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Live Reviews

Download Festival

Donington Park

13-15 June 2025

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DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL 2025 – the big review

After a washout of a year last year, those making the annual pilgrimage to Donington Park this year were checking the weather forecasts regularly. Would it be scorching? Would there be storms? Rain? Snow? The forecasters had us prepared for anything this weekend.

As always though as we enter the hallowed grounds of Download Festival, we are prepared to rock! For over twenty years now this monster event has welcomed the best of the alternative scene for a weekend of revelry and kickass music and 2025 on paper looks no different.

The arena itself though does look a little different. The now standard layout remains the same, but everyone is quick to notice and appreciate the upgrades in toilets and a few other little touches such as a screen outside the Avalanche Stage and the new fancy video totems on the main stage.

FRIDAY

The weather on Friday is hot, hot, hot… so it’s nice to start our weekend off in a tent! Karen Dio is a bundle of energy as she opens proceedings on the Avalanche Stage. The early crowd enjoy every moment of her short but sweet set and Download Festival 2025 is a go!

The line-up across the Avalanche Stage this week is great and features some of the best young bands on the scene. One of the most exciting is next as unpeople bring the riffs and the audience bring the party as we get into full swing today.

After a quick sojourn over to the main stage where CKY bring back memories of Tony Hawk games and teenage tomfoolery. The current line-up continues to defy the odds and as the sun beats down, they get the vocal cords of another crowded year warmed up.

There’s plenty of singing to be done next as we return to the Avalanche tent for Scottish breakouts Dead Pony. The likes of ‘MK Nothing’, ‘RAINBOWS’ and ‘MANA’ have the crowd repeating every word and the band can leave the stage knowing that they’ve smashed their opportunity.

Speaking of smashing opportunities and it’s back to the main stage for Boston Manor. Wow. The boys from Blackpool read the assignment and they understood every word. With a busy crowd, the sun shining and the beers flowing, Boston Manor deliver the biggest set of the entire weekend.

Every one of the nine tracks is delivered with passion and energy and the audience give the band everything that they have. This is just goosebump inducingly good. This set is one of those moments that you have to stand back and take in. It’s one of those moments in which a band solidifies their future and ensures that when they return, they will be playing even higher up the bill!

The run now on the main stage will become the stuff of legend and Rise Against are next up. A band who can be a little hit or miss, especially with their festival sets are fully on top of their game today. Blasting out the likes of ‘Prayer of the Refugee’, ‘Satellite’ and closer ‘Savior’, they all sound huge today and Friday is setting a tough measure to follow.

A quick trip for Trophy Eyes on the Avalanche Stage shows that the tent is still in full swing before it’s time for Jimmy Eat World to make their return to Download. Bringing in the likes of ‘My Best Theory’ and ‘Get It Faster’ helps their set to flow and of course ‘The Middle’ presents one of the biggest moments of the festival.

The nostalgic feel continues next with the ever-delightful Weezer bringing hits such as ‘Hash Pipe’, ‘Beverly Hills’ and ‘Buddy Holly’ to the main stage crowd. A Download appearance is a long overdue thing for the band and their first time didn’t disappoint.

Download Festival debuts is the Friday night theme and we can’t help but check out McFly in the Avalanche tent next. The crowd is expectedly large, if considerably smaller than Busted last year. McFly mix some snippets of rock classics amongst their own hit songs and those gathered have a whale of a time.

The biggest and longest overdue Download Festival debut however is reserved for our Friday night headliners Green Day. There is a real sense of occasion as the band hit the stage, and you feel that this is a true moment in time for the festival.

When a band can begin a performance with a run of ‘American Idiot’, ‘Holiday’, ‘Know Your Enemy’ and ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’ and make a two-hour set go by in a flash then you know that they are special.

It’s not often rain is welcomed at Donington but perhaps the moment of the festival is the shower that begins with precision just as Billie Joe sings the line “…Here comes the rain again…” during ‘Wake Me Up When September Ends’!

