This year’s Download Festival was boasting its biggest and best year yet, and looking at the line-up on offer it would be hard to argue with that. Rock music of all forms were represented and were set to be blasted out in Donnington Park to drown out the sound of the nearby jet planes. 80,000 people would come from all over to watch the festival. Could it possibly live up to the hype? Push To Fire joined the masses to find out.

Day 1 – Friday 12th June

The first band on the first day has the task of setting the musical bar for which all acts to follow would be compared. Welcome to the stage, Hollywood Undead from LA. Anxieties were noted as the potential for a bottling was in the air for this band of rap/rockers opening a predominantly metal festival, but no bottles took flight today. These guys impressed. Really impressed. Launching into each song with power and determination, they won the crowd over with every obscenely catchy chorus. Once they had done away with their questionable face masks after a few songs, I couldn’t help but consider them a modern day Cypress Hill. If anyone said rap-rock was dead, these guys sure weren’t listening at the time. Surprising and brilliant opening set to the festival.

Female-fronted In This Moment were finishing up their set on the second stage as a large crowd was gathering for the band that would follow. The vocalist, Maria, certainly has an impressive pair of lungs and belted out pitch-perfect vocals whilst moshing and headbanging with gusto. A solid performance all round from this well polished and well practiced brand of pop metal. It was a formidable effort indeed until A Day To Remember took the stage and dropped the crowds’ collective jaws. Extremely tight and heavy as hell, this is a band certainly deserving of their rising profile. Having played last year, they expressed a grateful surprise for the mass of people that came to watch their set on the second stage. The vocals soared over the crowd as they attempted to sing along with the same ferocity, while the guitarists were prone to some synchronized running on the spot which wasn’t nearly as cheesy as it sounds. Single ‘The Downfall of Us All’ took the crowd to a notable level of frenzy for an early afternoon on the first day of the festival.

Wading towards the main stage through the rivers of festival goers was a much more pleasant experience with the welcome sound of Staind playing the last few songs of their set. Although Fred Durst was in the area today, the famous ‘Outside’ was played out without the guest vocals but was no less momentous as a full-band rendition. Being less familiar of Staind’s heavier material made for a surprising treat as Aaron Lewis proved his screaming prowess and added some powerful dynamics to their already strong live sound. There are no gimmicks with their set today, just heavy riffs and deep melodies. As heavy as they would like to be, their set was more of a chilled out resting point in the day as far as the crowd were concerned. They would take pleasure in the set, but save their energy for now.

Up next were the charismatic Billy Talent who contrasted Staind by playing fast, raw, and with rousing passion. Although frontman Benjamin Kowalewicz expressed a little apprehension for bringing a more punk element to the metal fest, the crowd lapped them up. With half of the set consisting of tracks from the brand new album, they played enough of the older songs to keep their fans happy and shouting along between the driving riffs and machinegun drum beats. Even the assembling fans for the metal that was to follow could be heard acknowledging to each other that ‘these guys are actually pretty sweet.’ As excellent as Billy Talent were, the spectacle that is Killswitch Engage blasted onto the main stage afterwards to a raucous cheer from the tens of thousands who had been waiting for them. KSE do not look like your typical metal act. Although the drummer, bassist, and guitarist Mike D are recognizable as metal band members in their stage antics and dress sense, vocalist Howard and guitarist Adam D certainly are not. Howard prowled around the stage with the kind of cool effortless charm that matched his snazzy attire which wouldn’t look out of place in a trendy London nightclub. Today Adam D went for the red Mexican wrestler mask and long gold cape as he pranced around the stage in his short shorts. During what was surely one of the strongest performances of the weekend, KSE executed their songs to near-perfect quality whilst never losing that live show feel and putting on a captivating visual display as they ran around the stage in effort to make sure everyone was getting the full experience. In his usual fashion, Adam D punctuated the pauses between songs with his unrivalled and unrepeatable banter.

