A7X Bring the sun, the fun and the fire
Posted: Thu Jun 16 20:22:58 2011 by Jenni Wallace
The sun was fighting off the rain as the Californians took to the stage for their return to Donnington, their "Nightmare" set dressings promising an exciting show, and boy did we get it.
With their thundering beats and evil guitars they opened with 'Nightmare' and sent a wave of immense sound rolling across the Download crowd. Frontman M. Shadows' chatter was minimal, ensuring the maximum possible time was given to the music and the music was what the crowd were there for. Each member of A7X contributed to their commanding stage presence and they had everyone's attention solidly on them from the opening notes till the end.
As they began what is possibly their biggest hit, 'Afterlife', the skies cleared. The sun shone through, everything sparkled and the crowd sang along. It was one of those perfect moment of a brilliant band performing an exceptional song to an adoring crowd.
Paying tribute to The Rev, they gave the fans a treat performing a storming rendition of 'A Little Piece Of Heaven'. Commenting that they could only play the next song as it was Saturday (it's not a song for Sunday's) they broke into 'God Hates Us' and sent the crowd into a frenzy.
It was without doubt one of the best sets of the weekend. Filled with thunderous beats, stunning guitars, strong vocals, immense energy.... flames, fireworks and sheer fun!