FRIDAY

We were pretty amazed at the sight that we were greeted with when we first entered the arena of not just one main stage at the bottom of the hill, but two. Yes, AC/DC – the rock gods that they are - had their own stage. It seemed a pretty fitting extravagance as they were about to make history, equalling Iron Maiden by headlining their fourth festival at Donington. Pretty exciting stuff as it was also to be their first Donington show since 1991.

Year Long Disaster is the first band we wander over to see and they provide a very a welcome start to the festival reminding us that there was a purpose to the hour it took us to get from the campsite (both walking and queuing) to the main arena. They take to the Pepsi Max stage with confidence and are clearly glad to be there as demonstrated by the massive grin permanently on bassist Rich Mullin’s face. 'Love Like Blood' really kicks their set into life and shows off Davies’ strong yet emotive voice that is almost reminiscent of Robert Plant. Their stage antics are a little cheesy at times but at their best they bring that classic 70s rock sound right in to the 21^st century, particularly on songs such as 'Show Me Your Teeth'. Towards the end of their set, they cover two songs by Mullins’ other band Karma To Burn, but most surprising of all is when they invite Matt Maiellaro, creator of the Adult Swim favourite 'Aqua Teen Hunger Force' to end their set on Black Sabbath’s 'Never Say Die.'

We remained in the shade of the Pepsi Max stage to witness Sweethead who enter the stage to slinky 40s jazz. This is a band that has no sense of humility; if you haven’t heard of them, well, they certainly act like you should have. Troy Van Leeuwen (Queens of the Stone Age) and co. hold the stage with debauched glamour as Serinna (Sims – vocals) angrily struts around in 7-inch glittery platforms with complete ease. ‘Turned Our Backs’ is the highlight of the set and there is some movement in the crowd. This petite blonde has a surprisingly low voice on her but she fails to create a rapport with the crowd with her crazed femme-fatale stage act until the end when she finally decides to tell us she "quite likes" us which gains a cheer but it wasn’t quite enough to convince this reviewer.

We head over to the main stage for 36 Crazyfists the Alaskans look more than ready for this as they stroll out into the unexpected sunshine. Steve (Holt) and Thomas (Noonan) tear into their guitar and drums respectively whilst Brett Makowski looks for all intents and purposes like he wants to break his bass over somebody’s head, but it’s Brock Lindow the crowd are waiting for, and a huge cheer greets his grinning face. It’s a shame that their set is plagued by sound difficulties which mire the likes of 'We Gave it Hell' and 'I’ll Go Until My Heart Stops'. However, when the band moves further through its back catalogue (particularly to material from 'A Snow Capped Romance') the technical difficulties are near imperceptible as the crowd are roaring along to every word. The band launch through 'End Of August', 'The Heart And The Shape', and 'Bloodwork', the latter of which Brock spends the entirety of in the crowd; his wild vibrato intercut with the yowls and shrieks of anyone close to the mic. The loudest cheer is reserved for 'Aurora', for which Killswitch frontman Howard Jones joins the fray. It’s a great sight to see two of metal’s most endearing vocalists together, but once again it highlights the continuing technical problems as even Jones’s voice is occasionally lost to the winds. Still, in difficult circumstances Crazyfists do themselves proud, and they certainly won’t have lost any fans off the back of this performance.

Even Killswitch Engage themselves weren’t expecting to be on the line-up for Download 2010 but as they gear up for their second year in a row on the main stage, a beaming Howard Jones announces, “I’m back bitches!” to the biggest roar of the weekend so far. You’d be hard-pressed to find a metal band more suited to such a gloriously sunny afternoon. Couple Jones’ ever-smiling optimism (at one point he calls to the pit for a “wall of life, not death, because nobody gets hurt today”), with Adam D’s relentless charging up and down the stage with his superman cape flapping behind him, and you could easily be forgiven for forgetting that you’re watching a metal band at all. Before we are treated to 'Rose Of Sharyn' Adam D happily informs the crowd that he will “s**t in all of your mouths” whilst the big screen gives us a close-up of Howard Jones rolling his eyes. Metal’s odd-couple are certainly still a potent live pairing, but it’s far from a two-man show. Mike (Di' Antonio) and Joel (Stroetzel) throw in extra riffs and guitar tricks wherever they can find the slightest gap to do so, and Justin (Foley) is relentless in pounding out the backbone of the set. The sound problems, which plagued earlier sets from Unearth and Crazyfists, are still present though admittedly less noticeable. There are a couple of disappointed folks in the crowd who have turned up with their fists taped up CM Punk-style; clearly hoping to hear 'This Fire' which doesn’t happen. Instead we are treated to a stirring rendition of Dio’s 'Holy Diver'. The crowd lap it up and it’s a fitting tribute to a true metal legend. It’s the first of many tributes in a weekend which feels like an epic torch-passing ceremony and it’s easily one of the performances of the festival.

