BLOODSTOCK wants to find the hottest new metal talent to appear across festival weekend next August! With weekend tickets for BLOODSTOCK 2025 now sold out, festival HQ is getting cracking on this year’s instalment of the phenomenally successful Metal 2 The Masses (M2TM) scheme, to fill out the bands who’ll be appearing on the New Blood Stage, in conjunction with sponsor Timothy Taylor.
No other festival does more to support grass roots metal and local venues in the UK. BLOODSTOCK was honoured to be recognised for this at the Heavy Music Awards earlier this summer, taking home top accolade The H Award, for exceptional positive contribution to the heavy music scene by way of the M2TM initiative.
Bloodstock’s Simon Hall at The Heavy Music Awards – photo by Dev Place There are 31 regions already confirmed to take part this year, ensuring regional heats the length and breadth of the country (plus Cyprus and Poland for good measure), making this the biggest Metal 2 The Masses scheme yet!
If you’re in a self-released or unsigned band and want to try out for a slot on the BLOODSTOCK bill, get in touch with the region nearest you and get yourselves involved! After a series of heats, one winner from each region will secure themselves a slot on the New Blood stage and some of the very best runners-up may also get lucky, space permitting.
Bands should get their applications into their nearest regional promoter ASAP, as the first heats kick off in the coming weeks. Any local promoters in regions not yet represented can email Simon Hall ([email protected]) for information if they wish to host the scheme in their local area.
Full details of venues, and who to contact to enter in each region, can be found by clicking the locations above, here, or on Facebook.
BLOODSTOCK’s 2025 Ronnie James Dio 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 MASTODON, NAILBOMB, MINISTRY, EMPEROR, FEAR FACTORY, LACUNA COIL, HERIOT, ORANGE GOBLIN, CREEPER, KUBLAI KHAN TX, CAGE FIGHT, RIVERS OF NIHIL, FLOTSAM & JETSAM, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, FEUERSCHWANZ, LORD OF THE LOST, PALEFACE SWISS, AUGUST BURNS RED, WARBRINGER, UNDEATH, SPIRIT ADRIFT, THROWN, ALL FOR METAL, BREED 77, HIGH PARASITE, and 3 INCHES OF BLOOD.
Joining them are the most recently announced SHRAPNEL, FAMYNE, KONVENT, THE SPIRIT, GHOSTS OF ATLANTIS, ONE MACHINE, MY DILIGENCE, SHADE EMPIRE, EIHWAR, WATERLINES, PHOENIX LAKE, NEONFLY, WALL, DOGMA, and SIGLOS.
Stay tuned for many more bands and on site activities to be announced over the coming months.
It’s showtime! In honour of it being Halloween week, BLOODSTOCK was going to treat you to a spooktacular vampire pun. But it sucks.
So let’s creep it real with some more bands joining the bill, because we all know that you ghouls just wanna have fun. And in case you missed the fangtastic news about more weekend tickets being released, read on for further details and mark your calendar for 9am, November 5th, for that’s when they go on sale! No tricks! Hot on the heels of the monstrously good news about MASTODON joining the bill last Friday, here’s another 15 bands to bewitch you…
BLOODSTOCK is pleased to welcome thrash-lovin’ Norwich metal maestros SHRAPNEL, innovative Canterbury doomsters FAMYNE, and Danish blackened death/doom metal merchants KONVENT to the Ronnie James Dio stage on Friday. Emerging from Germany’s extreme metal void with a fresh take on all things black/death, THE SPIRITare added to Saturday’s bill. Sunday’s lineup now includes atmospheric, dark symphonic metallers GHOSTS OF ATLANTIS, and ONE MACHINE, the heavy metal brainchild of Steve Smyth (Nevermore, Forbidden, Testament) which also features members of Biomechanical, Savage Messiah, and Savage Grace in its ranks.
BLOODSTOCK also has these spine-tingling acts to unmask for the Sophie Lancaster stage! If you like your heavy psych, don’t miss Belgium’s prog stoners MY DILIGENCE, performing on Friday. Joining them that day are well established Finnish symphonic black metal squad SHADE EMPIRE and Vikings EIHWAR, who promise “pagan dancefloor” music, composed of Nordic folk sounds, ritual chants, shamanic drums, and electro machines!
Spicing up Saturday, self-proclaimed “dirtbags of the North” WATERLINES bring their blend of nu-metal and EDM-flavoured metalcore, melodic metal outfit PHOENIX LAKE will no doubt delight fans of Within Temptation and Evanescence, and if that’s not enough, the live spectacle of rock beasts NEONFLY (complete with fire-breathing guitarist) ought to get your pulse racing. Sunday’s no slouch, adding instrumental riff machine WALL (formed by the twins from Desert Storm) and status quo challengers DOGMA, who are keen to wield their music as a weapon against ignorance and oppression.
