Retired.

[AcademicPistol]

While it seems a lot of you are retiring I have just purchased a weekend ticket for next year. I only did the Saturday this year so I didn't encounter the problems that everyone else did on the Friday but I can't wait for 2013 already!

I'm sure that if they pull out a couple of decent headliners ( any of Tool, Rammstein, Slipknot, Maiden) and once the post festival hangover from this year has worn off that a lot of you on here will be tempted back for your metal fix.

[devilman]

I'm doing Download and A.N.Other festival. That may well be abroad. I have one tip that will address 2 of the woes that some of you had. Come from the North! There was no traffic coming in from A50 on Fri and rain doesn't bother us ken? We had an 1150 mile round trip to get to the festival and if you met us you would have seen us do nothing but smile all weekend. Loved it all.

[bekimo]

Having spent some time reading through all of the feedback on the official DLF, I wonder how many people will go to Sonisphere instead of Download next year?! Supposing of course that Sonisphere is on of course!!

We packed up and left the campsite on Friday because everything was soggy and muddy and gross and we had the option to camp at my house as I only live 25 minutes away! But then we had to endure the car parks. I have never seen such a disorganised chaos in my life! As much as Sonisphere annoys me, at least their carparking is pretty spot on to be fair. Parking people THREE DEEP is just fricking stupid. What were they thinking?

[lharris92]

Burtfest looks interesting.

[rivalschools.price]

I'll be honest and I can take it on the chin. I'm not going anymore cos I can't handle it any more. Too fucking old.

So while I'd like to outline problems with the fest and pin it on the organisers, thats not why I'm retiring.

[angelofharlem]

too old!!!!!

i'm 42 and been going to festivals for 24 years and i'm still mad for it.

enjoyed download this year just as much as my first donnington in 1988

[gjammer]

Starting to feel my age as I near 50 but spurred on by the previous post. Bloodstock next for me and planning Soni in Spain next year all going well

Edited June 16, 2012 by gjammer

[luckysalt]

Im 30, but I have Crohns Disease which really leaves me tired generally anyway in day to day life, been back at work this week and I haven't recovered at all, this is the most fucked Ive been after a festival ever and last weeks Download was my 20th festival.

Think I'll leave it a while and maybe do family camping/RIP when the kids are older. Or do a day next year if the bill is excellent, there aren't many acts I haven't seen to be honest though so Im not sure how they could pull me back. Pantera with Zack Wilde and Tool would be two id be interested in.

[devilman]

I'm 46 but I cheat because I do endurance events throughout the year. I don't feel tired at all during the festival but have no problem passing out when I get back to the tent. My pals are less fit but they seem to manage just fine. Beer is a wonderful thing. Once the mud becomes a more distant memory I suspect a few of the retirees may change their minds .

[neilloggie]

it's amazing what a year and a great line up will do to peoples imaginations.

I didn't start back to work till Thursday(which i'm pleased i did) so went back to 10-12 hour split shifts and felt fully recovered. I spend most of my day running round a hot kitchen so the stamina is not usually a problem for me until the Monday morning when i have to pull the trolley back from camp to the car.

[gjammer]

I would be back if they sort a second entrance out or move the arena to where it used to be. I have no problem with walking but coming from a design and productivity back ground can't see the point of pointless walking in a circle. There are plenty of other festivals to choose from so I will vote with my feet!

Edited June 17, 2012 by gjammer

[biffoire]

I've found the perfect festival. Down side is. It's in the States.

I went to the Orion festival in atlantic city yesturday and it was a complete revolation. So a quick summary of how it's different to most other fests......

OK. Free cold water refills everywhere. No waiting. Toilets, no waiting. Beer lines, no waiting. Food is all run by the organisers so is good. The pizza I had was like you'd get at pizza express.

4 stages all facing, they rotate the acts so there no sound bleed. And the sound, loudest deepest sound I've ever heard.

There was less people there than year 1 soni so getting a great spot was no problem. I got to the sounds desk with no squirreling in 10 mins before Metallica came on.

Infrastructure sucks, so the site was gridlick for 2 hours after the show but hey, thats the only negative thing I can say. I genuinely felt like a valued customer and not like I was having the piss taken out of me.

Also, member of metallica were doing announcements and gest spots (Rob played with suicidal - Lars intro'd arctic monkeys)

You really get the feeling the festivals been created out of love and quite different to the cattle effect people felt they got from Download.

