HISTORY
The Download Festival was conceived as a follow up to the Monsters of Rock festivals which had been held in at the Donington Park circuit between 1980 and 1996. Rather than run as a single day event Download was initially a 2 day event (expanding to 3 days in 2005).
The name Download was chosen for the festival for two reasons. Downloading was a dirty word in the music industry at the time, due to file sharing, and rock is seen as a rebelleous genre of music. The organisers faced pressure from the rest of the industry, with some even claiming that the Download Festival would "destroy the music industry"! Also Download was to be a Monsters Of Rock for the 21st Century and the internet would provide connectivity with its audience.
The 2003 festival tickets had a code on them, which would allow festival goers to download tracks from bands which had played. Although this idea has been dropped in subsequent years, the festival organisers have nurtured an online community through the Festival Forums. Initially a sounding board for the fans (and critics) of the festival, the boards have become an integral part of the festival organisation with regular contributions from Festival Director John Probyn and Promotor Andy Copping. The forums also provide face to face feedback through the Fan Forum meetings (started in 2006) and organise the Boardie BBQ (2006 on) and the Boardie Takeover night (2009), football tournaments and a pub quiz for the R.I.P. campers who arrive on a Wednesday night.
When Download began, it took place on the Donington Park circuit infield as had Monsters Of Rock. However in 2008 developments for Formula One meant that the infield was no longer suitable as a festival site. 2008 saw a move to the "Sunday Markets" site to the west of the circuit. Although adequate, numbers were limited and the location of the campsite meant that getting from your tent to the arena was quite a hike. 2009 saw the festival move to a much more suitable (and popular) location to the south of the circuit.
Download Festival 2003 - Line Up
Iron Maiden, Marilyn Manson, Deftones, Ministry, InMe, Murderdolls, Amen, Funeral for a Friend, Stampin' Ground, Shadows Fall, Murder One, Audioslave, Zwan, Flint, Apocalyptica, Less Than Jake, Disturbed, Stone Sour, Evanescence, Mudvayne, Spineshank, The Darkness, One Minute Silence, Raging Speedhorn, Instruction plus many more...
Download Festival 2004 - Line Up
Linkin Park, Sum 41, The Stooges, The Hives, The Distillers, Cradle of Filth, Monster Magnet, Opeth, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Metallica, Korn, Slipknot, Slayer, Machine Head, Damageplan, Soulfly, Ill Niño, Turbonegro, Breed 77 plus many more...
Download Festival 2005 - Line Up
Feeder, Garbage, Dinosaur Jr, Megadeth, Biffy Clyro, The Others, JJ72, Idiot Pilot, Wednesday 13, Queen Adreena, Black Sabbath, Velvet Revolver, HIM, Anthrax, Alter Bridge, Bowling for Soup, A, The Mad Capsule Markets, The Dwarves, Trivium, System of a Down, Slipknot, Slayer, Nightwish, Killswitch Engage, Papa Roach, Mudvayne, Society 1, DV8 plus many more...
Download Festival 2006 - Line Up
Tool, Deftones, Coheed and Cambria, Soulfly, Strapping Young Lad, Soil, Wicked Wisdom, Amplifier (band), Metallica, Korn, Trivium, Avenged Sevenfold, Stone Sour, Alice in Chains, Arch Enemy, Bloodsimple, Satyricon, Down (Unannounced Set), Guns N' Roses, Funeral for a Friend, Bullet for My Valentine, Cradle of Filth, Lacuna Coil, In Flames, 36 Crazyfists, DragonForce, Hatebreed, Breed 77 plus many more...
Download Festival 2007 - Line Up
My Chemical Romance, Velvet Revolver, Wolfmother, DragonForce, Megadeth, Hinder, Buckcherry, Zico Chain, Linkin Park, Marilyn Manson, Slayer, Machine Head, Bowling for Soup, 30 Seconds to Mars, Aiden, Shadows Fall, HELLYEAH, Turisas, Iron Maiden, Evanescence, Killswitch Engage, Stone Sour, Lamb of God, Mastodon, Papa Roach, Chimaira, Reuben, Parikrama plus many more...
