Live Review: A Bloodstock 2025 Experience (Saturday)

After learning from graffiti the back of the toilet door that “The naked man fears no pickpocket” and witnessing a Spaceman, some Formula 1 drivers and a man dressed as a pony giving rides to his friends yesterday, it’s obvious that every one has entered into festival spirit(s). How people manage to carry off fancy dress in the Sahara like heat of Catton Park we’ll never know but as long as the beer is cold then everything is going to be just fine. As with last year the Saturday of Bloodstock is the one that we have been anticipating the most and no hangover, bar or toilet queue is going to stop us from enjoying the blood, the sweat and the beers with some fabulous bands across the four stages.

When we read the days splits in advance of the festival, we couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at the choice of act to open the Ronnie James Dio main stage this year. We love Cage Fight [9/10] however there is no mistaking the fact that they’re ferocious so 10:45 in the morning might have been a little too early for some. How wrong we were because not only do they draw a sizable crowd of hungover fiends wanting to have fun but have the masses chanting their name. Vocalist Rachel Aspe cuts a sultry figure between her blood curdling screams and with four new songs in their set including “I Hate Your Guts” and “Souvenir” it’s clear they have expanded their horizons with Melodic Death Metal leads. A technical issue causes the backtracked second guitar with those leads on it to cut out but the band persist with weighty chugging grooves.

The Blackened Post-Metal sounds of Vnder A Crvmbling Moon [9/10] are accompanied by some harrowing tales as delicate keys and Doom infused guitars swirl around caustic vocals from Ray Arrell. The band are bathed in blue light with a dark forest projected on the screen behind them as they perform cuts from last years “II: Aging & Formless” album and given the time of day they’re utterly captivating. Perhaps not the kind of band you’d expect to see this early on but their melting pot of sounds a dark, brooding moods are quite unlike any other. Ever played the hilarious game that is cards against humanity? Well German Blackened Death Metal outfit The Spirit [8/10] have an album in “Songs Against Humanity” to thank for opening the door to Catton Park. Their flame haired axe wielding duo ensure that we get our lunch time fix of Black Metal riffs without make-up or bullet belts, the latter being banned from the main arena even though you can buy them from one of the merch stands(?). The crowd pump their fists to the sinister introduction before a Mosh pit forms in the front row, the double kick drums leading the way. The band thank us for joining them for the earliest gig they have ever played before a fearsome rendition of “The Clouds Of Damnation“, the howling winds over the PA before they get going a warning not everyone heeds.

The quick witted Deadpool walks past us as we head to the Sophie Lancaster stage for Sheffield Blackened Sludge fuelled Post-Metal purveyors Ba’al [8/10] and the first beer of the day. The band mercilessly splitting skulls with Joe Stamps brutal vocals and abrasive guitars, their new album “The Fine Line Between Heaven and Here” giving rise to the majority of the set. Is it a cliché to say that their crushing sonic weight is as miserable as the weather in the land which they call home? Los Angeles California Thrash overlords Warbringer [9/10] freely admit they have come crush with their first ever Bloodstock performance and do so in style. Opening up the arena with cuts like “Firepower Kills” and “Crushed Beneath the Tracks” before hammering in the coffin nails with the crowd chanting “Remain Violent“. John Kevill is very much the charismatic frontman and every second of their two decades together shines through in the quality of their new album “Wrath And Ruin“.

We meet Bloodshot vocalist Macauley Luker before the bed of nails that is Heriot [7/10] take to the stage for their Bloodstock debut. Their meteoric rise has been phenomenal and from “Sentenced to the Blade” to “At the Fortress Gate” they attempt to win the crowd over with their barbaric ways. Beating us into submission with twin headed hydra of a vocal attack from Jake Packer and Debbie Gough as they crawl of from a tar pit of pure Sludge with Hardcore elements from the darker side they should be all conquering but this afternoon something isn’t quite right. There is nothing quite like a Waterlines [10/10] show because the self proclaimed “dirtbags from the North” know how to party, venting their pain over EDM beats and DJent fuelled riffs in fine style. “Brace” remains a heavy hitter of choice, the crown bouncing throughout while their pairing of “Pretty Green Eyes” and “Elysium” by Ultrabeat as a single entity is a guilty pleasure with heavy riffs that everyone will admit to loving. Vivacious vocalist Benji Mars knows how to work a crowd and getting people doing the Can Can without realising it is a hilarious moment.

