Download Festival 2013 Report


Download 20013And so it begins: one of the most awaited music festival in the planet comes to its eleventh edition in 2013 with a three day line-up to die for. Three headliners that could not have been a better fit to define Download‘s grandeur: Iowa mighty potency Slipknot, legendary Iron Maiden and über majestic Rammstein made Download 2013 one to certainly remember for good. The weather, as tradition calls, had no mercy for the first two days: nevertheless the mood of the thrilled crowd is rising as each band takes its turn in spoiling a demanding audience with all diversions of traditional rock and metal. Sunday the sun finally remembers to grace the county of Leicestershire with the arrival of Hellyeah and their southern fire. Three days of pure metal and rock bliss: from the Finnish battle pride that Turisas bring back to a familiar ground, to the Swedish freedom rock of Free Fall, to Alice In Chains most awaited come back and Satyricon touch of eerie black metal, Download is, once again, the festival for the true hungry souls. As the days unfold and the campground fills with well equipped die-hard fans and their colourful tents, the atmosphere become simply irresistible.

Friday 13/06/13

DOWNLOAD 2 FREE FALLIt’s Swedish freedom rockers Free Fall‘s turn to be the festival warmers, with a much heated performance at the Red Bull Bedroom Jam Stage. Frontman Kim Fransson is leading his troop to certain splendour. Wishing away pathetic fallacy, tens of thousands make the arduous trudge across Donington Park hoping incessant rain and grim skies aren’t a permanent fixture of this year’s Download Festival. In the arena wet and colourful ponchos cling tightly to t-shirts as revellers scramble between tents and stages, searching as much for shelter as stimulation. On the Pepsi Max Stage, London quintet Hang The Bastard provide both. From behind unkempt manes they shift between lumbering doom and hurried sludge with assurance and without warning. Scrums form and the crowd swells with each successive riff. The band close their powerful inaugural Download performance with the delightfully depraved Sweet Mother and prove they’re one of the country’s most promising heavy bands. Before departing, bassist Joe Nally thanks the crowd and urges us to stick around for The Sword. We do. The Texan stoner vendors follow with a typically hulking yet skilful set including fan favourites ‘Tres Brujas’ and ‘How Heavy This Axe’ before closing with ‘Apocryphon’. By late afternoon the clouds break for Down. Phil Anselmo claws at the sky as if attempting to drag the sun closer to the Main Stage. The band power through ‘Eyes Of the South’, ‘Witchtripper’ and ‘Lifer’, their obligatory dedication to the forever missed Dimebag Darrell. Anselmo also pays tribute to the venerable Jeff Hanneman before finale ‘Bury Me In Smoke’. At the song’s end the ever-whimsical Anselmo invites a slew of miscellaneous musicians on stage and the song evolves into a collaborative jam beneath its primal chorus. “I’m old, deaf, fat, bald and I love all o’ ya.” DOWNLOAD 6 TURISASWe love you too, Phil. Back on the Pepsi Max Stage, embellished in ceremonial war paint, Finnish Vikings Turisas conduct a battle metal show complete with symphonic folk metal classics ‘Stand UpAnd Fight’ and ‘Battle Metal’. Some members of the crowd have adorned the commemorative red and black body paint too, and are especially excited when vocalist Mathias ‘Warlord’ Nygård announces a new Turisas album, due to arrive in the UK in early September. On the Main Stage, with Papa Roach having already played, Korn coax us further down the path toward nu metal’s glory days with 90s classics ‘Blind’, ‘Got The Life’ and ‘Freak On A Leash”. With the return of guitarist Brian ‘Head’ Welch, Korn are in great form and prove their worth under the late afternoon attempt of sunshine. Swedish Europe and Danish Volbeat grace the Main Stage in a pleasant and carefree sequence when more comes from Finland: while HIM appease the Pepsi Max Stage and Black Stone Cherry rip through a thoroughly entertaining set on the Zippo Encore Stage, a pneumatic percussive onslaught brings the Main Stage to a close. Slipknot seem flat at first. But pandemonium ensues by third track ‘Wait And Bleed’, and the returning rain only adds to the atmosphere. The audience is so animated they break the safety barriers several times which forces the band to cease during ‘Left Behind’ as security rushes to make amends. The malevolence of a group that terrified a generation of parents is somewhat dampened by such insistence on crowd safety. “No one is getting hurt on my watch” says a concerned Corey Taylor. Still, the Iowans rattle through ‘Pulse Of The Maggots’, ‘Psychosocial’ and an emotional ‘Duality’ dedicated to late bassist Paul Gray. As the Slipknot banner falls to reveal a banner adorned with ‘#2’ in homage to Gray, the band close with a bitter rendition of Surfacing. At times Slipknot were limp, and weren’t helped by crowd issues stalling momentum. They may have failed to recapture the magic of their legendary 2009 performance but they gave a raucous, emotional and memorable headline performance nonetheless.

