Metal titans ICED EARTH and thrash icons SEPULTURA are the latest additions to BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR 2012, joining an already stellar line up that includes headline sets from ALICE COOPER and BEHEMOTH, as well as exclusive appearances from WATAIN, special guests DIMMU BORGIR, HATEBREED, BLACK DAHLIA MURDER & many more.

ICED EARTH were born in 1985, formed by Jon Schaffer – a determined, street-tough kid with the drive to create a band to make his heroes JUDAS PRIEST, KISS, and IRON MAIDEN proud. The band released its riff-heavy self-titled debut album in 1990 and never looked back. Nine studio albums – considered masterpieces of metal – cemented the band’s reputation for crafting exceptionally well-made music, the centerpiece of which being Schaffer‘s trademark rhythm guitar style and powerful, in-your-face lyrics that often combine themes of self reliance, a healthy distrust of authority, history, and science fiction.

He says:
“We are looking forward to returning to Bloodstock in 2012, our second time after 2008. The UK shows we played on our World Dystopia Tour last fall were some of the best on the tour and we cannot wait to bang our heads with the UK minions again!”

Over the years, Schaffer has surrounded himself with some of the finest musicians in the world – including famed vocalists Matt Barlow, Tim Owens, and now Stu Block – to help bring his musical visions to life. This summer Schaffer brings this vision to BLOODSTOCK once more, for their only UK show of 2012, and one of the highlights of the metal festival calendar.

SEPULTURA is one of the major names in metal history. From their humble beginnings 27 years ago, these Brazilians went on to create a legacy, influencing a whole generation of younger bands and becoming a true institution. Despite rough times due to significant line-up changes, nomadic relationships with record labels and various changes in the overall musical environment, SEPULTURA have never backed down, continuously following their path, always re-emerging stronger than ever before.

At their only UK show of 2012, SEPULTURA will remind the BLOODSTOCK crowd why they are South America’s biggest metal export, with a classic set featuring timeless anthems such as ‘Arise’, ‘Beneath The Remains’, ‘Troops Of Doom’, ‘Refuse/Resist’, ‘Territory’ and many many more.

With tickets selling faster than ever before, BLOODSTOCK 2012 is destined for a sell-out this year. Over 100 bands – the majority of which are exclusive appearances – and a ticket price of only £115 for four days of metal magic INCLUDING camping – BLOODSTOCK offers metalheads the most attractive ticket in the UK.

With four critically acclaimed albums, a few EPs and several world tours under their belt, NILE has raised the bar for extreme metal bands musically, lyrically and conceptually. Guitarist/vocalist Karl Sanders says:

“The members of NILE are eagerly looking forward to our first-ever appearance at Bloodstock this year. Let Metal Take Place!”

Boasting withering live performances that are nothing short of legendary, expect NILE to deliver one of the most crushing sets of the weekend.

When it comes to the definitive history of black metal, MAYHEM‘s name is at the forefront. Through the church burnings, murder, imprisonments and myopic teenage nationalism, MAYHEM has endured and survived, turning the circus-like atmosphere into a sustained musical career, in the studio and more importantly, on stage, without losing any of their spit and bile along the way.

With a live show oozing evil and darkness both sonically and visually, MAYHEM‘s only UK show of 2012 will leave Catton Hall in a bloody mess, and all the better for it.

BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR 2012 takes place at Catton Hall August 9th – 12th.

Always at the forefront of the death metal movement, DEICIDE was an original pioneer of the brutal sound and imagery associated with the Florida death metal scene. In 1987, Glen Benton and Steve Asheim teamed to launch one of the most talked about, controversial and venomous crusades in metal history and have since risen to international notoriety, releasing two of the highest selling death metal albums of all time.

DEICIDE quickly became known for their technical yet brutal sound as much as the rumours that surrounded them. After famously marching into the office of Monte Conner (Roadrunner Records) and demanding “Sign us, you fucking asshole!” the band went on to create the definitive sound of 90s death metal thanks to their ability to play technical solos at blazing speeds with overlapping riffs. DEICIDE also created an astounding ten studio albums that have changed the face of the extreme metal scene.

Now they bring their blasphemous brutality to Bloodstock for the first time, offering the only chance to catch them live in the UK this year.

With a line up including headline sets from ALICE COOPER and BEHEMOTH, Norwegian Black Metal superstars DIMMU BORGIR‘s only UK show of 2012, as well as over 100 bands including ANVIL, PARADISE LOST, WATAIN, ORANGE GOBLIN, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER and Swedish metal merchants GRAND MAGUS, there is no more metal place in the UK than Bloodstock Open Air.

