When Sonisphere came into existence it was viewed as a major rival to Download’s hard rock domination. This was a natural enough assumption, after all the new festival’s emergence pitted ex-partners, promoter Stuart Galbraith and current Download impresario Andy Copping, directly against one another in a bitter battle for metal’s top talent.

In 2011, however, with Reading and Leeds Festivals struggling to sell out, Sonisphere now represents a clear and present danger to Festival Republic’s flagship festival. The hard rock virtuosos that at one time defined Reading and Leeds (Metallica, Maiden, Weezer, Biify, Slipknot, Gallows, Bad Religion) are now finding a home, and cementing their legacy, on Knebworth’s hallowed turf, while simultaneously a generation of up and coming R&L acts continue to migrate towards Sonisphere.

Fair or unfair, intentional or unintentional, Reading and Leeds has been branded a indie/pop culture event in many festivalgoers’ minds, whereas Sonisphere shrewdly avoid the metal label, positioning itself as the home of all things rock. So with rumours of R&L icons Green Day, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Foo Fighters and Soundgarden being in discussion for Sonisphere 2012, it’s time to give the 2011 event a thorough once over.

Sonisphere 2011: The Review 

Blackening Power, Metallica Reign Supreme: Picture By: PG Brunelli

Friday represented a major coup for Sonisphere as Thrash’s Big Four performed back to back in the UK for the first time. Metallica led the charge with a mammoth two hour plus headline set that mixed choice post-1990 cuts into setlist dominated by material from the band’s ’80s prime. Relative newee “All Nightmare Long” stood up surprisingly well against more season competition, driving and thrashing in a way in which the band’s St. Anger and Reload materiel never quiet could.

The sing-alongs were mammoth and continuous, as Metallica fans of all ages and incarnations were given something to sink their teeth into. Buoyant opener “Hit The Lights” set the tone; full of bounce and enthusiasm it established a celebratory air that was maintained thorough a suitably epic rendition of “Master Of Puppets” and the communal chanting of “Memory Remains”.

In contrast to their flawless performance at Reading 2008, Metallica did flatter on occasion, “For Whom The Bell Tolls” was loose and full of awkward guitar noise, and “Creeping Death” while sublimely executed clearly left the modern generation of Metallica fans cold garnering a muted sing-along in comparison to the tumultuous roar that greeted “Battery” and “Sanitarium (Welcome Home)”. These were minor quibbles however, on a historic night, topped of by a starkly short, but no less emphatic Big Four and Diamond Head assisted rendition of “Am I Evil”. [4.0/5.0]

Slayer suffered from the same terrible drum heavy mix that has hampered them across the entire European festival circuit, however with a receptive crowd and a supply of hits as potent as “Seasons In The Abyss” and “War Ensemble” failure was not a possibility [3.0/5.0]. Megadeth have been met with mixed reviews in recent years, but sounded sharp live with a mix of addictive riffs and enthralling solos [3.0/5.0] while Anthrax delivered the same set they treated Sonisphere to in ’10; reliable, pleasurable, but uninspired [3.0/5.0].

Biffy Large And In Charge, pic by: PG Brunelli

If Friday was a celebration of rock’s past then Saturday looked to the future as Reading and Leeds veterans Biffy Clyro made the leap to main stage headline status. By cleverly beefing up their sound, adjusting their setlist, and pandering where necessary (using “Raining Blood” riff as intro), Biffy past the sternest test of their careers to date, in front of an entirely respectable and respectful crowd.

Unfortunately for Biffy, while their assault was impressive and earnest, and their light show considerably enhanced, their materiel felt over exposed. Playing the same tried and test material that has been toured relentless over the last five years, the band struggled to make this set feel special. It may have been the best show of Biffy Clyro’s career, but it didn’t have the feel of a unique headline moment; instead it resembled an extended edition of the well-tested Biffy sets we’ve seen over and over again in recent years.

Despite the familiarity, vital airings of “…Jaggy Snake”, “Living Is A Problem…”, “Glitter And Trauma” and the booming anthemia set closer “Mountains” made this one of most satisfying and engrossing performances of the weekend. Biffy proved not only that they can headline, but also that they may well be one album away from being a very special, and very credible, Reading and Leeds headliner. [3.5/5.0]

Gojira had no such problems making their set feel special as they made their first appearance at a major UK festival since 2006. Testing both the capacity of Bohemia tent and the patience of the festival’s security, the band drew a mammoth crowd which they duly satisfied with a brutally heavy set dominated by From Mars To Sirius standouts “Ocean Planet”, “The Heaviest Matter In The Universe” and “Flying Whales”. The band were greeted by an ultra fervent audience and a inflatable flying whale, and were clearly taken aback as they topped off one of the weekend’s best and most talked about sets with mercilessly raw recitals of “Love” and “Vacuity”. [4.5/5.0]

Rivers Cuomo: Seductive Front Man, pic by: PG Brunelli

Rivers Cuomo may have abandoned art in favour of populist pandering, but no one panders quite like Weezer, as they delivered one of the most crowd pleasing and irresistible sets imaginable on the Apollo Stage. Hit on top of hit, quirky cover atop quirky cover, and a conveyor belt of divine melodies tamed the Knebworth stage without resorting to even a solitary offering from their career defining LP Pinkerton. Rivers’ banter was as barmy as ever, and only surpassed by his carefree cross stage shuffle and his dementedly vacant stare. Simply put, Weezer were made for festivals, as even their most inconsequential materiel (“(If Your Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To”) proves undeniable in the live arena. [4.5/5.0]

Sum 41 were at one time pop hottest ticket; today they are crowd pleasing journeymen who know how to satisfy an audience with an array of sing-along hits and crowd interaction tactics that the Saturn Stage crowd find themselves powerless to resist. [3.0/5.0] Bad Religion sound urgent but look tired and knowingly cynical, but despite playing to a crowd undoubtedly reduced by a heavy downpour, they persevere with an accomplished set that more than justifies their “legendary” billing. [3.5/5.0].

