Day 6
And so I get home and all is calming. And clammy. There is no band to see across town at 1pm. Or 1am. There are no more Yellow Cabs and sleek black Car Service glides from Brooklyn into the pit of Manhattan, no more subway rides overground in the glistening morning sun. No more beards (I shaved off mine own on arrival at home) and probably less beer, weed and pizza than has been the norm this last week. Certainly not for breakfast anyway.

So, was it all hard work? Well, yes. And no. Don’t get me wrong: 15 hour days of bands and beer are great. I have to admit is a little daunting when you stack 5 of them back to back. Especially rolling straight on from two days on the road with new Swedes, Air France. But I have skills and methods and coping strategies. Continue Reading

Before I even begin, there’s one big thing about this year’s festival that needs to be said so let’s get it out of the way first and then we can crack on with the music. With the dates clashing this year with the build up to the MotoGP, plus the fact that a motocross circuit was being built on the old site, festival organisers decided some changes were in order. They made the move to hold the entire festival outside of the confines of the Donington circuit.

Okay. This meant no hill from which to leisurely watch the bands from; no chance to walk the hallowed circuit, sucking up the exhaust fumes of Grand Prix’s past whilst perusing the stalls for a suitable sunhat; and most heinously of all, no Dunlop tyre – the gigantic archway that epitomised the Download spirit of machine and metal, leather and tread, volume and power.

Upon arrival, I see that this year the walk from campsite to stage has become so stretched that now we are expected to trudge through sand, stone, and shit for over a mile (if it’s anything less than a mile then I’m a Frenchman) before we hit the final tent. All this means if you wanted to catch Invasion on the Gibson Stage (11am, Sunday) you’d have to be setting off well before 10am. I have blisters on my blisters, as I write. Continue Reading