If any band could follow that great performance and draw an immeasurably large crowd to the main stage, it’s surely Limp Bizkit. The cheer from the arena was almost loud enough to drown out DJ Lethal’s intro music as they bowled onto the stage. With Wes Borland retaking his rightful place in the band and constructing an awe-striking costume with his artistic face and body paint, everyone sensed that this was going to be an old school Limp Bizkit show. As they launched into opener ‘Break Stuff’, this hope was heightened and later confirmed as they played their biggest hits from 3 Dollar Bill through to Results May Vary without playing their latest material. A very admirable move by a band that have been accused of being self-indulgent in the past. Fred Durst came across as humble and sang with an unexpected level of well-tuned pitching and force whilst the rest of the band belted out the tracks with precision and inspiring energy. Wes Borland reminded the audience just how effortless and incredible his guitar skills are whilst spinning around the stage without missing a single note. Towards the end of the set, Fred pulled two crowd members onto the stage who were singing the words to every song and allowed them to share his mic during ‘Full Nelson’ which was a pretty brave move. Limp Bizkit finished with the anthemic ‘Take A Look Around’ and sealed what was quite possibly the best set of the entire festival.

In an incredible procession of great bands, the next band on the main stage was none other than rock legends Korn. The excitement in the crowd as they took to the stage was palpable. There were no fanciful stage props, no aura of grandeur, and even their backdrop was the simple ‘Korn’ logo they’ve used for years and years. They were here for one reason: to play Korn songs to Korn fans. Covering every album from their self-titled to their most recent, it was striking how well every song worked with each other even though they were composed many years apart. ‘Blind’ and ‘Divine’ had the crowd in as much of a frenzy as newer songs like ‘Y’all Want a Single’ and had the same inspiring punch and ferocity. The two guitarists were relatively sedate compared to their past live show energetic motion, but it was clear that each line of each song still meant everything to Jonathan Davis as he belted the vocals forth with unparalleled sincerity and vigor. Closing with an unmistakably Korn-styled cover of ‘The Wall’ by Pink Floyd was awesome in the true sense of the word. They put on a justly mesmerizing show of musical prowess and passion much to the appreciation of the mass of festival goers.

Headlining the main stage and closing the first day of the festival was the legendary Faith No More. Their 1 hour and 45 minute set could have felt a little long to those in the audience only there to hear ‘that one really famous song’, but FTM’s talent and repertoire of powerful rock songs made for a captivating set. Mike Patton pretended to gingerly creep on stage with the aid of a walking stick as the band kicked off the set with ‘Reunited’, before throwing the stick around wildly in the air and whirling around the stage for the second song to quash any suggestion that they were over-the-hill. Ever the showman. Later in the set, they jammed the intro to ‘Chinese Arithmetic’ whilst Mike sang a rock/remix rendition of Lada Gaga’s ‘Pokerface’, perhaps highlighting the difference between an over-night success and this great band who have managed to sustain a career for decades and come back to headline a metal festival despite their years and despite the growing number of glossy image-conscious artists of today. After playing ‘that one really famous song’ by the name of ‘Epic’ and retreating from the limelight, they humbly returned for the encore that was so deserved and urged by the hungry crowd. As the last note rang out over the festival grounds, it was hard to imagine this first day being bettered or even equaled by the two days still to follow.

Day 2 – Saturday 13th June

Swedish metalers by the name of Hardcore Superstar delivered a strong dose of balls-to-the-wall rock and roll early on Saturday afternoon. They clearly have a dedicated following as some late-comers the festival arena that afternoon could be seen sprinting at full tilt to catch the set. The vocalist had impressive range and charisma to match. They appear to have studied all the best hair-metal rock and rollers from the 80’s and 90’s and tried to incorporate the best moves into their own offering. Perhaps not enough to write home about, but an enjoyable set nonetheless with the closing ‘We Don’t Celebrate Sundays’ being a particularly strong tune.

The act that followed them on the second stage was the northern irish alt band by the name of In Case of Fire who have been making small waves in the music scene recently. Unfortunately, the hype was a little too much for them to match with their live set. After Hardcore Superstar’s entertaining stage play and efforts, ICOF’s lack of any real movement proved to be a stark and disappointing contrast. They are unmistakably very talented musicians and they played some very technical rock with some good riffs thrown in, but the lack of enthusiasm coupled with a lack of any memorable vocal hooks left the crowd a little too sedate for an act worthy of Download Festival’s second stage.

