Festival Review: Bloodstock Open Air 2024

Another Bloodstock is in the bag and what an epic event it was. From the moment we excitedly stepped foot on site to the moment we slowly dragged our weary feet out of there, our smiles were broad. Not only was it, once again, an incredibly well-run festival but just about every aspect of our experience was top-notch.

From the moment we rocked up to the VIP car park (big shout-out to the attendant giving out parking passes – funny and friendly), to getting our passes and finding a spot for our entire group in VIP camping, the vibe felt good. Eventually, we got our tents up, cracked open that first beer, and drank in the familiarity of it all again. We were back and for a few days, the rest of the world didn’t exist. Something certainly aided by the lack of phone reception.

Stepping back into Serpents Lair (it always makes a VIP ticket worth it), was emotional, but nothing compared to reuniting with friends from all over the country (the hugs were always appreciated). Except maybe, meeting a slew of new people and it speaks volumes about the quality of these characters that everyone left a positive impression.

This also comes from a press perspective too. From the organisation, PR reps, management, fellow media, and, of course, the bands and artists, everyone was immense. Top notch food options (mostly), great bar service and plenty of variety on offer, great sound for most sets across all stages, and an overall friendly vibe that made the festival feel safe and warm (especially Sunday with the latter). This really was one of the best years we’ve had at the festival, and that says a lot as we’ve had years and years of enjoyment here.

There is room for improvement (there always is) but overall, Bloodstock 2024 was a fantastic experience, and we will see you back there for the 2025 edition.

Before that though, let’s talk about the main reason we all go to festivals like Bloodstock, and that’s to see a ton of talented bands and artists across the wide rock and metal spectrum perform for our entertainment. From legends, to those solidifying their name, to those building up a steady reputation, and those who are fresh-faced and about to play the biggest show of their fledging careers, we saw a hell of a lot. Sometimes as a group, sometimes separately, and we’re going to talk a little bit about them now.

THURSDAY

Thursday wasn’t a particularly strong day for us (especially when compared to previous Thursdays) but we made sure to catch a bit of Acid Age as they were the first band on and their brand of thrash goes down nicely. Proving to be a strong opening band that got the adrenaline flowing with a classy display. As does a little bit of Tailgunner, who are a cool band with a high energy, traditional sound which always goes down well at a festival. They were very good and certainly get the neck muscles working.

Which also applies to South of Salem’s lovable anthemic rock sound, and whole lot of Hellripper’s blackened speed noise. The latter was the one band we needed to see and they did not disappoint. While the bands that came before them kicked the festival off well, Hellripper really made us feel like Bloodstock was open with a packed tent rocking out to high energy, thrashing metal. They were fantastic.

Even though tiredness had set in after a very long day and the drink consumed was making a bed seem very appealing, we held on for a little bit to ensure we checked out some of Evergrey’s set. Not enough to really judge it, but enough to confirm that, live, they don’t really do much for us.

FRIDAY

Fresh faced (eventually) and ready to take on a full day of music, Friday started off so strongly with Scottish thrashers, Disposable over on the New Blood stage. They have a tough task being on at the ungodly time of 10:30am, but credit to them, they bring the energy and then, boom, the power goes out. An issue that was rectified and they handled it with professionalism, still managing to turn what could have been a shame into a killer set, full of riffs and groove.

Then, over on the RJD stage, the progressive sludge and groove heavyweight that is Desert Storm is kicking off and they’re an unmissable band, for so many reasons. It is so impressive to see them look at ease on that huge stage, but speaking of looking at ease on a big stage, over at the Sophie Lancaster stage, two of the UK’s finest are up next.

First, it’s the raucous blackened death and hardcore sound of Burner who continue their immense form with a Bloodstock showcase that is up there as one of the weekend’s best. Looking completely at home on the bigger stage and drawing in a good crowd with plenty of aggressive pitting going on. They sounded great, delivering heaviness and energy by the bucketload. In our group, we have varying degrees of familiarity with the band. For some, this was the 6th time seeing them play live, for others, the 2nd, and in the case of a few, the 1st. The end result was everyone loving it, with one of the first-timer’s remarking that they brought the underground to Bloodstock and delivered angry HM-2 breakdowns split up with calculated groove and enough ‘core’ to leave them smiling.

