Download

Download Festival Review 2014

by

Download: Europe's biggest spiritual home of metal, rock and post hardcore. This year's line up was a diverse range of classic punk to death core such as Linkin Park, Aerosmith and Avenage Sevenfold. For many years Download has bought fans from across the country and surely caters to a diverse range of age groups for up to 90,000 fans. This year's Download had a lot of celebratory elements such as dedicating the main stage to the legendary Stephen Sutton after his amazing efforts for fundraising in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust. His dream was to attend the festival which he acomplished in 2013. Stephen unfortunately passed away last month after his battle with cancer. In rememberance, on Friday, during an interval, the whole of the festival gathered and engaged in a one minute applause as well as his signature 'thumbs up' sign.

 

Photo by Danny North @ Download 2014

Friday –

Welsh band Skindred debuted at Download in 2006, this year was their fifth appearance and front man Benji Webb claims “We present the UK in Music.” Skindred’s original and iconic genre of mental, dancehall, jungle and punk had an elaborate twist when they mixed the Harlem Shake with their set. As any Skindred fan may know Newport Helicopter is a tradition of taking off their tops and spinning them around in the air. Next on was Black Label Society, and although the crowd didn't seem as involved as Skindred’s performance, the incredible talent of the guitarist made up for it throughout the duration of their set. Rob Zombie took to the main stage for this year's opening headliner, Avenege Sevenfold. Robs Zombie's promise to pull off a spectacular performance did not disappoint. Crazy attire, makeup and hair was awash with leathers, hippy flowing tops, dreads, awfully applied tribal style face makeup which all complimented his stage presence which was truly remarkable, hence the term "so bad, it's good". After this performance, the main arena started to progressively fill ready for Avenged Sevenfold. This being their first time headlining at Download, the band have slowly built up their name over the past 14 years to be one of biggest mental names in music today. The band stated “It feels amazing. It’s a true testament to our fan base for putting us there.” Their opening revealed the amazing Hail to the King tour set visuals, which wooed the crowd topping it off with fire and fireworks. Avenage Sevenfold really did suit being a headliner. Their performance was jaw-dropping and captured even for fans who are more fond of their older albums such as 'City of evil', their self titled album 'Avenged Sevenfold' and 'Waking the Fallen'.

Photo by Danny North @ Download 2014

 

Saturday –

Bowling For Soup, who are celebrating their 20th anniversary together, drew in the crowds with their popular classical punk, especially with there 90’s hits such as ‘Girls all the Bad Guys Want’ and ‘1985’. Bowling for soups high demand and their array of well loved hits these were the only band allocated two slots, one being on the main stage. Their hilarious banter got the crowd even more excited. The giant inflatable sheep as a stage prop which they also had on their 2011 appearance gave the band an opportunity to do something bizarre to the sheep, which seems to be a running theme for Bowling for Soup. Predictably, Fallout Boy gave an incredible performance on their glorious return, playing a mix of their ageless anthems such as 'Sugar We're Going Down,' 'This Ain't A Scene,' Michael Jacksons cover of 'Beat It,' as well their new stuff 'My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark,' which is currently in Radio 1's top 40 Rock singles. Linkin Park closed the night and performed an amazing array of 25 songs in 2 hours including their full 'Hybird Theory' album, telling the crowd "This is a special night for us, we've never done this before." Expectedly, the turn out of fans for this was epic as this was a rare moment for fans having the chance to experience their most popular album that was released in the year 2000. After their first album the band then played singles from their new album and to finish threw a signed album into the crowd after a scream off competition with opposite sides of the stage.

Photo by Andrew Whitton @ Download 2014

 

Sunday –

Sunday kicked off with Memphis May Fire on the Pepsi Max stage that included a lot of head banging from the fans and enthusiasm from the band. Many of the band's songs include ultimate breakdowns, which result in the crowd going wild. Similar to their performance in Febuary at KoKo Camden the band never fail to produce a good performance. Later in the evening the beautiful Taylor Momsen hit the Zippo Encore stage to perform with rest of the band members of The Pretty Reckless. During the set, Taylor engaged the audience with her sexy, seductive dance moves and played the fans' favorites 'Miss Everything' and 'Make Me Wanna Die.' The festivals finale headliner and the band everyone was waiting for, Aerosmith. This being their 44th year in the music industry this band know how to pull of a bloody good performance effortlessly delivered the highlight act of the festival. Getting the crowd to sing with him, and singing to women in the crowd as well witty banter in-between song, Aerosmith was the perfect band to finish an amazing weekend of talented musicians, oddly dressed fans, careless attitude and drunken insanity. 

