Off the back of BLOODSTOCK’s first announcement of 19 bands for 2025, tickets have been flying out the door in record numbers. Adult standard weekend tickets are now sold out! A limited number of day tickets will be available in due course, once more bands have been announced. Missed out on the type of ticket you wanted? Sign up to Tixel, BLOODSTOCK’s official resale partner and avoid social media ticket scams!
For those of you who have already snapped up your tickets, here’s 13 more bands to whet your appetite for next summer’s metal extravaganza!
The Ronnie James Dio stage on Friday is pleased to welcome classic thrashers FLOTSAM & JETSAM. Joining them will be hotly-tipped deathcore upstarts PALEFACE SWISS.
Industrial metal icons MINISTRY jet in as RJD stage special guests on Saturday night, in their first ever BLOODSTOCK appearance. Also added to the RJD line-up that day are LA legends FEAR FACTORY (playing their seminal 1995 album ‘Demanufacture’ in full!), fast-rising metalcore moshers HERIOT, full-pelt thrash overlords WARBRINGER, and furious hardcore bruisers CAGE FIGHT.
If you were having trouble picking your favourite day already, Sunday’s main stage additions aren’t going to make it any easier, adding boundary pushing, tech-death squad RIVERS OF NIHIL. Still want more?
On Friday, the Sophie Lancaster stage is proud to confirm the infamous and uber rare NAILBOMB. Let’s make BLOODSTOCK 2025 as iconic a set for NAILBOMB as Dynamo 1995! Self-proclaimed death popsters HIGH PARASITE (feat. Aaron Stainthorpe of My Dying Bride) will get you warmed up earlier in the day.
For your Saturday shenanigans, the Sophie stage now includes New York-based, death metal crew UNDEATH. Texan doom-come-trad-metal headbangers SPIRIT ADRIFT and brutal Swedish aggressorsTHROWN join the affray on Sophie, on Sunday. We’ll see you down the front.
If you already have a weekend ticket, Wednesday early access is available for an add-on cost of £25 for those who want to max out their BLOODSTOCK experience, staying in any of the standard campsites or the campervan field. This option is not available at present for the VIP or accessible campsites. Head to the ticket store to see all currently available options including car parking.
If you’re looking for sold out tickets like VIP, weekend, or campervan passes, BLOODSTOCK’s secondary ticketing partner, Tixel, might be able to help. Simply set an alert for notification if your tickets of choice become available, or pre-authorise your card in advance,so no need for constant checking back. Tixel also allows you to safely re-sell tickets to a new home if plans have changed.
You can sell ALL ticket types, including instalment plan purchases, plus any tickets sold via Ticketmaster or other third party ticket outlets. This partnership helps BLOODSTOCK streamline all resale tickets into one place to guarantee the safety of the sale, avoiding social media scam bots and rip-off pricing. It’s a very simple process for the customer and most importantly, it’s a trusted platform. Click through to https://tixel.com/uk/bloodstock-tickets for more information on how it works.
To relive 2024’s metal glory, head over to BLOODSTOCK’s official YouTube channelfor some exclusive live videos, including most recently, the full set from GREEN LUNG plus choice cuts from CLUTCH, WHITECHAPEL, and VINTAGE CARAVAN. There’s also three epic tracks from MEGADETH in 2023, and hours more footage for you to delve into.
BLOODSTOCK’s 2025 Ronnie James Dio main stage headliners are TRIVIUM, MACHINE HEAD, and GOJIRA. Headlining the Sophie Lancaster stage will be ME AND THAT MAN, KATAKLYSM, STATIC-X, and OBITUARY. You’ll also be able to see EMPEROR, LACUNA COIL, ORANGE GOBLIN, CREEPER, KUBLAI KHAN TX, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, FEUERSCHWANZ, LORD OF THE LOST, AUGUST BURNS RED, ALL FOR METAL, BREED 77, and 3 INCHES OF BLOOD. Stay tuned for news of 100+ more bands and on site activities to be announced over the coming months.
With 2024’s event underway and already laying claim as one of the biggest and best BLOODSTOCK‘s ever, festival HQ have set the wheels in motion of 2025’s heavy metal juggernaut by announcing not one, not five, but nineteen bands for its hottest summer yet, including all headliners. BLOODSTOCK 2025 will take place at Catton Park, Derbyshire on 7th-10th August.
Full info on how, when, and where to buy tickets – including cheapest options and when high demand VIP packages go on sale – can also be found below. Are you sitting down?
BLOODSTOCK is thrilled to reveal Friday’s headliner are the UK’s adopted sons, gargantuan riff goliaths TRIVIUM. Matthew K Heafy declares, “We’ve always said that the UK is a second home to Trivium. It’s where our band really took root way back in 2005 and our relationship with it has only grown deeper over time. Our headline set will span our entire 20 year history and we’ll also celebrate ‘Ascendancy’ by bringing both the music and art to life. Bloodstock is the home of heavy metal in the UK and we’re thrilled to once again be called upon to headline it along with two long time friends. We promise you this will be the biggest and best Trivium set you have ever seen!”