Then, to match that level, it’s the mighty death metal intensity of DeathCollector, who have extra emotion to their sound as it’s the final show for drummer Andy Whale as he hangs up the sticks. It’s a special showing from a band that are one of the tightest metal units in the UK scene right now. Proving to be fun, heavy and perfect for a festival, DeathCollector easily get the heads banging and pits swirling.

Outside, around the RJD stage, things are looking a bit packed. It’s Green Lung and they’re a band made for stages of this size. Now, their overall quality is up for debate within our group and we came away with different thoughts, but mostly agreeing that they are an impressive band that resulted in some of us coming out more of a fan than they went in. It’s hard to have any real beef with doomy rock, even if one side didn’t quite love it and found that the vocals, when isolated, weren’t always the best. Whereas on the other side, finding soaring vocals and great energy, with ‘Song of the Stones’ sounded particularly beautiful in the lovely sunshine.

Who needs sunshine though when, over on the New Blood stage, Smother were creating some of the most dangerous looking hardcore pits of the entire weekend? Mean stuff from this band.

Interview commitments (isn’t it always the way?) removed several of us from band watching duties, but a little bit of Grand Magus was in order for others. A riotous RJD stage showing that clearly meant a lot to the band and the throngs of people having a good time watching. Before the dynamic duo that is Rogue Limb smashed the New Blood stage, even with some technical issues, and left us with stupid smiles plastered on faces.

How about Rotting Christ though? They don’t play bad shows, something we’re certain of these days and here, they proved that statement accurate again with a heavy set from across their many years of existence. They sounded fantastic and looked like they were having great fun too. One of the best of the weekend.

Up next? How about a Scottish brick to the face? No? Tough if you were at the New Blood stage as that’s what Hammer brought with their stunning set. Delivering exactly what you would expect with an aggressive and intense display of heavy music and plenty of groove. The pits swirled and necks got a work out.

Now, such is the way of life at a festival, that sometimes you really don’t have much of a choice but to catch a tiny bit of a set, often in passing, which is what happened with Crowley. Catching a passing song while rushing elsewhere. A shame as that one song was going down really well and they had a big crowd. Plenty of heads were moving and that only means good things.

Elsewhere, on the New Blood stage, there’s something quite different, but equally enjoyable in Final Coil. A post rock and progressive metal group who really know how to immerse an audience even in this kind of environment and even when Hatebreed have the majority of the festival bouncing outside. What Final Coil offer might not be as ‘anthemic’ but it is captivating.

Speaking of Hatebreed though, take it away Dan:

As overlords of hardcore I sort of had to check them out and I really enjoyed them, shout out to the ball of death and would really like to see them in a smaller room – even though I know that’ll never happen.

While over on the Sophie stage, Darkest Era are sounding so damn heavy, Nihilanth are going hell for leather on the New Blood, and King Kraken have brought the freaking heavy and groovy rock party to EMP stage. The former’s vibe isn’t quite gelling at this stage of a busy Friday, but the latter smashes it out of the park and based off how busy it was, we’re not alone thinking that.

How about Clutch though? A band who never fail to bring it live and delivered a masterclass of fun and energy groovy rock music here. If you’ve seen them before, you weren’t seeing anything new, but that hardly matters when Clutch’s form is consistently strong. While some ho-hum songs left some Clutch first-timers in our group slightly cold, the overall view was that they sounded great and played some really cool, different songs that ensured everyone had a blast in some way or another. It’s also one of the busiest moments of the entire RJD stage.

Which is a little unfortunate for Born Zero over on the New Blood stage, but credit to them, they smash it and pull in more and more as their groove metal sound starts to get the attention of those grazing outside the tent.

