The big review: Download 2026 – Saturday

Sun's out, Guns out! Day two of Download 2026 sees a lack of rain and the big ball in the sky putting in an appearance. And another massive raft of bands to turn Donington Park into a mega party. Here, we bring you all the action, all day long, as it happens. Let's go!

• The big review: Download 2026 – Friday
• How Limp Bizkit triumphed at their Download 2026 headliner
• How Electric Callboy got the party started at Download 2026
• What happened when Architects headlined Download's Opus Stage
• Guns N' Roses give Download Festival flashes of brilliance
• What happened at Skindred's secret Download set
• What happened at Spitting Glass' Download debut

"It's good to be back," grins Axl Rose, flashing his megabucks pearly whites to an audience stretching right up Donington's big hill. "It's so nice when a few close friends drop by..."

Twenty years on from Guns N' Roses' infamously shambolic, zero-out-of-five-K!-rated 2006 Donington headliner, few would have bet them to be the 'safe' bet at Download 2026. Indeed, a decade on from the first reunion of core trio Axl, Slash and Duff McKagan, the 'original' GNR have established themselves as one of the hardest touring, most reliable bands in heavy music.

That is very much a double-edged sword. Yes, it's nicer to see the intro tape beginning to roll a few minutes early than to be left kicking rocks not knowing when the headliners might turn up for half the night. And, sure, it's reassuring to know that Axl probably won't storm off because of piss-ripping punters hurling debris onstage. But Guns got to this point by being the most dangerous band in the world, and, frankly, you'd face more peril in the bogs tonight than smashing pints at the front of the stage. Welcome To The Jungle's iconic opening riff staggers out of the PA. It's So Easy feels weirdly like filler. Even the potentially dazzling early one-two of Mr. Brownstone and You Could Be Mine feel threadbare, worn thin by far too much recent touring.

Then things get better. In earnest...

Read the full review: Guns akimbo! Guns N' Roses give Download flashes of brilliance

The sun is casting a beautiful buttery glow on Architects as they headline the Opus Stage. A sweet, idyllic setting, just perfect for the band to throw the gnarly Elegy at us, and for frontman Sam Carter to snarl into his mic like there’s personal beef between them while looking cold as fuck in his shades. “Yeehaw!” he yells. It’s not long before the set really does descend into the wild wild west, though.

All is going smoothly through corkers like Doomsday and Gravedigger, until their set becomes plagued by interruptions. Pausing for a crowd incident is not unheard of, and often necessary, so Sam encourages more pits to start blooming elsewhere while the issue is resolved, but things are halted again for Blackhole, which was cooking up to be monumental.

Sam walks off, frustrated at apparently being told contradicting communication through his in-ears. He makes light of it upon his return though, telling Download he’s in the driver’s seat and will always stop for someone’s safety. He jokingly warns us, though: he didn’t pass his test too long ago. “I promise you’re in safe hands,” the frontman says, his cheeky grin returning, but the show stops again during Impermanence, leading to the band disappearing for quite some time. Crowdsurfing bananas are passed down to the barrier among the quiet like snickering students after the teacher’s told everyone off.

Read the full review: Drama, danger, disgustingly good riffs: What happened when Architects headlined Download's Opus Stage

Is a full playthrough of a two-track album that skips between Morbid Angel-ish death metal and total Pink Floyd worship, complete with full-Gilmour rip-off guitar freak-out, the way to headline a stage at one of the world's biggest rock festivals at the same time as Guns N' Roses? Yes. So here we are, the lads in Blood Incantation, bringing Absolute Elsewhere - obelisks and all - to the Dogtooth Stage. Even though they've been taking this whole idea on the road for a while now, the sheer scale of the undertaking remains staggering, as does just how deeply they drag you through their portal to their weird dimension. Even Paul Riedl's glorious skullet seems to be giving something extra today as they tear through the album's deep shadows and brilliant highlights, with each epic twist getting an enormous roar. Masters of atmosphere, and with a power that takes you on their cosmic journey whether you want to follow them or not, Blood Incantation once again demonstrate that they're the keystone death metal band of their time. (NR)

