The little Nissan Micra is on its last legs. Choosing it as our champion to fight against the 10000% increase in traffic England gets as soon as one ray of sun appears is not a wise choice. As such, our unintentional tradition of arriving at Catton Hall more than three hours later than planned enters its fifth year.

Friday

It means we miss the wall-of-sound double bill of Grand Magus and Rotting Christ, but luckily just about catch the latter half of Enslaved’s career-spanning set of progressive black metal. We’re fully present for Hatebreed’s long overdue return to Bloodstock, though, and we’re treated to an energetic set of classic hardcore-tinged metalcore. Jamey Jasta is sporting long hair and a huge beard these days, but his shouted vocal is still as powerful as ever, especially when they dive into set-closing ‘I Will Be Heard’.

After a brief intermission to allow everyone at the Ronnie James Dio stage to pay their respects to the Lemmy bust which is on display in the RAM Gallery this year, we head to the New Blood stage to check out the Irish death metal band Nihilanth and the (newly renamed) EMP tent to investigate the “huge slabs of monster riffage” provided by King Kraken.

Cult classics Clutch are special guests on the main stage this year, and have a back catalogue so stacked with bangers that it seems almost impossible for anything to go wrong. For the vast majority of their set, that remains true, as they deliver huge tunes like ‘X-Ray Visions’, ‘Slaughter Beach’, ‘The Mob Goes Wild’ and ‘Nosferatu Madre’ with infectious confidence. However, after a while, the terribly tuned and unreasonably loud high tom on Jean-Paul Gaster’s drum kit becomes an unignorable distraction. At the same time, the tunes take an unfortunate turn towards the monotonous, and huge hits like ‘Electric Worry’ and ‘The Regulator’ are disappointingly ignored. It’s a shame because the set started out as a potential highlight of the entire weekend.

After Clutch, a big chunk of next year’s Bloodstock lineup is announced. Truthfully, it doesn’t get off to the best start, but by the time we’ve seen the likes of Obituary and Emperor announced, we’re warmed up for a fantastic triple threat of modern metal headliners: Trivium, Machine Head, and Gojira.

But nothing can hold a candle to tonight’s headliners. I’m ignoring the shocking amount of conversations I’ve overheard just in the last few hours dismissing Opeth as pretentious and boring because they are the greatest metal band of all time and I will take no further questions on the matter. Led by the poise and swagger of Mikael Åkerfeldt (who has very recently brought death growls back to Opeth for the first time in fifteen years), the band romps through a set that spans almost their entire, massively varied, career.

Opening with ‘The Grand Conjuration’ is a masterstroke, as the track demonstrates just about every facet of their sound, from mind-bending technicality, through tender melodic sections and into ferocious blasts of death metal. They don’t let the energy die, with the brutal ‘Demon Of The Fall’ and the aggressive and melodic ‘The Drapery Falls’ coming next.

After what is affectionately being referred to as a ‘hug pit’ that began during the Damnation ballad, ‘In My Time Of Need’, Opeth delivers the best back-to-back of heavy hits it’s possible for a band to provide. The crushing weight of ‘Heir Apparent’ leads directly into the prog metal masterpiece that is ‘Ghost Of Perdition’ and the pit kicks into overdrive. In my seven years of attendance, it’s the most fun I’ve ever had at Bloodstock. The non-metal swagger of ‘Sorceress’ provides an understandable break in the heaviness, but we’re straight back to it with the standard Opeth set closer of ‘Deliverance’.

Opeth are a no-nonsense band. Mikael’s chat between songs might be light-hearted, but the band sees no reason to provide an over-the-top stage show, and doesn’t even require the ego boost that walking on and off stage for their encore would provide. They simply show up, tear some of the most complex and intense metal of all time to shreds, and head home. Job done.

French DJ Igorrr is closing the Sophie Lancaster stage tonight. It’s a particularly interesting one for me because as a teenager getting into experimental electronic music, I found Igorrr at the same time as Aphex Twin and Squarepusher. At the time, all he’d released was an album called Nostril, which was filled with insane tracks like ‘Very Long Chicken’ and ‘Unpleasant Sonata’, which blended baroque music with death metal and extremely experimental electronics.

These days, he has formed a live band and released two new albums of equally strange, but much more accessible, avant-garde metal. Every track tonight is taken from these albums (obviously), and, accompanied by a ferocious light show and one of the best drummers I’ve ever seen, he shows exactly why he’s able to headline the Sophie stage. I’m not convinced by how much actual DJing was going on at the back of the stage, but Igorrr still knows he’s That Guy, and puts on one of the most bizarre, complex sets Bloodstock has ever known.

Saturday

In direct contrast to Friday, this year’s Saturday at Bloodstock has arguably the least inspiring lineup I’ve ever seen at the festival. I’m obviously in the minority, though, as it’s the only fully sold-out day this year. Either way, the mission today was to find some hidden gems. We succeeded.

