Featured image: Lucy Elson-Whittaker

After CMAT’s unforgettable set on Thursday, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Truck Festival 2026 had already peaked. But with the weekend only just getting into its stride, there’s still plenty more to come.

Friday is packed with a lot of artists worth catching, from The Love Buzz and My First Time, to the high-energy spectacle of Getdown Services. Then, to round-off another fantastic day at Truck, indie favourites The Maccabees return to the stage for a long-awaited headline set.

The Love Buzz – Truck Stage ★★★☆☆

Having won the competition to play at Truck Festival this year, Cork’s The Love Buzz prove they deserve this spot on the lineup. Playing an early-afternoon slot on the main stage, they quickly get the crowd going, with bassist Aidan Lynch teaching ‘Primal Scream’ therapy – a nod to sharing the bill with the Scottish rock band later today.

Their polished yet gloriously chaotic sound proves impossible to ignore, drawing in festivalgoers searching for their first great discovery of the day. The crowd continues to swell throughout the set, a testament to the band’s ability to win over new listeners in real time.

The Love Buzz may not be from the States, but their sound is steeped in the DNA of American grunge. Fuzz-soaked guitars crash against smoky, melodic vocals, while the band’s driving rhythms evoke the kind of nostalgic energy that belongs on a soundtrack of a coming-of-age film. 

Their latest release, ‘Pushing On’, captures that feeling perfectly. Their influences are impossible to miss, with a backdrop featuring icons such as Kurt Cobain and Ozzy Osbourne, yet The Love Buzz bring enough personality to make the sound unmistakably their own.

A Main Stage performance this assured suggests The Love Buzz are on an upward trajectory. If this performance is any indication, it won’t be long before they’re playing to even bigger crowds.

My First time – The Market Stage ★★★★☆

Bristol-based My First Time treat The Market Stage to a relentless afternoon set packed with explosive energy and unwavering eye contact. Having seen them support Home Counties at YES’s Pink Room last year, it is striking to see them command such a large crowd – one that has turned up specifically for them.

Frontman Isaac Stroud-Allen is a captivating presence. His intense, unbroken eye contact with audience members is both magnetic and slightly unnerving, making it almost impossible to look away.

Their latest single, ‘Paris, Texas’, briefly shifts the set away from its driving punk-rock intensity into a more emotional, indie-leaning moment. But the sentiment is short-lived. Frontman Stroud-Allen quickly cuts through the atmosphere with, “Right, that’s over. That was fucking boring, now let’s move,” before launching into the explosive ‘Sippy Cup’.

During ‘Picture of Health’, Stroud-Allen launches himself into the photo pit before diving into the crowd to become part of the chaos. It isn’t a one-off either – he throws himself back into the audience twice more, the final time during the closing song. The crowd fully embraces the band’s anarchic energy, and My First Time are completely in their element, delivering an exhilarating performance.

Getdown Services – The Market Stage ★★★★★

Minehead duo Getdown Services possess the kind of charismatic, frenetic and genuinely hilarious stage presence that’s increasingly rare. Thirty minutes before they’re due on The Market Stage, the tent is already beginning to fill – proof of the buzz generated by recent single ‘The Radiator’. By the time soundcheck rolls around, sections of the crowd are already singing along.

When Josh Law and Ben Sadler finally arrive on stage after what feels like an eternity, the anticipation is rewarded almost instantly. Within five minutes, Law has peeled off his shirt, with Sadler quickly following suit, prompting cheers from a crowd that knows exactly what’s coming. It’s become something of a Getdown Services tradition – and the audience wouldn’t have it any other way.

‘Crisps’ is an undeniable standout. You’d never expect to hear thousands of people passionately chanting for a bag of crisps, but somehow Getdown Services make it feel completely natural.

Sadler also seems to mistake his body for a microphone stand at several points, twisting and contorting himself into increasingly improbable positions as the set descends further into glorious chaos.

The collective energy inside the tent is relentless. With everyone bouncing in unison to the band’s dance-infused grooves, the floor vibrates so intensely it genuinely feels as though the entire tent could lift off.

Getdown Services gigs are some of the most entertaining live shows you’ll experience. Learning Sadler’s signature dance is practically mandatory, although Josh’s mock-authoritarian delivery makes it feel like you’re being reprimanded by a secondary school teacher. At one point, anyone not joining in with the arm-in-arm spinning dance is threatened with being “kicked out”. Elsewhere, he also addresses the younger members of the audience, telling them to be on “their best behaviour, you little shits” before reminding them to do their washing up for their parents – not even the children are spared.

There are plenty of firsts packed into a Getdown Services set: chanting for crisps with thousands of strangers, spinning around arm-in-arm in a festival tent, and happily being verbally abused by your favourite band. Somehow, they make every absurd moment feel completely joyous.

The Maccabees – Truck Stage ★★★★☆

The anticipation is palpable as the crowd waits for The Maccabees to take the stage. Following their emotional split in 2017, this marks the first opportunity for many fans to see the band since their farewell shows – if they’ve ever had the chance at all.

Frontman Orlando Weeks immediately acknowledges the significance of the moment, both for the band and the audience. “After ten years, we’re back! We’re The Maccabees!” he declares, met with deafening cheers. That sense of gratitude remains at the heart of the headline set. “It feels so good to be alive and being in front of you. Sing about your whole life tonight,” Weeks tells the crowd, inviting thousands to relive the soundtrack of their youth together.

For longtime fans, the set feels like a celebration of the band’s legacy. Nostalgic favourites such as ‘Pelican’ ignite huge singalongs, while deeper cuts from their debut album, Colour It In – including ‘Lego’ and ‘Latchmere’ – reward those who have followed them since the beginning.

Weeks’ soaring, heartfelt vocals carry effortlessly across the festival site, reaching fans packed right to the back of the arena. Paired with hazy lighting and atmospheric production, The Maccabees deliver a mesmerising performance that provides the perfect, dreamlike close to Friday night at Truck Festival.

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