Review | Takedown Festival - Elvana, Ferocious Dog, Lake Malice, Seething Akira and more tear up Portsmouth Guildhall

Now exactly 31 years on from Cobain’s death, we have Elvana – “Elvis fronted Nirvana” – headlining Portsmouth’s rock/metal/alternative festival, Takedown.

Over the past decade or so, the band have become a hit on the festival circuit. As concepts go, god knows what inspired them, and what Cobain would make of it all I’m not going to pretend to know.

It is, however, entertainingly executed with tongue firmly in cheek. Splicing The King’s A Little Less Conversation with Nirvana’s era-defining Smells Like Teen Spirit, is a work of warped genius. And turning the abrasive Rape Me into a mass singalong is just downright weird.

It doesn’t even matter that their frontman, as he acknowledges early on, doesn’t look remotely like, or always even sound like, Elvis.

As the climax to Takedown, it finishes the two-day event on a high note. Featuring 37 bands across three stages in about 14 hours of music, there really is something for everyone who’s into the heavier end of things.

Other highlights include the blistering celtic-punk of Ferocious Dog, bristling with righteous anger and eminently danceable songs; Kite Thief’s hugely cathartic pop-metal; Scarlet Rebels’ anthemic rock; New Jersey emo-rockers Save Face getting frantic; Lake Malice’s frontwoman, Alice Guala covering every inch of the stage while showcasing an astonishing voice; and of course hometown heroes Seething Akira storming through a riotous set of their signature electro-metal, finishing with a manic cover of Faithless’ I Can’t Get No Sleep.

There’s much to enjoy but as with any festival, if you’re not moved by the band on one stage, go try something else.

And it’s testament to the spirit of the scene, and the sense that ‘the show must go on’, that when Harbinger’s vocalist is unavoidably delayed, other singers step into the breach until he arrives mid-set.

However, after being forced to skip last year when extensive refurbishment works at the venue overran, the audience size is noticeably down on 2023’s triumphant comeback for the festival.

It’s a common complaint that Portsmouth often gets overlooked by touring heavier bands, so when they come here, it would be folly for fans to not get involved. At £40, a ticket for the two days is around the same as what you’d pay for most regular headline shows at the same venue – considerably less if you buy early birds.

When there are promoters and venues taking a gamble on putting together events like this, we, the audience, have no one else to blame if they decide it’s not worth the risk.

With that in mind, here’s to 2026!