Saturday’s headliners are none other than masters of metal and mayhem, MACHINE HEAD. Robb Flynn enthuses, “We honestly couldn’t be more stoked about hitting the stage at one of our favourite festivals to play. Bloodstock will forever hold a special place in our blackened hearts after our, now legendary, not-so-secret-secret-show on the Sophie Lancaster Stage back in 2022. That show, which marked our return to the live arena post-pandemic, was one of the hottest, wildest and most intense shows we’ve ever played on UK shores and we now want to recreate that magic again, and take it even higher in August 2025. Bloodstock, get ready because Machine F**ckin’ Head is coming to town and we want to see all you Head Cases lose it! BEERS UP!”
Sunday’s headliners dazzled the world with a gold-medal performance at the Olympics opening ceremony just two weeks ago…the almighty GOJIRA! Last headlining BLOODSTOCK with an all killer no filler, jaw-dropping spectacle back in 2018, when Metal Hammer called them “one of the best bands on the planet,” we can only dare imagine what the band will have in store for 2025. Keeping it succinct, Joe Duplantier states, “We are psyched to play Bloodstock again next year! Hold on to your socks, it’s gonna be brutal!!!” Of that there is surely no doubt.
Not content with unveiling the Ronnie James Dio stage headliners, BLOODSTOCK can also excitedly divulge all headliners for the Sophie Lancaster stage!! Wrapping up Thursday night will be Nergal’s bewitching side project, ME AND THAT MAN. Friday night concludes with impressive Canadian death metal beasts KATAKLYSM. Sure to set sparks flying as they close Saturday’s shenanigans, it’s STATIC-X! And there’s nothing like some seminal Floridian death metal to finish your neck off late on Sunday, so that can only mean the last band taking the stage at BLOODSTOCK 2025 will be the legendary OBITUARY.
Swooping in as special guests under TRIVIUM on Friday are influential black metal icons EMPEROR. Start your petition for a bonus Heafy x Ihsahn IBARAKI live track now.
Elsewhere on the RJD Friday bill you’ll be able to catch the ever glorious, gothic metal act LACUNA COIL and in their only UK festival slot for 2025, the unmissable ORANGE GOBLIN.
Shaking things up in the pit on Saturday’s RJD stage will be boisterous horror punks CREEPERand modern metal bruisers KUBLAI KHAN TX.
BLOODSTOCK is also delighted to reveal special guests on the Sophie Lancaster stage will be Norse-inspired warriors ALL FOR METAL (Thursday), flamenco metal fusionists BREED 77 (Saturday) and NWOBHM-meets-power-metal kings 3 INCHES OF BLOOD (Sunday). Friday’s guest – and around another 100 bands across 2025’s heavy metal party of the year – are still to be announced!
TICKETS FOR 2025 Weekend early bird tickets (Thu-Sun) for BLOODSTOCK 2025 are available to purchase at the box office on site for £175. Child weekend early bird’s are £45 (ages 4 -11). Mini moshers under age 4 can come for free. Wednesday early access is also available for those who want to max out their BLOODSTOCK experience – an early bird adult Wed-Sun ticket costs £200. There is no additional cost for children under 4, or aged 4-11, to arrive with a parent on Wednesday.
This is the cheapest way to buy a 2025 ticket, with no booking fee.
From 09:00 on 12th August, early bird tickets will be available online in the 2025 Ticket Storewith a booking fee. Once early birds sell out, adult standard weekend tickets will increase to £199 + fees (£224 + fees inc early access). Child weekend tix will rise to £59 + fees once early bird’s sell out.
All Serpents Lair VIP and Campervan tickets will go on sale at 09:00 on 14th August. Campervan tickets must be bought in addition to your festival ticket, and will be priced £120 without power / £240 with power. You do not need to buy these together, but must have both by the time of the festival. VIP ticket pricing varies depending on the package. A limited number of VIP Patch Of Grass tickets will be available at the same time, 09:00 on 14th August,with a 6-month instalment plan to assist those who would prefer to spread out payments.
An instalment plan for standard weekend tickets will launch later in the year as usual. Please note, early access on Wednesday is still under planning discussion for Serpents Lair VIP, accessible, and campervan campsites – stay tuned to socials for update at a later date.
These are expected to sell out very quickly, so if you want one, be ready!
While you’re waiting patiently for this year’s BLOODSTOCK to roll around, HQ are putting together a few tasty treats to help pass the time.
Have you explored BLOODSTOCK’s official YouTube channel yet? Chock-full of exclusive footage from previous year’s events, it’s about to get even better, with a brand new premiere on the way from none other than LORNA SHORE, with their whole set from 2022 hitting the channel from 7pm GMT on February 24th in all its ferocious glory. You’ll be able to watch it in full here. Click here for a quick 30-second sneak peek of what’s in store.
With 2022 marking their very first performance on BLOODSTOCK’s hallowed stage, LORNA SHORE said, “We dreamed about playing Bloodstock for years and years. The reality was beyond the dream. We thank the entire Bloodstock team and the fans for a life changing experience.”
Overwhelmed at the vast array of videos to choose from? BLOODSTOCK’s YouTube chief & webmaster has highlighted several of his favourites and why! In no particular order then…
THE ENERGY ARCH ENEMY – You Will Know My Name – Bloodstock 2017 I absolutely love Arch Enemy, this video is such a great track with lots of energy. I would love to see them back at Bloodstock in 2024.
THE CLASSIC JUDAS PRIEST – Metal Gods – Bloodstock 2021 A very iconic moment when Glen Tipton came on stage for 3 tracks at Bloodstock 2021, Metal Gods is simply a classic.