Green Day’s ability to make a packed field feel like a small venue is a gift and tonight they simply make headlining a major festival look easy. As the fireworks and ‘Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)’ close out a fantastic day, we can’t wait to do it all again tomorrow!

SATURDAY

Friday felt big and by comparison Saturday feels a little more subdued. We have a much talked about headline set to come and there are still some exciting acts spread across the stages however.

After a mysterious gap on the Opus stage results in nothing, we start our day as Static Dress continue their ascent up the line-up by opening the main stage. They do their best to wake up a clearly hungover early crowd and can leave knowing they didn’t fluff their lines.

BEX is fully prepared to win over a docile pre-midday audience in the Avalanche stage and brings her infectious energy and a couple of “Big BEX” colleagues to get the crowd engaged. Her short set is a resounding success, and the future looks very bright for an act Full Pelt have highlighted since the beginning.

Two more such exciting young acts, VENUS GRRRLS and Split Chain sandwich some hardcore icons on the main stage. Hatebreed cause chaos with their brutal set, but it’s both the two younger acts that really show themselves as ready to step up next.

Another set that will stand the test of time and prove to be a defining career milestone is that of Poppy on the main stage. The sort of act that old school Download Festival attendees would’ve bottled relentlessly, Poppy is incredible this afternoon. Even the most hardened sceptics in the audience appear to be won over by a superb set.

AWOLNATION are our next stop off over on the Opus stage and they lean heavily on their breakthrough record, ‘Megalithic Symphony’ much to the delight of the crowd. ‘Sail’ naturally provides another one of those big moments.

Teen Mortgage are good fun in the Dogtooth tent before we catch the beginning of Smash Into Pieces on the Avalanche stage. They say dress for the job that you want and not the one you have – well Smash Into Pieces bring a show ready for the main stage and the crowd love it today.

For a number of years fans have clamoured for Don Broco to be given a logo spot on the main stage. Those fans knew that the band could own such a slot and to nobody’s surprise that’s exactly what the band do. In a similar vein to Boston Manor yesterday, the band know what they need to do today, and they simply smash it.

Shinedown next are given a big opportunity to step up to sub-headline the main stage. We remember first seeing them low down the bill in 2009 and since then they’ve worked their way up the line-up. With a performance and show like they deliver today, you wouldn’t put it past them one day topping the whole thing!

A unique experience is on offer next as festival favourite Frank Carter is back. Not with his Rattlesnakes however, nor one of his other past bands but instead with the legendary Sex Pistols! Present day John Lydon may not endorse this collaboration but a rammed full Opus stage at Download Festival most certainly does.

Speaking of unique experience, a different sort of experience is next as Sleep Token act as a beacon for all young acts that says that headlining is not unattainable. The rise or even explosion of Sleep Token is a refreshing phenomenon and the volume of their t-shirts on parade this weekend show that they deserve this shot.

They are however something of a marmite band and those that love them, really love them and if you don’t “get it” then you actively seek to tear them down. Their set this weekend will only split the crowd even more.

What it is not is the statement that Bring Me The Horizon delivered. It’s also not one of the instantly forgettable sets that have topped the bill. Musically and stylistically the band are captivating. However, those very aesthetics and the whole no audience engagement element of their mystique also make the performance quite inaccessible to those not already clued in.

It’s a shame that the performance doesn’t win universal acclaim because in some ways it needed to. The reality is though that this festival needed to evolve and bring in fresh blood and the fact that Sleep Token were given this chance and they didn’t completely fumble the ball must be seen as a win for the future.

SUNDAY

The heat and the mammoth scale of the festival looks to be taking it’s toll on the audience and the arena is relatively quiet as Sunday gets underway with the mesmerizing Harpy in the Avalanche tent.

After a downpour during Sex Pistols last night, the rain is still lingering this morning which may also mean some stick to the comfort of their tents to sleep off lasts nights fun. Orbit Culture and Archers both bring a crisp brutality to the morning air and do their best to blow away the Sunday morning cobwebs.

