Festival Preview – Download Festival 2025

By Lucy McCallow
By April 24, 2025 Culture, News

Festival season is quite possibly the best few months of the year, and it’s coming round fairly quickly. I’m sure that most of you, like me, are collecting all of your camping gear, picking out your favourite, weather-safe outfits, and making your playlists for sitting around the campsite. Regardless of your festival (or festivals) of choice, we’re all the same. We find those few days of sitting in a field surrounded by people who are just like us comforting; that is why festival season is so important.

Download Festival is one of the most prominent rock and metal festivals in the UK, and has built up a very close-knit community of attendees. Personally, Download has given me experiences that I thought were only possible in a dreamland, but that is exactly what Download Festival is to me.

Anyway, that’s enough yapping. Let’s get on with the lineup.

 

FRIDAY…

First of all, Green Day as headliners? Yes please!

 

 

For the past few years, Downloaders have been begging for brand new headliners for the festival, and the Download team did not disappoint. Green Day are a band that pretty much everybody knows and appreciates, so to have them headline the first day of the festival is an absolute win. Download Festival’s first day also brings Weezer, Jimmy Eat World, and Rise Against for the main stage, only making the lineup so much better.

Myles Kennedy will be taking on the second stage for his set, which usually brings quite a crowd, before handing over to Opeth and Within Temptation for the Friday finale. However, if you’re really wanting to catch something spectacular on this stage, then Northlane is the band to see. Around since 2010, Northlane have mastered their sound, and created music that is impossible to not be excited about.

If you didn’t already think that Friday’s lineup was insanely strong, headlining the third stage for the night will be no other than McFly. Now, with the original announcement of McFly’s presence at Download hit, it was faced with many mixed reactions, but the closer we get to the 2025 festival, it seems like more and more people are getting excited to see the classic band play right before their eyes.

 

SATURDAY…

I’m going to need you to mentally prepare yourselves for Saturday’s roster, because it’s easily one of the best days in Download history.

Sleep Token holds the headline slot on Saturday. This band has been grinding since the release of their first EP, One, back in 2016, but only gained the majority of their popularity in 2023, when Take Me Back To Eden was released. If I do say so myself, it’s about time that Sleep Token got an opportunity as big as headlining one of the best rock and metal music festivals. To add to the anticipation of their set, Sleep Token are frequently dropping new singles in preparation for their new album, Even In Arcadia, which is to be released on May 9, only five weeks before Download Festival. 

 

 

But, that’s not it for Saturday.

A personal favourite of mine, Loathe, will also be on Download’s main stage, putting on an incredible set, as they usually do, and showing everyone the talent that comes from up north. Accompanying Loathe is Poppy, who should be on everybody’s radar by now. With the release of her latest album, Negative Spaces, late last year, this phenomenal woman will definitely be one to watch!

Saturday’s second stage reminds me of the beauty of festivals, and how they provide the most perfect opportunity to discover new music. Personally, I will be at this stage for both Polaris and Currents, another two personal favourites, but I’ll also be taking up the chance to see new artists, like Kim Dracula, Sophie Lloyd, and Awolnation. If you’re attending a festival this year, please remember to branch out and see artists that you aren’t fully aware of; you never know who you’re going to find.

Moving onto the third stage of Download’s second day, we have Dayseeker headlining, supported by Mallory Knox, Twin Atlantic, and Smash Into Pieces, while Cradle Of Filth closes out the fourth stage for the night.

Saturday’s lineup is one of the best I’ve seen, and already makes this one of Download’s greatest years.

 

SUNDAY…

Sunday is the final day for music at Download Festival 2025, and of course, the finale is incredible. With Korn in headlining position, Download have successfully given us three brand new headliners across the three festival days. Korn are always a fan favourite, and have played Download numerous times, but have never taken their rightful spot as headliners… until now.

 

 

Supporting Korn, we have Bullet for My Valentine, who have also played the festival, and always leave the crowd feeling more than satisfied with the set. Sunday’s main stage is fully booked with legends, including Spiritbox and Jinjer on the list, who give the lineup a good dose of strong vocals from the women in the industry.

Taking charge of Download’s second stage, we have Steel Panther and Lorna Shore. If you like it heavy, you need to see Lorna Shore. Nobody does heavy vocals like Will Ramos does, and the music matches perfectly. Each time that I have seen Lorna Shore live, I have left with more respect for them than I had before. As for Steel Panther, you’re never going to be short of entertainment.

Download’s fourth stage will be the clarification that we’ve all been waiting for. A band by the name of President has made their way onto the Download 2025 roster, even though they have no music, and a very little social media presence. Since the announcement of President’s participation in the festival, the metal community have been speculating around what, or who, this band could be, and how they’ve made it straight onto the Download lineup. Luckily, we will soon find out.

 

The Download 2025 lineup is absolutely packed with incredible names from all sorts of directions within alternative, rock and metal music. It’s not unusual for Download to have a good set of names, but as I’ve said, this is possibly one of their best lineups yet. If you’re going to Download Festival this year, you’re in for a treat, and if you’re not… there’s always next year. See you there, Downloaders!