‘We couldn’t do the show for obvious reasons last time, I was in a deep shithole with my sickness, but I really felt obliged to come back and do BLOODSTOCK as soon as possible. We are really fortunate that they invited us back, we couldn’t turn it down, and this is the perfect opportunity to make this up to the people that missed us last time. For us it’s a great pleasure to come back to the UK after two years, and I can promise we will bring full production – lights, pyro – it’s gonna be awesome and we can’t wait. This is not only the first time we headline a festival, but also our first open air appearance in the UK, so it’s gonna be special!’

‘Bringing BEHEMOTH back to Bloodstock in 2012 was our mission, they have been one of the MOST requested bands we have ever been asked for’ states festival booker Vicky Gregory. ‘We know the fans will give them one hell of a reception. The show is their full production and what better place for them to return than as headliners for the Friday night’

Their ninth studio album, 2009′s ‘Evangelion’ saw BEHEMOTH make a giant leap from a cult black metal act to internationally acclaimed metal act, gracing magazine covers and even newspapers across the globe, truly breaking out of the underground despite the uncompromising and fiercely brutal ten tracks it contains. Having the honour of being opening band at the first ever performance of Metal’s Big Four – METALLICA, SLAYER, MEGADETH and ANTHRAX – at Sonisphere Poland in 2009, BEHEMOTH are no strangers to the big stage and this exclusive headline appearance – their first outdoor show in the UK, and only festival performance in this country in 2012 – will be a triumphant return, and one that will no doubt be talked about for years to come.

But now SANCTUARY are back, and after a massive hiatus, are ready to return to the UK for their only show of 2012. Says Frontman Warrel Dane:

‘Really psyched to play Bloodstock 2012. It’s the band’s first time back in the UK in over 20 years and we are honored to be invited to one of the greatest summer festivals in the world. We can’t wait to thrash it up with our fans! See you in August 2012.’

Joining them with be Michigan metallers THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER and Swedish metal merchants GRAND MAGUS.

THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER has crammed quite a bit into its 10 years together – five albums, three EPs and a DVD (2009′s MAJESTY). The face-melting Detroit quintet has made a career out of being unpredictable – unhinged, unclassifiable and unrepentant, all in the best possible ways, expect a fiercely vicious barrage of brutal modern metal at their BLOODSTOCK debut. Says frontman Trevor Strnad:

‘We are excited to bring our brand of drunken mayhem to Bloodstock in 2012!!! Prepare for the most epic circle pit of your mortal lives!!!’

GRAND MAGUS bring their familiar trademark sound for their only UK festival appearance of 2012, melding traditional riffs and melodies that rock in the same league as JUDAS PRIEST and DIO. With lead singer JB’s distinctive, unique voice and monster riffs, backed by a rhythm section that lends new meaning to the word heavy, GRAND MAGUS‘s exclusive return to BLOODSTOCK will be a most welcome one.

Unless you’ve had your head buried in the sand for the last five decades, the godfather of theatrical rock needs no introduction, and needless to say, organisers are delighted to have such a prolific and legendary artist join the Bloodstock line up. Festival booker Vicky Gregory comments:

‘As Bloodstock organisers but more importantly Huge fans of ALICE COOPER, we are thrilled to have such an iconic artist close proceedings on the Sunday night! We have been after Alice for a number of years and are extremely excited to see him grace the Ronnie James Dio stage and guarantee this will be a performance not to be missed’

An ALICE COOPER concert is always a memorable event, and there are few artists out there capable of putting on such a thrillingly entertaining show. Bloodstock attendees are in for quite a treat if the recent shows are anything to go by. From the moment he takes to the stage as a giant spider your senses are assaulted with fireworks, mock executions, simulated sex (with the dead of course), snakes, monsters and zombies, as ALICE delivers hit after hit from his decades long career.

With a back catalogue that includes timeless classic such as ‘Schools’s Out’, ‘No More Mr Nice Guy’, ‘Welcome To My Nightmare’, ‘Hey Stoopid’, ‘Feed My Frankenstein’ and recent single ‘I’ll Bite Your Face Off’, ALICE‘s set at Bloodstock will be impossible to not enjoy, and will undoubtedly be one of the highlights of the festival’s history for many years to come.

With a world class headliner already in place and two more to be announced – as well as over 100 bands from across the world of hard rock and metal – there is no festival offering better value, with four day weekend camping tickets available at just £90 if booked before 15th December.