Farewell Frank Carter, pic by: PG Brunelli

Frank Carter quit Gallows in the early hours of Saturday morning, and he unceremoniously announced that fact to a crescendos of boos when the singer took to Saturn Stage wearing his new band, Pure Love’s, t-shirt. Thankfully Gallows were here to celebrate, and not to mourn, as they ripped through a visceral set complete with preposterously large circle pits, crazy crowd surfers and more sing-along hits than most bands could muster in a twenty year ten album career. “Orchestra Of Wolves” saw the band joined by friends and supporters on stage for a genuinely endearing final chorus of “The Hardest Thing That You’ll Ever Learn, Is Just To Love, And Be Loved In Return”. [4.5/5.0]

Architects struggled with terrible sound (their fault) and an uninspired audience (also their fault) as their lead singer desperately pleaded for crowd surfers, circle pits and people on shoulders, it only served to highlight that the great bands command, not demand, crowd interaction [1.5/5.0]. Richard Cheese can’t be accused of lacking crowd enthusiasm or engagement but as he stretched one tedious and juvenile joke out for the best part of thirty minutes it became clear that his set was more an exercise in ritual than relevance. [0.5/5.0]

Burning Red, Slipknot Close Soni, pic by: PG Brunelli

Sunday saw Slipknot publically mourning the death of band mate Paul Gray with a touching two-minute silence and a workmanlike but nonetheless satisfying headline performance; where the energy and love in the main arena helped Corey Taylor and co. battle against the lowest sound levels of the weekend.

Could Slipknot headline Reading and Leeds? Not on this evidence. They are professional, but lack the dynamism, variation and the live clarity that a headliner needs to thrive away from their home turf. Sonisphere greeted Slipknot as returning heroes and were more than happy to bellow everything from quasi-hits “Surfacing” and “Sic” to brazen anthems “Psychosocial” and “Duality”. In a different circumstance the lesser-known material would struggle to hold the entire audience’s attention amid muddled sound and indistinguishable vocals.

In spite of the flaws, the sheer force of will and the sense of occasion made this a special moment in both Slipknot and Knebworth history highlighted by a brutish rendition of “Pulse Of The Maggots”, the lung shredding brilliance of “Heretic Anthem’s” call and repeat chorus, and a touching finale that saw the band erect a shrine to Paul Gray while “’Til We Die” coasted out of the arena’s PA system. [3.5/5.0]

Chris Jericho’s charisma and enthusiasm made Fozzy a Saturday night delight, but all the goodwill and clap along antics in the world couldn’t disguise the band’s lack of musical credibility. [2.0/5.0]. Cancer Bats became the latest band to pack out a continually overcrowded Bohemia tent, and they lived up to their high billing with a brisk crowd-pleasing set that was in many ways business was usual for the hardworking outfit. [3.0/5.0]

Morose, Regrettable, Popular: Limp Bizkit, pic by: PG Burnelli

“Sometimes, Some Things, Turn Into Dumb Things” strangely prescient words from Limp Bizkit’s “Boiler”, which perfectly encapsulate they way in which Fred Durst and company lowered the tone at Sonisphere. With a meandering set full of childish jokes, obnoxious sound effects, pointless interludes and bratty braggadocio, Limp Bizkit managed to remind the world why their puerile bluster went out of vogue in the mid-2000s.

The blistering assault of “Take A Look Around” and “Break Stuff” managed to salvage, and stand out amidst, a set of cliché-ridden tracks that have aged appallingly. Despite denying his fans a full set with copious time wasting, the Bizkit faithful were content to bounce along to each and every hit, sadly, the unconverted and those not rammed in at the front were left cold by a painfully juvenile performance that reinforced almost every negative stereotype that has blighted hard rock and metal over the last forty years. [2.0/5.0]

Motorhead and Lemmy Kilmiister seemed unimpressed with Sonisphere, perhaps distracted by the death of a close friend, as the trudged through an hour long set that was saved by a tumultuous final flurry of “Killed By Death”, “Ace Of Spades” and “Overkill”. [3.0/5.0] 

Mastodon spent the best part of twenty minutes stony faced and oblivious as they blew through their impressively daunting guitar odysseys, before suddenly coming to life and finding their enthusiasm to thrill a willing crowd with “Bladecatcher” and “Megalodon”; doing just enough to remind the world why they are often touted as the most exciting band in metal.  [3.5/5.0]

In Flames enjoyed one of the weekend’s most riotous crowds. A sea of crowd surfers greeted the band’s proficiently executed hits and the more engaging cuts from Sound Of A Playground Fading including the riffy and raucous “Where Dead Ships Dwell”. [3.5/5.0] Parkway Drive [3.0/5.0] may not aim to reinvent the wheel but they know how to engage the crowd and recover the momentum lost by the pitifully outdated and derivative House Of Pain [1.0/5.0]

Strictly Our Opinion: Sonisphere continues to establish itself as a legitimate rival to both Download and R&L. The festival is in tune with it’s audience, they “get it” musically, and while technical hitches, organizational snafus and a lack of entertainment continue to take the shine off an otherwise excellent event, there is no doubting that Sonisphere is only getting stronger with each passing year.

They took major risks this in 2011; repeat bookings, relatively untested headliners and comedians on the main stages, but they all paid of handsomely, boldly asserting that Sonisphere is a progressive force in the festival world. Now it’s time for Reading, Leeds and Download to set up to the plate and respond. [4.0/5.0]