Download Festival 2017 - Day Two Review

REMEMBER that big ball of fire I mentioned was in the sky yesterday? Well it is still there and brought with it some real heat to the festival.

After a champion's breakfast of two Cornish pasties and a can of lager, I was out in front of the main stage well in time to see HACKTIVIST open at 11am. Not an easy slot but there was a decent crowd and great energy from the band.

A Day To Remember - Picture by Ben Gibson

CREEPER were up next and were a band I was keen to see - and were excellent. They may not have been around for a long time, but they have a stage presence of old pros - not bad considering the size of the stage.

And next up were some old pros as SIKTH, who turned in another great performance. Not a bad way to start the day at all.

I also enjoyed THE ONE HUNDRED, a band I first saw at Sonisphere a few years back and continue to have great power and aggression in their music. OF MICE AND MEN too were great, if a lot more polished that those Brit upstarts I mentioned before. 

I drifted again for a bit, taking in some PIERCE THE VEIL and KNUCKLE PUCK but not enough to review. I did very much enjoy the set from CROWN THE EMPIRE, however, over on The Avalanche Stage before getting a bit of AFI and then COHEED & CAMBRIA.

Then came another of my favourites and a band that will surely one day be headlining this festival - A DAY TO REMEMBER. Their set was packed with great songs from All I Want and I'm Made Of Wax... as openers, Naivety and Paranoia in the middle and All Signs Point to Lauderdale and then The Downfall of Us All to close. Brilliant stuff.

Biffy Clyro - Picture by Matt Eachus

There was a lot of debate about Saturday's headliners BIFFY CLYRO. They were decried as a pop band by the hardcore and dismissed as some sort of novelty act that didn't belong at Download at all, let alone as headliner. And while ROB ZOMBIE's crowd as the second stage headliner was probably swelled as a result, those who stayed got a treat.

While Biffy do have the odd slower song in their repertoire, they know how to write brilliant rock songs. And it was a performance with energy, movement, enthusiasm, passion and a show - exactly what was missing from SOAD the previous night. They finished and treated the crown to an awesome firework display. A cracking end to the great day.

SOAD, Biffy and Aerosmith to headline Download 2017

DOWNLOAD Festival has announced its 2017 headliners - with System Of A Down, Biffy Clyro and Aerosmith topping the bill at Donington next summer. 

Photo credit:

 

Ross Silcocks

System Of A Down described the Download atmosphere as "electric", while Aerosmith's Joe Perry said: "Donington is like home to us. I have some great memories playing there and I can't wait to make some more."

Other bands joining the bill across the weekend of June 9-11 include Prophets of Rage, Five Finger Death Punch, AFI, Of Mice & Men, Fozzy, Rob Zombie and Slayer, among others.

You can look back at this year's festival with the RealSoundsOK reviews of Day One, Day Two and Day Three.

But for updates on the 2017 event, visit downloadfestival.co.uk

New additions to Reading and Leeds

A HOST of new acts have been added to the bill for this year's Reading and Leeds Festivals.

Ragga metallers Skindred, Lower Than Atlantis, We Are The In Crowd and Bury Tomorrow all join the line-ups for the Main Stage.

Frightened  Rabbit, FIDLAR, Kodaline, Tribes and AlunaGeorge have meanwhile been added to play the NME/Radio 1 stage.

As well as a host of new artists on the Radio 1 dance stage, details of the New Rock Stage have been announced with Enter Shikari unveiling their alter-ego Shikari Sound System. Funeral For A Friend and Gallows will also play the stage.

Other artists added to the bill across the weekend include Fenech-Soler, Alkaline Trio, King Prawn, And So I Watch You From Afar, Chvrches, British Sea Power, Tim Burgess, Spector, The Jim Jones Review, and loads more.

The festival, which runs across the two sites from 23rd to 25th August is headlined by Green Day, Eminem and Biffy Clyro, with System of a Down, Chase and Status, Nine Inch Nails, Fall Out Boy, Foals and Deftones also due to play.

For a full line up and ticketing details, visit www.readingfestival.com or www.leedsfestival.com

Six new acts added to Reading and Leeds line up

SIX new acts have been confirmed for this year's Reading and Leeds Festival.

Radio 1's Zane Lowe was given the exclusive announcement of Biffy Clyro signing up as headliners for the festival - the only one the Scottish trio will play in the UK this year.

The band recently launched their double-album Opposites.

Festival organisers have also secured two major US bands with both System Of A Down and the newly reformed Fall Out Boy also added to the line up, along with Foals, Jake Bugg and Bring Me The Horizon.

They join a number of other artists confirmed for the festival on August 23-25 including headliner Eminem, Alt-J, Deftones, Boy Better Know and Sub Focus, with more acts yet to come.

Tickets are available from www.readingfestival.com or www.leedsfestival.com

Rolling Stones up for four NME awards

THE grandfathers of rock The Rolling Stones are up for four gongs at next month's NME Awards.

The band are up Best Live Band, Best Book, Music Moment of The Year and Best Music Film. 

Tame Impala, Haim and M.I.A. are also each up for four awards. Tame Impala gets a nod for Best International Band, Best Album, Best Track and Best Music Video. Haim, who won the BBC's sound of 2013 competition, are up for Best New Band, Best Track, Best Music Video, Best Twitter.

M.I.A. is up for Best Track, Best Music Video, Best Dancefloor Anthem and Best Twitter.

The Maccabees are up for three along with Arctic Monkeys and David Bowie, while Muse and Kasabian are also nominated.

The Maccabees, Biffy Clyro and The Cribs are battling for Best British Band and Best Live act. Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian and The Vaccines also receive nods for Best British Band while Blur, Foals and The Rolling Stones are also up for Best Live act.  

Mercury-winning Alt J are up for best album, along with The Maccabees, The Vaccines, Jake Bugg and Tame Impala.

The ceremony will take place on Wednesday, February 27 at The Troxy in East London.