Rabidfest 2025: Breaking Down The Bands #14: Talassum!

Roll up, Roll up, Read all ’bout it! Twenty bands will play The Bullingdon in the heart of Oxford over the weekend of 1st and 2nd November as Rabidfest takes over the venue once more! There will be blood, sweat and beers as Oxford’s biggest Metal Weekender threatens to reduce the venue to rubble once more so don’t miss out on the opportunity for stage dives, high fives and mosh pits because it’s the spiritual healing you need! This year the event will raise money for the Sophie Lancaster Foundation and as ever the main stage sponsor is Devolution Magazine so don’t sleep on the opportunity to be part of something awesome!

The Rabidfest team are so damn cool that they have announced a warm up show! Subtitled Sheri’s Birthday Black Mass, the event will see four bands on stage celebrating the birthday of Rabidfest Director and iconic scene queen Sheri Bicheno. As with the main event, all proceeds will be going to the Sophie Lancaster Foundation!

Saturday 20th September Sheri’s Birthday Black Mass at The Jericho Tavern:

Tribe Of Ghosts
Grove Warden
The Blade Itself
Kulan Gath

Here’s the line-up in full!:

Friday: The Fight Before Rabidfest on 31st October at The Jericho Tavern:

Confessions Of A Traitor
Ocean Planet
Imperial Avenue
Along The Pines

Saturday: 1st November at The Bullingdon:

Raging Speedhorn (headliner)
Kill II This
Raised By Owls
Arimea
Komatsu
Thrashatouille
Korrupto
Talassum
Break Them
R.P.C

Sunday: 2nd November at The Bullingdon:

Red Method (headliner)
Seething Akira
Redeemon
Froglord
Until 9
Collapser
Lethal Evil
Liquid Dogs
Æi-Fierlen
Mondegreen

Having made it to the Oxford Metal 2 The Masses Grand Final for a chance to play the New Blood stage at this years Bloodstock Open Air Festival, its safe to say that Doom Folk outfit Talassum have made their mark on the Jericho Tavern if not the population of Oxford with a branding iron. A new band with just a handful of demos to their name, they have risen from the ashes of the much loved Bring To Bear citing unfinished business and the desire to bring a violin to the stage as reasons for starting afresh. Their journey began in May 2024 and by the October they had completed those five demos only for drummer Paul Standing to break his right femur at the turn of the year. That didn’t stop them from playing their first ever gig on 24th February, their line up completed by guitarist and vocalist Hirsto Nikolov, bassist Steven Paul Herrington-Trueman and violinist James Moore. The four piece are writing all the time and having given us an EP titled “First Demos” comprising five tunes all under three minutes long they have since added two more, performing “Silence” and “Grinded” live during the aforementioned Metal 2 The Masses run. Prepare to sway like a marionette with a poison chalice raised to their tunes because they have the power to captivate!

We’re proud to be a Media Partner of Rabidfest again this year alongside Red Death Media, Moomin Merchandise, Moshville Times, Moshville Radio, Metalplanetmusic, GraphicsFix, TwoFace Promotions, Blackstar Amplification and main stage sponsor Devolution Magazine. The Festival is all for charity and this year the profits will be going to the The Sophie Lancaster Foundation!

Rabidfest will take place at The Bullingdon in Oxford over the weekend of the 1st and 2nd November 2025:

Get your tickets -> https://www.rabidfest.co.uk

Get your merch -> https://shop.rabidfest.co.uk