The Über-Rockin’ Guide to Download Festival 2017 – Day Three (Sunday 11 June)

Written by Rich Hobson
Sunday, 14 May 2017 05:00

It takes a very special kind of band to close Download Festival. Perhaps then, that’s why Andy Copping went all out and got not just one, but two genre-defining acts playing their final festival shows ever as a big crescendo. While Aerosmith will enjoy a massive send off on the main stage, Dillinger Escape Plan will be amazing audiences at Donington for the final time over on the Avalanche Stage, guaranteeing that whether you want rock or metal, Download has you covered.

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Read below for our picks for the final day of Download Festival 2017 and give us a shout if you think there’s somebody we *need* to cover this year.

Aerosmith (Main Stage)

Playing Download Festival for the third (and supposedly final) time, Aerosmith will offer festival attendees one final opportunity to link up and go thousands strong in one of the biggest sing-alongs on the planet. Nearly five decades spent in their company means the band needs no introduction, instantly recognisable and undeniable as one of the greatest rock acts ever. If previous shows are anything to go by, this is the perfect way for the band to drop the curtain on their illustrious career playing overseas (even more so should a certain rap group make the short journey across from playing the Isle of Wight for a collaboration…).

FFO: ACDC, Airbourne, Guns N Roses.

Summary: While the thought of not seeing Aerosmith again fills us with dread, we can think of no better place than Download Festival to say goodbye to the rock megastars.

Alter Bridge (Main Stage)

When the discussion of who could replace the current crop of classic rockers as future festival headliners arises, Alter Bridge are seldom far away. Their arena-ready choruses have existed since long before the band had the opportunity to even sell out club rooms, but the fact remains that Alter Bridge’s rise to success has been a long time coming. One of the best vocalists in the rock world teamed up with a tight and technical group of stars in their own right makes for a world-beating formula and this show could be just the proof that’s needed to bump the band up to headliner status.

FFO: Aerosmith, Guns N Roses, Black Stone Cherry.

Summary: Download 2017 may very well be the moment that Alter Bridge prove themselves ready as future headliners and one of the biggest names in the rock and metal world.

Clutch (Zippo Encore Stage)

Is there a band that can excite audiences quite so universally as Clutch? We’re inclined to say no. The definitive article in southern rock groove, brimming with mild prog inclinations flung into a blender with hardcore and punk fury, Clutch’s sound is entirely inimitable despite being a distillation of pure rock n roll at its source. When you can sing along to the guitars with just as much gusto as you would the vocals, you know you’ve found a very special band indeed and Clutch are that and so much more.

FFO: Corrosion of Conformity, Monster Magnet, Orange Goblin,

Summary: Screw the mob, Download Festival will go wild for Clutch.

Devildriver (Zippo Encore Stage)

If there’s one thing that Dez Fafara knows, it’s how to turn a festival crowd into a seething mass of crashing bodies. Unrelentingly heavy and technical whilst maintaining an unwavering sense of groove that sets the spine on edge, Devildriver are yet to find a crowd that they can’t utterly dominate. ‘Clouds Over California’, ‘End of the Line’, ‘I Could Care Less’ and so many others have proven that the band has a decided knack for writing a mosh anthem, so where better to demonstrate this mastery than at the home of metal?

FFO: Lamb of God, Chimaira, Machine Head.

Summary: Nobody can set a crowd moshing quite like Devildriver. Expect bruises aplenty.

Devilskin (Dogtooth Stage)

Utterly massive in their home country of New Zealand, Devilskin combine massive arena-ready tunes with Kyuss-like muscular riffy goodness, begging the question – how long will it be before they hit the big-time over here? The answer is easy – not long, especially if they can maintain a similar profile to the one which has seen them tour the UK extensively earlier this year and nab a spot on the UK’s premier rock festival. This is a band that begs to be heard loud with a massive audience, something that Download can supply by the bucket.

FFO: Halestorm, Kyuss, The Pretty Reckless.

Summary: If any show could help Devilskin achieve a similar popularity in the UK to what they have at home in NZ, it’d be Download Festival.

Dillinger Escape Plan (Avalanche Stage)

Dillinger Escape Plan enjoy the distinction of being not only a band that helped to define a whole genre, but also an act that could refine said genre into pure gold. Absolute lightning live, the band have garnered a widespread reputation for putting on one of the most exciting and eclectic shows going in the metal world. Offered one final spot as headliner of the Avalanche Stage (ahead of a self-imposed split later this year), this is the last chance to watch a band whose story is embedded into metal history.

FFO: Black Peaks, HECK, Converge.

Summary: A genre-defining act, Download Festival is the last opportunity to catch this mental metal bunch at a festival in the UK. Don’t miss it.

Dinosaur Pile-Up (Avalanche Stage)

Download Festival’s biggest strength is the fact that is uniquely placed on the widespread festival circuit to still offer a platform for emergent rock bands to make a name for themselves. Dinosaur Pile-Up are just one of the many bands looking to do so at Download Festival 2017, having proved their skills in support to some of rock’s hottest names like Royal Republic and Weezer. Stomping 70s style arena riffs, massive choruses and an undeniable knack for setting crowds bouncing like flubber make Dinosaur Pile-Up a great watch.

FFO: Twin Atlantic, Weezer, Pulled Apart By Horses.

Summary: Big, brash and loaded with earworms, Dinosaur Pile-Up are arena-friendly rock you need in your life.

Ministry (Zippo Encore Stage)

Despite spawning one of the most prolific metal subgenres ever and being owed a sonic debt by everybody from Nine Inch Nails to Rammstein, Ministry are criminally underrated in the metal world. A prominent space on the second stage of Download Festival could be set to right some of those wrongs however, the band bringing their apocalyptic brand of industrial metal roaring into Donington Park for Download Festival 2017. A massive brain-melting machine, Ministry are an antidote to the fucked up political situation we find ourselves in, just in time for the fallout of the general election.

FFO: Rammstein, Slipknot, Rob Zombie.

Summary: Some bands just want to watch the world burn. Ministry are the band that will help that happen.

Opeth (Zippo Encore Stage)

If headlining Wembley wasn’t enough proof that Opeth are one of the most ambitious metal acts out there, a sub-headline spot on Download’s second stage should all-but confirm it. Opeth’s transformation from prog-leaning death metal band to a leading name in the modern prog genre has been incredible to follow, taking the band from critically hailed albums all the way to chart success without ever diluting or wavering the band’s core creative vision. Seeing Opeth is a rite of passage for all metal-lovers, a spectacular experience that cannot be recommended high enough.

FFO: Porcupine Tree, Gojira, Ghost.

Summary: As a metal band you don’t get to headline Wembley without possessing some serious brilliance, as Opeth prove all-too-well.

Steel Panther (Main Stage)

Steel Panther’s rise to prominence in the rock world probably wouldn’t hold half as much weight had they not proved themselves at Download Festival time and again. Whether you consider them a love letter to one of rock’s most popular eras, or a parody of a genre which came to represent all that was wrong with rock and metal, one fact remains consistent – Steel Panther do what they do very, very well. Given the full run of the main stage, prepare yourself for which’ll have you grinning ear to ear from start to finish.

FFO: Whitesnake, Bon Jovi, Motley Crue.

Summary: A gleefully childish love letter to glam rock, Steel Panther are sure to leave Download Festival grinning from ear to ear.

Download takes place at Castle Donington from 9 – 11 June. Tickets are available HERE.