THE MIND CHANGER DEVIN TOWNSEND – Full Set Performance – Bloodstock 2021 I confess I’ve never been a true Devin fan, but the 2021 performance was simply out of this world and has to be one of my favourite premieres on our channel to date.
THE TASTER KREATOR – Terrible Certainty – Bloodstock 2021 I helped convince our band booker to have Kreator as a headliner in 2021 and what a great performance it was! To date a couple of the tracks have been shared, but I’m excited to reveal that their full set will be coming as a premiere in April! It’s a killer set, really looking forward to sharing this for everyone to enjoy!
THE UNMISSABLE GOJIRA – Full Set Performance – Bloodstock 2016 What can I say… you gotta watch some Gojira, simply a band that creates masses of energy and gets the crowd moving. Their 2016 and 2018 performances at Bloodstock were amazing.
THE EPIC LAMB OF GOD – Full Set Performance – Bloodstock 2022 This Lamb Of God set just had to go online! I have watched it many times; it took a long time to get this approved – so thank you to the band and management for working with us to get this online, it’s a simply epic set.
THE SURPRISE ORBIT CULTURE – Strangler – Bloodstock 2022 Because we’re busy working, I don’t get to watch all the bands live at the festival – but I do go through all the footage to choose which bands to put online. Orbit Culture were a band that simply blew me away, their sound and energy is just on another level – they played the Sophie Lancaster stage, but I would love to see them on the main stage in the next few years.
BLOODSTOCK want to know which are your favourites from the channel! Send in your video playlists and perhaps the festival will highlight a few or give out some spot prizes! What other sets do you want to see? Tell BLOODSTOCK via your social media platform of choice!
In BLOODSTOCK merch news, you asked… and BLOODSTOCK has delivered! The festival’s very first plush S’tan toy is on the way, horns n’ all You can pre-order from the merch store on Friday 24th February herefor dispatch by April 10th. For those quick off the mark, the first 200 S’tans ordered can be snapped up at a special intro price of £19.99, saving you a fiver on the normal retail. Here he is larking around with his new pal the Download Dog. Wonder what other adventures he’ll get up to and where he’ll be spotted next…?
Unfortunately, since BLOODSTOCK’s previous band announcement, ska-punkers RUSSKAJAhave split up, and will therefore no longer be performing. Take heart, there are still lots of bands to be revealed in the coming weeks!
Last call! Time is running out to sign up for the very popular weekend ticket Deposit Scheme. If you’re keen, you must sign up before 28th Feb. With payments spread across 6 monthly instalments, it makes it much more manageable to pay for your standard weekend ticket. An initial payment of £34.50 is due upon sign up, then five additional payments of £27.50 will debit your bank account on 28 Mar, 28 Apr, 29 May, 28 Jun, with a final instalment on 28 Jul. Join the scheme or see all ticket options here.
Never been to BLOODSTOCK before and just want to come for a day to check things out? Can’t do the whole weekend this summer but don’t want to miss all the fun? A limited number of day tickets are on sale now in the ticket store. Adult day tickets are £75 and if you’d like to make it a family day out, child day tickets are £25 (mini moshers under 4 can come for free), plus booking fees. Want to come for the full weekend experience? VIP and campervan tickets are already sold out, but you can still get standard weekend tickets in the ticket store! If you’d like to stay onsite so you don’t miss a single minute of the action, camping is included! There’s also a dedicated quiet campsite, sometimes preferred by those with junior headbangers and fans of a proper sleep.
BLOODSTOCK’s 2023 Ronnie James Dio main stage headliners are KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, MESHUGGAH, and MEGADETH. Also appearing are HELLOWEEN, IN FLAMES, DEVILDRIVER, BIOHAZARD, EMPLOYED TO SERVE, ROYAL REPUBLIC, SACRED REICH, HEAVEN SHALL BURN, SEPULTURA, FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY, CROWBAR, CANDLEMASS, TRIBULATION, SEETHING AKIRA, UGLY KID JOE, DECAPITATED, GATECREEPER, ZEAL & ARDOR, KING 810, UNTO OTHERS, URNE, ALL HAIL THE YETI, DEAD LABEL, NONPOINT, CHURCH OF THE COSMIC SKULL, BROTHERS OF METAL, GUTALAX, UUHAI, INVISIONS, COBRA THE IMPALER, TROLLFEST, SKYND, WARKINGS, FROZEN SOUL, THE VIOLENT INZIDENT, TRIBE OF GHOSTS, DAKESIS, THE ENIGMA DIVISION, THE GREY, EYES, TUSKAR, STENGAH, OVERTHRONE, TORTURED DEMON, CASKET FEEDER, GAEREA, BLOODYARD, WOLFBASTARD, SKIN FAILURE, WITCHSORROW, WYTCH HAZEL, HATE, BLACK COAST, STRIKER, and ZETRA. Many more are yet to be announced.
Gojira have been long awaited as a headliner here at BOA, and it seems as though the entire population of the festival – some 18 thousand metalheads, have turned out for them tonight. The band waste no time in racing right into the heavy stuff with ‘Only Pain’ and ‘The Heaviest Matter of the Universe’ against a brooding mountain range backdrop, as giant plumes of smoke are blasted out from the front of the stage.
