Download 2006 started very brightly indeed. The searing sun which was a pleasure whilst driving to the site, became a drain as I trekked across Donington Park to the campsite, laden down with the various items I had convinced myself I would need over the course of the weekend. Each and every year I promise myself I will travel lightly, and each and every year I break that promise to myself. Eventually, however, my spot is secured, the first beer of the weekend is cracked open, and I take a look at the timetable to start planning my viewing.
The first band I see on the main stage is Soil. Their sonic assault doesn’t seem quite in fitting with the burning sun and rapidly rising temperatures, but they play an absolute screamer. The people down the front with more stamina than me are jumping around maniacally, and the atmosphere for this early act is fantastic, Of course they finish with ‘Halo’, and of course it is stunning. Soil have managed to take the bar, and set it very highly indeed.
Next I head to the relative shade of the Snickers Tent, in which Bleeding Through are working the metal kids into a frenzy. Their sound isn’t anything new, but it is played well, and the tent is bouncing. It is difficult not to get caught up in the excitement, and it is a very enjoyable set from a band I will certainly be watching out for in the future.
In Soulfly we have the first bona-fide metal heavyweights of the day. The Brazilian metal superstars get the main stage rocking with their always excellent take on the rap metal genre. The crowd has come out in force to see them, and they don’t disappoint. The sound is simply crushing, and we are treated to a hit laden set from the masters of the genre.
The main stage headliners this evening are Tool. Having enjoyed a fantastic reception for new album ’10,000 Days’, Tool take to the stage as conquering heroes, and the scene is set for a great headline performance. Unfortunately, despite both the musical performance and the sound quality being excellent, the show is let down by the band’s complete lack of a stage presence, and it just ends up feeling dull. I make the decision to move on after around an hour, and find out what else is going on.
I ended up in the Gibson / MySpace Tent, watching Ginger and the Sonic Circus, and it was one of the best decisions I made all weekend. The show opened with a macabre freak show involving two bald, tattooed gentlemen inserting foot long needles into each others’ skin. They continued at the back of the stage long after Ginger, dressed wholly in messianic white, and his band, took to the stage. Their ballsy, bluesy brand of grunge metal was the perfect antidote to the over the top pomp of Tool, and for me theirs was the set of the weekend. The former Wildhearts frontman had the full tent in the palm of his hand. A band has the opportunity to reach a whole new audience at a festival, and Ginger and the Sonic Circus grasped that opportunity tonight, and I have the feeling that they will have made a lot of new fans in the process.
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