Over on the main stage, Hatebreed were providing a much more entertaining set as can be expected of such a major hardcore band. Watching from afar, the huge audience appeared to be divided neatly in two by proximity to the stage. There was a large semi circle of fist-pumping fans baying at each killer riff and drum lick at the front; whereas, beyond the soundstage saw a more indifferent reaction from the majority. Certainly a band worth seeing as they had an enjoyably raw brand of metal that deserved the attention it gathered, but I imagine that in order to truly enjoy a Hatebreed set would require more familiarity with their material.

Fightstar had begun their afternoon set on the second stage in front of a very large crowd without a single bottle being thrown (in contrast to years past). Perhaps vocalist Charlie Simpson was beginning to get some relief from metalheads who were reluctant to forget about his roots in Busted. They performed their songs to a very high standard with some decent riffs and screaming vocals to juxtapose the well-pitched crooning from Charlie. The whole show was extremely polished and eagerly received by the cheering crowd gathered before them, which it has to be said had a very feminine cheer en masse. Although they played a solid set, it seemed that there was something missing. Their music was pretty good, but lacked any real grabbing moments. It all seemed to be so well rehearsed that the spontaneity and excitement of a live rock show was somehow absent. Their female admirers didn’t seem to notice though as they were nearly exploding with excitement from start to finish.

With their one big hit back in the ‘summer of nu-metal’, the crowd that assembled at the second stage to witness Static-X was quite staggering. Describing themselves as ‘evil disco’ with material that can be at times a repetitive and bland experience on record, their particular style of metal totally hit the nail on the head when performed live. It’s difficult to explain how well it works, but it truly pushed all the right buttons for this audience as the cheers grew song after song. Wayne Static came across as a very self-assured but also genuine frontman as he took time to banter between songs and call onto stage a scantily clad barmaid whenever he demanded a round of shots. Their hit song ‘Black and White’ was nonchalantly buried in the middle of the set, but didn’t go unnoticed as the crowd shouted and headbanged along like it was 2001 all over again. All in all, a refreshingly good set that gave the festival a bit of ear-to-ear sparkle once more.

The owners of ‘the most difficult song on Guitar Hero ever’ were the next band to grace the festival’s main stage. The one and only Dragonforce rocked out into the burning sunshine to the elation of those in the crowd who were familiar with this tech metal band. The musicianship on display was startling. Every single member has honed their skill to an art form, but they demonstrate this without any vibes of holier-than-thou, rather they strut around the stage busting out their licks with a contagious cheerfulness. Even the keyboard player in the background is scissor-kicking on the spot as he plays while the rest of the band parade across the stage nailing every jaw-dropping riff at lightning speed. The guitarists formed a triangle at one stage each playing a part one another’s guitar in unison. Jokingly referring to it as “the song that made Guitar Hero 3 famous” their highlight had to be ‘Through the Fire and the Flames’ but as a whole their set was immensely entertaining.

Stumbling across The Auteur on the Red Bull stage was a very pleasant surprise indeed. Offering a driving pop-punk blend of rock, their set was a refreshing short respite from the consistently metal lineup of the festival. Unfortunately, this difference in genre meant that they were performing to an extremely small crowd of people but this did not seem to deter them in the slightest. On a different festival lineup, these boys certainly would have impressed with their tight anthemic and damn catchy tunes. Certainly a band to key an eye on in future. As they finished, the world conquering Pendulum were hammering out their unique brand of dance/rock on the main stage to the throng of jiving festival goers. This set was charted up as their 150th live performance which is an incredibly small number considering they were billed so high up on the main stage and playing in front of tens of thousands of people who were almost all going nuts for their unrelenting beats. Perfectly performed with an extremely tight drummer to carry the tunes into each other suggested that the crowd would have enjoyed it just as much if they had simply put their record on the PA and pressed ‘play’. This is the question mark that remains over live dance music acts in terms of feel and passion that comes from musicianship, but masses here today don’t spare a thought for such things as they’re lapping up every song and dance themselves to dehydration in the sizzling heat.

With just enough time afforded to squeeze them into the day’s manic overlapping set times across the stages, it was back to the Red Bull stage to check out a band called My Passion. If anyone’s managed to tick the boxes of the emo band rulebook, this band have definitely done so. The eye-liner, the painstakingly styled hair, skin-tight trousers, over-pronounced guitar throwing moves, and brooding lyrical content and delivery. It’s just so over the top and contrived that it’s hard to appreciate what message they’re possibly trying to convey through their music. They do have about half of the tent full of people to see them though and the young emo fans give the band a good reception in this corner of the arena. Time to move on to the main stage to see a truly original act.