On the RONNIE JAME DIO main stage, Norwegian Black Metal superstars DIMMU BORGIR return to BLOODSTOCK for their only UK show of 2012, taking next year’s first Special Guest slot. Undoubtedly Norway’s biggest Black Metal export, DIMMU BORGIR are one of the scene’s leaders, seamlessly blending ferocious metal with epic classical orchestration to create one of extreme music’s most instantly identifiable sounds. Gearing up for a very special UK tour next month, the band took time out from rehearsals to tell us:

‘We are extremely excited to be a part of next year’s Bloodstock festival. It will be great to reconnect with our UK based friends and fans and party up a storm!’

Joining them are hardcore metal heroes HATEBREED. Ultra-aggressive and punishingly heavy, a HATEBREED show will demand – and command – your undivided attention with their brutal, boot-to-the-teeth heaviness. This Connecticut hardcore/metal institution has been demolishing its way around the globe since 1994. Not many bands can enjoy that kind of longevity, but HATEBREED have made being a “career band” look easy, gracing countless magazine covers, performing at some of the biggest metal festivals around the world and even receiving a Grammy nomination. Says band leader/vocalist Jamey Jasta of their only UK show of 2012:

‘We’re all very excited to play Bloodstock. It’s fast becoming one of the best festivals for extreme music and this year’s line up is going to crush. We are honoured to share the stage with such awesome bands and happy that we can come and play for our UK die hards!’

Another band who’s only UK performance of 2012 will be on BLOODSTOCK’s RONNIE JAMES DIO stage are none other than CORROSION OF CONFORMITY – or C.O.C for the initiated – who bring their original line up to Catton Hall for a very special set. Together again after 25 years, Reed Mullin, Woody Weatherman and Mike Dean reunite to bring the spirit of 1985 to Derbyshire, with tracks from their hugely influential crossover classic ‘Animosity’.

Over on the SOPHIE LANCASTER stage, British Black metal Bruisers ANAAL NATHRAKH make their only UK festival performance of 2012. Created for one purpose – to be the soundtrack for armageddon, the audial essence of evil, hatred and violence, the true spirit of necro taken to its musical extremes – ANNAL NATHRAKH have released four albums to rapturous acclaim, and boast collaborations with such legendary figures as Attila Csihar (MAYHEM), Shane Embury and Danny Herrera (NAPALM DEATH), Nick Barker (TESTAMENT, DIMMU BORGIR), Joe Horvath (CIRCLE OF DEAD CHILDREN), and BLOODSTOCK fellow Sethlans Teitan (WATAIN). With appearances on BBC Radio 1 at the personal behest of sadly missed icon John Peel, a headline set at Inferno Festival in Norway, countless placings in ‘best album of the year’ polls and album of the month awards in the press, as well as cover appearances on leading magazines such as Terrorizer on their CV, ANAAL NATHRAKH‘s status as one of the leading lights in extreme metal is undeniable. Says the band of their overdue appearance at Britain’s only true outdoor metal festival:

‘It’s been a long time coming, but finally the planets seem to be in the correct alignment for us to disgrace a stage at Bloodstock. We will also be sicking up a new album in the run up to the festival, so Bloodstock will likely be something of a release celebration/commiseration. Horrific. Good.’

With a back catalogue spanning twelve albums over twenty two years – and a DVD set for release before Bloodstock 2012 (‘Draconian Times MMXI’ features the London show at The Forum on April 1st, a documentary from the whole tour, interviews about the history of ‘Draconian Times’ and the two promo videos from their latest album, ‘Faith Divides Us – Death Unites Us’) – PARADISE LOST are one of the few bands capable of delivering a set that will satisfy both fans of more brutal, death tinged doom with songs such as ‘Eternal’, ‘As I Die’ and ‘Gothic’, as well as the melodic, gothic darkness of ‘Embers Fire’, ‘Hallowed Land’ and ‘The Last Time’.

Joining them are Swedish Black Metal misanthropists WATAIN, who make their BLOODSTOCK debut at a very special slot on the RONNIE JAMES DIO stage. Festering in the Black Metal underground since 2000, WATAIN’s rise through the ranks has been an impressive one, with Erik Danielsson’s dedication and conviction setting them apart, leading the band to become one of the most prolific acts on the scene today. Of next year’s appearance, the band states:

‘The United Kingdom has spawned many a thing inspirational to WATAIN, be it druidic sorcery, Venom or Judas Priest. Our performances there have always been spiced with a nameless sensation of raw power, and this is the main reason why we have chosen Bloodstock to be one of the very few festival shows we will perform next year. As always, expect something very far from the ordinary.’