The church of Hot Milk is open for worship. Hallelujah, or as the rowdy Mancunians would say, let’s fuckin’ ave it. Jim Shaw and Han Mee are mad for it on raring up the tent, they lock eyes and sing directly at the many happy faces before them, and they can’t help but to grin widely at themselves too. “You look bloody gorgeous,” beams Han after they nail Swallow This and 90 Seconds To Midnight with all the enthusiasm and fervor they could possibly deliver. This is a set that proves nobody loves this band as much as the four people within Hot Milk do. Finishing up with Party On My Deathbed, they take in all the glory of how far they’ve come, and how much further they can go. (RR)

There’s a game of sardines going on at the Avalanche Stage. The All-American Rejects have smashed expectations and lured more people to the tent than it can hold. It's not even that people have drifted in their direction to avoid Guns N'Roses, either. There's genuine love here, demonstrated by the chorus of voices joining in with deeper cuts as well as the big hitters, and given their dearth of UK tour dates in recent years lots of people are seeing them for the first time. There's some wild chat from vocalist Tyson Ritter. “I'm just gonna say ‘Wheeeee’ because it's fun,” he says, before some oddball lines about shagging in tents and festival goers dressing like they're at a “slutty renaissance fair”, adding “I wanna call everybody Gretchen and ask them for a leg of turkey.” All that aside, they sound crisp and fizz with energy, shared by the crowd as they bounce through Dirty Little Secret and Gives You Hell with a hedonistic aplomb. It’s off the chain, yes, but AAR have absolutely drawn the long straw tonight nonetheless. (EW)

People in wizard hats and dungarees seem to be crowding the front rows of the Dogtooth stage at the start of Elder, but it's hard to know whether that's a natural outcome of the Massachusetts psych crew's music or just all the drugs. They're fucking rad, either way. With red text on a red, branchy backdrop, their visuals conjure the atmosphere of a horror movie just before the bloodletting begins, but the music is more like the mucky end of high fantasy, with massive, pendulous riffs ready to fascinate fair maidens and take the heads off flesh-hungry orcs. Over the course of 30 minutes in a tent at the top of the hill at Donington, it is, frankly, a lot. But by the time they dissolve into the resin-rich climax of their set, all mercurial guitars and dust-thumping drums, the whole tent is under their spell. (SL)

Odd as it still is seeing Behemoth in daylight, the Polish blasphemers have also gotten very good at it. To a point, actually, where it could be argued that they don't darken proceeding so much as burn with the same incandescence as the early-evening sun. The look in Nergal's eyes as he leads his troops through the mighty sing-along of Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer is that of a man fully focused on domination, and the power they wield is an uplifting, enlivening one. And that's on top him and his band already looking completely ready for war in their corpsepaint. Even the slower Bartzabel is a kick up the arse, while The Shit Ov God is delightfully fun wickedness, as is an absolutely riotous cover of Bathory's The Return Of Darkness And Evil. As ever, delightfully sinful. (NR)

It’s obvious Trivium are going to pull off something special as soon as that scalding first riff of Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr drops - and opening with it is a power move in and of itself. It’s no wonder Matt Heafy has such a cheeky grin on him, sticking his tongue out as he shreds, thrilled to be back at the festival whose history book they helped write with that infamous 2005 barn burner of a set. That love is repaid with a fusillade of enormous songs - a storming Down From The Sky, a cacophonous Throes Of Perdition and the crowd is really getting spoiled with a colossal three-part finish consisting of Catastrophist, The Heart From Your Hate and In Waves. They always rip, but today, Trivium ripped extra hard. (EW)

Thank God Marmozets are back. With a new album under their belt and making their first Download return since 2018, Avalanche is understandably rammo’d from front to back. Their signature spleen jiggling bass spreads across the grounds, fittingly curated by bassist Sam Macintyre, who is acting as a conductor of chaos. While he never lets Avalanche rest, vocalist Becca Bottomley dances elegantly over the violence in the meantime. No need for introductions for Move, Shake, Hide, it’s retained like muscle memory, but it’s Captivate You that is especially spinetingling. Spleentingling? They couldn’t have done a better job if they tried. (RR)

