Live Review : Time To Rock Festival on July 6th and 7th 2025

Part 3 – The Longest Day?

Sunday dawns bright and sunny which means Asomvel kick off proceedings with beaming smiles beneath their Lemmy-like beards. In fact everything about them is Lemmy-like. If ever there was a tribute band who aren’t actually a tribute band then that band is Asomvel and the band they are emulating is of course Motörhead. They sound like Motörhead, they look like Motörhead and they power through a set of their own songs plus a couple of Motörhead covers just in case anyone hadn’t noticed that they quite like Motörhead. It seems the crowd too are quite fond of this vibe, and for the first band up they get a decent reception.

Next up on the Rock Kommander stage are personal favourites The Wildhearts. ‘Suckerpunch’ is blasting out of the PA as I dash across the gravel and wriggle to the front. This is my first time seeing The Wildhearts in their new incarnation (although I did get to witness a very good tribute act, The Moodswingers, which you can read about in these hallowed pages) and I am pleased at how well they seem to have gelled together into a cohesive unit. The addition of Carol Hodge on keyboards and backing vocals has added a new dimension in both overall sound and particularly vocal harmonies, and the old songs plus a handful of new ones are thrown out to the delighted crowd. Now we all know that Ginger feeds off crowd feedback and he’s obviously feeling the love today as his dry humour (and need for a pee!) keeps us entertained between songs! They do their usual mix of hits, deep cuts and crowd favourites and a rollicking good time is had by all. Although thin at first, people are gradually pulled in by the lure of a good party and The Wildhearts don’t let them down.

Cobra Spell follow them on the Falcon stage. They describe themselves as a sleaze band but they seem more in the vein of metal queens as they tear it up with most of the songs from their debut album “666”. There’s a bit of shredding from guitarist Sonia Anubis and the song themes seem to veer from love and sex to the devil with surprising ease. It’s hard and fast, the vocals are clean and the front few rows are all blokes. Quelle surprise. A decent band offering decent tunes though, and worth some of your time if they happen to be in your town at any time.

Dare are celebrating their 40th birthday this year. Despite all those years and some 10 studio albums their biggest claim to fame is probably still that acclaimed (and cute) astrophysicist Professor Brian Cox was in the band during its inception and early years! However, the band themselves remain a solid slice of melodic yet hard-edged rock and their set today showcases this perfectly. They are a band with a “that song” and much to everyone’s surprise it pops up just over halfway through the set rather than being saved until the end. ‘Abandon’ remains their tour-de-force, a masterful anthem that was very popular in Manchester’s rock clubs in the late 80’s and early 90’s until the emergence of grunge killed the genre it belonged to stone dead. Nonetheless the band perform well and give us a tight 14-song set that spans most of their long career.

Irrepressible punk grandfathers UK Subs tear up the Falcon stage for a bit: founder member Charlie Harper is celebrating his 80th birthday this year but despite his aging exterior you can see that the sneering, spitting brat that he was back in 1976 is still in there when he gets on stage. The set is slightly shorter than billed but still gets a good crowd vibe going. This band officially retired from touring in 2022 but obviously playing the odd festival doesn’t count as a tour and they all seemed to be having a grand old time.

Poor old Ben Marsden from The Wildhearts is one of a handful of artists this weekend who is pulling a double shift and he duly pops up on the Falcon stage playing guitar with country rock stalwart Warner E Hodges. Warner has had a long career playing with firstly Jason and the Scorchers and then bandmate Dan Baird as well as working under his own name so his set is an eclectic mix of country rock vs harder rock. It’s like the bastard lovechild of Dolly Parton and AC/DC. It’s uptempo (mostly thanks to the Incredibly Bouncy Bass Player, Jason Knight) and fun. Toes are tapping and fingers are clicking and there’s the added bonus of Ginger Wildheart joining them for a couple of songs in the middle of the set. Warner has strong connections to Sweden via the various members and ex-members of Bonafide that he has played with over the years so his set is received warmly even though he doesn’t do his trademark “swing the guitar 360 degrees around the body” on this occasion!  

Sadly The Quireboys brought the English weather with them and it was bucketing down again by the time they came on the Falcon stage. Diehard Quireboys fans didn’t care and bounded to the front like butterflies, although their scarves and bandanas were hanging limply in the deluge rather than fluttering behind them – the rest of us sought shelter in the bar which seems an oddly appropriate place to watch a Quireboys show from. Spike’s long-time collaborator and friend Willie Dowling seems to have become a permanent fixture on the piano stool so it seems that at last the lineup has stabilised around the man himself. Luke Morley is still chucking out the riffs and Nigel Mogg is mean and moody on the bass, but let’s be honest all eyes are really on Spike. Gravelly vocals and a drink in hand are his trademarks and he gives us exactly what we are expecting, a set of standard songs spanning nearly 40 years of Quireboys albums to keep the masses entertained and allow them to sing along. The stage haze and the rain mean everything is slightly blurred around the edges, which again seems pretty appropriate. 