Saturday 14/06/13

DOWNLOAD 11 KATATONIAThe appearance of a grotesque green goblin on the Pepsi Max Stage can only mean symphonic death metal courtesy of California’s Nekrogoblikon. At the Zippo Encore Stage, Heaven’s Basement and Hardcore Superstars prepare the ground for Swedish institution Katatonia: they magically loose an atmospheric set beneath sullen skies. A blend of beauty and brutality is found throughout their expertly crafted set which includes ‘Forsaker’, ‘Lethean’ and ‘Leaders’. On the Main Stage Mastodon play a lacklustre set too reliant on latest album The Hunter. But they play well; the inimitable Brann Dailor is a pleasure to behold. His drumming is impressive, as always, and he also provides assured lead vocals during ‘Dry Bone Valley’ and ‘Oblivion’. Later, Oliver Charles, drummer of Gogol Bordello, tells Dailor is the only drummer that makes him feel insecure about his own abilities. Mastodon smash through sludge anthem ‘Blood And Thunder’ before closing with ‘The Sparrow’, a lovely song perhaps unfit to finish a festival set. There’s a curious dissonance as Alice In Chains somehow transform bleak and tragic songs ‘Down In A Hole’ and ‘Rooster’ into feel good festival anthems beneath a brightening sun. William DuVall and Jerry Cantrell’s voices harmonize to fantastic effect. The grunge icons are warmly embraced by the crowds, and throughout classics like ‘Dam That River’ and ‘Man In the Box’ they sound as heavy as any band on the bill. Great to hear that ‘Hollow’, the captivating opening track of their brand new The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here which was released on May 28th. “We’re DOWNLOAD 14 ALICEMotörhead and we play rock ‘n’ roll,” slurs Lemmy, a God amongst men, before the veterans thunder through a rambunctious set including classics ‘Damage Case’, ‘Killed By Death’ and mandatory encore closers ‘Ace Of Spades’ and ‘Overkill’. Those in the know make their way to the Pepsi Max Stage to reserve their space, for the until recently, anonymous-yet-acclaimed Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats. The Cambridge-based four-piece play psychedelic doom with imposing discipline. ‘Mt. Abraxas’ goads the audience into a narcotic and concomitant sway. With perfect tones and a vocalist on fine form, they give one of the sharpest performances of the weekend, culminating in the sinister ‘Over And Over Again’. Back on the Main Stage, the usually effortless sleaze of Queens of the Stone Age seems a little aloof, with the only exception perhaps of the opening classic ‘Feel Good Hit Of The Summer’. Though they tear through ‘My God Is The Sun’ and a host of hits from 2002’s Songs For The Deaf, they never truly connect with the crowd. Prevailing wind takes its toll on the sound but the crowd sing loud enough during ‘No One Knows’ that many don’t notice. The band leave the stage curiously early with ‘A Song For The Dead’ still echoing from their amps. It’s an unusual performance, not entirely for the right reasons. After an obliging set skilfully delivered by Taiwanese Chthonic, a precedent is set when a frontman walks on stage wearing an owl on his head. Thankfully, for Norwegian maniacs Kvelertak, maintaining such lunacy isn’t anDOWNLOAD 15 KVELERTAK issue. They provide furious blasts of black metal, hardcore punk and classic rock with abundant energy that naturally spills throughout the crowd. Make no mistake, Kvelertak are a band destined for festival greatness. Even a pre-show Spitfire flyover can’t save the mighty Iron Maiden from the mercy of Mother Nature. The wind plagues their sound throughout and it means enjoyment is more easily derived from the band’s visual prowess rather than their audio. Thankfully then, the elaborate Maiden England stage show replicating the 1988 show for the Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son tour, featuring ever-changing backdrops and plentiful pyro, is enough to entertain. Despite being rendered almost inaudible by strong winds the iconic back catalogue of Britain’s biggest metal band is well represented, with frontman Bruce Dickinson belting out classics like ‘Run To The Hills’ alongside rarer live tracks like ‘The Prisoner’. Iron Maiden play a set that seems perfect for devoted fans but less so for more casual fans. Still, ‘Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son’ is an irrefutable highlight and for many ‘Fear Of The Dark’ is a once-in-a-lifetime moment. An epic encore of ‘Aces High’, ‘The Evil That Men Do’ and an extended ‘Running Free’ rounds off a mixed performance.

