X-Posure Thursday 9^th August 11pm–2am

Artists In Residence: Don Broco

One Night Stand: Public Image Limited

X-Posure Big One: Sonic Boom Six “Virus”

11pm

Fighting With Wire “Waiting On A Way To Believe” (X-Posure Top 5)

The Insomniax “Friday Comes” (X-Posure Top 5)

Jamie Parisio “Lonesome Traveller” (X-Posure Top 5)

We Are The Ocean “The Road” (X-Posure Top 5)

Sonic Boom Six “Virus” (X-Posure Big One)

The XX “Chained”

In Case Of Fire “Pretender”

Patterson Hood “Better Off Without”

Friends “I’m His Girl”

PiL “Reggie Song” (One Night Stand)

Two Wounded Birds “To Be Young”

Tribes “Coming Of Age”

Bastille “Bad Blood”

The Minutes “Gold”

Joyland “Whitebaite”

12am

ESO “We Are Watching You”

Pati Yang “Hold Your Horses”

Strangers “Safe/Pain”

Patrick Watson “Step Out For A While”

Dinosaur JR “Watch The Corners”

Gaoler’s Daughter “When We Were Young”

PiL “Deeper Water” (One Night Stand)

Alberta Cross “Lay Down”

DIIV “How Long Have You Known”

Don Broco “Priorities” (Artists In Residence)

iamamiwhoami “Play”

M83 “OK PAL”

Summer Camp “Life”

PiL “One Drop” (One Night Stand)

1am

The Hives “Wait A Minute”

Purity Ring “Fineshrine”

Dylan Le Blanc “Take A Walk”

A Silent Film “This Stage Is Your Life”

Chew Lips “Hurricane”

We Are Augustines “Book Of James”

The Longsands “World’s Collide”

Santiago Street Machine “Sinking Stone”

Colours Of One “Echoes”

Niki And The Dove “Somebody”

Janice Graham Band “Assassiner”

Pale Seas “Bodies”

Django Django “Hail Bop”

PiL “Out Of The Woods” (One Night Stand)

X-Posure Wednesday 8^th August 11pm–2am

Artists In Residence: Don Broco

One Night Stand: Pulled Apart By Horses

X-Posure Big One: Sonic Boom Six “Virus”

11pm

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs “Household Goods”

Purity Ring “Fineshrine”

Splashh “Need It”

Strangers “Safe/Pain”

Gaoler’s Daughter “When We Were Young”

Don Broco “I’m Good” (Artist In Residence)

Feeder “IDAHO”

Laurel Collective “Jelly Bird”

HAIM “Hold Me”

Pulled Apart By Horses “VENOM” (One Night Stand)

Society “All That We’ve Become”

Niki And The Dove “Somebody”

Born Blonde “I Just Wanna Be”

Josephine “What A Day”

Slow Club “Beginners”

Pale Seas “Bodies”

12am

Mumford And Sons “I Will Wait”

The Insomniax “Friday Comes”

Dingus Khan “Made A List”

Whales In Cubicles “Nowhere Flag”

The Gaslight Anthem “Handwritten”

BLAME “Floods”

Beach House “Lazuli”

Patterson Hood “Better Off Without” (X-Posure Hot One)

Lucy Rose “Bikes”

The Rumour Said Fire “Sentimentally Falling”

Pulled Apart By Horses “Epic Myth” (One Night Stand)

Pulled Apart By Horses “Wolf Hand” (One Night Stand)

Jamie Parisio “Lonesome Traveller”

Toy “Lose My Way”

1am

Dry The River “No Rest”

Frank Turner “If I Every Stray”

Passion Pit “Take A Walk”

Santiago Street Machine “Sinking Stone”

The Brightsparks “I Don’t Care”

Theme Park “Jamaica”

Tame Impala “Elephant”

Friends “I’m His Girl”

Sonic Boom Six “Virus” (X-Posure Big One)

Misery Guts “Let Me On My Way”

Pulled Apart By Horses “Bromance Ain’t Dead” (One Night Stand)

The Milk “Chip The Kids”

Stealing Sheep “Genevieve”

Jethro Fox “Blinding Light”

Sissy And The Blisters “Killing Time”

Willy Moon “Railroad Track”

X-Posure Tuesday 7^th August 11pm–2am

Artists In Residence: Don Broco

One Night Stand: We Are Knuckle Dragger

X-Posure Big One: Sonic Boom Six “Virus”

11pm

Sonic Boom Six “Virus” (X-Posure Big One)