When we check out the Red Bull Bedroom Jam stage, we enter as Heights are ambling around the stage waiting for the go-ahead. Admittedly, the tent does get fuller after they begin, but it’s far from heaving at any point during their 20-minute set. Halfway through we start to wonder wonder whether it is actually possible for a screamo band to have too much screaming, however when they start playing songs from their EP we start to see their potential as the sound progresses from post-hardcore to having a cooler metalcore vibe. These guys are very watchable and definitely have a few dedicated fans in the audience who rush to the barrier as the lead singer comes forward to greet them. Heights get kudos from us for the last song as they all shout in unison “We were the fallen /These words are my everything / Can you hear me now?” and exit the stage leaving us with a slight feeling of awe. We look forward to witnessing their progression.

Staying in the almost deserted Bedroom Jam tent, we wait for The Funeral Party who are a lot more upbeat than the name suggests. This LA-based bunch seem a bit of an anomaly at this festival with their scratchy vocals, funk-inspired bass-lines and intricate percussion (including the singer using a drumstick on everything from the floor to the mic stand) but they provide a refreshing break from Download’s metal showcase with their melodic indie-flavoured rock. They put a lot of energy into this show as if they were playing to an audience of thousands, and we’re not even sure if they think that might be the case when during the last song the singer manages to crowdsurf over 20 people at the front of the stage, attempts to strangle himself with the mic lead, swings it off and exits the stage as though it were the most normal thing he’s done in his life and we wander back into the sun to get a place for Them Crooked Vultures.

TCV open with one of their more up-tempo tracks 'Elephants' and it’s an ideal platform from which they introduce those three members the crowd is really here to see. Dave Grohl throws in extra fills wherever he can and his skin bashing remains fast and hard throughout. Josh Homme swaggers onto the stage so laid back he’s practically horizontal, and still manages to suck back a couple of cigarettes during the hour plus set. Then there’s John Paul Jones who just looks pleased to be there and receives an extra cheer whenever he graces the big screen. They proceed to put on a virtuoso display of musicianship, but it’s difficult to imagine that there’s anyone in attendance who wouldn’t be willing to trade TCV for any of the members’ former bands (let’s face it, the album tracks come across, at best, as mediocre). The real star of the show is unsung hero Alain Johannes whose work on the guitar and keys keeps the set flowing and the crowd clapping. It’s here where TCV are at their best; when they veer away from the material on their debut full-length and indulge themselves in some good old fashioned jamming on stage. It’s here that you get a real sense that there’s nothing manufactured about the group - they’re friends and have known one another long enough that they play off of each other flawlessly. It never feels too self-indulgent and it’s in these moments that they get the crowd whipped up the most. After a brief run through of 'Mind Eraser', they close things up with an even longer rendition of their 8-minute album epic 'Warsaw' which gives them a final opportunity to show what they’re capable of. When Josh Homme announces “I love AC/DC”, as the band take a bow, he seems to have caught the mood of the pit who are already beginning to shuffle to the left toward the adjacent shadow of the devil-hatted stage which awaits tonight’s headliners.

It was already getting rather tight in the crowd for AC/DC half an hour before they are expected onstage, and with good reason. Apart from the fact that every other stage closed down before AC/DC were due to start, the whole day we had encountered guys dressed in school shorts, shirt and tie in homage to Angus Young. Earlier on in the day I spoke to a bloke who had paid over £500 to get to Donington just to see AC/DC for the first time. So, fan or not, everyone was excited to see what they had in store for us.

On the screens we see an animation of Angus and a few devil girls which really rile the crowd up, cartoon Angus gets into the driving seat of a steam train and loses control. Seconds later, a life-sized metal train bursts through the screen and the band crank straight into (you guessed it) 'Rock N’ Roll Train'. The crowd are absolutely mental with excited bouncing and frequent "Angus! Angus!" chants in between songs, particularly after the iconic 'Back In Black' is played pretty early on in the set. Of course the stage show is made of pure classic metal with a huge bell lowered for Brian Johnson to ring during the intro of 'Hell’s Bells', a grotesque giant blow-up doll emerges riding the train during 'A Whole Lotta Rosie' and a pneumatic platform with confetti cannons during Angus’ epic solos. With all these extravagances, it’s easy to see why they needed their own stage. New songs from album 'Black Ice', including the title track are received well; there’s nothing particularly new and exciting about the latest material with familiar riffs throughout but as the saying goes, "if it aint broke, don’t fix it". While the sun sets, the band end on the anthem 'For Those About to Rock' which perfectly sum up the atmosphere at the end of the first day as fireworks shoot off into the night.

---

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites