Review
Review
Linkin Park’s Download homecoming was worth the 12-year wait
With Emily Armstrong leading the charge, Linkin Park capped off the weekend with a high-octane set that honoured their legacy while embracing an exciting new chapter
If you keep a mental tally of band shirts spotted at Download Fesitval every year, there is usually one clear winner of the popularity contest.
This year, it takes less than a few minutes on-site to conclude that the 2026 crown goes to Linkin Park. There’s a very good reason why the band’s logo appears to be plastered across the chest of everyone that passes. It’s been twelve years since the nu-metal heroes dominated Donington Park with a headline set celebrating the anniversary of debut album Hybrid Theory, and for a long time, it seemed that Linkin Park’s final Download appearance took place in 2014.
Following the tragic death of frontman Chester Bennington in 2017, it’s been a period marked by grief and overcoming for the band, but the introduction of vocalist Emily Armstrong began the brand-new chapter that has led them back to where they are now, headlining the Apex Stage. Once they kick into action with the propulsive ‘The Emptiness Machine’, it’s hard to deny that it’s exactly where they belong.
Early cuts ‘Lying From You’ and ‘Papercut’ are met with furious approval, with
fans channelling all of their teen angst into mosh pits that swirl up the dirt from beneath their feet into a grainy tornado. The whole band are at the top of their game, and it’s easy to believe that it’s largely down to the impact of Armstrong’s arrival. The first frontwoman to headline Download Fesitval (a fact Mike Shinoda proudly points out during ‘Two Faced’, asking for a ladies-only pit to celebrate), the 40-year-old brings a feverish energy to the stage, the strength of her vocals during 2003 hit ‘Faint’ and latest album cut ‘Heavy Is The Crown’ bringing particularly astonished expressions to faces around the field.
Standing where one of rock’s most celebrated frontmen once stood, the enormity of the pressure on Armstrong can’t be overstated, but she never shows even a flicker of it. Whether she’s faced with the raw emotion of songs like ‘Waiting For The End’ and ‘Somewhere I Belong’ or the biting aggression of ‘Crawling’ and ‘Bleed It Out’, every moment is delivered with utter perfection, earning nods of approval from all around Donington Park.
Of course, there are moments for Shinoda to shine too, and he grasps them with a similar confidence. From the slick rap verses of ‘A Place For My Head’ to the gentle melodies of Fort Minor’s ‘Where’d You Go’, the vocalist is on top form, but perhaps more importantly – he’s clearly having the time of his life.
The grin spreading across his face seems to get wider with each song they rattle through, and it’s an expression mirrored in the faces of the thousands standing before him by the time a high-octane run-through of ‘Faint’ officially draws Download 2026 to a close.
A celebration of Linkin Park’s past, present and a future that once seemed impossible, it’s a triumphant way to round out the weekend. Let’s hope we don’t have to wait another twelve years to do this all over again.
Tickets for Download 2027 are on sale now
