I think for me the weird thing is that 2 of the 3 headliners are bands that wouldn't be amiss on other more mainstream festivals (see qotsa's glastonbury set for example) like Reading/Leeds. Maybe part of the problem is that there aren't that many newer bands big enough actually alternative bands to draw enough of a crowd to keep the line-up fresh. It would be a shame if download lost it's identity though.

Well that was an excellent video lads! Very well made, very educational, truly spot on. Let’s take Download into a new era

Parkway drive,Gojira,korn all need to be given the chance

If you only want out and out metal bands headlining download, my suggestion is Sabaton. They are the natural successors to Iron Maiden and did a uk arena tour not long ago.

Iron maiden and Metallica are really great bands but bloody hell, how many times do we need to see them at Download? Im really glad the organisers are changing things up a bit this year.

I like the headliners for 2024 and been going since the start. The problem for me, on a par or more than the revolving door of headliners, is that DL always place the biggest bands as headliners and billed 2nd, over the 4 stages, so while it initially looks like it's great value with lots of bands I'm paying a hefty price to watch, in reality, most clash and we miss them

i think ghost deserve a headline spot next year, the fact they was put on the second stage last year was a disgrace

Great video. Download definitely seems to have turned a corner. Was discussing on the download facebook earlier and it was really stale between 2011-2022, with just 8 new bands in 30 slots. Post pandemic and with the anniversary i think there were some hangover bookings and aome bands locked in. But a new era is here now, and happy to see it! The changes to the village have been really welcome too. Hoping we see even more improvements ovwr the coming years, and im excited for them 😎👍

Would love to say it’s because they wanted new headliners the reality is that the bookers/promotes came out and said they’d approached over 20 bands before they got to this lineup. That means a lot of bands turned download down before they settled on these 3 which is pretty damning for the festival. Thankfully bands like Ghost, Bury Tomorrow, Bad Omens will be there to headline in the future, I think the bigger issue however is the lack of bands crossing to the mainstream, that’s when they become big enough to headline. Such as BMTH, huge band and absolutely nailed their spot, Sleep Token could be soon!

So pumped for Download! It's so close now! Most excited for A7X as I've never seen them before, same goes for QOTSA. FOB I've seen twice before and they do put on a good show. The undercard is so stacked as well! Already got high hopes for the 2025 headliners, still would love to see Foos here!

The whole musical landscape is changing, especially within heavy and alternative music. We'll never have another Metallica, Maiden, etc, so it does stand to reason why the bands get booked if and when they're available. Of course, DL does need to be bringing through the new guard, their options are just extremely limited. For one, I would like to see bands like Sleep Token, Ghost, Parkway Drive be given the bump up at the next opportunity.

Been going since 2011 and Bring Me was (imo) the best headline set i've ever seen at Download. This is coming from someone who didn't like them a decade ago.

Great comments and thought provoking . In my humble opinion this years line up is outstanding im so looking forward to it . i gotta say swap avenged with limp bizkit 100%

It's clear we need new bands coming through, but we need to make sure these bands fit. If you start booking more pop rock and indie bands the festival will lose that special community feel that download has. It will become more like Reading and Leeds or Glastonbury that has more of a touristy feel. Download festival was built on being different but being different together. Let's not lose that. 🤟

Happy to see fresh headliners for sure. I guess one issue they have is that they can't have many of these huge bands like Metallica, Maiden etc without them headlining, can you see Hetfield agreeing to a sub headline slot? So by going to alternate and fresh headliners it basically means the huge titans won't be playing at all. Which I'm not sad about.

Feel like they need to adopt the Glasto formula, like 2 big modern headliners and then a throwback headliner

I think as long as they are sensible they can get both sides of the coin. if they just are a bit better at balancing the old and the new headliners, we get the best of both worlds. I don't want to never see bands like maiden, metallica, aerosmith etc...headlining the festival again, but i am also excited to see newer acts get the chance to be in that headline spotlight (bands like ghost or Gojira) You will never make everybody happy and no matter how well you split the acts between new or old, somebody will complain about the festival changing to much, or not evolving enough. but if we can just be a bit more even on the split of old and new, then i think we all get to benefit. it will also keep the festival a bit fresher if they have a wider range of acts that get to headline.

