Download 2013

Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett

It’s about halfway through June, we’re in the middle of a Derbyshire racetrack and it’s raining. That can mean only one thing: it’s time for Download 2013 to begin. Thankfully, we’re a whole lot less drenched than we were this time last year. The festival is already off to a much more successful start too, with the sounds of heavy music drifting across the surrounding campsite; a handful of bands were pulled from their opening slots in 2012, due to the atrocious weather closing the arena for longer than planned. There’s also been considerable shift in variation across stages this time. Whilst there are, of course, the regular metal staples that draw the attention from the majority of attendees, elsewhere you’ll find bands more regularly hidden in the pages of DIY.

Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett

During the somewhat sunny Friday afternoon, the fearsome Phil Anselmo leads his sludgy supergroup Down through a thunderous nine song set on the main stage, before Korn walk onstage to ignite the hearts of many a nu-metal lover of years gone by. Yes, of course they played ‘Freak On A Leash’. At the other end of the spectrum, Converge delve headfirst into their beautifully chaotic brand of hardcore. Treating the filled-to-the-brim Pepsi Max tent to a selection of their finest works from the past two decades, theirs is a talent unmatched; juxtaposing the meticulous intricacy of their sonics with the roughened brutality of Jacob Bannon’s vocals. Even their most recent material, including the title track of their latest full-length ‘All We Love We Leave Behind’, incites carnage.

Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett

All the way over on the other side of the site, pesky LA punks FIDLAR are causing a ruckus by rolling around the Red Bull Ballroom Jam stage, singing about the beer that their crowd inevitably had to leave back in their tents, trading it in for pints priced at £4.50. So much for the simple joys of cheap beer, eh? Their set is riotous from the get go, proving that they can weather it in a heavy arena with the best of them.

To close the first evening, look no further than those infamous men from Des Moines. Treating their 90,000-strong crowd to an aggressive barrage of their definitive alternative metal, the reaction Slipknot incite is so extreme that their set is punctuated with pauses, with the audience breaking the metal barriers on numerous occasions. Running through a greatest hits set, there’s nothing that’s not impressive about their performance; but there does feel to be something missing. Maybe it’s thanks to the stop-starting, or maybe it’s a lack of connection, but it feels somewhat irrelevant by the time the heavens open - timed perfectly - in the midst of ‘Psychosocial”s chorus. Leaving with the promise of a brand new album within the next twelve months, their slot works perfectly to remind us of the gravitas they hold.

As the second day of the festival dawns, we’re greeted with Young Guns on the main stage, making their first UK appearance in some time. Having spent the previous few months over in the US, the Buckingham five-piece take to the stage completely dressed in white, save for frontman Gus Wood’s black leather jacket. Blasting their way through a set full of their pop-laced rock anthems, they seem to suit the larger stage well, but the crowd are left a little bewildered at their cover of Smashing Pumpkins’ ‘Today’. Later, Mastodon are greeted with a rapturous welcome as they perform twelve of their tremendous experimental metal offerings. Laden with progressive twists and turns, their fifty minutes on stage include gems like opener ‘Black Tongue’ and the tremendous ‘Blood And Thunder’, paving the way perfectly for the next band appearing on our schedule.

Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett

There’s something about the way that Queens Of The Stone Age hold themselves on stage that is incomparable. Even in the face of appearing ahead of Iron Maiden, the band’s frontman seems solid and unshakable, giving the audience a long hard stare before launching into ‘Feel Good Hit Of The Summer’. Continuing with what they admit is a ‘heavier’ set, it feels perfectly weighty in terms of classic and new material, giving the crowd a taste of their new dark darling ‘…Like Clockwork’, and inciting flawless sing-alongs. Undoubtedly one of the most special sets of the weekend.

Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett

Following an evening jumping around with Howlin’ Pelle of The Hives yelling, “I am made in Sweden!” in jest of the band playing across the field, Sunday morning is spent with the rather amiable Cancer Bats. Finally getting to perform on the main stage - they were one of the victims of last year’s rainstorm - they bubble with ferocity throughout their short set. A testament to hard work, their early slot still sees a sizeable crowd join them for explosive tracks like ‘Bricks And Mortar’ and ‘Hail Destroyer’. The Gaslight Anthem are another of our genre-straddling acts this weekend, and they certainly provoke an interesting reaction. Shying away from the more potent punk of their previous albums, the New Jersey four-piece lean more towards the Americana-tinged tracks from their latest album ‘Handwritten’, and whilst the appearance itself is faultless, fewer and fewer people seem engaged.

Before we know it, Rammstein mark the end of the weekend. In what can only be described as a fiery display, they close proceedings in a way entirely unique to themselves. Having pulled out all the stops - and we mean, all of them - they confirm themselves as more than worthy advocates of the headlining title; watching Till Lindemann march dementedly around the stage, whilst setting himself on fire, it’s easy to wonder who on earth could take on the challenge next year. Guess we’ll just have to wait until 2014 to find out.