The intro for ‘Love’ has vocalist Joe Duplantier screaming out “Lemme see your fucking hands c’mon” as an added lyric, and the video backdrops depict a spinning cage whilst the band burn through those heavy Gojira riffs. Calling out “This is fucking beautiful thank you” in response to the sea of raised horns, Duplantier looks almost surprised as a streamer-cannon goes off next to him, followed by a burst of on-stage fireworks. Whilst ‘Flying Whales’ definitely is not a comedy track, hell, it kinda sounds like an Attenborough script, there is something really funny about the British need to kitsch everything up. There must be about 10 or so inflatable Orcas being bopped about in the crowd, ‘flying’ if you will.
If the band has noticed, they haven’t let on – “Bloodstock you know what we wanna see now… a giant fucking mosh pit… I’m sure you can make that hole a little bigger guys, come on, stand back”, and in response the place goes absolutely mental for ‘The Cell’. The lightning flash backdrop and accompanying strobe-effects hit a little close to home though as we’ve all been waiting in the pouring rain for the last hour, but guitarist Christian Andreu is paying the drizzle absolutely no mind, spinning around like a whirling dervish as he shreds.
For a confusing minute we get an up-close and personal as drummer Mario Duplantier ditches the kit in favour of a, um, spear. No clue why, but he’s brandishing it about the place and yelling “It’s an immense honour to headline bloodstock today… thanks for sticking out the rain”. Up next, ‘Silvera’ is stunningly beautiful, with it’s almost ambient mellow passages, and after a somewhat excessive drum solo we’re getting down to the wire with the heavy but melodic ‘The Shooting Star’, which is heralded with a rain of fireworks from the stage roof.
Pulling absolutely no punches, Gojira blast into encore/finale song ‘Vacuity’ supported by a barrage of on-stage pyrotechnics and a massive set of flaming red fireworks from behind the stage as they finish, calling out “Thank you so much bloodstock that’s all from us tonight. Stay safe, stay happy, stay healthy. Goodnight!”. It’s the perfect set and there’s no denying that Gojira are absolute masters of their craft, we have definitely been pulled right into the moment with them and sincerely hope we’ll be seeing them back at BOA soon.
BLOODSTOCK are excited to make their first band announcement of 2018!
Tickets for 2018 are flying out the door, with less than 50 VIP tickets remaining. Do not delay if you’re planning on joining us in the Serpent’s Lair! Standard tickets, as well as the very popular Deposit Scheme and the last few camper van pitches are all currently available in the ticket store. So, about those band announcements…
JASTA & FRIENDS are set for a Ronnie James Dio main stage slot on Sunday! As a great friend of BLOODSTOCK, we’re thrilled to welcome Jamey Jasta, frontman of Hatebreed, Kingdom of Sorrow and Icepick, back to the festival with his solo band, JASTA. However, this is not just JASTA, this is JASTA & FRIENDS, so expect some special guests to jump on stage for various songs, just for the BOA faithful at BLOODSTOCK 2018! Guests will be revealed in due course, but we can tell you that the mighty Kirk Windstein (Crowbar, Down, Kingdom of Sorrow) will be one of them! Jamey says, “I’m beyond excited and honoured to have my first UK show with JASTA be at the mighty Bloodstock Festival! So many legends have graced the Bloodstock stages, we will channel their energy and give the fans a killer set with some special surprise guests!” Check out JASTA’s recent video for ‘The Same Flame’ here – https://youtu.be/P7PnbooaTOE.
VENOM INC also join Saturday’s main stage bill! With new album, ‘Avé’ released via Nuclear Blast last year, the seminal British metal icons will be bringing both classic tracks and new to BLOODSTOCK next August. Check out the lyric video for ‘Avé Satanas’, taken from that album here – https://youtu.be/Xt_yGt0ET0U and get ready to welcome The Demolition Man, Mantas and Abaddon to Catton Park!
Our Saturday night Sophie Lancaster stage headliner will be ORPHANED LAND! The ground-breaking band’s new album, ‘Unsung Prophets And Dead Messiahs’ is set for release later this month via Century Media and features guest appearances from Blind Guardian’s Hansi Kürsch, Tomas Lindberg from At The Gates and Steve Hackett. Check out the epic album teaser here – https://youtu.be/GNm20DFCO7Y.
Also joining the bill are the hotly tipped Danish prog metal outfit VOLA, who join the Sophie stage bill on Saturday. The band are hard at work on their new studio album, set for release through Mascot Records this year. Get a taster of their sound via the video for ‘Stray The Skies’ taken from 2016’s debut album, ‘InMazes’ – https://youtu.be/EipdyUZfrG0.
If you haven’t grabbed your ticket yet and are a bit stretched post-Christmas, BLOODSTOCK’s payment plan helps ease the ‘lump sum’ shock of paying for your ticket by breaking it into five smaller, more manageable amounts. Sign up in the ticket store any time before 28th Feb for an initial deposit of £36.00. Thereafter, four additional instalments of £29.00 will debit your bank account on 3rd April, 1st May, 1st June and 2nd July respectively. Find out full details and sign up over at https://bloodstock.seetickets.com.
If you already know you can only attend for one day, sign up for a day ticket reminder email as day tickets will not go on sale until next summer. Register your day ticket interest here – https://www.seetickets.com/register/bloodstock.