Friends “I’m His Girl”

M83 “OK Pal”

Dry The River “No Rest”

Whales In Cubicles “Nowhere Flag”

iamamiwhoami “Play”

Two Door Cinema Club “Sleep Alone”

We Are Knuckle Dragger “Mr Son Of A Bitch” (One Night Stand)

Beach House “Lazuli”

Summer Camp “Life”

The Rumour Said Fire “Sentimentally Falling”

Ringo Deathstarr “RIP”

Biffy Clyro “Stinging Belle”

Don Broco “Fancy Dress” (Artist In Residence)

Janice Graham Band “Assassiner”

Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti “Only In My Dreams”

12am

Theme Park “Jamaica”

Bat For Lashes “Laura”

Animal Collective “Today’s Supernatural”

Diagrams “Black Light”

Race Horses “My Year Abroad”

Euro Childs “That’s Better”

Two Wounded Birds “To Be Young”

Mumford & Sons “I Will Wait” (X-Posure Hot One)

The XX “Chained” (X-Posure Hot One)

We Are Knuckle Dragger “Get The Horizon Yourself” (One Night Stand)

We Are Knuckle Dragger “Comparison Ford” (One Night Stand)

Lucy Rose “Bikes”

Maximo Park “The Undercurrents”

Revered And The Makers “Out Of The Shadows”

Matthew Dear “Earthforms”

Hot Chip “How Do You Do”

1am

Jake Bugg “Taste It”

Mallory Knox “Death Rattle”

Band Of Horses “Knock Knock”

The Minutes “Gold”

Eugene McGuinness “Harlequinade”

We Are Knuckle Dragger “Bad Wee Bastard”

Bloc Party “Octopus”

Gaoler’s Daughter “When We Were Young”

VuVuVultures “I’ll Cut You”

Fighting With Wire “Waiting On A Way To Believe”

Delphic “Good Life”

In Case Of Fire “Pretender”

The Features “Another One”

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs “Household Goods”

Matt Corby “Made Of Stone”

FUN “Some Nights”

X-Posure Monday 6^th August 11pm–2am

Artists In Residence: Don Broco

One Night Stand: Trailer Trash Tracey’s

X-Posure Big One: Sonic Boom Six “Virus”

11pm

Django Django “Hail Bop”

The Walkmen “The Love You Love”

Tame Impala “Elephant”

Delphic “Good Life”

Diagrams “Black Light”

Eugene McGuiness “Harlequinade”

Young Guns “Towers”

Trailer Trash Tracey’s “Wish You Were Red” (One Night Stand)

Euro Childs “That’s Better”

Two Wounded Birds “To Be Young”

Jethro Fox “Blinding Light”

Fighting With Wire “Waiting On A Way To Believe”

The Minutes “Gold”

The Cast Of Cheers “Human Elevator”

Don Broco “Dream Boy” (Artist In Residence)

In Case Of Fire “Pretender”

The Shins “It’s Only Life”

12am

Sonic Boom Six “Virus” (X-Posure Big One)

Family Of The Year “Diversity”

Yeasayer “Longevity”

We Are The Ocean “The Road”

Jamie Parisio “Lonesome Traveller”

Friends “I’m His Girl”

Bastille “Bad Blood”

Trailer Trash Tracey’s “Los Angered” (One Night Stand)

Grizzly Bear “Yet Aagin”

Laurel Collective “Jelly Bird”

Dylan Le Blanc “Part One: The End”

Stealing Sheep “Genevieve”

Splashh “Need It”

Cold Nites “How To Dress Well”

The Insomniax “Friday Comes”

1am

Lorn “Weigh Me Down”

Patrick Watson “Step Out For A While”

Lucy Rose “Bikes”

Jinja Safari “Hiccups”

Purity Ring “Fineshrine”

The Heavy “What Makes A Good Man”

Sissy And The Blisters “Killing Time”

While She Sleeps “Our Courage, Our Cancer”

Trailer Trash Tracey’s “Candy Girl” (One Night Stand)

Dinosaur JR “Watch The Corners”

A Silent Film “This Stage Is Your Life”

Admiral Fallow “Guest Of The Goverment”

Young Liars “Colours”

Twin Atlantic “Yes, I Was Drunk”

X-Posure Thursday 2^nd August 11pm–2am

Artists In Residence: Eugene McGuiness

One Night Stand: Lost Alone

X-Posure Big One: Kyla La Grange “Walk Through Walls”