Famed for their incredibly atmospheric live shows, their set at BOA 2012 will be their biggest UK performance to date, and as such the band are preparing to deliver a suitably memorable set, with a show full of satanic majesty planned, as blood, fire and fierce Black Metal spew out over a dusk covered CATTON HALL.

BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR 2012 takes place at Catton Hall August 9th – 12th. Four day camping tickets for next year’s event are available now at bloodstock.uk.com for just £90 (plus booking fee) until xmas.

Tickets for the 2012 event are on sale now at www.bloodstock.uk.com

Friday

Opening up proceedings for the weekend on the RONNIE JAMES DIO stage were metalcore outfit THE DEFILED who got the crowd nicely warmed up for the day’s events with an aggressive and energetic set. Following shortly afterwards were Swedish metallers WOLF who were returning to the festival after playing it in 2009, and their short set of Maiden worshipping classic metal was as warmly received as ever.

Bay Area thrash veterans FORBIDDEN were next to grace the stage and delivered an excellent set that headbangers got their teeth stuck into, with the likes of ‘Through Eyes of Glass’ and ‘Chalice of Blood’ going down a treat, before Finnish rockers POISONBLACK produced an upbeat set, even with frontman and guitarist Ville Laihiala having to sit through the entire set due to a leg injury.

Swiss doomsters TRIPTYKON took to the stage with a set made up of half of Tom G. Warrior‘s former band, CELTIC FROST and the other half being new material. Even though it was daylight, the heavy slow riffs created a superb atmosphere. ‘Procreation of The Wicked’ opened the set before the sublime ‘Goetia’ followed, which was a real highlight of the 40 minute set.

Swiss thrashers CORONER were playing their first UK show since their recent reunion. The 45 minute set was solid if not spectacular, with the main attraction being some superb lead guitar work from Tommy Vetterli with double tapping aplenty. However, the lack of individuality of CORONER‘s material was evidence enough as to why the band never rose above the thrash metal underground.

Legendary German thrashers KREATOR delivered a killer set, even with a minor hiccup when the PA cut out for a few seconds during ‘Warcurse’. The only surprise omission from the set was ‘Extreme Aggression’, but a real highlight was the inclusion of ‘Endless Pain’ in the set, whilst superb renditions of ‘Voices of The Dead’, ‘Enemy of God’, ‘Reconquering The Throne’ and ‘Violent Revolution’ were all welcomed by the crowd, before the ferocious set came to an end with usual closing duo of ‘Flag of Hate’ and ‘Tormentor’.

Returning after playing last years Bloodstock, and thanks to no missing equipment this time, DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT played a decent set, and while I may have not enjoyed every song in the set, perhaps because it is a bit too experimental for my tastes, you can’t deny that Devin is a excellent frontman who keeps the crowd entertained throughout with his various moments and actions on stage. ‘Bad Devil’ and eventual set closer ‘Vampira’ were highlights of the set, but I guess to fully enjoy the show, more time spent listening to the material would aid the factor.

Friday’s headliners were 80′s L.A. rock legends W.A.S.P. who played an energetic set from start to finish with Blackie Lawless as usual moving all over the stage. All the classics were on show tonight with the likes of ‘On Your Knees’, ‘L.O.V.E. Machine’ and ‘Wild Child’ all sounding superb. Newer song’s in the form of ‘Crazy’ and ‘Babylon’s Burning’ also went down a storm with the crowd, while a real highlight of the set was the medley of ‘Hellion’, ‘I Don’t Need No Doctor’ and ‘Scream Until You Like It’ all being seamlessly joined together. As is the norm, ‘Blind In Texas’ was the last song of the night and brought a close to a top day of rock and metal entertainment.

Saturday

Some extreme speed metal was first to play on the RJD stage on Saturday. SKELETONWITCH delivered a destroying set which went at full pelt right until the last note, with ‘Beyond The Permafrost’ and ‘Reduced To The Failure of Prayer’ really sounding excellent live. German heavy metal stalwarts GRAVE DIGGER were the second band on, and probably proved they should have been a bit higher on the bill with their excellent performance, with classics like ‘Rebellion’ and ‘The Dark of The Sun’ getting a rousing reception. ‘Heavy Metal Breakdown’ brought a close to a short but thoroughly enjoyable set from the ever solid German outfit.