Last but not least for Sunday, don’t miss SIGLOS, from Ministry alumni Sin Quirin, offering up a unique dose of extreme metal (think black, doom, & industrial) combining ancient indigenous chants and brutal gutterals.
More boos? Why not treat yourself to a devilishly good bottle of “Iron Maiden Darkest Red” wine this Halloween. Full bodied, rich & moody….not for the faint hearted. You don’t have to be prehistoric, but you do need to be over 18.
Our friends, IRON MAIDEN and THE BOTTLE CLUB, want to give Bloodstockers 6.66% off with code BOA666. Why don’t skeletons fight over drinks? They don’t have the guts!
Snap up your bottle of “Iron Maiden Darkest Red” here.
Additional weekend ticketsFestival HQ saw a lot of social media posts after weekend tickets for next summer’s event sold out, with fans disappointed they missed out on tickets. While a limited number of day tickets will be made available in due course (once more of the line-up has been announced), festival HQ has managed to acquire some extra camping space in a new field.
It’s important to note that BLOODSTOCK is not increasing its capacity – the festival will have the same maximum number of headbangers. However, the number of day tickets available each day will be reduced to a smaller quantity to accommodate some additional standard weekend tickets.
Details of the new standard weekend tickets
This new campsite – called Kyrr – will and needs to be quiet camping. Please be respectful of that. The Ragnarok campsite will also remain quiet camping. The name comes from an Old Norse word meaning calm & peaceful! To avoid overcrowding in BLOODSTOCK’s existing campsites, the new standard weekend ticket will have a different wristband – you will only be able to camp in Kyrr.
On arrival, you will collect your wristband directly at this campsite.
Kyrr is situated directly behind Vanaheim (campervans) and is approximately a 10 minute walk from the arena entrance. You will walk through the Hel campsite to get there (not through Vanaheim).
As an additional benefit, there will be a car park right next to the Kyrr campsite. The new weekend ticket will be available to buy with or without parking in this car park. This parking is only valid in this specific Kyrr car park. The new standard weekend ticket is the same cost as the original standard weekend tickets. This is much cheaper than buying 3 individual day tickets as some fans were considering – and you get Thursday included too!
These tickets will go on sale from theticket store at 9am on November 5th. We expect them to go quickly so be ready!
EARLY ACCESS!!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 (including Kyrr) 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 or need to sell your tickets on, 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.
BLOODSTOCK’s 2025 Ronnie James Dio 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 MASTODON, NAILBOMB, MINISTRY, EMPEROR, FEAR FACTORY, LACUNA COIL, HERIOT, ORANGE GOBLIN, CREEPER, KUBLAI KHAN TX, CAGE FIGHT, RIVERS OF NIHIL, FLOTSAM & JETSAM, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, FEUERSCHWANZ, LORD OF THE LOST, PALEFACE SWISS, AUGUST BURNS RED, WARBRINGER, UNDEATH, SPIRIT ADRIFT, THROWN, ALL FOR METAL, BREED 77, HIGH PARASITE, and 3 INCHES OF BLOOD.
Keep your eyes peeled for many more bands and on site activities will be announced over the coming months. Get full festival information over at bloodstock.uk.com. Watch a trailer here.
BLOODSTOCK will take place at Catton Park, Derbyshire on 7th-10th August 2025.
This news needs no added fanfare. Time for a mic drop!
BLOODSTOCK is thrilled to announce that special guests on the Ronnie James Dio stage on Sunday will be…. wait for it…. none other than highly revered, four-headed metal behemoth MASTODON.
The group are just off the road in the USA with festival alumni pals LAMB OF GOD, dropping the collab track ‘Floods Of Triton’ to celebrate their co-headline Ashes Of Leviathan tour. You can check out a ‘making of’ interview here. Perhaps you caught MASTODON headlining BLOODSTOCK all the way back in 2016? Investigate the treasure trove of live tracks from that set on BLOODSTOCK’s YouTube at your leisure, including ‘High Road.’
If you’re extra crushed now you didn’t manage to snap up a weekend ticket before they sold out, read on for good news…
Additional weekend ticketsFestival HQ saw a lot of social media posts after weekend tickets for next summer’s event sold out, with fans disappointed they missed out on tickets. While a limited number of day tickets will be made available in due course (once more of the line-up has been announced), festival HQ has managed to acquire some extra camping space in a new field.
It’s important to note that BLOODSTOCK is not increasing its capacity – the festival will have the same maximum number of headbangers. However, the number of day tickets available each day will be reduced to a smaller quantity to accommodate some additional standard weekend tickets.