Speaking of attention-grabbing though, how about MAB over on the EMP stage? What started as intrigue and curiosity via a reaction video we did, turned into a fun frolic of infectious and excitable weirdness. They were brilliant, delivering a slice of something different with a real mix of genres but in a set that felt positive and uplifting. Another massive highlight of the entire festival.

Our night isn’t quite done though as the final band playing is Igorr over at the Sophie Lancaster stage and while we didn’t watch too much of them (drunk and tired), they sound massive and pack out the tent.

It was a very busy Friday, but one that was super-satisfying and one that will live long in the memory. Could Saturday match it, let alone better it?

SATURDAY

Well, when it starts with the double whammy that is Cauldron over on the Sophie stage and Deitus on the RJD stage, it’s a very bright start. The former struggles with being on first thing in the morning, finding a crowd a little lacking in the ‘spin-kicky fun’. They admirably try to inject some life, and it does work within some small sections of the crowd, leaving a solid impression and a hope that they can come back again and really decimate this place.

Whereas the latter is sounding delightfully evil and might be responsible for the overcast sky above. Ripping and roaring through some top-quality tracks and looking at home on the big stage. Forget the rain though as Biomechanimal are next up on the New Blood stage and bring some serious noise via their heavy and infectious sound. One that mixes electronica with crunchy riffs and strong vocals to create a heavy and industrial sound. They sound meatier and meaner live, and exude so much energy, it’s impossible to not be impressed.

A little bit of Ignea’s big melodic metal sound always goes down a treat, even if some of their edge is lost on the big RJD stage. Before Crypta come along to deliver one of the best sets of the entire weekend. Their snarling death metal mixed with tons of groove went down a treat and the beaming smiles of the band on stage, just enjoying themselves and soaking it all up, was very infectious. They looked so at ease on the big stage.

Speaking of looking at ease on a big stage, it’s Ludovico Technique over on the Sophie stage and a band who holds a rapt audience in their palm of their hands. The frontman, Ben V., prowls the stage in visually arresting style and with great stage presence. It’s an intriguing mix of synth, industrial, goth and metal that proves to be catchy and impressive.

Over on the New Blood stage, it’s two-stepping and fist-flailing ferocity with the lovable Convey, just a touch of head banging with Forbidden on the RJD stage, before Praetorian genre-bend to such a degree on the New Blood, but still create an immaculate heavy experience that is brutally fun. Delivering a set filled with slamming breakdowns in between terrifying pig squeals. They sound raw and aggressive and have tons of energy, pulling in a big crowd that kept growing as they played. There’s no surer sure sign that things are going well when punters catch a bit of the sound outside and feel they have to come in.

It’s a quick dash over the Sophie Lancaster stage to watch some of Mimi Barks’ hypnotic trap metal show. Another artist that causes some debate with our group. Some, loving what was offered here and others unimpressed, even if what was seen looked strong and got a solid crowd response. Regardless of our different takes, Mimi Barks is even more proof that Bloodstock, as a festival, continues to evolve.

Elsewhere, Public Execution are something else on the EMP stage. It falls to Dan to sum them up:

VERY FAST SCARY VERY COOL POLITICAL GRIND / HARDCORE – is how I’d write this if I wrote how they played. It was insane, big up this band massively. Will be seeing them next time they’re in London.

It’s a combination of interview and break time for all of us, before it’s back over to the RJD stage for some ‘meat & potatoes’ death metal via Deicide. About as old school extreme metal as you can get and they still sound phenomenal. It is odd watching music as dark as this in the blazing sunshine, with Glen Benton having to wear shades, but it is always interesting and they hammered out a great set from across the decades of their existence with skill and professionalism. Zero complaints here.

Also making sure we have no complaints is our local M2TM winners (London), Them Bloody Kids on the New Blood stage. Pulling in a huge crowd and plenty of diehard fans, the alternative metal band show just how they won London this year and why their future is looking so damn bright. It’s safe to say they destroyed that stage and we did not see the New Blood packed out even close to what they had the entire weekend.

