Born from the old Monsters Of Rock festival, Download Festival began in 2003 and since then it has hosted some of the biggest names in hard rock and heavy metal. The past two years have found it expanding its remit to include genres such as pop punk (Green Day) and emo (Fall Out Boy). While this has caused some consternation amongst the more traditional fans, the plus side is that it dishes up some nice surprises and this year that comes in the shape of three Japanese bands who have come to conquer Donington Park.
Download Festival actually gets underway on Wednesday 11th June as early bird campers arrive and some minor stages and entertainment happen around the site. However, things officially get underway on Friday when the gates to the main arena open and this Friday 13th proves to be very lucky because SiM are opening the main (Apex) stage. Founded in the Kanagawa Prefecture in 2004, the band are currently celebrating their 21st anniversary and what better place to do that than at the mother of all metal festivals? Formulating various forms of rebellious music (punk, reggae, nu metal, rap) into a revolutionary sound, SiM have a stage presence that’s equally explosive, and they each hit the stage like four vipers springing from their coils. Vocalist MAH is particularly animated and prowls the cage as if a caged tiger, but the whole band are on fire…and it’s only one o’clock in the afternoon! With songs such as ‘TxHnC’, ‘Do The Dance’ and ‘RED’ unleashed in quick succession, SiM are full of fun and frolics, the crowd respond in kind and that makes their set a collaborative affair which creates a bond between band and audience. Final track ‘f.a.i.t.h’ features a guest spot from Crossfaith’s Kenta Koie, but in their excitement, the band runs over their allotted time, which means their set comes to an abrupt end. Feisty and frisky, SiM have raised the bar for the rest of the weekend.
SiM Set List:
1. Get Up, Get Up 2. KiSS OF DEATH 3. TxHxC 4. DO THE DANCE 5.RED 6. The Rumbling 7. f.a.i.t.h
Also appearing on Friday (over on the Avalanche stage) are Crossfaith . It’s not my first time catching this crew live, yet playing a festival date is completely different than performing a club date and comes loaded with completely different pressures; the sets are shorter, a band has to go on stage earlier than usual, plus an inclement weather can blow the sound around. If Crossfaith are feeling the pressure, then it doesn’t show because they arrive full of confidence, each band member taking a bow centre stage before picking up their instruments. In fact, they haven’t come to take prisoners, and they operate as such, being bang on point right from the very first note. Vocalist Kenta is showing no ill effects from his exertions with SiM earlier in the day and his elucidations that the crowd go crazy are soon obeyed. There’s plenty of headbanging from both the band and audience and when keyboardist Terufumi Tamano dives into the crowd to deliver his vocals during Jägerbomb, things go into overdrive. It’s a kind of controlled insanity and circle pits erupt, people crowd surf and Terufumi is carried around like a trophy. The shortened set means that energy levels never dip below maximum, as each member of the band throws themselves into their performance with great gusto. A surprise cover of The Prodigy’s Omen goes down particularly well, and I’m sure that Keith Flint is looking down from somewhere and smiling.
Crossfaith Set List:
1. ZERO 2. Freedom 3. Jägerbomb 4. Monolith 5. Omen 6. Leviathan
Formed in Tokyo in 2011, it has been a long wait for Survive Said The Prophet to play their very first UK festival and they’ve jumped right in the deep end with a Sunday afternoon set at Download Festival. Playing the Dogtooth stage, there’s a big expectation to finally see this band and its standing room only inside the tent as we await their appearance. That means even their soundcheck gets a huge cheer, so when the band finally arrives at the opening salvo of Useless, the crowd are well juiced up and ready to roll. Subsequently, all hell breaks loose as fists pump the air and thousands of voices sing along to every word. Vocalist Yoshiya Morita radiates charisma and has definite star quality; he leads from the front like a general taking his troops into battle and looks like he might invade the crowd at any moment. Delivering a decidedly dystopian brand of metalcore, Survive Said The Prophet have absorbed much of their native Tokyo into their sound; it has a very visual, cinematic quality that will fill your head with visions of nocturnal, neon-lit, Blade Runner cityscapes. It’s no surprise that the band’s songs have been used in such a wide range of media (everything from anime to commercials to appearing on film soundtracks). It’s not always an easy thing to recreate in the live environment, and especially at a festival, but I’m pleased to report that the band accomplish it with great aplomb and deliver a set with can only be described as “crowd-pleasing”. It’s Survive Said The Prophet’s first appearance at Download Festival, but on the strength of this set, it won’t be their last.
Survive Said The Prophet Set List:
1. Useless 2. Found & Lost 3. State Of Mind 4. NE:ONE 5. Paradox 6. MUKANJYO