I wanted to go so bad but it's in the middle of my exams. So jealous of anyone going it looks great!

I'd suggest a reverse to the good old days of one stage, one day and 8 to 10 bands. Remember the old addage 'less is more' ? Folks can camp the night before & the night of, but you only get 1 day of metal. This means more bands competing for the coveted slots on the day which translates to the fans getting more bang for their buck. Unfortunately Download is suffering from Corporateitis. Strip it back, lose the Corporate suits & let Donington ROCK like it did when Guns n Roses blew the world away in 88 !!

promoted or good enough?

Didn't the organiser of DL ask over 20 other bands to headline? It crap headliners because other bands didn't want come, or the organisers were being cheap on their budget,,, knowing that loads of people would do early bird after 2023. Its always to do with money. :(

I watched Download on Kerrang/Scuzz ~20 years ago in my early teens and it had a lasting impact on my music tastes. The lineups have largely stayed the same since then! Some of the newer bands featured aren't of interest to me but clearly they're needed if the festival and wider rock scene in the UK are to survive. I will also say Bloodstock needs to play a part in elevating new bands to this level as well - about 10 years ago they started booking bands from smaller stages at Download as their headliners, it needs to go the other way!

My main issue with festivals is how many will not announce the headliners before the sale of tickets. Yes, a festival is always more than just the headliners but the organisers are financing the event based on reputation and pre-sales and not the quality of their lineup. It would be interesting is see how attendance figures would differ at each event if sales took place after the lineup announcement.

There are still a portion of bands that still havent performed at DL that are suited. Green Day, Blink 182, Alkaline Trio, NIN, Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam (giving that FF n PJ were pencilled in to headline back in 2008) any of these would be a great addition to the lineup. Ive even seen some suggest Creed and Nickleback would work to the lineup. Over the years, there have been fans being disgruntled at the fact that DL may never get these bands. Not sure if Andy Copping is overlooking these bands or weather that will depend on cost or if either the bands and management are interested. I saw Iron Maiden back in 2018 and saw Andy Copping on the night. Spoke to him after and no doubt he was there watching Maiden and they were due to headline in 20 before covid cancelled it out. For me DL has gotten to the point where, not only headliners, but the lineup as a whole is repeated each year. Having first went in 04 til 13 then only about 2/3 after 14, i dont seem to miss it plus with the price hiking up each year, makes it more cheaper to go abroad or even venture to Bloodstock (which I have since 2016)

Korn just sold out biggest London show at 40k, gotta be given headline slot next year with those numbers and the legacy

Muse got slated back in 2015 for being a headliner but they put on an incredible set/show for a band not typically seeing as a "Download" band.

I remember seeing you last year you were crowd surfing during Architects performance. You jumped off and hugged Sam. I was on the front row and we were all jealous lol

I mean, these are all 20 year old bands, though. They're about as new as Metallica was during St. Anger. The rock and metal scene just has a severe case of being stuck in the past, which makes these acts that could arguably be considered legacy bands by now look like newcomers (no hate on the bands though, they're great)

This will be our 5th Download and honestly the variety is needed. Bring me definitely has been the best headline show we have seen, I like a lot of the older bands such as Slipknot, Metallica but I've also been saying for ages I would rather have some newer headliners sprinkled in that I don't even want to see vs the same bands on repeat such as iron maiden. Personally not much of a fan of QOTSA but glad to see variety, Really looking forward to fall out boy, yes they may not be as heavy as other headliners but at the end of the day it's a rock and metal festival, not just metal and fall out boy definitely introduced a lot of people to this side of music.

Oh no, gee it must be tough getting to see bands like Metallica and Slipknot once a year... 😒 (Greetings from Australia. )

Sum 41. Should of been headling as its their last ever tour.