Photo by Andrew Whitton @ Download 2014

 

Slipknot confirmed as third headliner for Download 2013

by

They join fellow headliners Iron Maiden on Saturday 15 June and Rammstein on Sunday 16 June. Weekend tickets go on sale this Friday at 9am and are available at www.downloadfestival.co.uk.

Slipknot’s Clown said, ‘”We are extremely honored to have been asked once again to headline the Download Festival. This most definitely will be an experience not to be missed. Every time we've played Download we have created memories. Its always good to have the church of the Knot, the alter of the Knot, giving the sermon of the Knot to the congregation of the Knot, the culture of the Knot. This summer cannot come soon enough. Partake in the imagination or don’t bitch.”

Slipknot

Slipknot are a cultural force to whom rock fans need no introduction.  A band from Des Moines, Iowa, U.S.A, Slipknot have evolved into something not unlike the alchemists, spiritualists and magicians of yore – the men in Slipknot tap into something primal, instinctual and combustible with each performance, and every album.  The band has notched 11 Platinum albums and 38 Gold albums around the world, but these mainstream mile-markers aside, the engine of Slipknot is the power they derive from their live performance, the fertile ground of their fans and their shared, collective subculture.  Slipknot is devoid of compromise.  They offer no quarter. Take it or leave it.

Slipknot thrives in combustible circumstances, where impassioned performances filled with blood, sweat and fire are raw displays of esoteric wonder with a clear-cut, savagely creative command of expression. Multiple percussive instruments, electronic landscapes and near-apocalypticproportions of stage production bring forth songs like “Psychosocial,” “Duality”, “Wait and Bleed,” “Spit it Out,” “Before I Forget”, “Snuff”, “Sulfur,” and “People = S**t”.  All modern classics, and anthems for a disenfranchised generation, full of depth, meaning and hidden blueprints for positivity within a framework built from anger, depression, rage, sadness and darkness. Slipknot embodies the full scope of the human experience, spit out and handed over to the crowd.  Always imitated, never duplicated.

Andy Copping, VP of Promotions at Live Nation commented: “Slipknot’s last appearance at Download has gone down in the festival’s history as one of the best ever headline sets. God knows what they’ll have in store for 2013 but I’m looking forward to seeing how they’ll top the last one.”

Rammstein announced as second headliner for Download 2013

by

Weekend tickets with camping go on sale 9.00am Friday 28 September from www.downloadfestival.co.uk. Download 2013 takes place at Donington Park from 14-16 June.

With over 15million album sales worldwide, several world tours and a collection of music awards under their belts, Rammstein are back to do what they do best and bringing their awe-inspiring live shows back to these shores. The German monsters of rock last played the UK earlier in the year with critics describing the tour as ‘spectacular’, and ‘aferocious industrial music hurricane’. This performance at Download 2013 is sure to rock Donington to its very foundations. 

Andy Copping, VP of Promotions at Live Nation commented, “We’re very excited to welcome Rammstein to Donington for the very first time. They are an epic live act and a perfect Sunday headliner to cap off what is shaping up to be yet another fantastic Download festival.”

Rammstein @ Download 2013

When asked how it felt to be playing Download, Rammstein simply commented, “It’s only a festival….not a moon landing.”

Iron Maiden are confirmed to headline Download on Saturday 15 June.

Vodafone customers can buy tickets 48 hours before they go on general sale: 9.00am Wednesday 26 September atvodafone.co.uk/vip

Download RIP ticket packages are on sale now and can be purchased via www.livenationexperience.co.uk or by phoning 0207 009 3484.

Download celebrated its 10th anniversary this year with a sell out event headlined by The Prodigy, Metallica and Black Sabbath.

Iron Maiden confirmed to headline Download 2013

by

This will also be a record FIFTH time that the multi million selling British rock pioneers will have topped the bill at Donington, following two Monsters of Rock performances (1988 and 1992) and two spectacular Download Festivals (2003 and 2007).