Download Festival 2008 - Line Up
Kiss, Judas Priest, Motörhead, Disturbed, Seether, Beat Union, Black Tide, The Offspring, Incubus, Bullet for My Valentine, Biffy Clyro, Alter Bridge, Madina Lake, 36 Crazyfists, Job for a Cowboy, Skindred, Sign, Lostprophets, Jimmy Eat World, Coheed & Cambria, In Flames, Within Temptation, Apocalyptica, Black Stone Cherry, Fightstar, From First to Last, Glamour of the Kill plus many more...
Download Festival 2009 - Line Up
Faith No More, Korn, Limp Bizkit, Killswitch Engage, Billy Talent, Staind, The Blackout, Hollywood Undead, , Slipknot, Marilyn Manson, Pendulum, Dragonforce, Down, Hatebreed, DevilDriver, Five Finger Death Punch, Ripper Owens, Def Leppard, Whitesnake, ZZ Top, Dream Theater, Journey, Black Stone Cherry, Skin, Tesla, Stone Gods plus many more...
Download Festival 2010 - Line Up
AC/DC, Them Crooked Vultures, Killswitch Engage, 36 Crazy Fists, Unearth, Aerosmith, Stone Temple Pilots, Motorhead, Billy Idol, Slash, Cinderella, Saxon, FM, Dommin, Rage Against The Machine, Deftones, Megadeth, Lamb of God, Five Finger Death Punch, Atreyu, Flyleaf, Hellyeah, Taking Dawn, Bullet For My Valentine, Coheed & Cambria, A Day To Remember, Anathema, Trigger The Bloodshed, Job For A Cowboy, As I Lay Dying, Tyketto, Lawnmower Deth, Sweethead, Year Long Disaster, Devil Sold His Soul, Funeral Party, Imicus, Taylor Hawkins & The Coattail Riders, The Humour, Skin, JetBlack, Sondura, Starseed, Danny Vaughn, Thirty Seconds to Mars, HIM, The Blackout, Volbeat, We Are The Fallen, Cancer Bats, My Passion, Rolo Tomassi, Sonic Syndicate, Rise To Remain, Michael Monroe, Skin, Y&T, Senser, Enuff Z’nuff, Halestorm, Rock Sugar, Genitorturers, Reckless Love, Sybreed, Holy Grail, Killing for Company, Godsized, Breed77, Glamour of the Kill, Kadawatha, The Dead Lay Waiting, The Plight, Urban Voodoo Machine, Revoker, Reckless Love, Panic Cell, The Humour, The More I see, Dommin, Everything Burns, The Blackout, Stone Sour, Airbourne, Steel Panther, Porcupine Tree, Dillinger Escape Plan plus many many more...
Download Festival 2011 - Line Up
Def Leppard, System of a Down, Linkin Park, Avenged Sevenfold, Rob Zombie, Pendulum, Korn, The Darkness, Bullet For My Valentine, Alice Cooper, Alter Bridge, Danzig, The Cult, Gaslight Anthem, Hollywood Undead, Thin Lizzy, Buckcherry, Black Veil Brides, The Damned Things, Escape The Fate, Clutch, Mr Big, GWAR, FM, Masters Of Reality, Rise To Remain, Trash Talk, Twisted Sister, Down & Duff Mckagen’s Loaded, Turisas, All That Remains, Sacred Mother Tongue, Bowling For Soup, Devil Wears Prada, Bring Me The Horizon, Frank Turner, Cheap Trick, Asking Alexandria, Straight Line Stitch, Disturbed, Black Stone Cherry, The King Blues, Madina Lake, Down, Jameson Raid, Ghost, VersaEmerge, The Pretty Reckless, Puddle of Mudd, Times Of Grace, Evile, Suicide Silence, Your Demi, Skunk Anansie, Funeral For a Friend, Plain White T’s, Kvelertak, Framing Hanley, Hyro Da Hero, Anti-Flag, Baptized In Blood, Belligerence, CKY, Biohazard, Blitz Kids, Children Of Bodom, BossHoss, Chthonic, Dan Reed, Dangerous Summer, Dead Lay Waiting, Deaf Havana, Dear Superstar, DRUGS, Dio Disciples, Envy Of The State, Heights, Illuminatus, Karma To Burn, LetLive, Oaf, Kellermensch, Lower than Atlantis, Malefice, The Morning After, My Darkest Days, October File, Rock Sugar, Royal Repubic, Sweet Savage, TRC, Skindred, Starseed, Yashin, T-34, Houston, Silverstein, Skeletal Damage, Wayne Static, Young Guns, Sevendust