Spiral_Low

It's 25K which is more than the O2 (which is 20k) and Downloads headliners logic is should be able to sell 2 nights at O2....Korn also doing smaller venues sure but point is they still pull in the fans and could deffo headline. I'm not really a fan of Limp Bizkit but I would argue they should be headlining over AX7 and I wouldn't be surprised if they got a bigger crowd. Korn got a bigger crowd than Biffy in 2022.

Korn London Gunnersbury Park date already sold out. Shows that they do shift tickets.

Creeper are a cool band but being booked for the third year in a row whilst other the bands don't get a look in is a piss take.

Probably the same old story. Do Download and you can't do your own dates. Do IOW and you can. Blink 182 might wanna try for a stadium date or 2 alongside a fest so makes sense. Get a decent support bill and they'd probably sell it (especially if they took along someone like The Offspring).

Just looked at Feeders March dates and I'm impressed they are still playing decent size venues and a fair few of them too. Would be a perfect Avalanche headliner.

Dogtooth is the best stage this year so I would be against it going! Problem with running second against main is the sound bleed. It's why I think they do go double main stage they'd need to replace second with a tent.

Yeah the whole Download stage/time set up is poor now I think. I suppose they are restricted by licence. I think they really need to move to a double main stage and stick a giant tent where second is. Keep current Avalalance and Dogtooth but improve sound bleed issues. Give people more options who to see with tents running on later against main headliners. 2023 worked only cuz it was friggin' Metallica and Slipknot. Really most headliners should be playing against at least 1 other band.

Btw if you are including Trivium and BFMV cuz of them teasing album tours then maybe should include Mastodon* and Lamb Of God who have already announced a US tour playing their 2004 albums 🙂 *Obvs you put Mastodon in but didn't put (Leviathan) next to them

Not surprised. Never as big as people thought they were. Haven't done anything for several years then drop a album that splits opinions. Past tours they always took out huge support bands too, so dragged in more casual fans.

Fair play.

The thing I guess might be if Sleep Token decide whether to headline whilst still being lower on the bill elsewhere in Europe, or if they decide to focus on building those markets first and then come back for Download in 2026 when they could potentially headliner or sub other festivals too. They might also want to take the chance to 'get big' in the USA given how lucrative that would be. Wouldn't be surprised to see them do their own dates throughout next year, Europe then South America then a US summer tour (maybe co-headline with a band like Ghost?).

I'm late 30's so not that much older than you. It's not gatekeeping to say it's a double edged sword on a personal level, because I don't enjoy them. I wasn't saying what you claim I was. I meant it literally, that it puts me off going. Me, myself and I. That's all. I understand you misunderstood what I meant so no hard feelings. I welcome the new fans to the scene, though I so wish those with power in the scene would do more to promote a better variety of bands. Simple as that tbh. Enjoy the gig!

You make a lot of incorrect assumptions about my music taste. For the record I like Ghost and Spiritbox. I also like The Offspring. Blink-182 I got bored of but did listen to when I was younger. I never really got into Limp Bizkit, I don't like Trivium, and I dislike AX7. And yeah I did/do like those 'older' metal bands but grunge bands were actually a major gateway for me too, especially Nirvana and Foo Fighters. I have no problem with Sleep Token or those other bands doing well. I'm simply saying from my own perspective I'm not keen on pop influenced metal so on a personal note it's a double edged sword. There is this kind of reverse gatekeeping these days, where people are judged for not liking a band. It's actually ok me and the others who piped up in this thread not to like Sleep Token. None of us are saying they don't belong in the scene.

Yeah I think their fans are pretty dedicated and they deffo do stadium tours still. Depends on European market for them I guess. Could be a Green Day situation as well, Download allegedly doesn't let them do their own dates so they go do IOW instead. I mean if a band can do it then one festival headline plus 3 stadium dates in pretty lucrative! In fact I'd say the whole Green Day European tour this year is probably a model for how MCR would do it if they chose to.

I doubt SOAD ever come back tbh. I'd like them too but if just feels like they are done in terms of any dates outside the US. MCR I think can just do their own stadium dates and be done, like Rammstein.

The 'its a good thing' argument works both ways though. On one hand yes it is a good thing thing that new people get into the scene. On the other it's leading to festivals, club nights etc being full of these poppy metalcore bands that I have no interest in, so I loose interest in going.

Because it's not a 'metal' production style, it's a pop one. And yeah I hate it too, but it's mostly the modern metalcore bands that have it plus Sleep Token obviously. Some don't though, Spiritbox for example have much better vocal production which I think is why I like them but not say Bad Omens. Thankfully for the other newer bands who don't have it either. Svalbard and Green Lung two example of great modern metal bands not going down the poppy vocals route.

I've seen a lot of people being critical of Sleep Token live too mind. And on track I personally find their music to be void of passion, the vocals just sound like indie pop to me and I hate all the pop elements to the music too.

It's not really all Serj's fault though, the drummer John (who is also is brother in law) has all these right wing pro-Trump views and cries like a baby whenever they are challenged, so that's hardly conducive to a functional band.

I think Sleep Token sub in 2025. Maybe Ghost and Gojira sub too. Given Download's past track record.

Alot of my generation (late 30s) are actually shocked at Busted playing as when we were younger they were considered a full on pop band and marketed as so. It's mainly the 20 something's (and maybe a few early 30s) who call them pop punk, from what I've observed. I'm sure the tent will be rammed when they play, but you can see from the backlash Download have annoyed alot of the 30+ crowd by booking them. The whole fest this year seems tailored towards those in their 20s and the emo side of the early 30s tbh with some token bands thrown in for the older crowd, one of which is the controversial Pantera thing as debated above.

I'm certainly disappointed both got booked. It's partly why I'm so annoyed at Download this year, those are 2 of the bands being presented as 'appeasing the metal crowd' and they are obvs both problematic. Gutted I'll miss Machine Head though.

They probably won't clash. Download normally finishes the rest of the bands before the main stage headliners these days.

I mean only half of that list are actually bands that appeal to the traditional metal crowd. I get it, you and lots of others like it, doesn't mean I or others have to.

They are moving on by chasing the pop-punk and modern metalcore crowd. Metal crowd will be smaller this year, I'm not the only one staying home. Download's choice of course but if they continue with this path they shouldn't be shocked if another fest launches Sonisphere style to cater to crowd they are moving away from.