With Friday night headliners, JUDAS PRIEST, Saturday headliners, GOJIRA and Sunday’s bil toppers, NIGHTWISH already announced, as well as EMPEROR, DEVILDRIVER, WATAIN, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, WEDNESDAY 13, FOZZY, COMBICHRIST, BLOODBATH, MR BIG, KAMELOT, DORO, ORDEN OGAN, SEPTICFLESH and MEMORIAM so far, 2018 is shaping up to be another stellar year for BLOODSTOCK.
BLOODSTOCK is excited to announce four more spooktacular bands and add the 2018 Rock Society tickets to the ticket store.
We’re excited to announce that WATAIN will bring their black metal ritual to headline Sunday’s Sophie Lancaster stage in a UK festival exclusive. Frontman Erik Danielsson tells us, "Our last performance at BLOODSTOCK in 2012 was also the final date on the ‘Lawless Darkness’ tour. The sun was setting while we played and the crowd was getting louder and wilder the darker it became. A very charged atmosphere. Eager now to return and see what the eventful years that have passed and the force accumulated since then has done to both us and the BLOODSTOCK crowd. Furthermore, England is of course sacred ground when it comes to Metal in general, so when performing there, the stakes are always high. May all those that doubt be impaled upon them." Look out for the band’s long awaited sixth studio album arriving on 5th January 2018!
German power metallers, ORDEN OGAN also land a Ronnie James Dio main stage slot on Saturday. The band released ‘Gunmen’, their fifth studio album, this summer via AFM Records. Check out the video for ‘Gunman’ here and get a taster of what’s in store for their set in 2018 – https://youtu.be/JPm46Qgyn24.
Atlanta aggrotech outfit, COMBICHRIST also join the main stage bill for an early slot on Friday. The band have been working on new music after the release of their eighth studio album, ‘This Is Where Death Begins’ which landed in 2016. Check out the new track, ‘Broken:United’ at the following link – https://Combichrist.lnk.to/BrokenUnited.
Also landing an early main stage slot on Friday are British death/grind four-piece, MEMORIAM. Combining ex-members of Bolt Thrower and Benediction, MEMORIAM’s pedigree is high. The band of scene veterans are hard at work on the follow up to their debut, ‘For The Fallen’ released via Nuclear Blast earlier this year. Check out ‘Reduced To Zero’ taken from that opus here – https://youtu.be/Nmucoieg2Lc.
BLOODSTOCK’s Rock Society tickets become available in the store on Halloween morning, 31st October at 9.00am! The ‘Rock Society’ is effectively the festival’s ‘Members Club’, offering not only a 10% discount on your weekend ticket (on top of the early bird discount if you purchase the Rock Society membership + ticket bundle option), but all sorts of other cool benefits like priority signing tent access, a Rock Society laminate, access to the VIP Serpents Lair bar, a tour of the backstage & production areas to see ‘behind the scenes’, the chance to meet with the festival organisers, a dedicated hangout area in the Rock Society tent on site, a Rock Society Facebook community where you can make friends and get to know your fellow RockSoc members and plenty more besides. Full details can be found at http://www.bloodstock.uk.com/pages/rock-society. Memberships are priced at £75, limited to 300 and sell out almost immediately, so don’t delay if you want to pick one up.
Also now in the store are tickets for our new VANAHEIM campervan field. Due to increasing demand each year, we've made some site adjustments to allow for more pitches. As such, the new VANAHEIM site is located across the road, directly adjacent to Serpents Lair VIP parking, allowing an increase in size to accommodate 240 campervans, as opposed to just 130. Campervan pitches always sold through very rapidly, so this allows for more of our metal brethren to join the campervan club. Tickets for campervan pitches will remain at this year's price of £60.
With Friday night headliners, JUDAS PRIEST, Saturday night headliners, GOJIRA and Sunday headliners, NIGHTWISH already announced, along with EMPEROR, DEVILDRIVER and NAILS, 2018 is shaping up to be another stellar year for BLOODSTOCK.
As we creep through October, BLOODSTOCK is very excited to announce three more bands for 2018!
Joining Friday’s bill in the Ronnie James Dio main stage special guest slot are black metal legends, EMPEROR in a UK exclusive appearance. Frontman Ihsahn tells us that they’ll be performing a special set based around one of their classic albums. “We're finally bringing the 20th Anniversary show for ‘Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk’ to the UK! We’ll be performing the album in its entirety and look forward to celebrating with everyone at BLOODSTOCK!” Check out a stream of the atmospheric opus here and get excited for next August – https://youtu.be/Jmlhq5rtFXw
Also stepping into a main stage slot on Sunday are Californian circle pit kings, DEVILDRIVER. Frontman Dez Fafara tells us “DEVILDRIVER is playing BLOODSTOCK in 2018 and we couldn’t be more fucking ready to bring the heavy and get the whole festival moving! We are thankful for the opportunity and can’t wait to see everyone there! Get ready to get the fuck in the pit!” Check out the band doing what they do best in the video for the title track of their current studio album, ‘Trust No One’ – https://youtu.be/XuVibnWHoLA
Hotly-tipped, super brutal three-piece, NAILS land a Ronnie James Dio main stage slot on Sunday in a UK exclusive show. Frontman Todd Jones informs us, “I've been following BLOODSTOCK and looking at their advertisements online for the past few years, admiring how great a job the festival does having a great mix of underground bands and some of metal's biggest and finest. We're proud to finally say we're part of what BLOODSTOCK is doing to fight the good fight! We'll see all you motherfuckers at BLOODSTOCK!!!” Not familiar with NAILS? Melt your face with 91 seconds of hardcore intensity via the video for ‘You Will Never Be One Of Us’ – https://youtu.be/hGGGh03jN4w
With Friday night headliners, JUDAS PRIEST, Saturday night headliners, GOJIRA and Sunday headliners, NIGHTWISH already announced for next year's event, 2018 is shaping up to be another stellar year for BLOODSTOCK.