Marilyn Manson is famed for his strong theatrical live performances and his back catalogue of massive hit songs so it’s no wonder that there’s an enormous portion of the festival crowd watching the main stage eagerly for his arrival. After a long wait staring at a sold black sheet blocking the stage, his band kicked off the show and the curtain dropped to reveal... a pretty basic stage really. Marilyn sauntered on to a huge cheer and begins to utter his vocals into the mic with what appeared to be a slightly wayward and half-hearted effort, totally unlike past performances that have really impressed. After the first couple of songs, it’s clear that all is not right with the legendary rockstar. As stage hands scurry after him between and during songs to touch up his makeup and offer him new hats and jackets to wear, he becomes increasingly more agitated for reasons unknown to the crowd who are becoming less and less enthusiastic as they watch the show slowly fall apart. His band do their level best to keep the songs alive while Marilyn throws microphones across the stage and mutters ‘etc etc’ when he gets tired of singing the actual lyrics. With only four hit songs in the set list, the rest of it is comprised of new material which largely soars over the heads of the audience. Marilyn ends the show early by once again hurling away his microphone and being ushered off by stage hands. His band give an apologetic bow and leave to the bemusement and disappointment of their fans. Luckily, this was not the last set of the day, so there’s a chance yet for the mood to be lifted.

Headlining the main stage and playing in front of the largest audience in their career is the renowned Slipknot. They certainly didn’t come here to give a lackluster performance, but rather hit the crowd with what can only be described as an explosion of energy. They played with such passion and effort that even the lethargic crowd members were shortly headbanging away with every snare hit that shot through the evening air. With a well orchestrated set list of early material through to their latest including every hit single there was something for the old school fans as well as the simply curious portion of the crowd. Vocalist Corey Taylor positively gushed his appreciation for being gifted the headline spot and for the enthusiasm of the crowd at what seemed to be as genuinely momentous a gig for the band as it was for the Slipknot fans. It was refreshing to hear such sincerity from a band who are consistently topping charts and globe-trotting sell out tours. No single song was a stand out as they were all equally well performed and as well received as each other, but highlights of the performance included Joey Jordison’s rotating drumkit on its axis and tens of thousands of people in the crowd all kneeling down before jumping up in a mad frenzy as a particular chorus kicked back in. A well deserved headline slot that ended the day on a powerful high.

Day 3 – Sunday 14th June

Black Stone Cherry welcomed the early afternoon Sunday festival goers on the main stage. These Kentucky rockers were perfectly suited to their afternoon slot with sun high in the sky. With a solid set of songs and a well executed live performance, they gave the crowd exactly what they wanted: head nodding rock and roll with heart. The ballad ‘Things My Father Said’ was a surprising highlight in a set that otherwise ticked all the usual festival-gig boxes. The singer’s vocals were particularly strong and really carried the melodies impressively.

The exited buzz in the crowd after Black Stone Cherry was due to the fact that the legendary Journey were about to take to the main stage next. They knew the songs the audience was gagging for and wisely kept them until last, but the earlier lesser-known songs were extremely well played and captivating to boot. New found singer Arnel did the vocals remarkable justice with his voice that cut through the songs with clarity. The band as a whole played like the pros that they are and brightened up an already sunny day with their upbeat melodies and lyrics. ‘Don’t Stop Believing’ was an exceptional moment in the set with the tens of thousands of people there singing every word with zest, while the cracking track ‘Anyway You Want It’ had everyone bouncing around with glee. The only shame was that they didn’t get a longer set as it truly was a joy to witness.

Dreamtheatre followed and proved to be quite dissimilar to the cheerful and poppy Journey that came before. Like Dragonforce, the technical abilities on show from the members of this band were of the highest standard. The precision at which they deftly handled their extremely complex riffs, beats, and ever-changing time signatures was truly remarkable (Mike Portnoy being one of the most celebrated drummers of modern times). The vocalist also had great control over his instrument although it was rather nasally and wore thin over time. Unfortunately, unlike Dragonforce, they did perform with a ‘holier-than-thou’ aura about them and obviously take themselves extremely seriously which made their songs seem more like excuses to show off rather than collections of pertinent technicality. One song would have been long enough to get the picture of what their live show had to offer.