I'd say the reason that they have a "revolving door" of headliners is because they have a wide appeal and are guaranteed draws. The only new band who I think are worthy of being promoted to the headline spot is Ghost. Also as a young download fan with my first one being last year, some of us younger fans haven't had a chance to see some of the classic bands like Iron Maiden. I understand that they wanna listen to the fans and stop inviting the older bands but I feel like they've gone too far this year and other than Pantera, they have NO older bands. It wouldn't have hurt to have Anthrax or Judas Priest or Megadeth too to diversify the lineup

QOTSA are one of the very best Bands to see live right now. Saw them in november and it blew my socks off

Not a bring me fan but they put on a great set for sure . Not looking forward to fall out boy but like bring me. They'll probably put on a good show In all I'm looking forward to the weekend as always. Who ever is playing it's gonna be awesome

I said last year, if A7X are on the lineup I'd go no questions asked. Looking at the lineup, it's not my cup of tea and I'll just be wandering around for the first 2 days. But the thought of being there with my mates and seeing A7X alone is enough for me to look forward to this year. Would love to have seen a much older band this year, but it is what it is. Last year was stacked, so you gotta expect a shite line up the year before or after. Just gotta look forward to next year!

I'm a Bloodstocker, not a Downloader. Download was never my scene (barre the odd few bands I grew up with). Thing is, Download's a different beast altogether. It was never primarily a 'metal' festival. More like alt/rock. I think what is partially to blame is the shift in 'heavy' music over the last decade +. I find that a lot of these 'upcoming' bands are just... not that good. And maybe that's why bookers aren't taking many risks?

Can't believe it STILL says Bad Omens are playing on the website poster such a terribly run website

Bands like Maiden, Metallica, Slipknot and others that are multi-time headliners arent there because they are "the only ones available" to do the show. Theyre there because they have proven time and time again that after years and years on the scene, they are still capable of absolutely ripping up the biggest stages and drawing the biggest crowds. Should Download diversify and mix it up with headliners? Yes. For sure. But at the same time, the "older" bands still draw massively. And as long as they are still making music and touring, they should absolutely be given the chance to perform these shows. This may be quite an unpopular take on it, but Download mainstage is not the "kiddy table" of shows... its not for "up and comers" or "the next big thing" to headline... because these dont sell out shows. These "up and comers" do have to prove themselves, like you have said with sub headline slots, and second / third stage headline slots, or headlining smaller festivals (like Archtects this year with Bloodstock.) I would love to be seeing more diverse and different bands for sure, but Im also not going to turn down another opportunity to see the likes of Maiden and Kiss and Metallica, because one day those bands that we grew up on and loved so much, arent going to be around anymore, so make the most of it whilst you can :) That being said, I cant wait for DLXXI. Im loving the variety shown on the headliners and this dip into the slightly unknown for DL is something to be excited about, and I cant wait. Much like Muse in 2015, where people absolutely slated it... they ended up putting on a cracker of a show.

Parkway Drive was due to headline until Metallica played two nights!!

the problem with download is it's not donington monsters of rock

Its just way too expensive. Alot of people can't justify it anymore

It's all about balance not too many new bands and not the same old all the time.

Not my preference really tbh there was some class acts there but the line up was all over for me

Fall Out Boy are going blow everyone away next month. They are an absolutely fantastic live band and will smash it.

It’s mostly not their fault. There’s just very few bands out there who can carry an 80k cap festival in the rock/metal world. People can talk about how good BMTH was but the field was much fuller for Metallica and the only reason they got away with BMTH was because Metallica did 2 nights and that basically sells the festival out by itself. It speaks volumes that we’re a month away and tickets are still available. These headliners just aren’t big enough to headline the festival, not together anyway. That’s why they keep going back to proven acts.

To to be fair with Andy and livenation all the big headliners we want to play like RHCP, pearl jam, green day, Foos, AC/DC etc say why the hell should we play download as we can sell out stadiums on our own in minutes for more money. There has to be a middle ground and push bands up to headline level. Some of these bands us fan’s disagree with, but it’s an unnecessary evil we have to deal with or loose download for good

I like Architects, but Sam’s comment about Pendulum while sucking BMTH off ruined the performance for me tbh

It’s only a matter of time until Gojira headline, surely?

