.  

The Swingin’ Utters are a San Francisco mainstay, bringing their folk influenced street punk sounds to our collective consciousness’ since the late 1980s with anger and integrity and returning from a lengthy hiatus in 2010 refreshed to throw themselves into regular touring and the subsequent recording of three albums. The third of these, Fistful of Hollow, was released in December – meaning a tour was bound to be in the offing sooner rather than later. The London date of this tour fell on a cold Friday night in March, but of course not too cold to brave a couple of street beers before the event. We got into the venue in time to see In Evil Hour, whose gravel-voiced, gothic tainted punk rock in the vein of the Nerve Agents or a much gnarlier version of early AFI quickly draws interested early arrivals to the front. The venue itself is in a roomy basement hidden in the depths of a warren-like building, with the upstairs bar kicking out Cock Sparrer and Ramones tunes to get the punters in the right frame of mind. In Evil Hour go all out with a set of violently tuneful songs and a singer with a much larger stage presence than her small frame.

With everyone’s ears and livers suitably warmed, Swingin’ Utters/One Man Army side project ToyGuitar hit the stage and launch into a set of garagey fuzzed out pop punk. Oozing with energy, there is an edge to their live set not conveyed by their recordings and, like In Evil Hour beforehand, I would highly recommend checking them out. The summery vibes evoked by jangling guitar chords and harmonies somehow didn’t sound out of place on a cold spring night in London and the quickly filling room showed how much word of mouth about these guys is spreading. After a short break and a possibly ill-advised addition of spirits to my night’s intake, the Swingin’ Utters hit the stage with Miles Peck and Jack Dalrymple still looking amped despite the previous set’s exertions. The Utters are a band with a commanding presence, in no small part due to singer Johnny Bonnel’s on-stage contortions and furious renditions of the songs for which he takes lead vocal. Even when another member is at the vocal forefront, he is likely to be moving as much as any of the happy drunkards dancing and shouting every word down the front. Classics such as ‘Next in Line’ and ‘No Eager Men’ are peppered throughout a set heavy on material from the new album – which, luckily, is banging, with the songs performed last night already sounding firmly entrenched as live favourites.

As the last chords of the encore die down, I can’t imagine anyone not leaving with a smile on their face. The night sums up the variety and innovation which can be found within the punk scenes, all three bands with their own distinct sound but complimenting each other perfectly. A good sound and venue is the icing on a scuzzy cake, so if you didn’t catch this show then I highly recommend checking out the Pipeline!