Less Than Jake w/The Bouncing Souls, The Aquabats! & The Bar Stool Preachers @ Leeds O2 Academy, 06/03/2026

Leeds’ O2 Academy hosts a full-blown punk and ska-punk marathon on Friday night, with four bands turning the venue into a restless blur of skanking, shouting and bouncing bodies.

Brighton’s The Bar Stool Preachers get the evening moving with a sharp, energetic opening set that wastes little time getting the growing crowd involved. ‘Choose My Friends’ kicks things off with immediate urgency, while ‘Trickledown’ and ‘One Fool Down’ push the pace higher with punchy riffs and gang-vocal choruses. Even early on, small pockets of skanking begin to break out across the floor.

A cover of Cock Sparrer’s ‘Suicide Girls’ lands particularly well, nodding to the band’s street-punk influences, before ‘Pick A Side’ and ‘All Turned Blue’ bring some melodic balance to the set. By the time they close with ‘Flatlined’ and ‘Bar Stool Preacher’, the venue has filled out nicely and the mood is firmly set for the night ahead.

Next up, The Aquabats bring a blast of colourful absurdity that flips the atmosphere completely. Charging onstage in their trademark superhero outfits, the Californian band turn the Academy into something resembling a chaotic cartoon universe. They launch into ‘The Shark Fighter!’ before ripping through ‘Cat With 2 Heads!’ and ‘Super Rad!’, their sugary ska-punk hooks bouncing easily around the now-packed room. ‘Super Show Theme Song!’ keeps the comic-book energy high, while ‘Pizza Day!’ turns the entire venue into a gleeful singalong. Later highlights ‘Red Sweater!’, ‘No Rewind!’ and ‘Dr. Space Mummy!’ maintain the frantic pace before the closing duo of ‘Fashion Zombies!’ and ‘Pool Party!’ push the crowd fully into party mode.

By the time The Bouncing Souls arrive, the Academy is close to capacity and ready for something more straight-ahead. The New Jersey veterans deliver exactly that, opening with ‘Hopeless Romantic’ before ‘Sing Along Forever’ quickly lives up to its title as the crowd shout the chorus back at the stage. ‘Kate Is Great’ and ‘Manthem’ keep fists in the air, while ‘Lean on Sheena’ lands as one of the biggest moments of their set. A rapid-fire run through ‘The Something Special’, ‘The Ballad of Johnny X’, ‘The Light’ and ‘Here We Go’ keeps the momentum high before ‘The Gold Song’ and ‘Late Bloomer’ wrap things up on a high.

When Less Than Jake finally hit the stage, the room is already primed for chaos. ‘Nervous in the Alley’ and ‘History of a Boring Town’ ignite the floor immediately, the crowd bouncing in unison as the band power through their catalogue with veteran ease.

‘Automatic’ and ‘Lie to Me’ keep the early momentum rolling before ‘Last One Out of Liberty City’ and ‘All My Best Friends Are Metalheads’ trigger huge singalongs that echo around the Academy. Between songs the band keep things loose with plenty of playful banter, the mood feeling closer to a rowdy reunion than a polished rock show.

A mid-set stretch including ‘Johnny Quest Thinks We’re Sellouts’, ‘The Science of Selling Yourself Short’ and ‘Help Save the Youth of America From Exploding’ lands particularly well, reminding everyone how strong the band’s songwriting remains beneath the brass blasts and rapid-fire guitars.

Later, ‘The Rest of My Life’ and ‘The Ghosts of Me and You’ briefly slow things down before the pace surges again with ‘Happyman’, ‘9th at Pine’ and ‘Plastic Cup Politics’. The encore — ‘The Brightest Bulb Has Burned Out / Screws Fall Out’, ‘Look What Happened’ and ‘Gainesville Rock City’ — closes the night in a final wave of shouted lyrics and bouncing bodies.

Four bands, one packed room and barely a moment to catch your breath: Leeds gets a full evening of punk energy that never once lets the pace drop.