Crowds of people swarmed in the gates to attend the first night of Summerfest. Although there were many big headliners on opening night like Florida Georgia Line and Sheryl Crow, Bastille ended the first night for many attendees.

Hours before Bastille even hit the stage, fans were anxiously awaiting them. The Big Bang fireworks display went off in view of the stage, giving the perfect introduction for the group.

A little after 10 p.m., the band finally took the stage and opened with “Things We Lost in the Fire,” getting the audience pumped up from the start with their high energy, crazy lights and upbeat music.

Immediately after opening their set, lead singer Dan Smith apologized to the crowd for sounding like an “old man.” He was losing his voice, though barely noticeable since he still had the audience hooked. With his delightful British charm, Smith asked the audience to help him sing, which they did throughout the entire concert. The band made sure to please everyone as they played popular hits, “Bad Blood,” and “Pompeii,”.

The guys slowed things down with their song “Oblivion”, then right back up to “Of the Night.” There was even a cover of the 90’s hit by TLC, “No Scrubs.” Bastille surprised the audience with two songs, “Snakes” and “Hanging,” from their forthcoming album, leaving them in great anticipation for the release.

Only with a few cracks in Smith’s voice, Bastille left the people of Milwaukee ready for their return.

If you are a fan of Bastille, this show proved their worth as a live band. To be the last act for the opening night of Summerfest is a great opportunity, for Bastille it certainly left their fans and fest-goers ready for new material.