BLOODSTOCK is excited to announce their third and final headliner for 2018 will be JUDAS PRIEST! The metal icons are one of the most-requested bands by the festival’s loyal fan base and finally make their BLOODSTOCK debut at Catton Park in 2018 on Friday night, 10th August.
The legendary band tell us, “JUDAS PRIEST are thrilled, honoured and primed, ready to unleash Priest-style metal fury into the headbanging heart and home of heavy metal at BLOODSTOCK 2018!”
With Saturday night headliners, GOJIRA and Sunday headliners, NIGHTWISH already announced for next year's event, 2018 is shaping up to be another stellar year for BLOODSTOCK.
Before we focus more on 2018, we’re very proud to reveal that BLOODSTOCK raised £11,686.88 in 2017 for the very worthy TEENAGE CANCER TRUST, bringing the total to over £60,000 since our partnership began. A giant thanks to everyone who has contributed over the years for their generous donations!
Get tickets now for 2018! The first wave of Serpents Lair VIP tickets (priced at £290) and Deluxe VIP packages (Luxpads, Bellepads, Podpads, etc) are available now for those who want their VIP spot guaranteed. A smaller second wave and a limited amount of VIP upgrades will then become available on 16th December at 9am. Don't delay if you want to join us in the VIP Serpents Lair, as they’re moving faster than ever before!
Standard weekend tickets are currently available at ‘early bird’ prices (just £125 for four days of metal fun) so grab yours now at the ticket store if you want to save £20! In order to keep up with inflation and extra costs in 2018, standard weekend tickets with camping will increase from last year's £139 to £145 once the ‘early bird’ allocation is gone. The limited allocation of VIP upgrades (for those who've bought early bird tickets) will cost £145.
BLOODSTOCK will take place at Catton Park, Derbyshire on 9th-12th August 2018. Get further information over at www.bloodstock.uk.com.
It’s that special last month before Autumn sets in, the high summer sun shines down on the most inappropriately weather-attired crowd of the entire year, yes, It’s Bloodstock Open Air. I will never stop being equally amused and proud that the metal community rocks black tshirts, heavy denim, sticky leather and a mass of metalware regardless of temperature, or indeed comfort.
Though this year’s Bloodstock line-up has been the topic of much forum debate and there are some rather under-represented groups (female musicians on the main stage anyone?) this year, you can’t deny there is first-class metal on offer this weekend. Friday sees a beautiful site-wide crab-athon (Crabulon) with Evil Scarecrow, and Corrosion of Conformity tear up the Ronnie James Dio stage with their gritty bluesy metal, to a decent crowd having overcome some mishaps on the route here. “In case you guys don’t know, we lost our guitars in fucking Paris… we’re kind of winging it” the guys let us know, before a calling Donald Trump a dickhead and dedicating the beautifully relevant ‘Vote With A Bullet’ to him.
Over on the Sophie Lancaster stage, the comedically named Foetal Juice hailing from Manchester, sound pretty much exactly as you’d expect – extreme but a little bit silly. Everyone in the tent seems to love them though, which is pretty good going for group of mates who started this for fun.
Heading over to the Kraken Rum garden for a spot of black ice-cream (good work guys, you know this is exactly the crowd to appreciate a gothic dessert) we take the opportunity to check out the merch stall and pop into Lemmy’s Bar to raise a glass (well, plastic cup) to the man, the legend. Back on the Sophie stage XII Boar are absolutely killing it, yelling out “You’re here! You’ve made it to the party” to us latecomers joining them mid-set. It’s a bit of a shame about the noise-pollution next door, the music on the fairground rides is offensively loud and unnecessary. No-one needs to hear Sweet Child O’Mine more than once in half an hour.
Home grown heroes Venom are a massive Friday highlight with their thrashy, wild child behaviour and obvious love of what they do. Calling out “It’s great to see the fucking UK legions” to a roaring crowd, it’s nice to see a proper homecoming. Demon-faced Behemoth are kind of a BOA staple now right? The band are over from Poland, presumably to promote Satanism and murder… *snigger* and for a band who’ve done every trick in the goth manual to seem dark and gloomy, they look like they’re having a pretty amazing time.
Last up is the final ever (yes really, EVER) UK Twisted Sister show on their ‘Forty & Fuck It’ tour, and it’s an absolute blinder. Playing 15 minutes over the curfew, with every single hit you wanted to hear, and a gigantic crowd singing alongside them – Twisted Sister go out with a bang. Like the music or not, you can’t deny they’ve got amazing showmanship and the ability to engage with a crowd on a funny and personal level. They will be hugely missed.
