Download Festival: Is mental health and TikTok the future of rock?

"Rock is not arsenic culturally applicable arsenic it utilized to beryllium - that is simply a fact."

Straight talking from Bob Vylan frontman Bobby, but it's a presumption that's shared by immoderate fans.

It's besides thing that's arguably been reflected successful large festival line-ups implicit caller years, arsenic they opt for much popular and hip-hop acts.

But that didn't halt a sold-out assemblage of astir 100,000 radical gathering astatine Donington Park implicit the play for the 20th day of the UK's biggest stone and metallic event.

So what bash the adjacent 2 decades look and dependable similar for alternate music?

"The scene, the genre, the subculture and the radical wrong it person done a large occupation astatine sidesplitting it," Bobby tells BBC Newsbeat from backstage astatine Download Festival.

"They're closing doors," agrees drummer Bobbie, who's calling for "fresh blood" to beryllium fixed much opportunities successful the industry.

Bob Vylan - whose euphony combines punk stone and grime - were named champion alternate euphony enactment astatine the 2022 Mobo Awards, aft picking up the prize for champion medium astatine the Kerrang! Awards.

"What we've done has been hailed truthful overmuch due to the fact that we've benignant of forced our mode through," says Bobbie.

"That shouldn't beryllium the mode it has to be. Having bands from the 80s headlining 2 days astatine a festival this large doesn't help."

He's referring to Metallica closing the main signifier connected Thursday and Saturday astatine Download.

"Obviously you've got to person a immense headliner to propulsion radical in," adds Bobby - who says Metallica are "great... but wherefore are they playing 2 sets? Give them one."

Newsbeat has reached retired to the Download organisers for a response.

But Bobby believes "it's lone earthy things volition change", informing the country volition go little fashionable - similar disco - if it doesn't.

"In bid for Download to beryllium present for different 20 years, it volition person to alteration [and] diversify."

Other bands, though, are much affirmative astir advancement the country is making.

"It volition lone proceed to grow successful the adjacent 20 years," predicts Creeper keyboardist and vocalist Hannah Greenwood.

"There are much women being represented astatine festivals than erstwhile I archetypal started successful 2015.

"The main happening is getting much women into music, but we're getting there."

Hannah besides points to the relation societal media is playing arsenic a gateway for a caller procreation of fans.

"With things similar TikTok, radical that shunned stone and metalheads are present similar 'oh, actually, sick'.

"It's ever been an inclusive country but I deliberation radical extracurricular of it are present seeing it successful a antithetic light."

But Hannah insists the Southampton stone set are truthful acold resisting the temptation, and astatine times the pressure, to pursuit views and clicks.

Blowing up connected TikTok is thing that Lorna Shore tin subordinate to.

The deathcore band's vocalist Will Ramos has go 1 of the agleam young stars of modern metallic aft videos of his vocal techniques went viral, starring to clips of fans trying to transcript them.

"Social media is the champion selling method anybody could perchance want," Will tells Newsbeat aft their main signifier debut astatine Download.

And the New Jersey band's emergence has adjacent caught the attraction of immoderate of the biggest names successful metal.

"They're sidesplitting it," Parkway Drive frontman Winston McCall says, aft himself watching Lorna Shore go "arguably, probably, the heaviest set that's ever been connected the main stage".

Parkway Drive aboriginal co-headlined the last nighttime of the festival, aft returning from a touring break.

"It was astir apt the astir invaluable happening we've ever done," says Winston.

"Luckily we realised that's what we needed, aft 17 years of conscionable driving ourselves to past wrong the euphony industry.

"If immoderate set would ever inquire maine present 'hey, what's the cardinal to success?', instrumentality attraction of your intelligence health."

Winston believes the affirmative effect they received to talking openly astir the contented is simply a reflection of the stone and metallic civilization becoming little macho.

"When we chose to beryllium that unfastened with it, we saw the level that we had arsenic a band, and were like, if we tin instrumentality thing retired of this situation, let's wage it guardant - let's beryllium open, truthful we tin acceptable an example."

The Australian band's hiatus came aft the "major challenge" of the Covid pandemic, but Winston says "it's awesome to spot however beardown it [Download] has travel back".

"It's truthful bully to spot the thirst and the appetite for alternate and utmost music."

And that "appetite" is thing each bands hold on.

"The fans are acceptable [for alteration and caller music]," says Bobbie.

"I reckon Bob Vylan volition header the main signifier mode earlier the 40th anniversary."

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