Ah, bank holidays. What better time for music, fun, and... being shouted at by the lead singer of a band?
Well, that’s the experience festival-goers at Radio 1′s Big Weekend had over the Bank Holiday when rock duo Royal Blood turned up on stage.
Seemingly upset by what he saw as an underwhelming crowd response, vocalist and bassist Mike Kerr felt the need to “introduce” the pair, suggesting that “no one actually knows who (they) are”.
He went on to explain that “this is rock music”, and then asked who in the crowd liked rock.
The meagre response led him to state that “nine people” in the roughly 85,000-strong audience liked rock (side note – YouGov put rock as the second most popular UK music genre in 2022).
After introducing drummer Ben Thatcher, Mike complained that the two had to “clap (themselves)” because the response was “so pathetic”.
He then pleaded with the cameraman to clap before throwing down his bass.
At the end of the set, he put both middle fingers up to the crowd, and walked away. Ben soon followed.
Naturally, people had thoughts about the band members’ tantrum. Here are some of the responses:
HuffPost UK has contacted a spokesperson for Royal Blood for comment, and is awaiting a response.