Patty Walters is like a vampire. Unchanged, the As It Is singer is still wagging his tongue and windmilling his mic like the gang have top tier health insurance and it’s still the 2010s. It’s their first time back at Download since 2017, and they cover all bases for fans of their most colourful bangers, and their more attacking tracks. From Hey Rachel through to The Wounded World, and rounding up with Dial Tones, they’re always the right dose of pep. As It Is deliver just as much excitement as they receive back, leaving Download all sentimental and gooey on the inside. (RR)

“We are so happy to be back,” trills Su-imetal, “with SUNSHIIIIIIINE!” The Fox God’s been kind enough to break a curse that’s befallen BABYMETAL on their past turns on the Apex stage, wherein it’s chucked it down every time they’ve played. With nothing to take the shine off them today, the kawaii metal trio charge through just shy of an hour on stage with some of the hardest - and loudest - riffs Download will hear all day, as well as some of the sugariest hooks (literally, in the case of Gimme Chocolate). As outlandish and as bonkers as they can be, least of all with some almost overdramatic story-based interludes, the striking thing about watching them though is their slickness. They’re locked in perfect sync for every second of every dance routine, their shiny rainbow-coloured costumes glinting in the sun. It’s a collision of metal and theatre in the most exuberant way possible (EW)

Cody Carson looks fucking hot this afternoon. Sporting purple trousers (more The Joker than Jonathan Davis), a necklace that appears to be made from paperclips and a black vest showing off considerable, gym-honed biceps, the Set It Off frontman has the air of a man who's discovered unabashed self-confidence and is doing all the better for it. That tracks. Having just self-released their self-titled sixth album and copper-fastened the band's control over their own music this is the ultimate version of them. That confidence pulsates through prime pop-rock nuggets Parasite, Why Worry and (the massive) Punching Bag. "I love your energy, man!" Cody pauses to shout out one eccentric crowdsurfer tumbling over the barrier dressed as a pensioner and flailing an inflatable walker. Donington loves yours, too, mate. Consider Download well and truly set off. (SL)

Download didn't know it needed a langorous grunge cover of OutKast classic Hey Ya! before Return To Dust hit the Dogtooth stage, but as soon as that banger starts to hum out in the mid-afternoon sun it turns out to be exactly what this crowd have been craving. The rising Los Angeles rockers might boast Slash's son (London Hudson) on drums, but rather than Guns N' Rose's, their DNA feels tied to Alice In Chains and Pearl Jam. It's anything but derivative, an acid-bleached exercise in faintly psychedelic cool. There's a false start for excellent closer Belly Up as they demand the whole crowd jumps rather than piling into the pit, but this set feels remarkably assured for a band still only a few years old. Proof that they're equipped to climb as far up the Download bill as they would like to go. (SL)

“You’re kicking up all the dust, we love that,” beams Jack Voss, ringleader of chaos in Avalanche’s circus tent. Download’s just a tootle up the road for Leicestershire natives Mouth Culture, and the proud Midlanders stand among amp cabs branded with the name of their opener, Ratbag, as they deliver all the mischief the song explores. Their time is chopped in two parts, with Jack evolving into a scrappier version of himself. Shirt off, his appetite for more moshing swells and is seemingly insatiable. Branding Downloaders as “sexy motherfuckers”, he pushes for folks to "stop being pussies" in his typical direct manner, and gets exactly what he asks for with Don’t Pull Up. What else would you expect on their home turf? (RR)

"I think I'm going to puke!" Alcohol may have been a contributing factor for that one punter stumbling out of the Dogtooth crowd with bile spilling from her lips, but Conjurer's gut-wrenching showing can't have helped. Some bands would have a good at ramping up the accessibility for a big event like Download, but Brady Deeprose and the gang steer away from the mainstream with a performance crafted solely from darkness, rage and pain. There are already few glimmers of light, like the dedication of Let Us Live to the trans community, but they're scant relief as Download is sucked down into the mire. Superb. (SL)

“I think this is my favourite Download yet!” crows a grinning Andy Biersack as the sun glares down on him and his quintessentially black-clad gang, Black Veil Brides. He's in especially chirpy form today, beaming as he marches across the stage and roars the lines to opening nostalgia trip of Knives and Pens like they're shiny and new all over again. Their set is frontloaded with new cuts that push their grittier, more metallic side to the forefront, then indulge in their older hits from Faithless to Fallen Angels later, but with just as much aplomb, while In The End is a divine send-off designed to restart every cold, black heart here. ‘We'll kick your ass with these guitars!’ Andy sings in The Legacy. Hell yeah you will. (EW)

Rather fittingly among the banners of lava cracking through rock, the floor is lava at Avalanche stage right now. Texas’ Die Spitz rocket themselves around the space, and charge like bulls seeing red. There’s even some rock ‘n’ roll handstand work. Among asking for barks from Donington Park and requests for pits through cheerleader chants, they transition between their speedy punk offerings to the slow and sludgy. Punishers offers a moment of still, but when closing out with Throw Yourself To The Sword, its galloping guitar riff is a rallying battle call that keeps Download on its toes. Feral and fiery and completely on-brand for this lot. (RR)

Dave Stephens gives Download a choice: circle-pit or sing along. There will be no standing still for We Came As Romans, no option which leaves anything other than punters' lungs emptied and endorphins spiking. The Michigan mob play a huge crowd at lunchtime, with far more bodies crammed in than some headline sets. Refusing to waste the opportunity, they bring the fire in waves, from a tarmac-rattling Cold Like War to the mercurial hurt of culture wound. Like their band name on the big screen, the pit keeps spinning, and voices are on high. But it's the emotion underpinning that which hits hardest. "This shit's hard," Dave says, opening his heart to introduce No Rest For The Dreamer. "You're going to fail a lot. But you can't be afraid to fail. You've got to be ready to dust yourself off and come back stronger." After all these years, that's exactly what WCAR continue to do. (SL)

There’s an almost comical moment when, having already brandished a ceremonial dagger, Lowen singer Nina Saeidi then pulls out what can only be described as A Fuck-Off Sword. Almost comical, were it not such an overbearingly powerful flex. At first, it seems like their Middle-Eastern doom-infused metal might lose a little something in the daylight, and being up against the ferociously loud LANDMVRKS on the Main Stage. Not a bit of it. Between the weapons, imagery on the screen behind them and a superbly enthusiastic male belly dancer, they’re an event worth seeing. And when they hit full power, it’s genuinely affecting, with Nina’s incredible voice melding with the enormous, trancing riffs and rhythms to create a perfect storm of otherworldly energy. Lowen were already one of the British underground’s most promising bands. Now they’re blossoming into something truly magical. (NR)

Everything about LANDMVRKS’ Download debut is suitably massive. They're flanked on stage by two giant mermaid-like gargoyles, because why not, and there are enough flames bursting up around them to toast a month's supply of marshmallows. It's hardly a hollow spectacle, though, considering they sound equally massive, not to mention very slick. Creatures makes for a properly pummelling opener, A Line In The Dust is a masterclass in controlled command, and Self Made Black Hole is a bloodthirsty, glass-gargling send off. Even as they ride a tidal wave of emotion through a set comprising songs delving to the depths of depression and burnout, they exude a real air of cool. “Merci beaucoup!” vocalist Florent Salfati says as they finish their set. And merci to you too. You rocked. (EW)

White text on Charlie Rolfe’s skirt asks a crucial question that As Everything Unfolds have been asking themselves as of late: do you believe in destiny? It’s the crux of their recent record DID YOU ASK TO BE SET FREE?, and the band are putting on a scorching display for one of its standout tracks, GASOLINE. Not in an easy vocal register to tackle live by any means, Charlie stretches to meet its every demand. The band are here earlier than planned following a late minute set time change, and they make sure people know who they are with the treasured Ultraviolet and the song that started it all, On The Inside. They smash it out of Donington Park like it’s their destiny. (RR)