Finally the rain stops and by the time Michael Schenker erm commands the Rock Kommander stage the skies and the mood have both temporarily cleared. Michael is still celebrating his UFO days and has his usual band plus recent touring companion Erik Gronwall to help him bring those old songs back to life for us. We did a full review of the show quite recently here at ROCKFLESH so I’m not going to go into elaborate detail about the set. Suffice to say that Michael is still the master of nostalgia, and having Erik alongside him to belt out those old familiar tunes is probably the very best way, nay the only way to enjoy them in these modern times. Michael still looks well, still shoots the crowd with his guitar head during ‘Shoot Shoot’ and is obviously having as good a time as we are as he rips through this greatest of greatest hits sets. Joe Lynn Turner pops up at the end to join in with ‘Too Hot To Handle’ and we leave the area sated with happy memories to cherish of this extraordinarily talented and unique man.  

Over on Pirate Rock there is more nostalgia as one of the NWOBHM’s more melodic bands are hitting the stage. Praying Mantis were one of the original bands of the genre, with their song ‘Captured City’ featuring on the Metal For Muthas album that kicked the whole thing off. Unfortunately I'm only able to catch a couple of songs due to a stage clash with yet another serious dose of nostalgia.  

The day is closed out by pint-sized powerhouse vocalist Joe Lynn Turner. He first came to attention in the early 80’s when he joined Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow and helped them to continue assaulting the UK charts for several years. Not satisfied with working with one diva of a guitarist he went on to join with Sweden’s favourite ego on legs Yngwie Malmsteen before finally parking himself in the driving seat of Deep Purple for a little while. Since the 90’s he has had a number of solo albums, guest appearances and prestigious tours under his belt but these days it seems he prefers to recline in the comfort of the old and familiar so he brings us a set chock-full of 80’s bangers to groove along to. As we arrive he is in the throes of Rainbow’s ‘I Surrender’ and his set is essentially the best songs from the 80’s period of his career. He even leaves the stage for a breather whilst his band noodle out ‘Difficult To Cure’, which you may remember is a rocked-up version of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. Classic, classy? Either could apply! He ends the night with a tribute to Ronnie James Dio and as we all belt out ‘Long Live Rock & Roll’ with him there’s an air of joy in the air that is only enhanced by the fact that at last it has properly stopped raining!

Day 4, Monday, It’s the Final Countdown….

Well no it’s not, Joey and Co are not gracing us with their presence this year but we're still here, still alive and still ready to party one last time. Yesterday kicked off with some Motörhead and today follows suit as we welcome Motörhead’s longest-serving drummer to the stage. Mikkey Dee brings his friends out to play Motörhead and the crowd approves of this very much. We start with ‘Iron Fist’ and work our way, via a couple of occasionally tedious drum solos, to ‘Overkill’ leaving no memories undisturbed on the way. It’s loud, it’s uncompromising and it’s well performed. A worthy tribute to the late great Lemmy and definitely a set to watch while sipping a jack n’ coke and tapping a cowboy boot in time to the music. No alarm clocks were needed on the campsite today, as this was the perfect wake-up call.  

Jean Beauvoir on the other hand is, well, a bit of a weird experience. He’s a larger than life character with a seriously rock n roll hairdo, and it’s hard to pin a label on him as he’s worked with so many great artists over the years. The Motörhead connection continues as Jean first came to prominence in U.S. punks The Plasmatics before working with the likes of Little Steven, Kiss and The Ramones as well as undertaking a whole heap of other showbiz-related activities. Most of the set was songs from his current musical outfit Crown of Thorns, but a couple of Kiss songs that he co-wrote sneaked in, and the set ended with the Ramones ‘Pet Sematary’. The harmonies were good and I would class Jean as a good showman, but the overall mood was a little lacking in excitement.

There was plenty of excitement on the Pirate stage next though. Canadian punk rock outfit the Anti Queens brought us high-energy attitude. The twin female vocals and guitars work well together, giving an overall sound reminiscent of maybe L7 or even the Queen of Grunge herself Courtney Love. They are cheerfully cocky, engagingly real and a breath of fresh air being something new in a sea of nostalgia. They even managed a whoa-oh chorus, and their choice of cover was a Misfits song. Bangin!