Before we get back into our musical entertainment, let’s shout out the food and drink offerings with the new dedicated bars and areas continuing to provide individual feels to the arena. The Guinness bar is a favourite for us and we are won over by Supermac’s who we hope will be back again next year!

Right, back to the music and we are back at the Opus stage for an always visceral Nothing More. The group only have limited time but they undoubtedly make the most of it with the likes of ‘If It Doesn’t Hurt’ showing their ability to enthral and entertain.

The afternoon phase of Sunday is then something of a mixed bag with Vower making the most of their Dogtooth slot, Jinjer doing a good but perhaps slightly underwhelming turn on the main stage, Alien Ant Farm and Jerry Cantrell both delivering alright sets that perhaps dip due to understandable lethargy from the crowd, and a superb House of Protection statement set.

As we head into the final run of bands for the weekend Spiritbox do what they need to do in their big main stage spot and Airbourne do what Airbourne do over on the Opus stage. Neither set will likely prove that memorable, but both are a good time.

The heat this weekend whilst not quite at 2023 levels is certainly a factor in Sunday feeling quite sluggish. Many fans seem exhausted and the bands on offer whilst technically sound lack the ability to grab these fans by the collar and drag them from their stupor – case in point the very good Unprocessed who play to a rather tepid gathering in the Dogtooth tent.

It takes a firm festival favourite like Bullet For My Valentine to get momentum building again and the fans are treated to another run through of their seminal album, ‘The Poison’. Frontman Matt Tuck has never made any bones about his desire to headline, and he makes another bold proclamation at the end of their set. Up until recently you’d have probably laughed this suggestion off but with the band regaining their own momentum and the festival in a new era it’s entirely possible.

Another Welsh group reclaiming their past glories is Kids In Glass Houses and we catch them closing out the fantastic Avalanche stage for the weekend with a crowd-pleasing set.

Then there was one left. Closing out the entire festival are the band that Bullet will be hoping to emulate – Korn. A prime example of a band who lost out when Monsters of Rock died. If a Donington event had existing when Korn were at their peak, then perhaps they would’ve topped the bill before now but at last in 2025 it’s happening!

It seems that every single person at the festival wants to see the band take their opportunity with both hands and that love from the audience erupts as the opening echoes of ‘Blind’ ring around the arena.

A simplistic but effective production means that the band let their songs speak for themselves and as they blast out ‘Here to Stay’, ‘Got the Life’, ‘Clown’ and ‘Did My Time’, the band and audience find themselves in a combined state of euphoria.

A splendid outing for rarity ‘Twisted Transistor’ is a highlight but by the time they bring everything home with ‘Freak on a Leash’ the band have solidified themselves as bonified headliners at a festival that they are synonymous with.

There is perhaps no better way to finish the weekend and close the chapter on another Download Festival. This year’s will last long in the memory and is up there with the best. For the diehard attendees, Download Festival is their diary marker that they plan their year around. So the question now turns to who will make their mark next year?

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Vol. 85

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Album Reviews

Sleep Token

Even In Arcadia

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sleep token – EVEN IN ARCADIA – ALBUM REVIEW

Sleep Token are the poster children for the TikTok generation of heavy music fans. They have amassed a fanbase of fanatical followers in a timeframe not really seen in the modern music industry. Whether you love then or loathe them, you have to respect their success.

There will naturally be jealous naysayers seeking to belittle their ascent and take away from their achievements, but these mysterious masked figures have captured the imaginations of a diverse cross-section of the world.

Time comes now for those followers to worship a new offering – their fourth album, ‘Even In Arcadia’. The album very much treads the path that they’ve already forged on their releases thus far and those fans will enjoy dissecting every lyric and every sound on this record.

LISTEN TO ‘CARAMEL’
Sleep Token – ‘Caramel’

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The entire build towards the album has again sent those dedicated fans down many a merry path as they uncovered details of the record. Any band that can cause such hysteria over the unveiling of a tracklist must know that they are on to a winner.

