11th - 13th June 2010
An increased capacity of 110,000 and three of the biggest headliners seen at the festival in it's 8 year history meant that Download 2010 had some massive expectations to live up to and under the blazing sun on Friday afternoon the anticipation finally ended as Massachussets metalcore outfit Unearth (6/10) opened the main stage with a set that drew heavily from 2004's "The Oncoming Storm" and latest album "The March". Frontman Trevor Phipps' voice was sometimes lost in the fairly sludgy mix but as openers on a day when everyone was waiting for the headliner it was a solid effort.
Up next were 36 Crazyfists (6/10) who again suffered due to the bad mix from the sound desk. Despite having barely audible vocals the four-piece ploughed through a set of their best known songs including "Elysium" with a special early appearance from Killswitch Engage vocalist Howard Jones.
Over on the 2nd Stage, Post-Hardcore loons A Day To Remember (8/10) brought their infectious riffs and catchy melodies to the eagerly waiting audience. With songs such as "The Downfall Of Us All" and "The Plot To Bomb The Panhandle" being sung back at the stage with so much enthusiasm I would not be surprised to see the band invited back in a much higher position in a few years.
Killswitch Engage (5/10) really struggled due to the sound issues. While playing a set which contained all of their strongest material, the band were drowned out by the drums. However, a rousing encore of Holy Diver dedicated to the late great Ronnie James Dio brought the entire arena to its feet.
2nd Stage headliners Bullet For My Valentine (9/10) were easily one of the best bands of the weekend. New album "Fever" despite receiving mixed reviews came across well live and fit in with a set which strongly suggests that the boys from Bridgend will be future Download headliners. A rousing rendition of "Tears Don't Fall" prompted a mass sing-a-long and while the choice of final song, the relatively obscure "Alone", dampened the ending somewhat Bullet have proved that they are ready to step up to the next level.
With 100,000 people moving into position around the specially constructed stage the atmosphere in the air was electric as the entrance video for the world's biggest rock n' roll band began to play. AC/DC (11/10) storm on to the stage to the tune of "Rock N' Roll Train" and deliver a show packed with hits from their illustrious 37 year career. With the stage production from the Black Ice tour we were treated to a train crashing through the stage, a giant inflatable Rosie, a somewhat worrying striptease from Angus and of course the cannons during the thunderous "For Those About To Rock". Exhausted, sunburnt and in disbelief at what had just been witnessed the arena emptied and the massive crowd dispersed back to the campsite to drink themselves into a stupor and wait for Saturday.
Awaking to another clear blue sky we headed over to the 2nd stage to catch Sonic Syndicate (8/10) who made of the most of their short set demonstrating the talents of new vocalist Nathan J. Biggs and showcasing the songs from their upcoming album "We Rule The Night" which is set to be released on July 30th of this year.
Reckless Love (9/10) playing inside a packed 3rd stage tent proved that the demand for cheesy glam metal did not die in the 1980s and their big riffs, shameless posing and showmanship worked the crowd into a frenzy. Frontman H. Olliver Twisted seemed genuinely taken aback by the reception the band received.
In complete contrast, over on mainstage, Lamb Of God (7/10) provided a slice of sheer brutality on the main stage as Randy Blythe drove the crowd into a swirling frenzy of limbs as fans charged down the hill to join in the giant circle pits which opened up all over the arena.
With the crowd baying for more of the heavy stuff, Thrash Metal giants Megadeth (4/10) took to the stage but were wholly disappoining. Despite including all the favourites they were, simply put, boring. On record Megadeth are amazing but their sound did not transfer well in the outdoor arena.
As the mainstage sound had been pretty poor all weekend I was worried that the next band was really going to suffer but there was no need. Deftones (10/10) sounded perfect from the beginning, packing their set with tracks from their phenomenal new album "Diamond Eyes" along with old favourites "Knife Party", "My Own Summer (Shove It)" and "Change (In The House Of Flies)" the experimental metal veterans had many of the crowd, myself included, watching in complete awe.
While many of this years Downloaders hung around the mainstage for Rage Against The Machine, I headed over to the 3rd stage to catch former Hanoi Rocks vocalist Michael Monroe (8/10) who with his new band including Hanoi bandmate Sami Yaffa and Ginger from the Wildhearts, put on one of the most entertaining shows of the festival. With songs from his solo albums stretching back as far as 1987 and a handful of Hanoi Rocks songs, the wild-eyed Finn was in fine form, at one point scaling the stage and serenading the crowd from on high. It was a successful end to Saturday and everyone left that tent with huge smiles on their faces.
Sunday began with NWOBHM stalwarts Saxon (7/10) who celebrated the 30th Anniversary of their "Wheels Of Steel" album by playing it in its entirety for crowd more than double the usual amount for that time in the day.
Up next were Glam Metal band Cinderella (7/10) who stuck to their best known hits including "Don't Know What You've Got (Till It's Gone). Frontman Tom Keifer in good form considering that he suffered hemorrhaged vocal chords in 2008.
The biggest mid-afternoon crowd seen at Download (an estimated 90,000) gathered around the mainstage for what was to be one of the highlights of the festival. Slash (10/10) with Myles Kennedy (Alterbridge) on vocals showed off his new album interspersed with Guns N' Roses favourites including "Sweet Child O' Mine" and "Paradise City". Myles Kennedy was more than up to the task and his voice echoed that of Axl Rose. Myles showed his prowess as a singer throughout the set particularly on "Starlight" and at times outshone Slash himself. A guest appearance from Lemmy on "Doctor Alibi" only added to the party atmosphere of the set. Slash revelled in his position as one of the most loved men in rock and the audience seemed genuinely sad when it came to an end.
As Billy Idol (6/10) took to the stage to the strains of "Ready Steady Go", the heavens decided to open. Most of the crowd stuck with it to dance their way through his collection of hits but with spirits (and clothes) slowly dampening he seemed to lose momentum.
Steel Panther (8/10) came on during the worst of the rain and soon had the crowd howling in laughter and singing along to their lewd, crude brand of 1980s parody metal. A particular highlight was new single "I Want It That Way" which proves that metal even makes the Backstreet Boys sound good. All the favourites were in there and despite having toured their album extensively (and appearing at Download last year) their material still does not seem jaded.
It has been almost a decade since Stone Temple Pilots (7/10) played on UK shores and as the rain eased off Scott Weiland and co. led the very soggy audience through their great history as well as treating us to songs from new album "Stone Temple Pilots". Despite almost falling over once or twice Weiland persevered, finishing on a high with a superb performance of "Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart"
As Darkness descended, Aerosmith (10/10) launched into their show with the energetic "Love In An Elevator". The Boston bad boys had the crowd eating out of their hands as the double team of Steven Tyler and Joe Perry assaulted the audience with their unique brand of blues rock. An acapella intro to "What It Takes" and the sight of 100,000 lighters being waved during #1 hit "Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" were particular highlights and it was a delight to see Joe Perry taking vocals during what he called "A lot of blues in not a lot of time". With the usual ending of "Toys In The Attic" Download Festival 2010 came to a close, leaving 100,000 fans sunburnt, soaked to the skin and yet totally amazed at what they had just witnessed. Festival booker Andy Copping brought three of the biggest bands on the planet to Donington and despite much scepticism over the decision to have fewer bands playing on the Friday he has once again been proved ultimately correct. Roll on 2011!
Jakk Knox
Photo taken by Jessica Gilbert (Originally From www.downloadfestival.co.uk)
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