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.
Read MoreHave you ever looked at something, a gig, a festival, and thought “that looks good, but maybe it’s a bit out of reach?” Time To Rock Festival was formed by a couple of the ex-directors of Sweden Rock some 19 years ago. They felt, even back then, that Sweden Rock was just too damn big so they formed their own, smaller, more intimate affair. Known as Helge A Festival for 15 years (named for the river that runs along the boundary of the site) they became Time To Rock in 2022 and set about bringing some pretty decent names in music to this small corner of southern Sweden. They bill themselves as “Sweden’s cosiest festival” and having been there now I understand why.
Read MoreThe final day of RADAR Festival 2025 kicks off with serious momentum as Waterlines launch into their set with enough energy to shake off any lingering festival fatigue. From the first note, they’re firing on all cylinders - tight, explosive, and clearly here to make a statement. Frontman Benji Mars is magnetic, effortlessly switching between razor-sharp cleans and thunderous gutturals, all ...
Read MoreSaturday morning of RADAR Festival 2025 begins with a surprise opener in the form of Break Fifty, who launch into their set like they’ve been fixtures on the bill all along. There’s a gritty, raw energy to them - very much a DIY take on Graphic Nature, with that Pitchshifter, industrial-sounding drumming and vocals reminiscent of Feed The Rhino’s more feral moments. Slamming breakdowns and sudden tempo dives give it a Knocked Loose punch, and there’s more than a nod to Heart of a Coward’s dense metallic sheen. Just a standard four-piece, no gimmicks and it absolutely works.
Read MoreFriday at RADAR Festival 2025 begins in suitably unhinged fashion with openers on the second SNEAK stage Mother Vulture. Their chaotic, hair-whipping, guitar-slinging madness sets the bar absurdly high right out the gate. Their vocalist hits some glass-shattering banshee-like highs, but there’s gravely harshness too - scraping and snarling in all the right ways. It’s like The Fall of Troy jamming with Counting Crows during a Royal Blood soundcheck, and somehow it all just works. Wild, theatrical, and very, very fun.
Read MoreSunday is an early start too, but the weather is not on our side today. The sunshine is gone, the clouds are lowering and it’s not only windy but bloody cold to boot! Oh well, hoody and a woolly hat it is to see the day started by Spyder Byte.
Read MoreThere are a few things in life that are inevitable. Death and taxes are the obvious ones, but also that the team from Upstged will throw a hell of a party at their annual showcase event. They have a lot going for them in terms of their chosen venue – Lincolnshire Showground is spacious, level and has ample blocks of proper toilets and showers scattered throughout both the camping areas and the arena itself. The arena is tucked away in a corner shaded by trees, and features two adjacent stages as well as a big marquee that houses both the substantial (and reasonably priced!) bar and the Trailblazer tent.
Read MoreOne of the best things about Call Of The Wild is that they spend a lot of time every year getting out there and looking for the Next Big Thing. There are heats in various small venues where bands and crowd reactions are analysed to the nth degree, with the best of the best being offered a coveted slot on the Trailblazer stage.
Read MoreTonight is something of a bittersweet experience. Yes, it’s a carefully curated evening of local and international bands to delight and entertain us, but it’s also the last-ever show from headliners King Voodoo. After several years of touring, including with some pretty big names, the Lads From The Vood are going their separate ways. It won’t be the last we see of the individual members but for now, it’s a farewell party. King Voodoo being the band that they are means that farewell or not it will be a hell of a party!
Read MoreBloodstock Festival, more than any other, promotes and showcases best new and rising talent. 2024 was no different and ROCKFLESH managed to watch a number of impressive bands across both the New Blood and EMP Stages. Here's a short summary of some of the bands that stood out to us, and for many of these acts you can find interviews (HERE) and live photos (HERE) on our site as well.
Read MoreAnd just like that it is Sunday and the big yellow ball of heat in the sky is doing its best job to burn us all to buggery. It's 2022 all over again, including those joyful yelps from the crowd when any cloud cover is forthcoming. Needless to say everything is all a little more laid back today as a collective lethargy emerges from the heat.
Read MoreIn years to come, 2024 will be known as the year Bloodstock came of age. It's previously spacious set up for the first time ever feels consistently busy. The step up to a stable and constant 20,000 capacity feels very obvious in the sheer amount of people around the place at any given point, but it is still dealt with with Bloodstock’s usual level of finesse and honesty. This was the year that Bloodstock no longer felt like a small concern.
Read MoreThe bar for the day is immediately set very high with Wailing Banshee opening Sunday’s shenanigans. Blessed (at least for the time being) by the weather gods, this fine young metal troupe pull an appreciative early crowd lured by the sound of their traditional metal approach, the band capitalising on the time they have to maximum effect.
Read MoreLuna Marble kick off the first full day of this year’s SOS Festival and despite the heavens opening the moment they hit the first note, they don’t let little things like inclement weather dampen their enthusiasm or performance. Delivering a thoroughly engaging groove laden, psychedelic performance both in musical and aesthetic terms, theirs is music suited to the blissed-out Summer’s Day that we should be experiencing were it not for the vagaries of the English climate.
Read MoreTraditionally the beginning of July marks the halfway point in the year, however modern traditions denote it’s also time for SOS Festival. This year is the 15th edition of this annual celebration of rock and metal music in North Manchester, an independent festival run by Lynne Hampson, Mark Appleton, Luke Appleton, Chris Appleton and an army of loyal volunteers.
Read MoreSo here we are at the final hurdle, and even a slew of breakfast margaritas are not breaking through the very British weather y. We have sunshine, then showers, then sunshine, then thunder and lightning with a touch of hail – you know that song “four seasons in one day”? Well, that was Lincoln showground on the final day of the festival.
Read MoreSaturday arrives and the weather is threatening us with rain. However, with the spacious layout of the arena and the fact that the bar is in a tent, impending downpours do not dampen the spirits of the attendees
Read MoreThere are some things in life that are inevitable. Never mind death and taxes, the important thing is that the open-air festival season in the UK gets going in May no matter what the weather brings. For some of us that means a trip to the badlands of Lincolnshire and a weekend in the company of Call Of The Wild Festival. Since 2019 this tenacious little independent festival has somehow clung on despite the pandemic, and as I park the Moho up and crack the weekend’s first drink I can’t tell you how glad I am to be back.
Read MoreIt’s April, the sun is shining and we’re back in Blackpool and that can only mean one thing. Springfest is back in town for a second round, with another impressive roster of bands old and new carefully curated from across the UK rock scene.
Read MoreDamnation 2023 is immaculately curated. This is not random bands thrown into some form of inconsistent order. Real thought and consideration has actually gone into who follows who. The entire day works as some sort of cathartic emotional journey, taking you from spiritual highs to desolate lows.
Directly following the astonishing Julie Christmas with Downfall of Gaia is a genius move. Whilst there are real differences between the acts, they share a common DNA strand of emotional resonance. It seems weird to pin this on black metal, but Downfall of Gaia is music to make you cry.
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