After all of that we had ourselves a well-deserved lie in
which was both wonderful and catastrophic in almost equal measures. Sorry
Beartooth and Atreyu (three bands notched on the missed tally so far.)
But once we were sufficiently recovered we were ready to
face the main arena once more and we had it on good authority that our first
band of the day were something pretty special.
Lauren Golding has been harping on about Dead! for months
now and the second she knew we would be at Download she insisted that we see them.
Never one to turn down a trusted recommendation I was front and centre to see
the young prog-rockers on the Dogtooth Stage (which was gratifyingly slight and
also a tent, hurrah for shelter!)
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Alex Mountford - Dead!
Download Festival, Donnington
11/06/2016
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New track You’re So
Cheap is the perfect way to display everything this band are capable of:
gritty with a splash of beauty and a hint of allure. They have a distinctive
glam sound reminiscent of a past scene, but when it’s this brash and addictive
then there is plenty of room for it today.
Moral of that story is that if Lauren ever tells you to go
to a show…then you go.
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Kevin Thrasher - Escape The Fate
Download Festival, Donnington
11/06/2016
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If there’s one thing that Download Festival has in abundance
its nostalgia including for the more recent rock history. With that in mind it
was only right we skipped across the arena to catch Escape The Fact on the
Maverick Stage.
When we arrived the Vegas emo-metal-core (just go with it)
outfit were already in full swing playing to a packed out tent full of the most
loyal of fans. These guys have stuck with Escape The Fate through a wild
history, not to mention numerous line-up changes. To date, only one original
member of the band remains, drummer Robert Ortiz.
That being the case the current line-up has done a damn fine
job keeping the ETF fire alive and it shows because the fans turned up with
flawlessly executed hair and make-up to lose their minds for a 5-song set list.
That never ceases to amaze.
All of those fans matched the band’s impressive energy and
showed Download what crowd participation really looks like shouting out the
one, two and three of the fearless One
For the Money. But that was nothing compared to the extraordinary tempo of
closing track This War Is Ours which
was potentially the best song intro I heard all festival.
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Juliette Lewis - Juliette and the Licks
Download Festival, Donnington
11/06/2016
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Enigmatic frontwoman, Juliette Lewis, took to the stage in
an apt red, white and blue cat suit embellished with stars and stripes for a naturally
American rock set in a sea of British acts.
The set list did not disappoint with all the key players in
attendance, Smash and Grab, Hot Kiss and
Killer were the tracks I was waiting
for but an incredible few bars of Rolling
on a River at high speed was absolutely amazing.
Lewis is very talented but whipping her hair all over the
stage, dancing with the stage security, harmonising with the crowd, she proved
that she is a born frontwoman. Sure, she might be wild, but that’s what makes
this band so exciting and ultimately enthralling. I am begging for a new album
soon please!
I think it’s clear that Saturday afternoons just don’t get
much better than that. Sure, it was still raining but what’s one more damp day?
Besides, checking out more bands playing tents then we had on the Friday gave
us some great relief from the elements (Dear Download, I feel the Encore Stage
should be a tent. Thanks.)
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Neck Deep
Download Festival, Donnington
11/06/2016
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It was in one of those very tents that we then went to see,
for the first time, a band that have had the most remarkable for few years. It
was time for our daily dose of pop-punk, today from Wrexham’s finest, Neck Deep.
We listened to Neck Deep play live at Maida Vale for Radio One’s
Rock All Dayer (which was very much appreciated by us by the way) on the day we
drove up to Download and decided that our spot in the audience was
non-negotiable. Another act with a huge, dedicated and incredibly loving fan
base, Neck Deep are a sure-fire sign that pop-punk is undeniably back.
Not all light-and-fluff, Neck Deep tore up the Maverick Tent
with their edgy pop-punk (more emphasis on the punk). They exploded into our
lives with Citizens of Earth, also
the opener of last year’s album Life’s
Not Out to Get You, which called for much jumping up and down and head
banging from every body crammed into the place.
It’s a pretty momentous title to hold but Neck Deep claimed
the first real crowd surfers that we saw at Download, which says it all really.
That crowd lost the plot altogether, all inhibitions evaporated and anything
was on the cards. To all extents and purposes it was glorious carnage, until I
got mud in my hair. I won’t lie, I was pissed about that.
When they launched into December
both band and crowd alike gave it 100%. This track is pretty, unforgettable
(for literally days) and live they step up the tempo to make it just as
hardcore as the rest of their performance. Bravo Neck Deep, overly impressive.
Hopefully you understand that, whilst we were appreciated of
the shelter that all of these tents were offering us, we had already planned to
see these bands. The fact that there was a roof involved was just a happy
coincidence. That was until Pennywise happened. So anyway…
So here’s the thing about Download Festival, the thing that
makes it, above and beyond, the best major summer music festival in the UK
(come at me, bro). Download has a history of the most legendary, rock ‘n’ roll
hall of fame level headliners. Saturday June 11th will forever be
known as the day that I saw Black Sabbath.
I don’t mean to excessively embarrass her but I cannot
explain to you how much I loved my colleague for her first sentence upon seeing
Ozzy Osborne in the flesh. I quote: “Oh, is Ozzy the vocalist? Why am I
picturing him with a guitar?”
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Ozzy Osbourne - Black Sabbath
Download Festival, Donnington
11/06/2016
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As the masters and creators of metal, the set list could
have been almost anything but War Pigs was
a sensational, and uncomfortably relevant, high point. I’m sure all 100,000
people in attendance will agree with me.
It would be futile to tell you how good Black Sabbath are,
they are one of a small group of bonefide rock music legends and they prove it
every time they take to the stage. What did surprise me however, is just how
endearingly British Ozzy Osborne is. Of all of the things that I have seen and
heard in my life, I will forever remember hearing Ozzy Osborne say the sentence:
“Why does it always have to pissing rain?”
With names like Ozzy Osborne and Tony Iommi taking over the
stage it would be easy to hide in their shadow. But for session drummer Tommy
Clufetos that clearly was not something he could consider. At one point, Ozzy
exclaimed: “Back in a bit…” and promptly wondered off stage (at a surprisingly
brisk pace) leaving Clufetos to deliver a flawless drum solo to the applause of
the huge crowd.
As the final notes of Paranoid
rang out across the festival it was pretty clear that something momentous
had happened, even if it wasn’t for the last time. Can you really be mad at
Black Sabbath for changing their mind on that score? When it’s this good, it
has to last for as long as physically possible.
And that was Saturday! Filled up with bands that I was seeing for the first time, which is novel. All attempts at being presentable were
well and truly abandoned by this point so all that was left for us to do was pass
out. That’s after we realised that we had just one day left at Download.
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