Sunday 14/06/13

DOWNLOAD 18 HELLYEAHAs a strong sun FINALLY hangs in the sky on the last final day of Download 2013, the heavy grooves of Hellyeah give weary watchers a much-needed wake-up call on the Zippo Encore Stage. The hazy retro blues rock of Sweden’s Graveyard is a gratefully accepted palate cleanser granting spectators a break from the assailment of heavy metal. It’s not a show that inspires much movement in the crowd. It’s one to watch and admire, and there’s plenty to admire. Mythological death metal peddlers Amon Amarth suffer technical difficulties that cuts their set drastically short. Frontman Johan Hegg wastes no time in straddling the bowsprit of his Viking longboat and the band emphatically deliver their brand new hit ‘Deceiver Of The Gods’ to their hungry crowd before finishing with old favourite ‘Twilight Of the Thunder God’. Sunday mass ensues courtesy of Swedish Ghost. The Nameless Ghouls storms through Infestissumam before being joined by Papa Emeritus II whose sweet voice coasts through ‘Per Aspera Ad Inferi’. The understated stage setup means Papa’s charm and mystique has no trouble holding the audience’s attention. He guides Ghost through ‘Ritual’ and ‘Year Zero’ with aplomb. A rousing finale of ‘Monstrance Clock’ has the entire Zippo Encore Stage worshipping Satan, and suggests the group’s festival prominence can only increase. Australian Airbourne and all American Limp Bizkit have the honour to close the Zippo Encore Stage. Closing the Pepsi Max Stage this year are black metal mainstays Satyricon. DOWNLOAD 21 GHOSTA compelling performance of ‘Repined Bastard Nation’ opens the set and the modest crowd react with appropriate energy. Huge cries ring out for ‘Mother North’ and the mention of their self-titled eighth album which arrives in September. After the clattering intro sends rockets into the air, a curtain drops and the crowds surge as Teutonic glory Rammstein are revealed on the Main Stage, following a rather bleak performance by 30 Seconds To Mars. With a playful finger lifted to his mouth, Till Lindemann is lowered from the lightning rig in a fluffy pink coat and ‘Ich Tu Dir Weh’ takes shape as much of the enormous audience struggle to stay on their feet. What follows is an outrageous display of industrial German hardness, innumerable pyrotechnics and simulated anal sex. During ‘Feuer Frei!’ Lindemann headbutts a microphone, splitting his forehead and sending blood trickling down his face. The colossal crowd chants louder than it has all weekend during a life-affirming ‘Du Hast’, during which wire-guided fireworks are sent over the audience, hitting the mixing tower before screaming back and initiating a large explosion on stage. ‘Asche Zu Asche’, ‘Du Riechst So Gut’ and ‘Ich Will’ are also highlights. The band give an incredibly tight performance aided by sublime sound. A piano, spine-chilling, stripped down version of ‘Mein Herz Brennt’, opens the encore and shows a softer side to the band and Lindemann, a man who, in a matter of minutes, during closer ‘Pussy’, would mount a giant mobile phallus and spray foam all over the crowd under a shower of white confetti. With fans speculating this could’ve been the Germans’ last show on English soil, Rammstein end Download Festival 2013 with an impossibly heavy blend of flames, sprechgesang, sodomy and schadenfreude, and it’s perfect in every way. Download 2013 comes to end with fans already making plans for 2014: the twelfth edition will take place from June 13 to June 15th. Early bird tickets are already available from www.downloadfestival.co.uk. Stay tuned for more!

Download Festival
13-15 June 2013
Donington Park, Leicestershire (UK)
Words: Sean McGeady
Additional comments: Marcus J. West
Photos: Fabiola Santini

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