Their core fanbase will not need to read any reviews of the album. They will be fully absorbing themselves into the ten tracks in the coming days. That again is some commitment with the record pushing an hour in length.

Our review then will just tackle the headlines. There is some small evolution of their signature sound but not enough to make this a truly interesting record. The most interesting facet is the most revealing and personal lyrics yet from the secretive Vessel. Sonically the album could be described as lounge music for metal fans, but that means that you’ll need to be in the right mood for this album.

Realistically you’ll again love or loathe this record based off of your pre-conceived perception of the band. It may not be earth-shattering, but it’s another step in the quest for world domination by the band of the moment.

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Vol. 83

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Vol. 77

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Vol. 67

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Full Pelt Magazine

Vol. 23

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The latest issue of the Full Pelt Magazine is here, and you can download your copy for free below!

Volume 23 is features our cover star Laurence Jones as he showcases the future of Blues. Plus we catch You Me At Six as they begin their farewell tour and we review ‘Dopamine’ from Normandie.

Our News Report has all the latest music news including live announcements from Isle of Wight Festival, Ceremony Festival, Collision Festival, Steelhouse Festival, Sleep Token, Therapy?, Robert Jon & The Wreck, Crash Test Dummies and Chelsea Wolfe!

Plus all the best new releases including Emily Barker, Royal Republic, Skindred, The Struts, Marisa and the Moths, Accept, Feeder, Collateral, BLACKGOLD, Robert Jon & The Wreck, Infected Rain, Like Moths To Flames, Mimi Barks, The Lemon Twigs and BIG SPECIAL!

Finally, we round up the latest additions to our ‘Discover’ New Music Playlist including El MoonoWhere Oceans Burn and Battlesnake!

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Full Pelt Magazine

Vol. 16

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The latest issue of the Full Pelt Magazine is here, and you can download your copy for free below!

Volume 16 is a special edition where we run down our Top 50 Albums of the Year! 2023 has seen some amazing records released, but who will take the coveted number one spot?

Our News Report is still here also covering the latest from Vended, Slam Dunk Festival, Liam Gallagher & John Squire, Teddy Rocks, Brighten the Corners and LeeStock!

Finally, we round up the latest additions to our ‘Discover’ New Music Playlist with TelltaleShooting Daggers and Fraser Morgan!

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Album Reviews

Sleep Token

Take Me Back To Eden

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SLEEP TOKEN – TAKE ME BACK TO EDEN – ALBUM REVIEW

The hype around Sleep Token is interesting. They’ve been around for some seven or so years now, and already have two EP’s and two albums to their name ahead of their third full-length ‘Take Me Back To Eden’. Their success then shouldn’t be considered to be “overnight”. That said, the hype train has certainly picked up speed over the last year, perhaps influenced by a certain social media app.

Mystery still surrounds the group both naturally and by design; and whilst many are jumping on the bandwagon, there are also those that are out to shoot the band down. A somewhat polarising start to life then for the band, and that’s rather fitting listening to this new trilogy closing album.

It smacks of an album that will split fans and critics alike by its very grandiose nature. For some it will be an epic masterpiece that should be revered for its ambition. Alas for others it will be deemed a bloated, over-produced, self-indulgent slog of an album.

Watch ‘Take me back to eden’ on youtube
Sleep Token – ‘Take Me Back To Eden’

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The truth, is probably somewhere in between the two, but definitely skewed towards the former. The ambition in making a heavy yet accessible, atmospheric yet colossal sound come to life has to be admired.

The great moments on this album are truly phenomenal, and there is so much to dissect across the hour plus, twelve song collection of sonic reverence. Multiple listens will be essential to fully grasp this offering from Sleep Token.

That said, the fact that a large part of their audience has arrived from a social media app centred on short length clips is interesting. Will this following connect with the likes of the eight minute epic title-track?

As always with Sleep Token, you may feel that there are more questions than answers on this album. But then, after all isn’t that a large part of the appeal? One thing is certain and that’s wherever they go next, the world will be watching!

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Read our review of ‘Not Without My Ghosts’ from The Amity Affliction