InMe, LASTELLE and no clashes: Reading Rising is back this November
Two rooms with no set clashes, and an organiser who also has a drum kit to get behind. Neill and Rich catch up with the Reading Rising team about InMe, LASTELLE and what's coming to The Facebar this November.
Still fancy another festival weekend? Reading Rising is back at The Facebar in Reading on the 7th–8th November 2026. InMe headline on Saturday, LASTELLE headline Sunday, and Employed To Serve are on the Saturday bill too. There's plenty to get stuck into further down the poster as well.
And you don't have to work out which bands to miss. The two stages alternate, so there are no set clashes. Finish watching a band in one room, head into the other, and you're ready for the next one.
In Festpod 93, Neil and Rich catch up with Joe Conneely, Connor Shortt and Aaron Iley, who organise Reading Rising and also play together in InAir. We talk about the bands, what goes on between sets, and how they manage to get on stage themselves with a festival to run.
InMe, a birthday and an album a day early
Aaron's connection with InMe goes back to his school days, well before he was expecting them at Reading Rising.
After hearing the band on a free Kerrang! CD, he wanted Overgrown Eden for his birthday. His ferocious Geordie nan went into a Reading record shop and “persuaded” the cashier to sell her a copy a day before its release. She gave it to him on his birthday morning, and he had it on before heading to school.
Now he's helping to bring InMe to The Facebar. It's a booking he's been looking forward to.
The team take requests too. Kite Thief and Seething Akira kept coming up when they asked who people wanted to see, and both are on this year's line-up.
LASTELLE have grown with the festival
LASTELLE opened the first Reading Rising in 2018. This year, they're headlining Sunday.
The team have watched them grow over the years and talk about both the band and the people they've got to know. We also get into their live sound - the guitars, the space around the vocals and how much thought goes into making it all work together. It’s a lot more than you think!
If you're looking for a few bands to check out before November, Aaron has plenty to say about HENKA after seeing the act live with Joe. Scatter The Tribe are back after having to pull out of last year's event, and RXPTRS and Cabin Boy Jumped Ship come up in the chat too.
Don't worry if you don't know everyone on the poster. We ask the people who booked them what they're looking forward to.
Two rooms, five minutes and a lot of running
We were really impressed by how smoothly last year's event ran. The Facebar's two rooms let the next stage get ready while a band plays in the other one. Once that set finishes, you can move across.
That includes Connor, with his lighting desk and laptop. He's running the lights for both stages and has about five minutes to move between them and get set up again.
He also has an InAir set to play. On drums.
“Oh yes, I am now also the lighting engineer again,” he recalls thinking when he comes off stage.
Make a weekend of it in Reading
If you're travelling in, we talk about the hotels, places to eat and rail connections around Reading. There's a whole weekend of music, so it's worth sorting out how you're getting there and where you're staying.
The team chose November to fit around the main summer festival season. If you've packed away your camping gear but aren't quite ready to stop watching bands for the year, this one's indoors.
What about the beer?
Connor talks about plans with Siren Craft Brew. The team hope to have limited-edition Reading Rising cans of Lumina, the brewery's 4.2% session IPA, along with a supply of Soundwave 0.5, its low-alcohol beer.
The low-alcohol option gets us talking about what you drink when you're cutting back or choosing not to drink. The group want something they'll enjoy too. We also talk about playing sober, staying sharp on stage and how bands' drinks requests have changed over the years.
If you're coming, buying early helps
Booking the bands is only part of the job. There are emails, artwork, technical preparations and the worry about whether enough tickets will sell to cover it all.
The team's request is fairly straightforward - “Be a babe, buy the ticket in advance.”
If you've decided you're going, booking ahead gives them a clearer idea of who's coming while they're getting everything ready. They also tell us about the bit they look forward to - a band starting up and a room full of people getting into it together.
Reading Rising 2026 takes place at The Facebar on Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th of November. Weekend tickets are £45 plus booking fees, and you can book Saturday or Sunday separately. The event is for ages 14 and over.
Watch Festpod 93 above for the full chat, and check the Reading Rising ticket page for current prices and availability. Who's on your list to see? And if there's a band further down the bill we should be listening to, let us know.
Reading Rising’s lineup poster for 2026, with InMe, Employed To Serve, and Lastelle at the top of the bill.
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