Frontman Bruce Dickinson says “We’re absolutely over the moon to be headlining Donington again. The idea of returning exactly 25 years later with a show inspired by that same 1988 “Seventh Son” Tour, was too good an opportunity to be missed! And, thanks to modern technology, we’ve been able to update and improve on the original production. We will be bringing a huge new lightshow, stage set, various incarnations of Eddie, plenty of pyro and allkinds of other exciting stuff for the fans. And of course treating the fans to lots of their favourite songs from that period! We’ve had many great times at Donington and there is always a wonderful mix of bands and a really wild crowd who love their metal, all of which makes for a memorable show and fantasticparty atmosphere!

Iron Maiden

Iron Maiden recently completed the hugely successful North American leg of their ‘Maiden England’ tour, with a set list and production based largely on the band’s live concert video filmed in Birmingham during the ‘Seventh Son of a Seventh Son’ tour in 1988.  Widely considered one of the most important rock acts of all time, Iron Maiden have sold almost 90 million albums worldwide, played over 2000 live performances across 58 countries around the globe, and released 15 studio albums including the most recent, The Final Frontier, their biggest ever chart success attaining No.1 positions in over 28 countries.

Andy Copping, VP of Promotions at Live Nation commented,  “I am delighted to see the return of Iron Maiden to Download next year to mark the 25th anniversary of their first playing at Donington. They are without doubt  one of the biggest bands in the world and their live shows are legendary. I caught them in Los Angeles and the audience reaction to the stunning stage production and incredible set-list was just phenomenal to witness. After watching rare performances of songs like Afraid To Shoot Strangers, The Prisoner and Seventh Son, alongside classicslike The Number Of The Beast, Aces High, The Trooper and Fear of the Dark, I can’t wait to see this show again at Download 2013. It is sure to be something really special.”

Download Festival 2011 add 21 new bands!

by

def leppard download festival 2011Def Leppard are a global rock phenomenon with hit singles spanning an incredible three decades such as Animal, Love Bites, Pour Some Sugar On Me, Lets Get Rocked andWhen Love And Hate Collide.

Their fourth studio album Hysteria (1987) spent an amazing 101 weeks at Number One in the UK charts, also going 12 times Platinum in the US, cementing them as one of the biggest selling rock bands of all time.

A further 20 artists have also been confirmed to lift the proverbial roof off at this year’s Download incuding Sheffield hell raisers Bring Me The Horizon, Grammy nominated Disturbed, blues metallers Down and Chicago alt-rockers Madina Lake.

Fresh from their US tour, Black Stone Cherry have also been added to the Download Festival line up, joined by London political punk rockers The King Blues, American pop-punks Bowling For Soup, folk-punk singer-songwriter Frank Turner, Californian hardcore thrashers Trash Talk and the ‘battle metal brilliance’ of Finland’s Turisas.

Continuing the eclectic rock and metal vibe of the Download Festival, this year’s bill welcomes Guns ‘N’ Roses and Velvet Revolver guitarist Duff McKagan’s Loaded, high voltage glam-rock from Twisted Sister and multi-million selling Cheap Trick.

And finally, set to have the crowds head-banging in the mosh pits across the weekend, American metalcore band All That Remains join the bill, along with Northampton metallers Sacred Mother Tongue, the hotly tipped metalcore of Asking Alexandria, Christian rock act The Devil Wears Prada, new kids on the block Straight Line Stitch, Midlands rockers Jameson Raid and Japanese self confessed devil worshippers Ghost.

Download Festival announce 20 new bands!

by

From chief heavyweights and major players of the international rock scene, classic rock heroes, acclaimed rock legends and innovators to the latest hotly tipped acts emerging onto the scene, Download 2011 is set to make ears ring, voices hoarse and legs very weary this summer.

UK Top 5 charting modern metallers Bullet For My Valentine, who Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich included in his Top 5 current metal acts, the critically acclaimed New Jersey boys Gaslight Anthem, Australian drum ‘n bass / rock dynamos Pendulum, who knocked The Rolling Stones off the top of the UK charts last year with their third album Immersion, US classic rockers Alter Bridge,recently heralded by a US website as ‘the second coming of real rock’, will be making their mark on Donington with what are bound to be significant and exciting live performances.

