Download may be done n dusted, but the real mother of all Rock festivals is just getting ready to take off at Knebworth on the 4th-6th of July.
Ever since the Allman brothers played there in 1974, Knebworth House has seen a succession of bigger and bigger gigs. Pink Floyd, Frank Zappa played there and notably Led Zeppelin who in 1979 played one of their most famous (and most bootlegged) concerts ever. Queen’s final concert with Freddie Mercury took place there in 1986, and the Nineties saw Robbie Williams outdoing Oasis’s record for attendance by playing to 375,000 people.
2009 saw Sonisphere bring the Heavy back to Knebworth, and there’s been a succession of notable performances ever since. 2011 Saw the arrival of the ‘Big 4’ with Anthrax, Slayer, Megadeth and Metallica (above) all taking the stage together for the first time on British soil. This year is no exception with the return of Metallica playing a special ‘By Request’ show, where the set list is voted for by the fans. Along with Iron Maiden, who are bringing a WWI Arial dogfight display team, and The Prodigy who are kicking it all off on the opening night, it looks set to tick all the boxes.
More info and tickets can be found here
All photos by www.markwilliamsphotography.com
