Takedown Festival 2026 returned to Portsmouth Guildhall to kick off festival season and offer a selection of newer bands and more established bands, with a resulting balanced lineup of well-loved artists and exciting new music, to discover across the two days.
The multi-room format encouraged constant movement between stages and a variety of high-production sets gracing the main stage and rowdy, sweaty and more intimate sets in tightly packed smaller rooms on the Metal For Good and Total Rock stages.
Highlights of the weekend included high energy sets from the likes of Wargasm, Vower and InMe, with crowds reacting strongly and an electric atmosphere permeating the rooms, as well as an aesthetically engaging set from South of Salem who decked the stage out with neon coffins and had goth cheerleaders to hype the crowd up, and The Hara whose guitarist leapt into the crowd and joined a circle pit mid-set.
Lastelle’s performance stood out for its ability to move between pared back moments and intense ones, with a packed out room enraptured throughout. When Saturday headliner President finally graced the stage, the anticipation in the room was palpable not without good reason; the momentum that the mysteriously masked band have been building recently straight off the back of a US tour supporting Beartooth and Bad Omens ensured a fully packed room – and they didn’t disappoint, with a set that introduced a new song, Mercy which slotted into alongside tracks like Fearless and Dionysus comfortably and rounded off a brilliant weekend of music perfectly.
For one of the smaller UK festivals, Takedown boasted a strong lineup of current artists and it was noticeable that even during the earlier slots of the day, all the rooms maintained strong audience attendance from fans who wanted to catch as many bands as possible, and were engaged and involved throughout. This year’s festival felt like an indication that Takedown will only keep getting bigger and elevating its experience for fans.
Check out the live gallery below to see even more photo highlights, include the likes of Therapy, The Fear, Zetra and more, captured by Georgia Penny below.
