Download 2010 Post Mortem - Friday 11th June

All the action from the opening night of Download 2010

The opening day at Download 2010 was one we won’t be forgetting any time soon, for many, many reasons.

In typical Download style, the clouds cleared, the rain stopped and the sun shone through from the moment the Arena gates opened, and Unearth unleashed a ferocious set on the Maurice Jones Stage.

Back for a third time at Download, the band brought with them charismatic riffs and pummeling breakdowns.

“You guys ready to party??!” shouted lead singer Trevor Phipps to the thousands of fans. “Holy shit” he said, as the fans cheered proudly showing him their devil horns.



Their set was promptly followed by a blinding performance from Alaskan rockers 36 Crazyfists, who treated fans to tracks from their forthcoming album Collisions and Castaways, and sending the crowd in to a frenzy with a great selection of classics.

Read our interview with Steve from 36CF here.

Meanwhile, over on the Ronnie James Dio Stage, the likes of Anathema and A Day To Remember were doing a good job of abusing our sound system, and Coheed and Cambria played a ferocious set to the masses.

Elsewhere, one of the members from Trigger The Bloodshed randomly started having a nose bleed on stage during his set – he literally triggered his own bloodshed!

We also managed to catch up with Taylor Hawkins, who is playing at Donington with his new solo project The Coattail Riders. You can watch his interview with Kylie from The Lowdown below.

Ahead of their headline set on the Ronnie James Dio Stage, we had a chat with Matt from Bullet For My Valentine. You can read our interview with him right here.

The boys from Bridgend put on an incredible show, complete with big tunes, crazy fans and pyros as they played tracks from new album Fever and a bunch of classics too.

The Maurice Jones Stage was a hive of activity once again when Killswitch Engage stormed the stage for a second year in a row (they were here in 2009 as well!). Howard Jones, clearly stoked to be back, shouted “Thank you to all the people at Download for inviting us back… I mean who gets to play at Download twice in a row!”.

Read our full review of Killswitch Engage at Download here.

Headlining the stage was none other than supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. There was a sense of excitement as the sun began to set on the first day at Download 2010, and why not? After all, it's not every day you get to hear a band that includes members of Led Zeppelin, Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age playing together at Donington.
 


"It’s a fucking beautiful day today" says Josh, before the band break in to Scumbag Blues, which includes some disgustingly beautiful bass riffs from John, inducing mass applause from the crowd. The cheeky smirk on his face shows that he knows he's got us in the palm of his hand.

Read our full review of Them Crooked Vultures’ set at Download here.

Finally it was time for the moment that everyone was waiting for, and 90,000 Downloaders gathered around the AC/DC Stage for what would be an unforgettable performance.

Angus was dressed in a dark green velvet school uniform (what else?). Brian donned his trademark blue cap, ripped shirt and a cheeky grin. Malcom, Cliff and Phil looked on top of their game as ever. AC/DC had arrived at Donington for the first time in 19 years and exploded in to Runaway Train. It was breathtaking.



There are too many incredible moments to talk about in one breath. The show had it all: spectacle, excitement, humour, a giant inflatable Rosie and of course, some incredible rock tunes.

Read our full review of AC/DC live at Donington here.

As the day drew to an end, there was an amazing vibe in the air. Still buzzing from seeing AC/DC do their thing, the crowd were all looking to Saturday. And with the likes of Deftones, Megadeth, 5FDP and the mighty Rage Against The Machine lined up, who could blame them?