With the smoke from last night’s Amon Amarth set still swirling in the air, a groggy Bloodstock crowd cracked open their first cold one of the day to prepare their bodies and minds for another day of heavy fucking metal. But can you ever really be ready for the second day of Bloodstock? Here’s what we learned from our experience.
Fallujah thrive in the sunshine
Despite grey clouds threatening to ruin everyone’s good time, it looks like California’s Fallujah have brought the weather with them. And the brutality. Opening the main stage is never an easy task, especially for a band who recently lost their singer, but this is a clinic in technical proficiency and unashamed heaviness. More of this please.
This is the King 810 we needed to see
If there’s been one metal band that split opinion in recent years, it’s King 810. When they were announced to play the main stage there was derision and moaning from all corners of the metalsphere, but for those of us who are on board, this was exactly what the doctor ordered. No fannying about, no props, no gimmicks, just back-to-back balls-out chaos from Flint’s finest. The latest material sounds absolutely savage, even though they are a guitarist down because he couldn’t get into the country as a result of being arrested on a weapon charge. David Gunn skulks around the stage like he’s on a hunt, barking out his bloody tales and confirming to the thousands down front that there’s more to this band than stories.
Municipal Waste are the perfect festival band
Like they say, Municipal Waste are gonna fuck you up. And we’re okay with that. With the sun shining and a beer in hand, there’s something truly wonderful about watching one of the best thrash bands in the game hammer out songs like Beer Pressure and The Art Of Partying. Plus if you’re a crowdsurfer, it’s even better, with the band reaching a total of 711 surfers throughout the entire set. Poor photographers.
Bloodstock isn’t a fan of Donald Trump
Usually at Bloodstock, there’s a contingent of metalheads wearing Cradle Of Filth’s legendary Jesus… shirt, but this year the must-have item belongs to Municipal Waste and their shirt depicting Donald Trump blowing his brains out with a gun. Not a subtle message, but one that loads of people are keen to wear emblazoned on their chests.
The Sophie Lancaster stage is kicking ass
If you want to know who the most exciting and interesting bands in Britain are, look no further than Bloodstock’s Sophie Lancaster stage. Today Abhorrent Decimation shredded our skin off, yesterday Black Moth all-but levelled the place with riffage and tomorrow Bossk are undoubtedly going to blow everybody’s mind.
Ohhms could be something special
Speaking of the Sophie stage, one of the highlights of Saturday is the sludgey noise of Ohhms. Frontman Paul Waller runs around the stage like a possessed Ozzy, flapping and slapping at everything he can get his hands on, while his post-metal cohorts slam out some expansive filth. The sound quality could have been better, but you know that seeing this indoors is going to be a spiritual experience.
Confetti is metal
Throughout the weekend we’ve seen various bands play with fire onstage, but Kreator go one step further and pack truckloads of confetti and streamers. Sure, they’ve got flamethrowers and CO2 aplenty, but covering thousands of screaming metalheads in red confetti right at the start of the set sends the thrash hordes into spasm. Although it does leave the ground looking like the last scene from Blackadder Goes Forth.
Ghost headlining just makes sense
The stage, the lights, the costumes, the songs – this is what festival headliners should look like. Nobody puts as much thought and consideration into their aesthetic as Ghost and tonight it’s mesmerising to see it all in action on such a grand platform. The church-like stage set, the Ghouls running amok, Papa E being the coolest motherfucker in the world – this isn’t the making of a band that belong in dive bars. This isn’t the last time you’ve seen them top a bill.
We might have seen Dave Grohl
Okay, this might be bollocks, but there’s a rumour going round that Dave Grohl is drumming for Ghost tonight. Of course, we’ll never know because of the mask, but the way he holds his sticks and hits those skins looks strangely familiar.
Next year is going to be massive
Following Kreator’s set, all eyes are on the big main stage screens to find out who is topping the line-up at next year’s Bloodstock… and we are not disappointed. Gojira and Nightwish are headlining the 2018 fest! After Gojira blew everyone else offstage last year this is a no-brainer, and with Nightwish planning a special Decades set, you know they’re up to something good. Metal is great, ain’t it?
Early bird tickets for Bloodstock 2018 go on sale tomorrow.
