Sonisphere - Knebworth Park - July 4-6 2014 (Live Review)

Photo: Deftones (Courtesy of Sonisphere)

Sonisphere, that wandering behemoth of a rock festival, made a triumphant return to celebrate 40 years of festivals at Knebworth following a two-year hiatus, bringing with it a huge bill to swat aside the massive expectations of the faithful.

A quick recce of the arena led to me to the smaller stages and quick, punchy sets from Shrine, Hounds, Black Dogs, LostAlone and Empire, all of whom look set to tread bigger boards in the coming years. Kicking off over at the Apollo Stage, the Defiled are given the honour of officially opening the festival, unleashing a brutally OTT set featuring Jesus and some strippers, of course. Anti-Flag are on solid form with a typically predictable but frantic set shortly after.

A gloomy Gary Numan and initially nervy Band of Skulls each look at home and deliver convincing sets, despite the crowd appearing unfamiliar with their work. HIM, on the other hand, ran through a nostalgic set pitched at their fans, but it’s all a little too mundane.

It’s another trip down memory lane next, with both Limp Bizkit and Anthrax taking the crowd back to the days of their misspent youth. Fred Durst and the gang rip through their hits, sending the masses wild with snippets of Slayer and Rage Against the Machine, while Anthrax smash out their 1987 classic, 'Among the Living', to a capacity crowd at the tented Bohemia stage.

Friday's headliners, the Prodigy, sign off the first day of Sonisphere with a set of two halves. The question on everyone's lips prior to the festival was: “Could dance provide a fitting finale to a day of rock and metal?” Well, not really. Their light show is spectacular and they're generally well received, especially early on as Breathe, Voodoo People, Omen and Poison are aired, but there’s a lack of excitement. It’s as though the spark has gone out.

Saturday morning's hangover is quickly shrugged off by dodging the heavy showers over the booze-riddled Alestorm and, following that, having successfully avoided the shrieks of Babymetal on the Apollo Stage, Chas & Dave lift the sodden crowd with some of the biggest singalongs seen all weekend.

It requires some serious adjustment to move from an east-end pub knees-up to the mysterious Swedish Satanists Ghost, although the costumes are first class and Papa Emeritus II stalks the stage as menacingly as ever. Despite playing to a huge lunchtime crowd, their atmospheric sound is lost in a huge field bathed in bright sunshine. This is a band better suited to the dark.

The Winery Dogs, comprised of heavyweights Richie Kotzen, Mike Portnoy and Billy Sheehan, play a tolerable set, surprising given their 'supergroup' status, but it’s the best soundtrack I'll ever have to a lunchtime burger. Next up, over on the Apollo Stage, Anthrax, big fans of Sonisphere, arrive for their second performance of the weekend. This time they thrash out a set full of anthems, providing a much needed adrenaline shot to the masses.

Back on the other side of Sonisphere, the Saturn Stage hosts the influential Carcass, who plough through old and new tracks before a disappointing crowd. It appears the majority of fans are still trying to make their way over from the Anthrax pit. But, you know what you’ll get with a Black Spiders show. They haul out kick ass heavy metal and rock ‘n’ roll like nobody else can right now, reinforcing the argument that they are one of the best live acts around. Staying put for Sebastian Bach, it’s another blast from the past as an arm-waving, fist pumping set full of fan favourites, new tracks and Skid Row anthems is served up.

Following a WWI dogfight reenactment, with one plane flown by Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson, Deftones take to the Apollo Stage and Slayer to the Saturn Stage in front of huge crowds. While Deftones are flawless in the execution of a set that reduces grown men and women to excited fanboys and girls, Slayer go through the motions and serve up the same show we've been getting for years. It’s no frills and no surprises but relentless to the last note.

Photo: Anthrax (Courtesy of Sonisphere)

Iron Maiden headline Saturday's fun and games, rounding off their three-year Maiden England trek. The horns are raised throughout and a monster crowd embraces each and every 'Scream for me Knebworth...' request (and there are a lot) from an ever-sprightly Dickinson. Thundering through a flawless near two-hour retrospective of their 1988-89 Seventh Son of a Seventh Son tour, the set is sprinkled with rarities for a bit of variety. Eddie and the boys leave us with the promise that something “very special” is on the way.

Blistering sunshine welcomes in Sunday and the Sonisphere household is buzzing for the imminent arrival of Metallica. But, before the thrash titans hit the Apollo Stage, the likes of Airbourne, Mastodon, Alice in Chains and many more are set to rip things up.

It’s too early for a full on Gojira assault on the Apollo Stage, but the French four-piece pummel the eardrums all the same, underlining their label as one of the best metal acts out there. Expect to see them much higher on the bill next time around. Opting to go easy after Gojira, country boys the Cadillac Three are a fine sight on the Bohemia Stage. Similar to Blackstone Cherry and Blackberry Smoke, the Tennessee trio seem genuinely thrilled to be playing their first major UK festival, having flown in only hours earlier.

Airbourne, over on the Apollo Stage, are very much here to do what they do best. Their bombastic party anthems provide the perfect mid-afternoon pick-me-up, while all concerns about AC/DC tribute bands are washed away with beer from various cans opened by Joel O’Keeffe’s headbutts. He climbs the rigging for a solo, naturally, and there’s even a toast to Rik Mayall.

Mastodon, who usually deliver with brute force, appear to be settling for an unusually average performance today, while the Dropkick Murphys throw everything at a huge crowd, building up to a rousing singalong of I'm Shipping Up To Boston. Then, Alice in Chains (pictured, inset) chug through the usual classics and, despite a bored-looking Jerry Cantrell, the band deliver the goods to an appreciative crowd. Meanwhile, over on the Bohemia Stage, the criminally underrated Therapy? take us all back nearly 20 years with a superb performance of their 'Infernal Love' album.

Tasked with closing Sonisphere, Metallica, with their specialist video screens flanking the stage, unleash their By Request show, delivering songs that have influenced, shaped and defined generations and continue to do so. Opening with Battery and Master of Puppets, the set is essentially the same as usual despite the By Request tag, with one or two surprises. Despite the predictable list, each song is received with joy and the Californian pioneers power through, schooling Sonisphere on why they are arguably the most important band in metal.

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