11pm

Deep Vally “Gonna Make My Own Money” (X-Posure Top 5)

General Fiasco “Bad Habits” (X-Posure Top 5)

Sissy And The Blisters “Killing Time” (X-Posure Top 5)

Pati Yang “Hold Your Horses” (X-Posure Top 5)

Kyla La Grange “Walk Through Walls” (X-Posure Top 5)

Justice “New Lands”

Race Horses “My Year Abroad”

Bastille “Bad Blood”

The Milk “Chip The Kids”

Lost Alone “You Get What You Pray For” (One Night Stand)

Band Of Horses “Knock Knock”

Bat For Lashes “Laura”

Yeasayer “Longevity”

The Gaslight Anthem “Handwritten”

Patrick Watson “Step Out For A While”

The Shins “It’s Only Life”

Joyland “Whitebaite”

12am

We Are The Ocean “The Road” (X-Posure Hot One)

Diagrams “Black Light”

Josephine “Stinging Belle”

Yeasayer “What A Day”

Splashh “Need It”

The Features “Another One”

Pale Seas “Bodies”

Purity Ring “Fineshrine”

Lost Alone “Love Will Eat You Alive” (One Night Stand)

Lower Than Atlantis “Love Someone Else”

Mallory Knox “Death Rattle”

Acoda “This Is The Life”

A Silent Film “This Stage Is Your Life”

Beach House “Lazuli”

Chew Lips “Hurricane”

Janice Graham Band “Assassiner”

1am

Biffy Clyro “Stinging Belle”

Little Night Terrors “Young Lion”

Eugene McGuiness “Lion” (Artist In Residence)

Gaoler’s Daughter “When We Were Young”

Niki And The Dove “Somebody”

The Longsands “World’s Collide”

The Heavy “What Makes A Good Man”

Wild Nothing “Shadow”

Lost Alone “Creatures” (One Night Stand)

Friends “I’m His Girl”

Clock Opera “Belongings”

Alberta Cross “Magnolia”

Pulled Apart By Horses “Bromance Ain’t Dead”

Crystal Castles “Plague”

VuVuVultures “I’ll Cut You”

X-Posure Wednesday 1^st August 11pm–2am

Artists In Residence: Eugene McGuiness
One Night Stand: Blood Red Shoes
X-Posure Big One: Kyla La Grange “Walk Through Walls”

11pm

Bloc Party “Octopus”

The Walkmen “The Love You Love”

Diagrams “Black Light”

The Rumour Said Fire “Sentimentally Falling”

No Doubt “Settle Down”

The Heavy “What Makes A Good Man”

Purity Ring “Fineshrine”

VuVuVultures “I’ll Cut You”

Blood Red Shoes “Light It Up” (One Night Stand)

Beach House “Lazuli”

Mallory Knox “Death Rattle”

In Case Of Fire “Pretender”

Alberta Cross “Magnolia”

Admiral Fallow “Guest Of The Goverment”

Eugene McGuiness “Shotgun” (Artist In Residence)

12am

Laurel Collective “Jelly Bird”

Gemma Ray “Put Your Brain In Gear”

Biffy Clyro “Stinging Belle”

Yeasayer “Longevity”

Mina Tindle “Bells”

The Cast Of Cheers “Human Elevator”

Family Of The Year “Diversity”

Lynyrd Skynyrd “Last Of A Dyin’ Breed”

Young Liars “Colours”

Tony Sly “Devonshire And Crown”

The Minutes “Gold”

Blood Red Shoes “Don’t Ask” (One Night Stand)

Blood Red Shoes “Cold” (One Night Stand)

The Shins “It’s Only Life”

My Preserver “You Know Something I Don’t Know”

Clock Opera “Belongings”

Ringo Deathstarr “RIP”

1am

Kyla La Grange “Walk Through Walls” (X-Posure Big One)

Stealing Sheep “Genevieve”

Jonathan Boulet “This Song Is Called Ragged”

As Elephants Are “War Cry”

M83 “OK PAL”

Lavers “Our Little Empire”

Django Django “Hail Bop”

Slow Club “Beginners”

Twin Atlantic “Yes, I Was Drunk”

Blood Red Shoes “Lost Kids” (One Night Stand)

School Of Seven Bells “Scavenger”

Dry The River “No Rest”

Whales In Cubicles “Nowhere Flag”

Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti “Only In My Dreams”

Justice “New Lands”

