Green Day’s flawless show starts Download Festival – report of the first day

I don’t know how much of a festival fan you are, but if you’re slightly interested in discovering the vibe and what happened on the first day of Download Festival in the UK, you might want to stick to this page. First of all, the festival grounds are big but very manageable, and the stages are at a decent walking distance from each other, about a maximum of 10 minutes, I would say. This is good because, as it turns out, most times, there are many bands playing at the same time, and you may want to catch both. The solution is: you can do it! Just wear comfortable shoes, stay hydrated, and you’ll be fine. So, let’s start at the very beginning…

Gore.

After gaining a little bit of familiarity with the festival grounds, we marched to the Dogtooth stage to see Gore.. I’ve been reading about them and sporadically listening to some of their music, but in a live setting, that is where they shine. This band put on a massive show that everyone thoroughly enjoyed. They blend multiple subgenres in their music, and their stage presence is solid. They’re also very good entertainers rather than just simple musicians, and in this day and age we have to appreciate that too. So if they happen to come next to you, don’t miss them if you’re into heavier music!

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Dirty Honey

This year’s lineup of Download Festival is full of modern metal, metalcore and quite powerful acts, but they didn’t forget about the genre that started everything, which is just classic heavy metal. And this is why I was so excited to see Dirty Honey. Silvio (my usual colleague at festivals) saw them already some time ago, and he’s been praising their performance for so long. Now I fully understand why! While their genre isn’t anything new under this sun, their delivery, their passion and their overall show are top class. I was really impressed at how amazing they were in engaging with the crowd; lead singer Marc LaBelle came down into the audience during the opening track of their set. I definitely want to see them again as soon as possible!

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Northlane

Australia is usually a big exporter of spectacular metalcore bands, and Northlane isn’t an exception. The set they delivered at the Opus Stage was filled with bombastic riffs, thunderous drumming and incredible vocals. But that isn’t the only thing that made their performance special. They also had visual effects that enhanced the songs, and they were super energetic too. When a band has fun on stage, the audience also has fun, and that is something that you just cannot fake. So if you’re into metalcore, you definitely have to check out Northlane because they’re absolutely going to be worth your time!

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Myles Kennedy

There are many voices in the rock and metal world, and there are many vocalists who know how to deliver either clean, harsh or a combination of both. But not many that have the expressivity of Myles Kennedy, who played on the Opus Stage at 5 PM. He has the absolutely fantastic ability to transport the listener into another dimension, where he’s guiding us and leading us to something very safe. But then again, ask yourself this: would Slash ever collaborate with people who aren’t talented? No, he would not. And this is why this gentleman is truly one of the best in the world, as a vocalist, composer and guitarist too. He’s a modern-day storyteller, a soul that has devoted his life to his craft, and we’re all here to appreciate it until the very end!

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Green Day

Answer this question honestly. Which band brought you over to the dark side of heavy music? For me, it was Green Day. One of my classmates in elementary school made me listen to “American Idiot” (the album), and since then I was hooked. I finally found some music that I enjoyed, and I felt that I belonged in that world. Since then my music taste has grown and evolved, but I always stayed true to my origins, if that makes sense. Whilst I’ve been a fan of them for that long, I’ve never had the opportunity to see them in concert, which is pretty sad since they technically changed my life. So when Download festival announced they’d be playing as headliners, there was nothing on this Earth that would have stopped me from travelling to the UK to see them. I was sure their performance would be incredible, but they’ve completely gone above and beyond any other artist I have seen so far. Their setlist focused mainly on “American Idiot” and “Dookie”, but without forgetting other important tracks in their discography. The crowd was enthusiastic, chanting, singing, jumping and giving it all to these legendary artists. During “Know Your Enemy“, Billie Joe asked if someone wanted to go on stage to sing the rest of the track, and a fantastic girl dressed as a cheerleader almost stole the band’s spotlight! She was rocking it. Other highlights include the track “J.A.R.”, that made its tour debut right on the Download stage. As a testimony that the loved ones that aren’t with us anymore still protect us and guide us, during the verse “Here comes the rain again” of “Wake Me Up When September Ends” rain started pouring down. The whole audience was in disbelief, and I personally thought that Green Day had the ability to control the weather. Maybe they can, maybe they can’t, the matter is that this show was absolutely mind-blowing. It may sound cliché, but you need to experience what they can do on a stage at least once in your lifetime. To hear 50,000 people belting out their songs is something out of the ordinary, something that you will never forget.

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.