"Download festival, it's time to turn up the heat," grins Jeremy Michael, earnestly. With a cool breeze beginning to blow through, a little fire is exactly what the Avalanche tent is crying out for, and Nevertel deliver in spades. It's the dualities of the Tampa crew that thrill the most, though. You have the contrast between violent delights like SYM and offerings as unexpectedly sensual as Everything In My Mind, or how Jem's melodic vocals break against those of harder-edged co-vocalist Raul Lopez. Despite the early slot on Download's third stage, the whole set feels remarkably slick, too, with tastefully minimalist visuals and the pulsating sound of Sacrifice and new song OTHERSIDE landing perfectly. The relatively mid-paced Criminal feels like a strangely unspectacular place to leave off. But, then again, these lads are clearly still just getting started. (SL)

Considering South Arcade’s dizzying ascent so far - they’re playing Brixton Academy next year without even having an album out - one might wonder how prepared they truly are for the big leagues. Today, they loudly answer: born ready. Between their giant spraypaint cans that puff out clouds of smoke, the searing blasts of pyro, and the way they carry an energy of both red carpet cool and giddy excitement, not to mention Harmony Cavelle going wild with a CO2 gun, the Oxford quartet are already the full package. They’ve got the supersized songs to match too, from the chunky curtain-raiser HOW 2 GET AWAY WITH MURDER to the sassy D.A.N.G.E.R and the electrifying 2005, all oozing colourful, kaleidoscopic energy. In fact, a festival might be the best place to experience them, given they have bucketloads of the carefree fun you want while necking pints in a field. Something's happening here, and you feel like even all this was just the smallest peek. (EW)

Donington is still wobbly from Friday night's rap rock onslaught come Saturday morning, but Frozemode take no prisoners picking up where Bizkit left off with a gloriously grimy assault on the Avalanche stage. The London crew are veterans of the festival circuit at this point, but there's still something ever so lovably shambolic about the banter-heavy interplay between triple vocalists I.V. Gatlin, Cho-Hollo and Lisong: an easygoing brotherly chemistry that's still wildly combustible when they decide to hit 'go'. Rock solid performances from their trio of balaclava'd instrumentalists keep the energy high on a thoroughly blazed Vermin and wonderfully grubby fresh cut Dirty Man, before half the band dive into the circle pit for firecracker closer MANGA MC. Icy cool. (SL)

Gangster’s Paradise soundtracks Tropic Gold as they roll out with swagger at the Dogtooth tent. Jacob Parris is draped in a shoulder padded blazer jacket, looking like the biz and sounding as such too. It might not even be midday yet, but they bring company with Harpy mastering her contribution to WITCH HOUSE. Closing out with HOLY HORROR, lyrics of ‘I fucking love that, I fucking love that’ become a reply to Download, as they grow gooey with their reception today. Not bad at all for an early set; tight and snappy, they conquer what they came for. (RR)

Is 11am too early for some blood-pumping djent? Actually, it might be. There's still a sleepy languor hanging over the crowd as Thornhill hit the stage, meaning they warm up slowly especially as they don't fire their biggest and best songs straight out the gate. By the time they saunter through the sinuous Silver Swarm and the scintillating Obsession, they're in better form, their snaking riffs hitting beautifully and the pit caving open (but the jump-the-fuck-up to closer Nerv seems a bit fatigued). To play this early is notoriously tough, and it's a win for Thornhill to be on the main stage for their Download debut, but a later slot - perhaps in a tent - might suit them better. Theirs is a sound that's more for night creature than early birds. (EW)

"We went through a lotta shit to get where we are today," Ginger tells The Wildhearts' massive audience. "Some of us didn't make it. But we did. We're here to celebrate life." Indeed, today's performance already comes with a tang of joyful defiance in light of the recent news that Ginger has cancer, but The Geordie Guns N' Roses are also on a form that would be delightfully fiery in any context. "I see yer drinking already," he grins, "God bless you all." Suckerpunch hits frightfully hard today, as does an uplifting You Are Not Your Diagnosis (dedicated to anyone living with mental health problems, noting that "The NHS is fucked. The good news is you're on your own and in good company"). Ginger's beautiful dog maggie even puts in an appearance. "She's even more famous than the fuckin' band," he laughs as she licks his face. But no dog could write a song that embodies the excitement, fun, singability and brilliance of rock 'n' roll fun at a place like download like the climactic I Wanna Go Where The People Go. A wonderful wake-up from one of the best ever to do it. (NR)