‘A summer of love!’ Musicians on the awesome, tearful return of gigs

From Sleaford Mods in London to Mogwai in France, bands and performers talk about the strange and wonderful experience of returning to the stage after 16 months of deprivation

There were those few weeks of strange, haunted gigs in autumn 2020, but for most people live music disappeared at the start of March last year and didn't return until this summer. It was a peculiar enough experience being in the crowds, but what was it like for the artists walking on stage after 18 months without the hum of amps, the dimming of house lights and the roar of an audience? From festival headline sets to low-key club shows, this is how the return to playing live felt for the musicians who came back.