Photo Credit: Abbi Draper
After the biblical deluge that turned Download 2024 into a three-day swamp wrestling tournament with riffs, expectations were low—but always cautiously hopeful—for 2025. But as last Friday morning broke over the sacred turf of Donington Park with real world, warming and beaming sunshine cracking through the clouds and a distinct lack of trench foot underfoot, it was clear: Mother Nature and the Metal Gods had teamed up and formed a beautiful alliance. This was our year.
If you were lucky enough to be at Download Festival 2025, then you already know: it wasn’t just epic – it was an all-timer! With a line-up that kicked harder than Roy Keane on a cold Wednesday night in the Midlands and weather that would make even the most cynical Download goer sink to their knees with joy, this year’s edition was a masterclass in everything Download stands for: riffs, community, friendship, and pure, unfiltered rock ‘n’ roll magic.
This time around, with very little rain, it wasn’t a boot-sucking mud bath or a rain-splattered fight for tent shelter survival. No, Download 2025 was chef kissed, no scratch that – it was dust-kissed perfection. From Friday morning to Sunday’s final encore, the sun held strong and the hallowed grass of Donington basked in golden glory. We’ll always take dust over mud, thanks. Always. But the music was even hotter.
Green Day’s Friday night headline set was the kind of moment Download dreams are made of. Billie Joe Armstrong didn’t just take the stage—he summoned the elements. Just as he hit the first chorus of Wake Me Up When September Ends, the skies split open and a gentle rain fell across the crowd. No rain all day, none after. Just that moment. Was it magic or witchcraft? Do bookers Kamran and Andy C have control over the sky? Who cares—it was glorious. Armstrong, ever the showman, played it like he planned it. And with a set that swerved between nostalgia-drenched classics and snarling modern-day punches, Green Day showed exactly why they’ve been one of the festival’s most requested headline acts for a generation now.
Top of the bill on Saturday night was Sleep Token who delivered a set that was as much a ritual as it was a performance. With a stage show bathed in eerie lights and ritualistic drama, Vessel and co. offered something transcendent. The sound was tight, the visuals mesmerizing, and the crowd stood in collective awe. It wasn’t just a gig—it was an experience. The kind that sticks with you long after the final note fades. The decision to book Sleep Token as headliners was a divisie one but their performance has surely quashed any doubts about a band now soaring in the charts on both sides of the Atlantic.
Lighting the end of festival fireworks and bringing the black curtain down on 2025 was nu-metal legends Korn. There was a time when you might’ve questioned whether Jonathan Davis and co. still had it. That time is over. It took them thirty years to be handed the keys to Download, as Davis referenced from stage, but they brought the apocalypse with them—Freak on a Leash, Blind, Got the Life—battering the crowd into pure submission. The set was pure, unfiltered nu-metal carnage, and everyone loved it.
Of course, the undercard gave us plenty to shout about. As we have come to expect, Steel Panther, brought one of the most delicious, delirious and downright filthy sets of the weekend. The glam metal gurus gave Download their usual blend of hair metal anthems and jokes so blue they’d make your nan blush. But also some more subtle and less rude moments of comedy gold brought huge laughs such as referring to Alice in Chains legend Jerry Cantrell as “Jerry Garcia” sent the crowd into absolute hysterics. It was peak Panther: crude, chaotic, and irresistibly funny as they turned the Opus stage into the sleaziest pantomime in metal.
And then there was Spiritbox. Their set was nothing short of a statement: that they are ready. Headliner ready. Courtney LaPlante’s vocals were both razor-sharp and angelic, backed by a band that moved between djent-heavy grooves and cinematic swells like they were born to do this. If Download 2025 had a breakout star, it was Spiritbox.
One of the weekend’s most chaotic, genre-destroying moments came courtesy of Kim Dracula. The Australian wildcard delivered a set that was pure musical carnage—a head-spinning collision of metal, hip-hop, jazz, industrial and glam. One moment you’re in a pit during a crushing breakdown, the next there’s a funky saxophone solo making your hips twitch involuntarily. It was weird. It was wild. It was wonderful.
If you were anywhere near the Don Broco set and didn’t find yourself two-stepping with a stranger or getting down like it was a nightclub floor, were you even there? The lads from Bedford turned their slot into a full-on body-rocking, swing-your-partner dance riot. Their signature fusion of pop hooks, heavy grooves and cheeky charisma transformed the arena into a high-energy mess of limbs and laughter. Don Broco don’t just play shows—they start parties.
Karen Dio blazed through a set that merged the occult mystique of her namesake with an electro-glam snarl. Imagine Siouxsie Sioux raised on Slayer and synthpop, and you’re halfway there. Glasgow’s metal finest Bleed From Within took no prisoners with a bludgeoning performance that reminded everyone why Scotland should be feared when it comes to metal exports. Their blend of melodic precision and savage riffs hit like a warhammer to the chest, commanding the early crowd with an intensity that most bands would kill for. Expect to see their name climbing higher on the bill in years to come—they’ve earned it.
Sophie Lloyd, shredding goddess and six-string phenom, put on a clinic in fretboard fury like the guitar genius prodigy of Satriani and Vai. The Darkness brought their trademark strut and sex appeal to an adoring crowd, with Justin Hawkins reaching notes that must surely require government clearance. Poppy flipped the vibe again, delivering an industrial-pop-metal set that was as catchy as it was confrontational. But then came Shinedown, delivering one of the most professional sets of the weekend. Polished, powerful, and packed with pyro—they were arena rock in festival form.
Eivør, the Faroese enchantress whose voice is so spectacular she could stop time itself. Her atmospheric, elemental performance was a spiritual palate cleanser before the evening’s anthemic giants. When Jimmy Eat World took the stage, the emotional weight hit like a sucker punch to the heart. The Middle sung by 80,000 people with arms around strangers was one of those moments that transcends music. And Weezer proved to be absolute scene-stealers. Rivers Cuomo might be rock’s most unlikely icon, but hell don’t those MTV-era hits flow like wine?
Then came Jerry Cantrell—a living legend, carrying the weight of Alice In Chains’ legacy and doing it with utter class. Rooster turned into a collective outpouring of grief and gratitude, a reminder of the emotional depth beneath the distortion. Airbourne delivered their usual brand of Aussie beer-can rock and nearly blew the roof off the sky.
But what truly set Download 2025 apart wasn’t just the performances—it was the vibe. The energy on site was electric. Maybe it was the weather, maybe it was the line-up, maybe it was the collective sense that, finally, everything clicked. Whatever it was, it felt special. You could see it in the circle pits, in the sunburnt faces beaming through another crate of lukewarm lager or cider, in the random acts of kindness at the water stations and merch queues. You could feel it in the chants echoing across the campsites, in the laughter, in the absolute joy of live music done right.
And now, as we stare down the barrel of a twelve month wait, we’re already twitching with anticipation for what 2026 might bring and there’s a bittersweet ache in the bones. Honestly, it feels impossible to top this year but then again, Download somehow, always, finds a way. Until next year: keep it loud, keep it messy, and for the love of Lemmy, lets not moan about the line-up when it gets announced.
Download 2025, you were perfect. Dust and all. See you in the pit, 2026. You’ve got a lot to live up to.
Written By: Eric Mackinnon