Sticking with the New Blood stage, Lost to Light are clearly a band who know what they are doing. While the New Blood stage might be their home for this weekend, they don’t lack in experience and it shows in a crisp and professional set with stunning vocals and great energy.

Whereas on the RJD stage, Whitechapel are sounding violent and vicious with a main stage sound that was on point. Pulling in a big crowd (as expected) and taking full advantage of it, we only watched a handful of tracks but they went down very well.

What’s going on over on the EMP stage as the evening gets under way though? It’s only one of the bands of the weekend in Rupcha Farms, delivering a mind-blowing set. The energy and effort they threw into their show was insane and you could feel you were part of something special. They were so much fun to watch, knocking out a fabulous set of anthems, and having everyone at that stage (and there were a lot of people there) moving nonstop.

Do you know who else had pretty much everyone moving nonstop? Malevolence on the RJD stage. Given a special guest spot and busting their asses to ensure they could play today, there’s a real sense that the Bloodstock organisers and bookers have a ton of faith in this band and it proves to be the right call. They played loads of bangers, set some big records, and are on fantastic form overall. Causing plenty of carnage (some literal and extremely unfortunate) all over the site. This felt like a dress-rehearsal for a future headline spot and few can say they aren’t earning it with shows like this.

However, not everyone loves Malevolence and Brendan had a slightly different take:

I only have a passing interest in Malevolence so didn’t watch the whole set. I feel sometimes like I might be the last person on Earth not quite feeling the same love for these guys as everyone else. I think they are good, sometimes very good, but I have seen them a few times already and while I like the band and the music, food and listening from a distance was more appealing this time.

During Malevolence, there is a quick check in with Chub over at the New Blood stage who, alongside a substantial crowd, look to be having a blast. Great fun, great energy and great tunes that had all of our very tired feet re-energised and dancing along. The band looked really up for it, even bringing plenty of props to chuck out, and that created a really cool and infectious atmosphere in the crowd which also contained a herd of dinosaurs who also clearly enjoyed Chub.

Whereas one of the weekend’s most anticipated bands (for a lot of us) ends up disappointing over on the Sophie stage because of poor sound. Sylosis are an amazing band, but this was not an amazing show, sadly.

Beers refreshed, energy at high, it’s headliner time and one we’re all intrigued to see. Architects, a band that are more than capable of handling this spot, but in recent years, haven’t quite been on their best form. Which is fully captured in this solid and enjoyable set, one that is perfectly fine from a musicality point of view, but one that lacks the feel of a headliner, let alone a band headlining a festival for the first time.

Where was the pizazz? The sense that Architects wanted everyone to go away stunned? Where was the show? Maybe that’s on us, expecting too much from Architects, but it did feel like this was any arena-sized show for them and not a headlining spot on the Saturday of Bloodstock Open Air.

The thing is, it is still totally fair to say that Architects did deliver a much stronger headline set than a lot of people expected and we’d be lying if we didn’t say we had a blast, because we did. They were very good, they just didn’t seem to take the fact that they were headlining Bloodstock too seriously.

Night over? Not quite as first, there was a half-hearted attempt to get into the Sophie tent for Korpiklanni (packed), before even more drink was consumed in the Serpent’s Lair. I think it’s fair to say that most of us went to bed that night a little worse for wear. Which inevitably meant Sunday morning wasn’t pretty, especially when two of the festival’s most anticipated bands were on early.

SUNDAY

Who dragged our sorry hungover asses out of bed at 1030? It was only alternative metallers and anthem kings, Straight for the Sun. Having the unenviable task of not only drawing in a crowd at 1030 on a Sunday morning, but going up against everyone’s favourite ‘worst’ band, Raised by Owls on the RJD stage. So, with that in mind, how bloody good were Straight for the Sun? Filled with so much energy, looking like they were having so much fun, and delivering a rousing set that cleared many fuzzy heads. They were excellent.

