Photo: WENN
Ah, here we go again. The first announcements for next year's festival season and the internet reacts in a baffling clash of elation and sheer fury - and no audience is more passionate than those who love Download Festival.
The initial news that Avenged Sevenfold would be headlining the opening day supported by rock icon Rob Zombie stirred a fair amount of controversy, and the announcement of Linkin Park returning to Donington Park has split opinion even further.
As the line-up continues to unfold and metalheads find themselves at loggerheads, locking horns and thrashing it out, we take a look a look at both sides of the argument. Is the line-up for Download Festival 2014 the right choice?
AGAINST - It's just not heavy enough
"This year's Download Festival line-up has caused a fair amount of upset, with a slew of announcements that have been met with extremely mixed reactions. Yesterday saw the announcement of Avenged Sevenfold as headliners along with Rob Zombie as a special guest, whereas today saw the announcement of Linkin Park and Fall Out Boy. This is bad for the reason that it seems to be an attempt to popularize what is one of the few fringe music events left in the UK.
The UK festival economy is still in a fragile state following years upon years of cancellations thanks to a direct consequence of the recession. Whilst things have recovered, we have seen various important festivals fall by the way side - including competitor in the metal market Sonisphere. What this leaves is a very thin and frankly vanilla selection of festivals that attempt to please everyone, but as in the case of the specialist audience expected at Download, would end up pleasing no one.
Herein lies the blunt crux of the problem: the headliners and acts announced so far would be more at home at Reading and Leeds. Download on the other hand, is a specialist festival for devoted fans of bands. It's quite frankly impossible to see at other events. To pull on the old cliche, it needs to be heavy and hard, because where else can you go to see that kind of music now that nearly every other festival has choked and fallen due to poor ticket sales?
While we have no doubt the rest of the line-up will be "heavy" we want to see them announcing Devil Driver, Machine Head and In Flames. The market is there as metal fans are the most devoted out there, so why divide it?" - Edward Keeble
FOR - It's time for a new generation
"It's very rare that the Download line-up doesn't upset vast swathes of metalheads. A few examples spring to mind: last year when we were treated to Slipknot, Iron Maiden and Rammstein and the glorious triple-header of AC/DC, Rage Against The Machine and Aerosmith back in 2010. Pretty solid, we can all agree - but you can't help but wonder why. There seems to be a frustrating disposition in rock to automatically assume that older is better. It's not fair.
What do you want? Sabbath, Metallica, Maiden, Motley Crue and Judas Priest on rotation until they die? Avenged Sevenfold are a band that I personally couldn't give two shits about, but for over a decade and six albums they've brought metal to the masses of a new generation, working their way up from sweaty toilet venues to fill arenas. Heavy music struggles to reach new audiences in today's climate, so a band who can pull off what they've achieved deserve to be celebrated. What kind of message does it send to young metal bands if you have to be a dinosaur to be eligible to headline?
True, it seems a bit daft that Linkin Park should headline again after their last recent attempt in 2011. It doesn't say all that much for the sphere of rock bands big enough to headline, but it's worth remembering the far-reaching impact that the band have had an that Hybrid Theory is a seminal, rock classic. Again, what more do you want? Deny a band who top charts with guitars and hand the stage over to legacy acts? How do you pave the way for who's to come next in decades to come?
Problem with Fall Out Boy? Anyone who has been in a sweaty rock dive where a double vodka is £1, your feet stick to floor and everyone ignore's the pierced barman's questionable grunts and hasn't seen the dancefloor erupt to 'Sugar, We're Going Down' is a liar. You say the line-up is 'not heavy enough'? Four bloody bands have been announced. FOUR, out of hundreds - the vast majority of which could cause nosebleeds from across Donington with a quick thrash of a double-kick drum. Last year I wandered away from whatever piffle was on the main stage and caught Kvelertak entirely by accident, and it was awesome. Don't like Fall Out Boy? You've got legs, use them.
As for the festival surviving? Download Festival is supposed to be a celebration for all things rock, for those who want to live life loud - it needs to evolve to encompass the essence of what a modern rock audience wants. It's not a heavy metal museum." - Andrew Trendell
Below: 16 more bands who we reckon are highly likely to appear at Download 2014
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