X-Posure Tuesday 31^st July 11pm–2am

Artists In Residence: Eugene McGuiness

One Night Stand: Enter Shikari

X-Posure Big One: Kyla La Grange “Walk Through Walls”

11pm

Friends “I’m His Girl”

Twin Atlantic “Yes, I Was Drunk”

Family Of The Year “Diversity”

Splashh “Need It”

Gaoler’s Daughter “When We Were Young”

The Cast Of Cheers “Human Elevator”

The Longsands “World’s Collide”

Biffy Clyro “Stinging Belle”

The Minutes “Gold”

Matthew Dear “Earthforms”

Deep Vally “Gonna Make My Own Money”

Enter Shikari “Ghandi Mate, Ghandi” (One Night Stand)

Clock Opera “Belongings”

Dinosaur JR “Watch The Corners”

12am

Maximo Park “The Undercurrents”

Blood Red Shoes “In Time To Voices”

Patrick Watson “Step Out For A While”

Crystal Castles “Plague”

I Am Giant “Duality”

Blur “The Puritan”

Whales In Cubicles “Nowhere Flag”

Euro Childs “That’s Better”

Enter Shikari “Arguing With Thermometers” (One Night Stand)

We Are The Ocean “Bleed”

Dry The River “No Rest”

Niki And The Dove “Somebody”

Pati Yang “Hold Your Horses”

Grizzly Bear “Sleeping Ute”

Bastille “Bad Blood”

1am

Of Monsters And Men “Little Talks”

Destine “Wait Forever”

Sissy And The Blisters “Killing Time”

Band Of Horses “Knock Knock”

The XX “Angels”

Eugene McGuiness “Video Game” (Artist In Residence)

In Case Of Fire “Pretender”

Jake Bugg “Taste It”

Hot Chip “How Do You Do”

Scarlett Rabe “For Good (Goodbye)”

The Shins “It’s Only Life”

Lower Than Atlantis “Love Someone Else”

Two Door Cinema Club “Sleep Alone”

Summer Camp “Life”

Kyla La Grange “Walk Through Walls” (X-Posure Big One)

Enter Shikari “Sssnake Pit” (One Night Stand)

X-Posure Monday 30^th July 11pm–2am

Artists In Residence: Eugene McGuiness
One Night Stand: The James Cleaver Quintet
X-Posure Big One: Kyla La Grange “Walk Through Walls”

11pm

The Heavy “What Makes A Good Man”

Niki And The Dove “Somebody”

Sissy And The Blisters “Killing Time”

Mina Tindle “Bells”

Whales In Cubicles “Nowhere Flag”

Justice “New Lands”

Beach House “Lazuli”

James Cleaver Quintet “The JC Who?” (One Night Stand)

Young Liars “Colours”

The Shins “It’s Only Life”

Laurel Collective “Jelly Bird”

Young Guns “Towers”

In Case Of Fire “Pretender”

Pati Yang “Hold Your Horses”

Summer Camp “Life”

12am

Eugene McGuiness “Harlaquinade” (Artist In Residence)

Of Monsters And Men “Little Talks”

Slow Club “Beginners”

James Cleaver Quintet “Golfing Pros, Bitches and Hoes” (One Night Stand)

Django Django “Hail Bop”

Admiral Fallow “Guest Of The Government”

Kyla La Grange “Walk Through Walls” (X-Posure Big One)

We Are Augustines “Book Of James”

A Silent Film “Danny, Dakota And The Wishing Well”

School Of Seven Bells “Scavenger”

Alberta Cross “Magnolia”

Theme Park “Jamaica”

Jonathon Boulet “This Song Is Called Ragged”

James Cleaver Quintet “Don’t Just Stare At It, Eat It”

Deep Valley “Gonna Make My Own Money”

1am

Lower Than Atlantis “Love Someone Else”

The Gaslight Anthem “National Anthem”

Dylan Le Blanc “Part One: The End”

Chew Lips “Hurricane”

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs “Household Goods”

Pulled Apart By Horses “Bromance Ain’t Dead”

iamamiwhoami “Play”

Friends “I’m His Girl”

Acoda “This Is The Life”

Sleep Party People “Gazing At The Moon”

Two Wounded Birds “To Be Young”

James Cleaver Quintet “Think Or Swim” (One Night Stand)

Wild Nothing “Shadow”

General Fiasco “Bad Habits”

Calexico “Splitter”

In April The King Blues announced they were to disband. Months before they’d been in Los Angeles, working on a follow up to ‘Punk And Poetry’ with Goldfinger’s John Feldman. (The Used, Good Charlotte) The separation came as a bombshell for fans. Emotional outbursts followed on social networking sites.