Just like Raised by Owls, who have earned every bit of this main stage slot (New Blood & Sophie stages previously) and approach it with a level of humility that betrays their brilliance. They came, we saw, they conquered. Not only delivering a boisterous and belligerent set of extreme anthems but lacing the entire set with their inimitable humour and ensuring a ‘Bloodstock moment’ was made courtesy of Sam’s Mum. A ‘Sunday Sermon’ was delivered with everything you would expect by a band that won’t be able to live off the “we are the worst band ever” catchphrase for long due to them releasing music that is just really strong. The next time Raised by Owls come back, you know it’s only going to be higher up the bill.

Speaking of band’s playing higher up the bill though. Very few band’s get to play the festival, then return twelve months later to play it again on a bigger stage, but not many band’s are Moon Reaper. Whose last twelve to eighteen months can be summed up as phenomenal. Winning their M2TM last year and playing the New Blood stage, then building on that momentum with even more shows, the release of a impressive EP (Black Sun Sorcery), and then being invited back to play on the Sophie Lancaster stage. Bravo Moon Reaper, who deserve all their success, and didn’t let it overwhelm them here in the slightest.

A wild mix of genres with vocals that absolutely slay. Where the blackened side of the band suddenly switches into some hardcore beats, then into a bit of doom and back to black metal. It sounds a lot, but it works wonderfully and proves to be mesmerising here. They’re made for stages this big, made for crowds this rabid for them (the pits were crazy), and made for festivals that see their potential. Moon Reaper were a very good band a year ago, but this is a even greater band we witnessed here.

Brutal. Slamming. Deathcore. It’s Osiah who do little to help a heavy hangover. Regardless, they smash it on the Sophie stage and hopefully we can see them again, less hungover, and in a smaller room with a longer set.

Then it’s back to interviews and the worst part of every festival ever… take down our tents and pack up in anticipation of leaving later that night. It’s a crap job that we never want to do, especially as it always means missing bands, but it’s got to be done and doing it in the dark at 11:30pm would be a bit of a problem.

To be fair though, we got this done quicker than usual and was back over for some Night Flight Orchestra fun on the RJD stage, even if their shtick gets old quickly. As well as some brief extreme savagery in the form of the mighty Dead Flesh on the New Blood stage and some gut-rumbling death and doom on the EMP stage with Goblinsmoker.

Then, it’s time to get ‘jiggy’ as Flogging Molly take to RJD stage to surprise many naysayers with a delightfully fun and catchy set of Irish punk, rock, and folk tunes. Totally aware of just how much they stand out on this bill, they bring such an infectious attitude, you’d have to be a really miserable soul to not enjoy even a little bit of it. They were very good fun, with good banter and had a lot of people dancing and smiling showing once again that good music, no matter the genre, is always welcomed and appreciated.

Whereas over on the New Blood stage, Sathamel are all business, but for good reason as they’re one of the tightest sounding bands on this stage all weekend. If your neck wasn’t feeling sore before, it was once the blackened death metal band were done. Although the miserable and furiously heavy Yersin over the EMP stage are more than capable of delivering a similar level of aggression and intensity. To see such a big crowd turn out for them too is very heartening, but hey, Yersin are awesome and everyone seems to know that.

It’s here, that our group separated fully. Some of us left the site, heading home with ‘normal’ life looming large, and some stayed to catch the final few bands. One of which was the mighty Carcass, who, have been doing their thing for a long time now and are masters of it. Hitting out huge tracks from across their broad catalogue. The sound was great, the music and vocals on point – it wasn’t mind-blowingly better than other times they’ve been seen, it was just another damn fine Carcass appearance.

Finally, it’s Amon Amarth and whereas Architects lacked the ‘show’ aspect of being a headliner at a festival, there were never any doubts that Amon Amarth would make up for that… and they did. It wasn’t new, to anyone who has seen them before, but it was still great. Viking battles, stage dressing, smoke, confetti and lots of fire all became the backdrop to a band that sounded powerful and motivated. A fitting way to close out the Main Stage for this year’s festival.

Bloodstock 2024. That was pretty damn good, eh?