Legends of the classic rock fold will be back on the scene at Download this year – the boys who are back in town, Thin Lizzy, LA glam-rock stars Buckcherry, American ‘jam band’ Clutch, who are now in their 21st year, Brit rockers FM and finally Mr. Big, the virtuoso classic rockers who have reunited for a new album What If.

Download 2011 will see the return, and even the debut, of some of the greatest and most influential rock artists of all time, all who have influenced a generation or more of contemporary music acts. Master of theatre and horror Alice Cooper, who will be inducted into the world famous Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame this year, Nu-metal pioneers Korn, US blues-metallers Danzig, fronted by the king of horror-punk Glenn Danzig, British rock heroes The Cult, who are currently on the road across the UK and Europe, sci-fi inspired shock-rock metallers GWAR, and ‘desert rock’ originators Masters Of Reality, who celebrate their 30th anniversary this year, alljoin the party. There should be no over-estimation of their influence on modern rock – to put it bluntly; without Glenn Danzig there’d be no My Chemical Romance, without GWAR there would be no Slipknot, without The Cult there’d be no Guns ‘N’ Roses, without Korn you’d have no Linkin Park or Disturbed, without Masters Of Reality there would be no Kyuss or Queens Of The Stone Age, and without Alice Cooper there would be no Kiss, no Marilyn Manson, and arguably no Lady Gaga.

Moving on to the new kids on the block, with a host of new and new(ish) acts set to get tongues wagging and heads banging in 2011. Black Veil Brides, known for their distinct Kiss-inspired appearance, The Damned Things – a blend of Every Time I Die and 80s thrash heroes Anthrax, the Nevada post hardcore act Escape The Fate, LA rap-rockers Hollywood Undead and Kerrang! Magazine’s ‘Best British Newcomer’ 2010 award winners Rise To Remain – fronted by Bruce Dickinson’s son Austin – all jump into the fray and will be looking to win over the crowds at Download in June.

These acts join headliners System Of A Down and Linkin Park, plus Avenged Sevenfold and Rob Zombie. Weekend tickets and RIP packages for Download (at 2010 prices) are on sale now from www.downloadfestival.co.uk.

Fancy following in the footsteps of My Passion, Youmeatsix and Don Broco? If so 2011 could well be your year as once again Red Bull Bedroom Jam returns to the hallowed turf of Donington Park to give eight new artists the chance to play to the assembled rock masses. If you’re in a band, get your video uploaded now at www.redbullbedroomjam.com, and if you’re a fan, get promoting your favourite act to give them the chance to play Download, along with four of the countries other top festivals, have a live gig streamed out across the globe, spend two weeks recording in the Red Bull Studio London and get a much coveted support slot on a major rock tour.

To coincide with this latest announcement, the official Download Festival website – www.downloadfestival.co.uk – has just been re-launched, and comes full to the brim with exciting digital Download goodies.

As well as a brand spanking new homepage, you’ll find news about the bands playing the festival, detailed pages with info about all the artists on this year’s line up, photo galleries and video content from previous Download festivals, and of course all the essential information you need to know about this year’s festival.

 

Linkin Park confirmed as second headliner for Download 2011

by

 

A limited amount of weekend with camping tickets for the Download Festival 2011, plus RIP packages, are on sale now from www.downloadfestival.co.uk. This ‘early bird’ offer ends 5pm Monday 20 December, and includes 3 day and 5 day camping tickets. Organisers have also confirmed that prices will remain the same for Download 2011 as they were in 2010.

Organisers have also confirmed that Grammy award winning musician / producer and director Rob Zombie will perform at next year’s Download – an incredible 16 years since he last played the Donington Park site with his then band White Zombie.

Since forming in 1996, Linkin Park have gone on to win two Grammy awards and sold over 50 million records worldwide, and they recently released their fourth studio album A Thousand Suns which went No. 1 in 10 countries as well as No. 2 in the UK. Known for unique collaborations with alternative and hip hop artists, Linkin Park’s headlining performance at this year’s Download will be a true highlight of the weekend.

Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington said: “We are very excited to be playing Download again next year. It’s one of the best festivals in the world and it’s always an honour to play in front of such a great crowd. We can’t wait!“

Rob Zombie founded the metal band White Zombie and has since carved a successful career as a horror producer and director, notably for movies House Of 1000 Corpses and The Devil’s Rejects. He released his new album Hellbilly Deluxe 2 earlier this year.

Live Nation VP of Promotions Andy Copping commented, “It’s great to have LINKIN PARK back at Download next year. They’ve always put on a great show and following the success of their recent sold out UK tour, it was essential to have them at Download, where they will deliver their full-on live show.“

Over 100,000 fans descended onto Download this year to celebrate 30 years of rock at Donington, making Download the second biggest festival in the UK after Glastonbury. It has the largest Facebook community for a UK festival coming top of the list with a huge 156,000 followers, overtaking the likes of V Festival (133,000), T in the Park (92,000), Glastonbury (90,000), Leeds (25,000) and Reading (21,000). Overall Download’s Facebook community is only second in the world to the I LOVE TECHNO event in Belgium.

System of a Down set to headline Download Festival 2011

by

Their heavily politicised brand of rock has seen System of a Down sell in excess of 20 million albums worldwide, and the band are known worldwide for their tremendous live performances and unique sound. The band released five albums between 1998 and 2005, which spawned the singles and rock club staples ‘Suite-Pee’, ‘Chop Suey’ ‘Toxicity’, ‘B.Y.O.B.’ and ‘Hypnotize’. Their subject matter marked them apart from the other rock and metal acts dominating the late 90s and early 2000’s, with topics ranging from genocide, Armenian and world politics. Having been away for five years, this reunion at Download will be one of the most talked about events of the rock and metal calendar.

In a statement today the band said, “We are excited to announce that System will be playing some dates together in 2011. We also want to thank you for your loyalty and support, not only to System Of A Down, but to all of our solo efforts as well. We have no master plan of sorts – we are playing these shows simply because we want to play together again as a band and for you, our amazing fans. We look forward to seeing all of you! For more updates, visit systemofadown.com.”

It has also been confirmed that American heavy metallers Avenged Sevenfold will perform at next year’s Download. Avenged Sevenfold’s performance follows two previous appearances at the festival in 2006 and 2008. Their last studio album Nightmare went into the UK Top 5 and they remain a firm favourite with rock fans all over the world.

Live Nation’s VP of Promotions Andy Copping said, “After the huge success of this year’s Download, where over 100,000 fans came to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Donington, I am pleased to say that Download 2011 is already shaping up to have another stellar line up. To have the mighty SYSTEM OF A DOWN headlining next year after a 5 year break is just fantastic, they’re a world class band and I’m personally very excited to have them on the bill. Also, AVENGED SEVENFOLD agreeing to come back and play at Download after the runaway success of their recent sold-out UK tour is a real privilege…they are a future Download headliner for sure. We’ve got loads more to come over the next few months so watch this space, this is just a very small tip of a very big iceberg!! – and make sure you grab your tickets as we are not increasing the price for 2011, so the prices are the same as what we had this year.“

Over 100,000 fans descended onto Download this year to celebrate 30 years of rock at Donington, making Download the second biggest festival in the UK after Glastonbury. This month, Download was named “Top Festival” at the prestigious Billboard Touring Awards in New York, adding to a list of numerous accolades and awards that includes “Best Festival” (UK Festival Awards), “Best Music Community” (BT Digital Music Awards) and “Event Of The Year” at the Kerrang! Awards, Metal Hammer Golden Gods and Classic Rock Roll of Honour. Now heading into its 9th year, the 2011 Download Festival promises to deliver another truly memorable weekend of music and entertainment.

A limited amount of weekend with camping tickets for the Download Festival 2011, will go on sale at 9am Friday 3 December from www.downloadfestival.co.uk. This ‘early bird’ offer ends 5pm Monday 20 December, and includes 3 day and 5 day camping options. Organisers have also confirmed that prices will remain the same for Download 2011 as they were in 2010. The popular Download RIP packages will also go on sale with all the favourites plus some new surprises! Don’t miss out. Vodafone customers can buy tickets, 48 hours before they go on general sale. Buy your tickets from 9am, 1 December at vodafone.co.uk/vip.