[t8yman]

thats exactly my issue. I dont mind walking, I dont mind mud, i can even handle the rain, wind is a real pain cos it blows fuck out of the sound. but my main issue is being treated like livestock, I know its inevitable when an event has 100,000 people present, but its no longer for me in its current guise. 2000 trees is a deffo for all of us next year. 4,500 capacity, parking next to tents, proper food, proper beer, and a decent mix of music means that more of the lads will be likely to go as its not a dedicated "metal" festival.

i'm not saying download is shit - it is a great festival. And I'm not saying I can't hack it any more - I'm sure a belting lineup might make me rethink (although the likelihood of anything being pulled out of the bag that I havent seen a dozen times before in the last decade is slim) I'm saying that I want something different for my main annual festival experience.

[devilman]

Now I'm not saying you are wrong as you are not me and we are all different, BUT just doing a small festival will leave you feeling short changed and in need of much more. I do a couple of little festivals and really can't fault them, the festival feel is much nicer and the whole experience is "nice" but nice ain't where it's at. You don't go down to the local ground to watch international football. The local ground might not have queues, barriers and long walks but it doesn't have quality on show either. BOTH is the answer!

[eFestivals]

Now I'm not saying you are wrong as you are not me and we are all different, BUT just doing a small festival will leave you feeling short changed and in need of much more. I do a couple of little festivals and really can't fault them, the festival feel is much nicer and the whole experience is "nice" but nice ain't where it's at. You don't go down to the local ground to watch international football. The local ground might not have queues, barriers and long walks but it doesn't have quality on show either. BOTH is the answer!

I'd say you're completely wrong about that.

The smaller festivals tend to have the better quality bands - you know, the types who've actually learnt to play their instruments over many years, rather than learnt 5 chords in ten minutes.

Where the difference lies is in the profile of the bands. The big festivals tend to have the 'massive' acts, but they tend to be the here-today-and-gone-tomorrow types of bands (at least, against the long-stayers which many of the smaller festies have) who often don't ever progress past those five chords or so.

Those 'massive' bands are about sales. The long-stay bands are about playing music.

(nothing of the above is about 'musical preference'. If you preference is those 'massive' bands then only a festival with those massive bands will do).

[kaosmark2]

but they tend to be the here-today-and-gone-tomorrow types of bands

[eFestivals]

And here was me thinking the main criticism of larger rock/metal fests was endless recycling of older bands that had been around for ever

there's a lot of that at the very top (headliners), but below that they tend to be "fashion bands", where a lot of them have a life-span of less than 5 years.

And then the band members go back to working in McD's

[devilman]

I don't think he realised he was on the Download forum. Someone should teach that Slash, Tony Iommi and Metallica to play their instruments and stick around for a while. Bloody Johnny come latelys.

[eFestivals]

I don't think he realised he was on the Download forum. Someone should teach that Slash, Tony Iommi and Metallica to play their instruments and stick around for a while. Bloody Johnny come latelys.

Metallica defo need to learn a 4th chord.

I knew where I was. I was just making the general point that 'musical quality' is generally found away from the big festivals and the 'fashion bands' that they predominantly have.

[kaosmark2]

there's a lot of that at the very top (headliners), but below that they tend to be "fashion bands", where a lot of them have a life-span of less than 5 years.

And then the band members go back to working in McD's

[devilman]

For me there just isn't a substitute for seeing the likes of ACDC, SOAD or any of the headliners of the last few years (ok maybe not Def Leppard) headline a big festival. The show and the experience is where it's at. Smaller means smaller bands and more intimate, which is nice in its own right but for me at least, big is still where it's at.

[AcademicPistol]

I agree with Devilman that both (big & small fests) is the answer if you can afford it.

A good section of my personal tastes are furfilled by Download/Reading/Soni (rawk 'n' metulz FTW!) the smaller rock and metal festivals just aren't enough for me.

[t8yman]

For me there just isn't a substitute for seeing the likes of ACDC, SOAD or any of the headliners of the last few years (ok maybe not Def Leppard) headline a big festival. The show and the experience is where it's at. Smaller means smaller bands and more intimate, which is nice in its own right but for me at least, big is still where it's at.

[devilman]

sorry to veer wildly off topic but

you seriously rate that fucking embarrassment of a "set" that SOAD played last year as being worthy of praise?

you are in the vast, vast minority fella.

did you never see them before they split?

[t8yman]

no, if you had a great time, fucking go for it fella. I just saw a gang of fat, up their own arses people who absolutely hated each other.

I saw them about 5 times pre split, and they were something very very special. they were probably my fave band in the world at one stage.

anyway, back on topic.