We kick things off with the Finnish deathcore band Enemies Everywhere. Normally not my cup of tea, and I’m certainly not a fan of the amount of backing tracks that are in use, but they put on a deliciously heavy show full of twists and turns. On the main stage, Crypta takes things to the next level. The energy of vocalist and bassist Fernanda Lira is amazing, and the technical ability on display here is second to none. I’m hoping this Brazilian quartet makes another appearance at Bloodstock sometime soon.

As we had an interview lined up later that day with Ludivico Technique (check that out HERE), we headed to the Sophie stage. As a genre, goth metal is somewhere very near the bottom of my list of interests, but in fairness to Ben V, I couldn’t take my eyes off of his emotionally resonant performance. He prowled the stage in full corpse paint, frequently refilling his mouth with some sort of black substance as he hit us with tracks that ranged from dark, gothic ballads, to full explosions of industrial metal. I can wholeheartedly recommend his live show to anyone who is into goth music.

After a little wander, which included the trademark visit to the Viking battle (if you know you know) and the RAM gallery, we caught the end of Public Execution’s blend of hardcore and grindcore on the EMP stage, and the classic thrash sound of Norway Metal To The Masses winner Slaughterhead on the New Blood stage. I had no idea that Glen Benton of Deicide now looked like a death metal mixture of Jack Nicholson and Lemmy, but here we are. He might not be branding an inverted cross into his forehead these days, but he hasn’t lost an ounce of his stage presence or vocal ability, and the Florida quartet gives us the most straight-up-heavy set of the weekend. It seems to be universally agreed that the weekend’s worst set came from Whitechapel, who strut with arrogance around the main stage as they give an emotionless, empty performance of bland deathcore.

As always at Bloodstock, the EMP stage provides one astonishing surprise set that takes the crowd by storm. This year, that honor went to Rupcha Farms, a Bradford-based trio who have found a middle ground between metal, UK grime, and electronica. They make the inspired decision to cover Limp Bizkit’s ‘Break Stuff’ early in their set, which instantly wins the ever-growing crowd over. They keep the insanely high energy up for a barrage of their own politically-minded (fuck the Tories is the main message) tracks and then drop a cover of ‘Omen’ by The Prodigy to finish, sending the tent, which is now about 70% mosh pit, into an absolute frenzy. Main man TyTy, understandably, has tears in his eyes as he thanks the massive crowd. I’m looking forward to seeing these guys work their way through the ranks at Bloodstock over the coming years.

Chub continue the wonderful anti-Tory sentiment with punky tracks about appreciating the NHS, quitting your job, and taking a shit on company time. It’s nice to see that amidst such depressing political unrest around the UK, Bloodstock seems to be united in its position of equality, unity, and kindness. I did see one prick wearing a Trump hat, though.

Just before his old band takes to the stage, Josh Middleton leads Sylosis out onto the Sophie stage. He’s known for his technical mastery on the guitar (I actually went to see him deliver a guitar masterclass with my dad thirteen years ago!), but today his instrument lets him down. After one song, his guitar goes silent, and after almost twenty minutes of attempts to solve the issue, he returns to the stage to sing without his trusty guitar around his neck. Given the circumstances, he absolutely saved the day, but Middleton certainly didn’t look happy or comfortable for the remainder of the set.

As someone who’d much rather watch a two-hour no-frills Cannibal Corpse set than the fire-laden spectacle of Architects’ first Bloodstock headline outing, I can’t help but feel this is a headliner that simply isn’t aimed at me. The crowd is substantially bigger than it was for Opeth, and people are singing along with every word Sam Carter provides. But I just don’t get it. The band is extremely tight and their stage show is impressive, but for me, the tunes simply aren’t good enough to warrant such a huge slot. The emotion isn’t even running as high as expected. When Killswitch Engage was given a headline slot last year, you could feel their gratitude in both their words and their music. Architects, however, are sort of performing as though they do this all the time, which they don’t. Maybe it’s an impressive exercise in professionalism, but all it really ends up doing is taking a bit of life out of their performance.

I can’t lie, halfway through their set, I took the opportunity to find out if the queue for jacket potatoes that had been snaking its way around the far corner of the arena had died down. It had. Cheese and beans. Sensational.

Sunday

Sweltering heat and a hangover aren’t the best combination. Before we caught a few minutes of Froglord’s stoner sludgy set, I’d already had three breakfasts.

Venezuelan thrash outfit Cultura Tres provides a refined set of thrash bangers on the main stage with (somewhat controversially, considering how he was fired from Megadeth in 2021) David Ellefson stepping in for Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr., who is busy with Sepultura’s farewell tour. Directly after, Swedish supergroup Soen finally made it to Bloodstock after their 2022 set was unfortunately canceled at the last minute. Hugely melodic songs like ‘Lotus’ and ‘Unbreakable’ go down a treat in the blistering early afternoon sun, but unfortunately, they pull a bit of a Clutch, and don’t play anything from their 2012 debut, Cognitive, which means both ‘Savia’ and ‘Fraccions’ are sadly ignored.

