Bloodstock Festival Countdown : 30 Bands Not To Miss

It's that time of year again, we are now just a mere 30 days away from Bloodstock or as we'd like to call it here at ROCKFLESH Towers, Christmas for metalheads. This year Vicki and Simon have truly pulled out the stops and put together an astonishing four days of something for just about everybody. All flavours of metal are here, whether you like it soft and melodic or heavy and impenetrable is more your bag. As always we at rockflesh.com are at hand to inform you about the 30 bands you cannot miss.

30 – Emperor – Ronnie James Dio Stage – early evening Friday

Emperor are quite simply The Beatles or Oasis of black metal bands. They are the alpha and the omega. Quite simply, they are the band that other bands are judged upon. Their first two albums, “In the Night Side Eclipse” and “Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk” are considered to be the defining points of Nordic black metal. They may well be both celebrating, or about to celebrate, their 30th birthday but they are the last word in epic, symphonic grandeur. Whilst front man Ihsahn has an extraordinarily prolific solo career, Emperor have been revitalised going concern since 2016. This is their third appearance at Bloodstock and another opportunity for all those who write black metal off as being a bit gimmicky and inaccessible, to experience the absolute Masters of the craft at work. So gather around my friends, any band you like that adds choral refrains or orchestral elements to their music, this is where they got it from. Enjoy.