Saturday 27th June 2026
Review by Mark & Matthew Pitfield
Photos courtesy of Cuffe and Taylor
On a beautiful summer evening, in the stunning surroundings of Lincoln Castle, more than 7,000 music fans gathered for what was arguably the heaviest and loudest night of the TK Maxx presents Live at Lincoln Castle series.
With the castle walls providing a dramatic backdrop, the stage was set for an evening of big guitars, huge singalongs and plenty of pop-punk nostalgia. The line-up brought together American Hi-Fi, Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls, and headliners Bowling for Soup — three acts who each brought something different, but all shared one thing in common: they knew exactly how to work a crowd.
American Hi-Fi
American Hi-Fi kicked off the evening in style, travelling all the way from Boston, Massachusetts, to get proceedings underway.
For an opening act, they had the crowd with them from very early on. There were clearly plenty of long-time fans in attendance, but they also won over many new ones as their set progressed. Their mix of catchy hooks and polished rock energy made them the perfect band to open a night like this.
One of the standout moments came midway through their set, when the band paused to take in the setting. Playing inside Lincoln Castle is not your everyday gig, and you could tell they appreciated the history and atmosphere around them.
They closed with their biggest hit, “Flavor of the Weak”, which was a brilliant way to finish and had the crowd singing along in full voice. Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls
Next up were Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls, playing to their biggest Lincoln crowd so far — and they absolutely made the most of it.
Although they were not technically the headliners, they delivered a set that felt huge. Frank Turner’s crowd work was outstanding from start to finish. He had the audience in the palm of his hand, encouraging circle pits, crowd surfing, a wall of hugs and even some ballet-style twirling. It was chaotic, joyful and completely Frank Turner.
The interaction between Frank and the crowd was one of the highlights of the evening. He joked about being a southerner, pointing out that to some people London is “up north”, and also mentioned that he had visited the Magna Carta during the day. Little touches like that helped make the performance feel personal to Lincoln, rather than just another date on the tour.
Musically, the band were on top form. They opened with “I Still Believe”, setting the tone immediately, before moving through fan favourites including “Recovery” and a beautiful solo acoustic performance of “The Way I Tend To Be”. By the time they finished with “Four Simple Words”, the crowd were fully warmed up and ready for the main event.
It was energetic, heartfelt and great fun — everything you want from a Frank Turner set.
Bowling for Soup
Then came the headliners.
Arriving from Texas, USA, Bowling for Soup brought their pop-punk anthems to Lincoln Castle — or, to put it more accurately, they stormed the castle.
Having seen them several times over the years, including arena-sized shows in Nottingham and London last year, seeing them perform in my home city of Lincoln was something very special. It was even better that my wife and youngest were also there to experience it.
Bowling for Soup are one of those bands who know exactly what they are. They do not take themselves too seriously, but they take entertaining a crowd very seriously indeed. From the opening song, “Almost”, they had the audience bouncing, laughing and singing along.
The Lincoln Castle setting only added to the experience. There was something brilliant about hearing these big, catchy, cheeky pop-punk songs echoing around such a historic venue. It felt like a proper summer night out — loud music, good humour, beach balls flying through the air and thousands of people having the best time.
After five songs, a huge number of beach balls were released into the crowd during “Getting Old Sucks”, which instantly turned the place into a giant pop-punk party. Add in crowd surfing, on-stage sparklers during many of the songs, and the usual Bowling for Soup banter, and the show really did have a bit of everything.
One of the funniest moments came at around 10:15pm, when the football was shown on the main stage screen so everyone could check the score. It was still 0–0, but that did not stop the crowd joining in with the band’s version of “Football’s Coming Home”. It was one of those wonderfully random live music moments that you just had to be there for.
Jaret, Gary and Rob kept the humour flowing throughout, but behind all the jokes is a band with a serious back catalogue of brilliant songs. The crowd lapped up every minute, from “High School Never Ends” and “Punk Rock 101” to “Girls All The Bad Guys Want” and “The Bitch Song”.
They ended, of course, with their biggest hit, “1985”, which brought the night to a massive singalong close.
Bowling for Soup Setlist
“Almost”
“High School Never Ends”
“Emily”
“Ohio”
“Getting Old Sucks”
“Today Is Gonna Be A Great Day”
“Punk Rock 101”
“Stacy’s Mom”
“Scope”
“Turbulence”
“Friends O’ Mine”
“Girls All The Bad Guys Want”
“The Bitch Song”
“1985”
Final Thoughts
This was a brilliant night of live music at Lincoln Castle. American Hi-Fi gave the evening a strong start, Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls raised the energy and emotion, and Bowling for Soup finished the night with a full-on pop-punk celebration.
The whole event had a real feel-good atmosphere. It was loud, funny, nostalgic and packed with singalong moments. For many people in the crowd, it would have brought back memories of teenage years, Kerrang! playlists, car stereos, CDs, and those songs you somehow still know every word to.
Bowling for Soup proved once again why they remain such a loved live band. They are funny, self-aware and completely entertaining — but most importantly, they still sound great.
Lincoln Castle was well and truly rocked.
Remaining Dates
Catch them at the remaining dates:
June 30th – Halifax, The Piece Hall
July 2nd – Scarborough, Scarborough Open Air Theatre
July 3rd – Llangollen, Llangollen Pavilion
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