TAROT were taking to the stage fronted by Marco Hietala, of NIGHTWISH fame, to play their brand of symphonic power metal, which the crowd ate right up. Meanwhile, over on the New Blood Stage, up and coming Norwegian Black Metallers UBERAN were getting the audience warmed up for tonight’s headliner. UBERAN must be the first band I have seen where all four of their members take turns singing in each song. From what I heard, they had some good material up their sleeves and duly got the crowd headbanging. This will be one to look out for in the future for any fans of classic Norwegian black metal.

Another band returning to Bloodstock after a few years were Finnish folk metallers FINNTROLL who wasted no time in getting the party started and the crowd just lapped up their entire set, with there being plenty of jigs amongst other sorts of dancing within the audience. IHSAHN, of EMPEROR fame, took to the stage to produce a high quality set of symphonic black metal, with all the material being from his solo project, which probably left a few fans disappointed that there wasn’t any EMPEROR songs in the set. Still, tracks like ‘Scarab’ and ‘Frozen Lakes on Mars’ were outstanding and really created an atmosphere.

Finnish power folk metallers WINTERSUN produced a speedfest filled set, which flew by nearly as fast as they played. With rousing renditions of ‘Battle Against Time’ and ‘The Way of The Fire’ particularly standing out, ‘Starchild’ wrapped up their 45 minute set that left everyone wanting more.

THERION‘s Saturday evening performance was certainly the most interesting set of the weekend. It’s a mystery how the band afford to tour, given that they had four lead singers, none of which play an instrument. The dual male and dual female attack made for some brilliantly layered vocals and the sort of sounds you only usually hear on a backing tape. ‘To Mega Therion’ was the standout song of what was an impressive set.

Finally playing their first ever UK show were Italian power metal pomps RHAPSODY OF FIRE. This is a band who would have been laughed off the stage in the UK only a few years ago, but the Bloodstock festival has suddenly made swords and sorcery power metal much more acceptable in the UK. Live, the band sounded much less overblown than on record, and instrumentally, they were absolutely superb. The huge crowd waved blow up swords in unison as the likes of ‘Holy Thunderforce’ and ‘Dawn of Victory’ blasted out over the Derbyshire countryside battleground.

After the reception that tonights headliner got last year when they were announced, this was probably one of the most anticipated performances of the weekend. Back in UK for the first time in 9 years, Black Metal Gods IMMORTAL took to the stage opening up with ‘All Shall Fall’ coupled with some pyros. Although the sound was not the best for the first few songs, it didn’t matter one iota to anybody it seemed, even me, and shortly afterwards, the sound greatly improved, and IMMORTAL delivered a killer set of crushing black metal at it’s finest.

All the classics were here, ‘Damned In Black’, ‘One By One’ and ‘Grim And Frostbitten Kingdoms’ to name a few, while blistering renditions of ‘In My Kingdom Cold’ and ‘Solarfall’ really stood out, as did the main set closer, ‘Withstand The Fall of Time’. The epic ‘Beyond The North Waves’ opened the encore with even more pyros, this time a waterfall effect before more of the sprinkler style pyros that they opened up with. ‘The Sun No Longer Rises’ brought IMMORTAL‘s superb set to an end, with everybody showing appreciation by raising the horns. Lets just hope it’s not so long again before IMMORTAL grace these shores.

Sunday

Recently reunited NWOBHM band, HELL kicked things off before a double dose of black metal in the daylight hit the RJD stage. Norway’s 1349 pummelled their way through a 40 minute set with ‘I Am Abomination’ and ‘Sculptor of Flesh’ being notable mentions. PRIMORDIAL frontman Alan Averill unfortunately only lasted two songs before his voice strangely disappeared, and the band continued with the rest of the set without vocals.

Meanwhile, over on the Sophie Lancaster Stage, everybody’s favourite parody metal band, EVIL SCARECROW were duly entertaining the masses as a packed tent were treated to an outstanding performance. ‘Blacken The Everything’ sounded superb and their awesome cover version of EUROPE‘s ‘The Final Countdown’ went down perfectly, whilst a world record attempt during ‘Robotron’ got everybody doing their own perfect robot square.

Back over on the RJD stage, Brummie grindcore legends NAPALM DEATH blitzed their way through a 45 minute set of pure noise. Contained in the set were regulars such as ‘When All Is Said And Done’, ‘Scum’ and ‘Suffer The Children’, while we were treated to a couple of cover songs too in the form of CRYPTIC SLAUGHTER‘s ‘Lowlife’ and DEAD KENNEDYS‘ ‘Nazi Punks Fuck Off’.

