Live Review : RADAR Festival on August 1st 2026

Dacara are building a bigger and bigger name for themselves both locally and further afield. Their ever present black and green visual style is out in full force this morning to wake up any of the weary heads and blurred eyes from late nights of the first day of the festival. It’s accessible, pop metal with youthful and assured energy from vocalist Emma Shippen. Their sound is becoming more cohesive but there is always the feeling that they will need to mature even more in their sound before they can breakthrough to the big time.

Seething Akira are a massive favourite of mine and I can’t get enough of their live shows in particular. They are just immense fun, a veritable dance metal festival of their own, a party on the stage and in the crowd that everyone is invited to and hardly anyone it seems can draw themselves away from. The co-vocals of Kit Conrad and Charlie Bowes never stop, always rapping or clean soaring over the top of The Prodigy-esque dance rhythms and guitars. They have the hooks on the choruses to go with the energy on stage now, and I can’t wait to see them climb the bills of all the festivals in the future.

We caught Eville recently supporting Sumo Psycho in Chester, and they were a revelation then. Fast forward to today and they are equally as impressive. Frontwoman Eva Sheldrake is charismatic and filled with youthful vibrance infects the crowd with enthusiasm from start to finish. It is Jude Richards on bass and vocals that for me steals the show at times though, with his harsh vocals and distinct clean voice both coming across sublimely. They blend elements of modern rock and modern pop to form something truly different as brat metal, although fans of Brighton colleagues Lake Malice and yesterday’s CLT DRP will recognise the vibe.

Manchester’s very own The Hara take to the mainstage and deliver their infectiously catchy modern pop rock. The vocals from Josh Taylor are accomplished, and he has the looks to drawn in many of the crowd, but they do drift into boyband territory at times.

Glass Bridges had some trouble getting to RADAR the previous day, but there's no sign of that affecting their energetic performance today. Simona Cutifani is as bouncy and engaging as you could possibly want in a front person, and her vocals are pleasantly accessible. It’s mild mannered compared to a lot of the act across the weekend but there is always a place for this style of palette cleansing on a metal festival grouping.

Heart Of A Coward are regular stalwarts of RADAR festival and own the stage like they genuinely have…well…ownership of it. It’s criminal that they’ve never been able to breakthrough and hit the headline success that we see now from bands like Bleed From Within, but that does not affect the magnificent sets they are still delivering. It’s still djenty, fresh, modern metal that has you moving, nodding your head, grinning and lapping up every note of. Kaan Tasan seems to be on absolute form today, his cleans and harsh vocals are equally impressive and everything seems to click perfectly for him and the guys.

Royal Sorrow have quickly become a favourite of ours on record, so we were more than excited to see their live performance in person. Spoiler alert – we were not left disappointed! Frontman Markus Hentunen has the look, the quiff, the outfit, the voice and musical ability to lead such a dynamically melodic progressive metal band. Lead guitarist Tony Olsén not only pulls some of the best faces in metal while soloing on guitar, but also some of the best finger work from such a symphonically aligned prog act. The bass and drums are equally technical and flamboyant, and only add to the overall tapestry of musicality and storytelling on display. Simply superb and a perfect lead-up to our interview with them (HERE).

Protest the Hero have returned to take back their crown! The eager crowd are not left waiting long to hear all the hits and that distinctive signature voice of Rody Walker. Just like his Canadian colleague Ben Kowalewicz from Billy Talent, it’s a high pitch vocal that defies logic as to being so effective. The up-tempo prog metal songs are as powerful, joy inducing, delightful and immersive as they have ever been. Some bands are just great and secure their greatness with each additional gig, and that's what we're seeing once again from Protest The Hero.

BLACKGOLD are a British band that are taking the ethos and sound of older bands like Cypress Hill and delivering it to a new generation. They have black, gold, masks, swagger and the songs. They are exceptional tonight and have clearly not only brought lots of current fans but also collected a load of new ones from this festival by the looks of all the merch purchased for them. They mix genuine hip hop with genuine metal and deliver it in an infectious, groove-laden package that can't be ignored.

Northlane have grown and evolved more than most bands do within a sub-genre of metal. They have gone from tinkering with electronic music as an additional element of their technical modern metal, to an integral part of their sound. It works fantastically and they also know how to deliver their recorded music with additional, different elements brought to the fore for the live sets. John Deiley on guitar and electronics continues to astound me with his vision and stage outfits (check out our photos of his bright red eyes for this set) and frontman Marcus Bridge has come so far as a performer and vocalist since joining the band - he is now one of the most recognisably assured frontmen in the scene.

Unpeople are an unusual fit for this festival, but having said that RADAR festival is all about alternative acts that don't fit into a box anywhere! They are very poppy to go with their rock element, but considering the punters you’d expect knocking about at this festival for the other bands there is real love and affection for these guys. I personally find it a little too gentle for my tastes at this time of the day on this bill, though they do have a good professional cohesive look, sound and delivery.

Skindred never disappoint when it comes to putting on a show. They may not be the most technical band that we see this weekend, but they could be the one with the biggest and most receptive crowd. Benji Webbe is as charismatic a frontman as you could wish for and delivers his trademark jokes and confidence with the usual swagger. His voice is superb in delivering the ragga metal concoction that they throw out over the reveling crowd, and the songs remain as catchy and hook-ridden as ever. They can only play festivals like this as headliners because they are that popular and difficult an act to follow, so it’s appropriate to have them give the crowd the Saturday night a festival like RADAR deserves. What a fun way to end the Saturday of RADAR 2026. 

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
Skindred + Unpeople + Northlane + BLACKGOLD + Protest The Hero + Royal Sorrow + Heart Of A Coward + Glass Bridges + The Hara + Eville + Seething Akira + Dacara