Same old bands forget headliners same bands over and over on every bill literally so many bands who've never played while some bands seem to be there every second year it's so stale

I think it’s great download are doing this, but if they have a period of time pushing new talent, there may also be a chunk of time where they suffer from fewer ticket sales. Short term they’d be taking in less money, but in the longer term they would reek the benefits

Sum 41 are playing their last ever uk festival and they elected for fall out boy over them to headline... With fall out boys last stream of "hits" being pop songs.... Cant make any sense of it

I agree and disagree with you I think their needs to be a balance...new bands do need to be promoted more...BUT youd have to be crazy to not have one huge old school act like Iron Maiden...theyre rock royalty. The ideal headliners as an example would be Iron Maiden Bullet For My Valentine Parkway Drive or something like that

The old grumpy Facebook warriors that always moan that its not MOR any more are spoilt for choice with alternative festivals to go to. Steel House, Stonedead, Maid of Stone, Bearded Theory etc. Festivals adapt and change all the time. Download had it's most successful year ever in 23 so its obviously doing something right.

I was long in the camp of Download needs new fresh headliners to step up to the mark, before the old bands retire and so on one hand, i'm happy to see 2 new headliners. But this is Download. Britain's biggest rock festival and it is a hefty amount of money these days. More than ever, Download needs to present bang for your buck. So to see that Avenged Sevenfold is the so called older, experienced headliner, that's not good. I always argued they needed new headliners alongside the old guard. And as the old guard retired, the new headliners would take the place of the old guard, as they would be experienced now. That means sure, get Fallout Boy. It's not my cup of tea, but it is new. But that inexperience, the lower level of the band, will impact the value for money and my excitement. I wouldn't be so annoyed if they announced Fallout Boy alongside say Rammstein or Def Leppard. That would sort of level each other out. Same as how they took the risk with BMTH because they had Metallica and Slipknot to fall back on. And heck, I would have even been ok with QOTSA getting a slot too if Rammstein was the third headliner slot instead of A7X. But if Rammstein is a A tier Headliner, then A7X is a B tier. And Fallout Boy and QOTSA aren't proven and so aren't any tier yet. In an ideal world, you should always have an A tier headliner. or maybe even 2 B tiers. Maybe if QOTSA was replaced with say Biffy Clyro (bad example because they not long back played), that would be 2 Bs and an unknown. But one B and two unknown is not worth £300+. My personal prediction for the headliners was Rammstein, A7X and Muse, because I didn't think they would go with a new band. But that would have been worth £300+ quid. Rammstein and Muse are experienced festival headliners and A7X isn't inexperienced, but they are the weakest. It would be A,A,B. I was kinda hoping A7X would not be there as I'm not a fan, so I had hoped for something like Rammstein, Muse and someone like Pantera, Ghost or Korn. All of which would be new and far more exciting. And I know Pantera are there, but common, they should be main stage headliner, just as back in 2019, Slayer were done dirty not getting main stage headliner for their final UK show. I also think there are other more relevant bands who would be better suited than Fallout Boy or QOTSA. Bands like Alter Bridge, Parkway Drive, Bullet for my Valentine or Enter Shikari. And then there are the ones I'm amazed have never done it before. Foo Fighters, Green Day, Blink 182. All much bigger and much better value for money. So I just feel like they needed at least 1 A tier band, and then they could have gotten away with 2 new headliners. But they also had so many better options for the new headliners. I mean, imagine if it was Rammstein, Green Day and Pantera. It's just too much wasted potential

I luv qotsa but they play 1500 venues and have been round for 25 years they are hardly new not really headliner stuff

Bloodstock, time for you to grow. Download is no longer a metal event, its gone mainstream. Only doing sunday this year for Corey Taylor, thy art is murder and Avenged Sevenfold

It's time bands like Avenged Sevenfold, Gojira, Code Orange, Architects, Bullet For My Valentine, Five Finger Death Punch Within Temptation be headliners when the legacy bands retire, it's a commercial decision why keep having the same legacy bands as headline acts, they should stop pandering to the planet rock crowd

Poor line up this year apart from Avenged Sevenfold and Pantera 🤘🇬🇧

Bring Me The Horizon were dreadful . Utterly shocked the positive press they got . Musically mundane . Bizarre how they headlined. Best headliner in years?? .... nah

OEF and bloodstock>>>>>>>download

Fall Out Boy are a poor poor choice for headline act.

bmth was shit

all the bands are shit ...bring back monsters of rock..

Bring back one stage old school Monsters of Rock !!!! This download is fuckin shit . Pop festival now .

Too expensive,shit facilities,rip off. Monsters of rock was the last proper festival