Saturday sees the likes of The Raven Age, off the back of their supporting role in Iron Maiden’s Book of Souls world tour, carving out a name for themselves on the Sophie stage, and Rotting Christ have the main stage under a veil of darkness with their unique melodic metal and some synchronized headbanging. Fear Factory pull in a huge crowd and those 90’s sounds are just so nostalgic it makes us want to buy some of those huge jeans again, you know the kind with safety pins all up the seam and one of those giant ball-chains attached to your wallet.
Grabbing some grub is much more difficult than we had anticipated, this festival has come a long way on the food front since it’s early days of scary burger vs. scary hotdog options. We opt for a Bi-ella (It’s not sexual, it’s just both kinds of paella – meat and veggie. Actually I take it back, that is pretty sexual.) and chilli-inna-bun, which is much less Dibbler than it sounds. Both were awesome and actually worthy of high price tag we’ve come to expect from UK festivals.
Paradise Lost playing in the late evening sun is an absolute treat, but the stunningly beautiful guitars ring out across a sleepy crowd, there are a lot more people sitting down in a post-dinner sun-drenched haze. Only the astoundingly tall Kraken diver is dancing around like a lunatic, presumably taking an in-suit bath in his own sweat.
Over on the Sophie stage One Machine are throwing down hard, their sound is interesting and fresh and there’s a pretty decent crowd in there enjoying it. In the Hobgoblin New Blood tent, Warwickshire band The Face of Ruin have In Flames vibes and we are loving their rowdy set. Let’s hope they return to BOA soon… next year even… on a bigger stage…
On the main stage it’s time for the truly incredible Gojira, and judging by the sheer size of the crowd that has turned out to see them, they could just have well bumped Mastodon from tonight’s top spot. There’s something so strangely hypnotic about Gojira, it’s hard to put your finger on it, but as the sun sets on day two of BOA it’s clear they’re one of the true highlights of the festival already, and ‘L’Enfant Sauvage’ is the anthem. Shouting out “Are you having a great day at the festival? Are you drinking enough beer? Are you happy?” It’s kind of adorable that they care about our festival welfare, and everyone is more than appreciative of the brand new tracks from Magma.
In comparison it’s hard to watch Mastodon’s entrance onto the main stage, with dodgy sound and a do-the-job attitude, the magic dwindles a little. Sure, they’re musically strong but there’s less of the awe and more of the ought about them. However, as the night pulls on Mastodon appear to get comfortable and the last half an hour is considerably, thankfully better.
As the hungover masses drag their butts outta bed (well, sleeping bag) for one last day of metal mayhem, the Sunday lineup sees the likes of Satyricon, complete with forked mic stand and altogether too much white face powder – makeover the main stage with their black metal in the rather overcast afternoon. It’s sort of appropriate. On the Sophie stage, Derange deserve a bigger crowd than they’ve got – I mean, no their sound is nothing exactly new, but they execute well and vocalist Cat Pereira is commanding centre stage.
Outside after a bloody (literally, one guy had his head cut open) battle reenactment, it’s time for the final challenges of the Bloodstock’s Strongest Man competition, and get this… the trophy is Thor’s Hammer! Amazing. After a lot of grunting, sweating and swearing, a little crowd participation and some free tshirts being thrown about, a champion is crowned. It’s been a brilliant little event, hope to see it back bigger for next year.
On the main stage there’s a kicking of heels as we wait patiently for Dragonforce to appear. Technical difficulties are blamed and it’s a blistering, albeit short show from the power-metal heroes. Despite the crowd chanting ‘Herman Lee’ rather than Dragonforce before they came on, it really doesn’t seem to have phased the rest of the band, and frontman Marc Hudson yells “We are Dragonforce from London England, and it’s nice to fucking play at home for once”. ‘Cry Thunder’ and ‘Through The Fire And Flames’ have the entire crowd wailing along as crowd surfers flail overhead, which is pretty great considering that’s all we got. Five songs seems hardly enough.
Symphony X are somewhat underwhelming but New Blood’s Valous, immediately followed by amusingly named Footprints in the Custard – are anything but. Both bands are energetic and enthusiastic, an atmosphere that spills over into their rowdy crowds who are loving it.
As the many… many Judges circle the site telling you not to take photos of them, or pretending to terminate delinquents, they can only herald one band. Anthrax hit the stage with all the raw power you’d expect from a band twenty years their junior, they just make it look easy. ‘Antisocial‘ has the entire arena thrashing, and as they close out with ‘Indians’ shouting “This is the war dance, bang your fucking heads! Everyone move ok?” it’s unsurprising to see the BOA crowd comply, hard.
Following up with another of the ‘Big Four’ thrash metal bands, Slayer are here to re-conquer Bloodstock and with a stage top to bottom bathed in real actual fire (how they sustained playing in that direct heat, I have no idea) it’s almost as if they’ve come out to prove they’re children of the underworld. Last time Slayer topped the BOA bill was just after the death of Jeff Hanneman, three years later we see a fresher, stronger Slayer with a giant Hanneman tribute flag, and something to prove. With the massive and iconic riffs of ‘South of Heaven’ and ‘Raining Blood’ reverberating around Catton Park, it’s hard to imagine a better way to close Bloodstock 2016. Here’s to 2016, and wondering what the next lineup will bring…
BLOODSTOCK HQ is at fever pitch with just 10 days to go ‘til the gates swing open at Catton Park! There are a last few things to announce before everyone packs their bags and heads to the UK’s biggest and best heavy metal party!
