Download Festival 2023 – Sunday. It was a long overdue Apex stage appearance for Mongolian folk metallers The Hu, their haunting music floating across the sun-scorched field.
Having broken through hugely into the mainstream with Wolf Totem, they were drawing more people into their circle. There’s a hypnotic quality to their music, the unique instrumentation calling forth warriors of mystical times as old as the earth itself. Strange magic is at work here.
Their elegiac take on Sad But True turned the Metallica classic into a thing of strange and haunting beauty. The Hu are a voice from the past that’s looking firmly into the future.
The Meffs
The Meffs are part of the new generation of punk bands who’ve managed to strip things down to the bones, joining Bob Vylan and Yur Mum as powerhouse duos.
There’s an energy and anger here that matches the seismic impact of bands like Sex Pistols, Stiff Little Fingers and The Clash.
Channelling all that youth and fury, Lily and Lewis fire out riotous anthems like Broken Britain, Broken Brains and So Modern with unfettered glee, the lyrics biting.
With the call and response of Stand Up embraced lustily by all the generations there, you can feel there’s genuine hope for the future.
Take Part: Are you at Download this year? Who are you looking forward to see? Want to get in touch and tell us how it’s going? Email MetalTalk Editor Steve Ritchie to tell us how it’s going for you. Download@MetalTalk.net.
Download Festival 2023
MetalTalk Download 2023 coverage can be found at MetalTalk.net/tag/download-2023
Download 2023 will see the festival celebrate its 20th anniversary with an additional day, meaning four days of live music in total.
This year’s MetalTalk team is:
Photography:
For Download 2022, visit MetalTalk.net/tag/download-2022