My instantaneous response - “Fuck”.

Six years after unveiling full length debut ‘Under The Fog’, The King Blues unshackle fourth album ‘Long Live The Struggle’ through Transmission Recordings on July 2^nd. Predecessor ‘Punk And Poetry’ was musically and politically the hardest album to date from The King Blues.

‘Long Live The Struggle’ sees further progression in song writing. The production levels have intensified. It’s a diverse body of work, perhaps the bands finest.

Opener ‘We Are What We Own’ is tranquil musically, compared to its, at times aggressive lyrics concerning society. ‘We Are The Future’ is a vigorous tune with a beat break down Enter Shikari (Rou Reynolds is a fan) would be proud of, ending on a vocal Itch vehemently screams. A former Record of the Week of mine on Xfm ‘Modern Life Has Let Me Down’ was offered as a free download and is a polished King Blues anthem. ‘Wasted Words’ is the first of two subdued tracks on the album to feature Keyboardist Josie Dobson’s striking voice – adding dimension to an emotive song. Jason Butler from Letlive provides ferocious guest vocals on the unrelenting and intense ‘Can’t Bring Me Down’. Lyrically downcast, reggae rooted ‘Tear Us Apart’ was premiered on Radio 1’s Punk Rock Show with Mike Davies once completed. The second song Josie features greatly on is an obvious and intelligent acknowledgement of last years riots in London. ‘This Is My Home’ is, in essence, a phone conversation between a man trying to make it back to his partner whilst the riots take place outside the house. It’s poignant and delightfully presented. Tim Armstrong provides guest vocals on ‘Booted Out Of Hell’. Rousing ‘Power To The People’ has an opening riff and chorus that makes you feel you could take one of the Klitschko brothers in the ring. Itch has always written on the subject of relationships skilfully, and ‘Walking Away’ is another example of this. ‘When The Revolution Comes’ is a ska-reggae composition that if it came on in a club, you couldn’t help but skank to. Perhaps aptly the closing track is named ‘Keep The Faith’. A stirring conclusion.

‘Long Live The Struggle’ is a fitting final chapter for The King Blues, which can be added to an already impressive back catalogue. A band that started playing support slots at a venue one end of Camden Town and finished up headlining The Roundhouse at the opposite end. And they did it their way, doing whatever the fuck they wanted to. A band who have inspired for many years and whose legacy will continue to do so for years to come.

Sodden, yet magnificent.

As you’ll see from the image below, the opening couple of days of Download Festival 2012 were a rather moist affair.

Mercifully, this is a photo a friend passed on and not where friends and I were camped, though I don’t think we were too far from it.

In spite of unrelenting rainfall and consequential mire, much Snakebite was drunk and many laughs had, after all it’s fucking Download. It didn’t take long before witnessing the first of a few revellers running stark bollock naked through the sludge.

I saw many bands; I missed many I wanted to see – testament to the remarkable work Andy Copping put in getting together Download’s tenth Anniversary show.

The Prodigy were incredible on Friday night, as were NOFX earlier in the day. Steel Panther side-splitting, Killswitch Engage triumphant, Skindred unyielding through Saturday Afternoon.

Metallica performed the set of the whole event Saturday Night. Kicking off with ‘Hit The Lights’ and ‘Master Of Puppets’ before launching into ‘The Black Album’ in it’s entirety… backwards. As if that wasn’t enough ‘Battery’, ‘One’ and ‘Seek And Destroy’ followed as an encore.

Hangover had cleared suitably by the time Anthrax and then Black Label Society graced The Jim Marshall Stage and Ugly Kid Joe lead an acoustic sing-along of Cats In The Cradle on Sunday Afternoon. (http://youtu.be/IuPvxZl7apw) Managed to check out Lamb Of God, Megadeth, Soundgarden, Refused, Dropkick Murphys and Rise Against early Evening before watching Black Sabbath. Terrific to see Tony looking so well and the band on fine form.

Sunday Night I also had the opportunity to perform a DJ Set in The Doghouse for the second year running. A breathtaking way to finish Download Festival 2012 weekend. Huge crowd turned out having finished watching Sabbath. Hearing that many people singing, watching them dance, hearing them cheer and applaud at the end of the set, is a memory I’ll treasure eternally.

If you came and partied hard… THANK YOU!

Roll on Download Festival 2013!