One of the things that sets BLOODSTOCK apart from other events is festival founder, Paul Raymond Gregory’s on-site RAM Gallery. This year, Paul has paid tribute to MOTORHEAD’s Lemmy Kilmister with a stunning new portrait exhibited in a custom, hand-carved frame, as well as other choice installations from his world-renowned portfolio of work. Regular RAM Gallery contributor and luthier Cynosure, creator of hand-made guitars as art, will be exhibiting two new instruments also inspired by Lemmy. Other artists also exhibiting work are Orange County artist, Christian Sloan Hall, who has created work for the likes of AMON AMARTH and TESTAMENT, plus abstract artist and GOJIRA drummer, Mario Duplantier, who has contributed two original paintings. Also expect to view featured art-focussed books from Lariyah Hayes (Darkadya: The Book of Art From Below) and Ramon Martos (And Justice For Art, revised edition), plus rock-themed photography from Peter Nahum and Alison Richards.
When the metal finishes in the Hobgoblin New Blood tent each evening, a different set of howls take centre stage with BLOODSTOCK’s comedy bill. Friday’s gag-filled line up includes David Jordan’s edgy songs and stand-up, Chris Brooker’s hilarious improvisation, the award-winning newcomer Ingrid Dahle, all compere’d by everyone’s favourite heavy metal comedian, Andrew O’Neill. Saturday evening’s bill features compere and all-round funny man, Jim Smallman, plus laffs-a-plenty from Jonathan Mayor and Perrier comedy Award-winner Wil Hodgson. Sunday ushers in a full ‘History of Heavy Metal’ set from Andrew O’Neill, combining stand-up comedy with live music played on his customised Flying V guitar. Andrew will be supported by thrash metal beasts, REPRISAL.
Over on the Sophie Lancaster stage, once the bands have finished for the night, the DJ squad steps in to take you through ‘til 2am. Expect a guest slot on the decks from EVIL SCARECROW’s ringmaster Monty Blitzfist and Kraven Morrdeth on Friday, the DJs from London’s VooDoo Rocks on Saturday and Total Rock’s Anna Dumpe on Sunday, plus BOA’s resident 4 DJ’s Of The Apocalypse doing their regular 12 Midnight-2am slot.
The always popular Friday fancy dress competition is returning! This year the theme is ‘Twisted’, so dress up in whatever you fancy, the more extreme and creative, the better! To enter the competition, just find BOA’s official photographer (between the Serpents Lair VIP area and the EMP Tent entrance) between 12pm and 6pm on the Friday to have your photo taken (the photographer will wear a Fancy Dress Photographer t-shirt). Then check BLOODSTOCK’s Facebook page for the photo gallery the week after the festival and tag the fancy dress photo of yourself for the chance to win a pair of tickets to BLOODSTOCK 2017!
Got your tent ready?! This year, our campsite partner is Miss Daisy’s Camping Store. If you don’t want to tow a ton of camping gear to site, order online and collect your stuff from the Miss Daisy tent in the main Midgard campsite at Catton Park. Saves a lot of hassle and achy shoulders! Place your order or just see what’s available via their ‘click & collect’ service here – http://www.missdaisyscampingstore.co.uk/.
Want to check out the 2016 merch range? BLOODSTOCK's online 'click & collect' service allows you to pre-order your favourites for on site collection. Festival attendees can snap up their choice of t-shirt or grab the 2016 beer mug or hip flask without fear of their size or design being already sold out on site. Simply pre-order at https://bmerch.com/store/bloodstock/collect-on-site and collect at the merch stall in the arena at any point over the weekend, knowing your item is guaranteed and paid for. Maybe you want that BOA hoodie for when the sun goes down, so just collect it from the merch stall then to save a trip back to your tent!
How to get to BLOODSTOCK? Ditch the hassle of parking, trains & transfers and let our official coach partner, Big Green Coach take you and your camping gear straight to the festival from 21 UK cities. To book your return seat and see where to catch the coach, check: http://www.biggreencoach.co.uk/events/bloodstock-festival-tickets-coach-travel. If you’re coming by train to Catton Park, don’t forget to pre-book Big Green Coach’s shuttle bus from Lichfield City rail station to save yourself a wad of cash. Return tickets are priced at £10, one way at £8 (it costs more to pay on the day, so pre-booking wins)! Book tickets at the link. Car-sharing with GoCarShare is another option (and participating could even win you a pair of tickets for 2017)! Full details and to post up a car space/look for a car ride from your town, visit: http://gocarshare.com/festival/bloodstock.
Our three headliners for 2016 are TWISTED SISTER (in their last ever UK show), MASTODON and SLAYER, plus special guests BEHEMOTH, GOJIRA and ANTHRAX. Also on the bill are FEAR FACTORY, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY, SYMPHONY X, SATYRICON, PARADISE LOST, DRAGONFORCE, METAL ALLEGIANCE, STUCK MOJO, ROTTING CHRIST, MISERY LOVES CO, GHOST BATH, VENOM, UNEARTH, DIAMOND HEAD, GOATWHORE, ACID REIGN and many more.