We chose to hang around the main stage for a little longer after Soen, which turned out to be a terrible mistake as we were forced to endure Beast In Black. The less said the better about this barrage of cringey power metal, topped by truly awful lead vocals and what I can only assume is some of the worst AI art I’ve ever seen draped over the back of the stage.

Akkadian and Grove Street (on the New Blood and EMP stages respectively) managed to bring us back to reality, and prepare us for the effortless cool of Septicflesh on the main stage. Their brand of death metal is symphonic and theatrical, and frontman and bassist Spiros Antoniou’s costume and makeup might be my favorite of the entire weekend. The theatre is continued on the Sophie stage with Ankor, who have a sound I’ve never really heard before that sort of blends metal with Europop? I think it might… work.

The Night Flight Orchestra takes the theatrics to a new level back on the main stage and does precisely the opposite of Clutch and Soen. Instead, they know that everyone is here for a good time and a good time only. As such, every single hit is delivered back to back, from ‘Divinyls’, through ‘Gemini’ and ‘Satellite’, and into ‘White Jeans’. A few superfans dressed up as flight attendants and pilots are brought up on stage for a little boogie towards the end, and the giant conga line (which filled the Sophie stage a few years back) makes its way out at the end of their set.

The main stage fun doesn’t stop there, with Irish folk-punk band Flogging Molly welcoming banjo, accordion, mandolin, and tin whistle to proceedings. Dave King’s massive grin and deliverance of what he calls ‘supplies’ (cans of Guinness) to the audience are enough to win everybody over immediately, and their set leaves no stone unturned, ranging from the punky blitz of ‘Drunken Lullabies’ and ‘Devil’s Dance Floor’ to the beautiful ballads ‘Float’ and ‘If I Ever Leave This World Alive’. It’s an absolutely genius booking, with the band looking as happy as the audience: “My favorite thing about being in Flogging Molly, is that this week we’re playing a heavy metal festival, and then next week we’re off to the Mosley Folk & Art Festival.”

After checking out the heaviness of Sathamel and Yersin to get us back into the metal mood, the main stage was ready for British death metal legends Carcass. It’s vintage stuff that gets everybody back into the heavy spirit, including the seven-year-old girl who was extremely tenderly crowdsurfed about five minutes into their set. Carcass pays homage to Heartwork, the seminal death metal masterpiece that launched them towards legend status, but they don’t forget their roots, with the manic mid-set run of grindcore classics like ‘Genital Grinder’ and ‘Pyosisified (Rotten to the Gore)’ possibly becoming the highlight.

We use young New Blood band Semprah as a jumping off point to lead us into Amon Amarth’s melodic death metal headline set. Typically, I like my death metal slightly less catchy, but if I’ve ever been won over by a band after seeing them live, it’s Amon Amarth.

Their stage show almost feels too big for the Ronnie James Dio stage, with two gigantic Guardians Of Asguard towering over the horned drum riser and the barrage of endless pyro (I’d put money on this being the most fiery set Bloodstock has ever seen – seriously, I thought I’d leave the photo pit without eyebrows). Thankfully, Amon Amarth doesn’t take themselves seriously at all. They know how funny their Viking schtick is, and they lean right into it. It’s made even funnier by the fact that every time the big screens show the crowd, you’re treated to the cognitive dissonance of ‘ancient Viking battle’ vs ‘mac and cheese wrap’. Yes, that’s a wrap filled with pasta. The undefeated double carb world champion.

Anyway, you might think non-stop bangers like ‘The Pursuit Of Vikings’ and ‘Put Your Back Into The Oar’, would be enough to satisfy a crowd, but Amon Amarth clearly doesn’t agree. The stage show just keeps getting bigger. At one point, the Vikings from the Bloodstock Viking Battle form a barricade in front of the stage; at another, Johan Hegg fights off a giant serpent that has invaded the stage. All the while, the fire is, if anything, getting more relentless. By the time ‘Twilight of the Thunder God’ kicks in, you can barely see the stage for flame. It’s hard to think of a more fun way to wrap up a festival.

Most people agree, as Satyricon’s carefully polished black metal show on the Sophie stage isn’t filled by the usual amount of post-headliner stragglers, but it’s a masterclass in atmospheric heavy music nonetheless. It has been done before, but giving The Night Flight Orchestra this spot will always work.

My main takeaway from this weekend might simply be that being the bassist-singer of a death metal band is the coolest thing one can be (see: Crypta, Deicide, Septicflesh, Carcass). Aside from that, I think we might’ve just seen Bloodstock at its peak. The lineup was consistent and strong, with a blend of big hitters that manage to keep those who like their metal a little more ‘vintage’ happy, while also bringing in a younger crowd (which, let’s face it, does need to happen at some point) and shining a light on various unknown bands. The festival even felt better organized this year, with everything making sense and running smoothly, and that classic Bloodstock community spirit being felt around every corner. As always, we’re looking forward to topping it next year. (Check the first of 2025’s announcement HERE)

All photos courtesy of Dan Peeke for All About The Rock