Over on the Tuborg Stage were fast-rising Dear Superstar who played the festival as part of their tour with Papa Roach. They didn’t mess around and launched into their set with enthusiasm as the tent slowly gathered a crowd. They gave a slick performance that proved they’ve given a lot of thought into their live show to match their well-written rock and roll tunes. Vocalist Micky Satiar definitely isn’t stage shy as he confidently stomped around throwing the rock horns around and showing great vocal talent all the while. A very entertaining band to watch, their performance suggested that they’re on the rise for good reason and could be playing bigger festival stages in the not too distant future. Definitely a band worth keeping an eye on.

The next band to grace the main stage with their legendary presence was the big-bearded Texan trio ZZ Top who very coolly swaggered on to the stage to a huge roar from the crowd. They might be seriously getting on in years now, but they still busted out the choreographed line-dancing moves and flicked their fingers and drumsticks through the songs with ease. Frank Beard, the only member without a beard, kept a rock solid groove throughout the set whilst Billy and Dusty soloed and riffed at whim to please the avid listeners before them. Each song was just as interesting and enchanting as hits like ‘Gimme All Your Lovin’ and favourite ‘La Grange’. Many members of the audience could be seen playing along air-guitar style as the legends calmly rocked the festival from the stage. They’re so cool in fact that they pulled off playing a couple songs on fluffy white custom guitars… because they’re ZZ Top. They can do whatever they like, frankly. They were a genius addition to the line-up and went down a treat across the board.

Over on the second stage, Buck Cherry kicked off to a huge crowd of avid fans. Offering a slab of old school solid rock and roll, their infectious and driving songs appeared to keep everyone in rapture as the singer’s vocal ability wowed. His voice had terrific pitching and a gravelly quality that gave their sound some edge. They appear to have taken influence from bands like Guns and Roses and Iggy Pop and The Stooges as they had a set full of rock anthems performed with vigor and passion which really made the whole package work.

As their set grew to a close, the size of the crowd grew and grew, signaling that Papa Roach were about to play next. A band who have gone through many changes since their hit album Infest, a huge audience was keen to see them take the stage today. Opening with ‘Between Angels and Insects’, they impressed from the off and also gave hope that they would play a good selection songs from their earlier career. As punchy and epic as their material is on record, the live performances made them even more so with them playing each song with power and determination which built the audience up into a frenzy. Their new material also excited with some memorable and catchy choruses. Singer (now going by the name Jacoby Shaddix) was overflowing with charisma and threw himself around the stage giving an extremely entertaining performance whilst the rest of the band also spared no effort by visibly rocking out as much as possible. ‘Last Resort’, as expected, had the thousands present shouting almost every word to the much anticipated song that closed the set giving Papa Roach an enormous ovation.

Rushing over to the Tuborg Stage saw irish rock band Therapy? performing to a crowd overflowing beyond the tent borders. Having been together for 20 years, it’s no great surprise that they drew such a large crowd and their live set confirmed how they’ve managed to keep going for so long. They made a tremendously powerful sound for just three guys and songs from the new album Crooked Timber came across brilliantly. They played about half of the set’s worth of material from the latest album and the other half composed of their back catalogue. ‘Turn’ was a particularly memorable song as the crowd swelled their voices for each chorus, but even this was out-done by ‘Screamager’ as the crowd went into complete raptures. Keeping the banter to a fair minimum, they expressed genuine appreciation and almost surprise for the sheer number of people who came to watch them play. The attention was well deserved though as their live show delivered on all fronts.

Def Leppard finished off the festival on the main stage. You can’t argue that this band deserve the long career that they’ve had, and it is always a special occasion to see such a band play live to an audience of young and old who all equally respect them. Their songs were played out with exactness and experience and provided a fitting finale to the three days of live rock. Their performance was a sedate one though, perhaps due to their maturing years, as they entertained some long instrumental sections to connect the songs and walked calmly across the stage as they played. This seemed to reflect the mood of an exhausted crowd who were enjoying one last hoorah as night fell on the Sunday. As the last note rang out over the festival grounds, there was a general lull in the crowd who had spent every last drop of energy over three relentless days featuring brilliant performances covering all manner of rock music. The impressive line-up certainly delivered a special weekend. Bettering it next year would be one hell of a trick.