Smash Into Pieces take the stage late due to technical issues. We are not told what they are but they are a band who rely heavily on backing tracks so it could have been related to that. I also note though that drummer APOC normally has LED lights on his mask and they are sadly lacking so I dunno, maybe it was that? Anyhow, once they get going it's bouncing nu-metal, very Linkin Park inspired but with a slightly more electro tone. But. There’s always a but isn’t there? Despite the positive messages, or the recorded reminders to buy merch, or the big riffs, it all feels just a little fake. The guitars are loud and riffy, but are they plugged in? The singer’s voice is clear, ringing and tuneful but do we occasionally hear sound when he doesn’t seem to be singing? I can’t tell. I’m puzzled and confused. On a musical level I like this band very much, but today it feels like I’m watching a theatrical performance of “Rock Band” rather than an actual live band. This is a very popular band and the crowd is full of children, but it all seems to be just a little unreal. There’s a drum solo which is actually more drum karaoke, and the band jump and scurry about the stage with a great deal of vigour but for me at least there is something missing. I can’t put my finger on it, but I am disappointed.

Back on Pirate Darren Wharton's Renegade are revving up to be very real indeed. As well as his work with Dare Darren was a member of Thin Lizzy back in the day, and during his second shift here he surrounds himself with a bunch of capable musicians who help him bring Lizzy’s music back to life. It’s all done with love and respect and is an easy-on-the-ears interlude in the middle of a hectic day. Unfortunately they also clash with the next band on Falcon.

Majestica are fast, loud, uncompromising power metal. They vocal style is clean and operatic, and the word that comes to mind when watching them is bombastic. They sing epic tales of battles and warriors, and jazz things up with a bit of pyro. Sadly their attempt to get a circle pit going is an epic fail, but other than that they are an enjoyable watch.

It was a bit of a shame for Majestica though as they were followed by Finland’s might Battle Beast, who play in a similar style but on a totally different level because they (whispers) do it so much better. In fact, they sneaked in and stole the festival while nobody was looking. Vocalist Noora sports a cracking pair of goat-inspired horns and a batshit bat-winged corset dress and sings in an operatic style with a surprising amount of power. The rest of the band are more conservatively dressed but feature helicopter hair and powerful anthemic music. But. For all the power, for all the metal there is a touch of lightness about them that verges on the disco. Battle Beast ride into battle armed with ABBA CDs rather than swords methinks. They rock like fuck but with music you can dance to. The performance was superb and they were a strong contender for band of the weekend for me.

Nashville Pussy are ballsy AC/DC inspired party rock. Their USP is the female bass and guitar and they sing a lot about sex, drugs and rock n’ roll. It's upbeat and crowd-friendly and brings a lot of smiles to a lot of faces. They gravelly vocals are a personal turn-off but the demeanour is happy and they have raised smiles as well as fists in the audience.

Myrath turned out to be the surprise of the weekend. They are from Tunisia so manage to fuse powerful rock/metal with a hint of Arabian nights to give us a sound that’s unusual and rather intriguing. It’s lush and exotic, with strong guitars but also interwoven keyboards that push it towards AOR territory. Turns out it’s the keyboard player’s birthday and a cake is duly presented and something that is presumably the Swedish equivalent of happy birthday is sung. They bring in a bit of theatrics, with two male firedancers and a female bellydancer who does interesting things with scarves and swords. They are just different enough to hold your interest and the song ‘Heroes’ from their most recent album was a particular stand-out moment.

We’re on the final furlong now and Krokus are another burst of nostalgia and happy memories. Despite their advancing years they are solid and reliable, and all the old songs are there to entertain us. There are some highlights – they dedicate ‘Winning Man’ to Lemmy and we all raise a glass to the big man, rounding off the Motorhead theme of the day nicely. They play ‘Fire’ from their breakthrough “Metal Rendez-Vous” album, which is a personal favourite. We bounce along to ‘Bedside Radio’, their breakthrough hit. They seem to have been playing forever when there’s a cover of Neil Young’s ‘Rockin’ In The Free World”. In the vein of the Scorpions they seem to have been on their farewell tour for around 6 years now, with no end in sight, and they are looking and sounding pretty good for gentlemen of a certain age. 90 minutes of power-driven party rock isn’t bad going for a band who are mostly in their 70s, although my feet are ‘Screaming In The Night’ by the time they get around to playing that particular song!

It's now the end, so it seems fitting that Finland’s Sonata Arctica bring the proceedings to a close. They too bring us power metal, but as their name suggests it’s a colder, more wintery style of the genre. The vocals are immense, they all sing, and the power chords too are harsh and cold. There’s a whiff of the Viking about them, a feeling that they are at home in the woods, in the snow. It’s stirring stuff, conjuring up visions of wolves howling at the moon and a simpler, more earthy time. They have been plying their strong, primitive brand of metal for nearly 30 years now and whilst slightly outclassed today by Battle Beast they were a great finish to a great weekend.

So there we go, Sweden’s coziest rock festival has delivered exactly what it promised. Something for everyone musically, a friendly atmosphere and a well set up, well managed festival. If you’re looking to travel a little further afield for your annual dose of rock festival goodness I can highly recommend Time To Rock. Even the somewhat iffy weather couldn’t break the spirit of this indomitable little gathering, and I am very much hoping that we will be able to return in the future!