Having seen Creeper [7/10] vocalist Will Gould on every screen talking about Bloodstock endorsed fan-to-fan ticket reselling site Tixel with alarming regularity, their set almost feels like an afterthought. The Gothic Rockers are all theatre and make the brave decision to give “Blood Magick” its live debut as their set opener before the cheesy “Teenage Sacrifice” and “The Ballad of Spook and Mercy“. They have played bigger stages before but where South of Salem went down a storm in the Sophie Lancaster big top tent last summer, on the main stage in the bright sunshine it feels like something has been lost. Nottingham Melodic Metal act  Phoenix Lake [8/10] are fronted by the seemingly classically trained Lana Phillis and her clean vocals are absolutely spellbinding. Said to be working on a concept record for their debut album the four piece bring “Fractured Wings“, “Serenity” and “Woven In Time” for us all to enjoy, the power of their performance mesmerising.

Kublai Khan [10/10] may claim just to be a bunch of dudes from Texas here to entertain us but the hand made “Khan IS King” banner unravelled in the centre of a giant circle pit kicking up dust proves that the people of Bloodstock feel otherwise. Cuts like “Low Tech“, “Boomslang” and “The Hammer” go down like a cold beer on a searing hot day, the crowd surfers doing their upmost to test security. A dedication to tonight’s headliner Machine Head is a nice touch, the bands deeply satisfying weighty riffs and pummelling grooves and then they bring out “Antpile” and “Antpile II” back to back. It’s all made possible by the presence of Australian guitarist Nicholas Adams of Justice For The Damned fame who stepped up to fill the void after Nolan Ashley exited stage left due to a ongoing grip strength issues from a disc replacement surgery.

A celebration of 35 years of seminal album “Demanufacture” has brought Fear Factory [9/10] back to Europe for a second year running and they absolutely destroy the main stage with their Cyber Metal. Butcher Babies bassist Ricky Bonazza cuts an instantly recognisable figure stage left as the band incite Mosh pit violence with “Self Bias Resistor“, “Replica” and “Dog Day Sunrise“. It has to be said that vocalist Milo Silvestro impresses, nailing the songs as does drummer Pete Webber who benefits from his sound dominating in the mix. “Zero Signal” is another skull battering and in all honesty, in the live arena the songs sound as fresh today as they did 35 years ago. As Static-X are playing later tonight it’s no surprise when Tony Campos appears at the side of the stage, encouraged seemingly in impromptu fashion to join in with the backing vocals of set finale “Linchpin“.

The classic PC game Doom is playing on backdrop behind Undeath [9/10] with the bands logo spinning in the middle of the madness as the band hit us full in the face with a Death Metal shovel. Tales of Zombies and murder spill from the foaming mouth of vocalist Alexander Sason, Tommy Wall impressing with his fretless bass skills and it has to be said that “Chained to a Reeking Rotted Body” and “Brandish the Blade” are set highlights. How many times has Al Jorgensen said this year will be the last for Ministry [9/10] before bringing out a new record and going back on tour? A career spanning set with such household classics as “Rio Grande Blood“, “Just One Fix” and “Burning Inside” is what Uncle Al and his boys offer up, the band proving why you want to go out of your way to see them. Stone Soup guitarist Chris Gilday agrees as joins in with “Jesus Built My Hotrod” in time honoured fashion. The resurgence of Gibraltars finest export Breed 77 [8/10] has been a joy to watch and we get treated to a rendition of “Zombie” by The Cranberries as the Sophie Lancaster stage struggles to contain those who wish to see them.

From opener “Imperium” to grand finale “Halo” Californian Metal heroes Machine Head [10/10] give us the kind of career spanning set that confirms their status as exactly that. Accompanied by fireworks and pyrotechnics a rousing rendition of “Ten Ton Hammer” sees inflatable hammers in the mosh pit before the dedication of “The Darkness Within” to Michelle Kerr. A special moment that has everyone singing along, it’s a reminder of the longevity of the band and their ability to keep coming back in the face of adversity as is “Is There Anybody Out There?“. “Bulldozer” gets everyone jumping with frontman Robb Flynn introducing his band members during songs rather than doing it during a break. Inevitably we get a pair from the new album “Unatøned” in “Outsider” and “Bønescraper” and both go down very well. On the album there feels like a lack of power to the unclean vocals but live there is no such issue and the band manage to squeeze and extra ten percent more energy out of both tracks. Overall this feels like a triumphant home coming, especially when Banana Man catches a beer thrown to him from the stage by Flynn at the second attempt.

Whether it’s because it’s Saturday night or because someone has under estimated the draw of Static-X [10/10] we don’t know but the overspill outside the Sophie Lancaster stage and resulting efforts of the booze fuelled masses to get inside are insane. The evil disco Industrial Metal legends are of course playing tribute to the late great Wayne Static with songs like “Black And White“, “Cannibal” and “Destroy All” wrapped around a set largely based on their album “Wisconsin Death Trip” like a boa constrictor. They put mascot Jack-O-Lantern into an inflatable dingy to crowd surf during before Xer0 thanks everyone for coming to see their nostalgia trip, the double whammy of “I’m With Stupid” and “Push It” bringing the curtain down on an astonishing day.