
Korn battled youthful mainstage upstarts My Chemical Romance to be the kings of Download festival for the first day of the hard rock bash in 2007.
The victor? Spoils even. Korn frontman Jonathan Davies made an emotional return to the relatively intimate confines of the Dimebag Darrell Stage telling the massive crowd: "I want to thank all you motherfuckers for showing up tonight. This time last year I was really fucking sick. I almost died."
A 90-minute set saw the band play a smattering of new songs and a shedload of their biggest hits, with Davies even treating fans to one of his bagepipe solos.
Click below to open the gallery for day one at the 2007 Download Festival All pictures by Mike Burnell.
> Download Festival 2007: the weekend in picturesAt the same time, a younger crowd welcomed My Chemical Romance and their Black Parade onto the main stage as headliners, with youthful-looking frontman Gerard Way in playful mood.
"Do you want to fuck me? Is that what you said? That seat's already taken!," said Way in response to shouts from the crowd - referencing his recent engagement.
Later in the set, the band played their latest single "Teenagers", with Way adding context to the track. "The next song we're going to play is about violence. Sometimes you feel like you don't fit in," he said. "You get desperate, you get upset. The one thing you don't do is try to solve your problems with fucking violence!"