If the Thursday of Sonic Temple was owned by emo, Friday is all about nu metal. At least so far as the Altar stage is concerned, Sonic Temple’s newest addition drawing a healthy crowd throughout the day. Mushroomhead bring the vibe with a big-drum thumping set that doesn’t quite dispel the Slipknot comparisons, but doesn’t suffer for it either.
If you just paid attention to the upbeat riffs and “na-na” melodies, Everclear would look like the perfect sunny festival band. But with a discography that explores drug abuse, heartbreak and childhood trauma, there’s always a dark bite to their songs. That doesn’t stop their set being an absolute delight. Art Alexakis might fall behind on faster tunes like Heroin Girl, but when Father Of Mine and Santa Monica bounce in the whole crowd chime in for a sing-along.
Every nu metal band had at least one big hit, and Powerman 5000 have two. The rest of their set is thumping throwbacks to when baggy jeans, tracksuits and backwards caps ruled the world, but the place goes off when Bombshell and When Worlds Collide come in back-to-back.
Edsel Dope is stumped. Walking out to what effectively amounts to a 21-gun salute of inflatable phalluses, he can’t stop from referring to them throughout Dope’s set. It adds to a chaotic atmosphere, and the Altar once again proves to be the hottest stage with the place going wild for Burn MF and the obligatory pop cover in You Spin Me Round.
“I hope you come back next time when we’re headlining main stage, bitch.” Paleface Swiss’s Zelli has the swagger of a star in the making. From bellowing bulldog barks to skittering, rapid-fire rapping and even a big, soulful melody on Everything Is Fine, he’s certainly got a magnetic presence and the big, energetic turnout of bodies flying overhead shows it might not be an empty boast that Paleface Swiss could someday tear their way up a bill like this.
“Sonic Temple are doing something special with Sublime today. If you crowdsurf, you win a Kia Sonata. Just speak to these lovely gentlemen in green.” Sublime might take the prize for the most chaotic set of the weekend. The veteran ska punks – now fronted by Jakob Nowell, son of original singer Bradley Nowell – might luxuriate in reggae beats and groovy basslines, but Jakob’s energy is pure chaotic brilliance.
On opener Date Rape, he’s sprinting around the stage singing frantically, constantly egging the crowd on with a big grin. A mid-set injury in the crowd pauses play, so he sits beneath a giant inflatable of Lou Dog – the Dalmation who became the band’s unofficial mascot in the 90s playing with his Rottweiler Melvin. Walking around site all day you can’t go more than a few feet without running into someone with a Sublime shirt on, so it was obvious they were always going to be a draw, but this weird set feels completely singular, more like a fun hangout with mates than your average festival set.