Swedish metal warriors HAMMERFALL were up next, and enjoyed the best sound of the weekend. Opening number ‘Infected’ sounded crystal clear. The crowd loved the opportunity to sing a long to the likes of ‘Let The Hammer Fall’ and ‘Hearts on Fire’. Unfortunately, HAMMERFALL have numerous great songs which went unplayed, and it would have been nice to see them higher up the bill with a set longer than 45 minutes. Still, we have more of HAMMERFALL in the UK as they tour with SAXON in December.

The second band to perform this weekend from the Bay Area in San Francisco were thrash titans EXODUS. Throughout the entire set, you could hardly hear frontman Rob Dukes, as either his vocals were too low in the mix or not coming out of the PA as between songs, it sounded like the vocals were only coming from the monitors on stage. Despite this, they cracked on and Gary Holt was on stellar form as he crushed the likes of ‘Blacklist’, ‘Bonded By Blood’ and ‘Toxic Waltz’.

Recently reunited (again) and pioneers of the Gothenburg sound, AT THE GATES were back at Bloodstock after last playing in 2008, and delivered a truly stunning set, with almost the entire ‘Slaughter of The Soul’ album being played. Tracks like ‘Terminal Spirit Disease’ and ‘Under A Serpent Sun’ sounded as fresh as ever, with other highlights being ‘The Burning Darkness’ and the encore duo of ‘Blinded By Fear’ and ‘Kingdom Gone’. AT THE GATES have no plans to tour extensively or write any new material, so you better catch them while you can.

A quick trip to the Jagermeister Stage was on the cards to see LAST IN LINE, a group of musicians fronted by Simon Hall (BEHOLDER) who played an acoustic set to honour the late great RONNIE JAMES DIO and his music. They played a mix of different RJD material from his time in BLACK SABBATH, to RAINBOW, to his solo stuff as DIO. With quite a sizeable crowd gathering, they medleyed the songs together and made the set a real highlight of the weekend, with the likes of ‘Heaven And Hell’, ‘Temple of The King’ and of course ‘Holy Diver’ all getting a showing before ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Children’ rounded things off.

Just like last year, another death metal band had the honour of playing before the Sunday headliner, and this year it was the turn of Florida’s own MORBID ANGEL. While their new album ‘Illud Divinum Insanus’ may have gotten some mixed reviews, the new material sounded fantastic live with ‘I Am Morbid’, ‘Existo Vulgore’ and ‘Nevermore’ all impressing, while classics like ‘Immortal Rites’, ‘Maze of Torment’ and ‘Chapel of Ghouls’ were as destructive as ever. My only gripe about the set was maybe it could have been a bit louder and more in your face as death metal should be, but that didn’t take the shine of an otherwise crushing performance.

Despite their uncomplicated approach to gigs, there’s just something about MOTORHEAD which makes it impossible to get bored of seeing them live. Perhaps it’s the ever grasping awe of just how cool Lemmy is, or perhaps it’s just the great rock n’ roll songs which MOTORHEAD have produced over the years which does the trick.

MOTORHEAD‘s performance tonight was typically on the ball, and all the classics were pumped out, thus ensuring that the Bloodstock crowd enjoyed one final headbang to round off the weekend in style.

Once again, Bloodstock has proved what a great festival it is, and managed to get some great bands that the true metal fans of the UK want to see, whilst also getting big bands for the headliners, whilst also giving the chance to some excellent up and comers in the metal and rock genre. Not a truer word is spoken when they say, ‘For the fans, By the fans’. See you all next year at Catton Hall for what will be another cracker of a weekend.

Best Bands: IMMORTAL, KREATOR, MORBID ANGEL, AT THE GATES, IHSAHN, W.A.S.P., MOTORHEAD

Review By Adam Fredericks & James Allman

With the main stage line-up now complete, it’s over to the SOPHIE stage for the next addition, which comes in the form of homegrown headbangers XERATH. XERATH represent the cutting edge of British heavy metal. Combining monumental orchestral arrangements with bone shattering riffs on an epic scale, this outfit delivers the most forward thinking brand of progressive metal music. With polyrhythmic riffs and beats mixed with orchestral and symphonic elements, XERATH bring to mind the likes of STRAPPING YOUNG LAD, MESHUGGAH, DIMMU BORGIR and OPETH, all the while remaining innovative and eclectic, and will be ones to watch at BLOODSTOCK for sure.