Details of the new standard weekend tickets
This new campsite – called Kyrr – will and needs to be quiet camping. Please be respectful of that. The Ragnarok campsite will also remain quiet camping. The name comes from an Old Norse word meaning calm & peaceful! To avoid overcrowding in BLOODSTOCK’s existing campsites, the new standard weekend ticket will have a different wristband – you will only be able to camp in Kyrr.
On arrival, you will collect your wristband directly at this campsite.
Kyrr is situated directly behind Vanaheim (campervans) and is approximately a 10 minute walk from the arena entrance. You will walk through the Hel campsite to get there (not through Vanaheim).
As an additional benefit, there will be a car park right next to the Kyrr campsite. The new weekend ticket will be available to buy with or without parking in this car park. This parking is only valid in this specific Kyrr car park. The new standard weekend ticket is the same cost as the original standard weekend tickets. This is much cheaper than buying 3 individual day tickets as some fans were considering – and you get Thursday included too!
These tickets will go on sale from theticket store at 9am on November 5th. We expect them to go quickly so be ready!
EARLY ACCESS!!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 (including Kyrr) 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 or need to sell your tickets on, 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.
BLOODSTOCK’s 2025 Ronnie James Dio 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 NAILBOMB, MINISTRY, EMPEROR, FEAR FACTORY, LACUNA COIL, HERIOT, ORANGE GOBLIN, CREEPER, KUBLAI KHAN TX, CAGE FIGHT, RIVERS OF NIHIL, FLOTSAM & JETSAM, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, FEUERSCHWANZ, LORD OF THE LOST, PALEFACE SWISS, AUGUST BURNS RED, WARBRINGER, UNDEATH, SPIRIT ADRIFT, THROWN, ALL FOR METAL, BREED 77, HIGH PARASITE, and 3 INCHES OF BLOOD. News of many more bands and on site activities will be announced over the coming months.
In this, the month of Gothmas; the evenings have drawn in, inviting all the beautiful creeps out into the darkness. Ahem, ok I mean me. I am out traversing the canalways of Brindley Place in Birmingham to get to the Utilita Arena tonight for the one and only, Gothfather of Shock Rock – Alice freakin’ Cooper.
The Meffs
Up first tonight are edgy Essex duo The Meffs, a rowdy powerhouse of shouty punk. ‘Stamp It Out’ and ‘Broken Britain, Broken Brains’ are belted out with force, but their whole style absolutely requires a front standing section of moshing teenagers… and instead we have seated VIP’s.
‘Stand Up, Speak Out’ gets a better audience participation level, as the crowd warms up and remembers their angsty youth origins, as it’s easy to get into. I also enjoy their cover of The Prodigy’s ‘Breathe’, but their real stand out moment is a very punk middle finger; “This is a Love Song to the British government, it’s called Clowns”.
It’s a short and sweet set, bookended by a promise that they’re coming back “sometime in January”, and I think I’ll be trying to catch up with them then – in hopefully a more fitting environment where I can do some thrashing around.
Strutting onto the stage in a sparkling diamanté pinstriped suit, lead singer Bobbie Gillespie with his signature sullen-faced swagger, surveys the crowd. The band kick off with ‘Love Insurrection’ but a couple of bars in, Gillespie motions everyone to stop. “Wait stop, we fucked that up. Start again… it happens.”
The second try, “Oh there we go, the right key this time” is a smooth transition into their unique blend of funky electronic rock. The gorgeous soaring melody of the trio of backing vocalists really comes alive in ‘Ready To Go Home’, but the overall vibe in the room is left slightly flat by the complete seating area in the front. Primal Scream are a band to boogie to, and every other time I’ve seen them has been at festivals with room to groove, which just… isn’t this. Despite the rock-block of the setup, when Gillespie says “30 years ago we released Screamadelica… I dont know if you guys and girls know it… the first song was called ‘Movin’ On Up’. So if you want to sing along please do” the collective sigh of relief around the audience was palpable – here’s a song we can all sing along to – and we do. ‘Country Girl’ is an exercise in weaving that evangelical deep south church sound into a Glaswegian ditty, but it has the hook I can’t deny. Gillespie yells “Ladies, Gentlemen, Creatures, Thats theys and thems… let me fuckin hear you!” before they plough into their final iconic song ‘Rocks’ to end the set.
Alice Cooper
Slicing through a giant newspaper sheet printed with ‘BANNED IN ENGLAND’, using a cutlass, and employing one of the most iconic resting-bitch-faces in the world? Peak Alice Cooper behaviour. After this most excellent entrance, Alice is front and centre in his signature top-hat and leather trousers garb – sporting three belts and a frilly shirt, launching straight into ‘Welcome To The Show’. I am glad we as a country, have stopped trying to actually ban Alice Cooper from performing here, extremely embarrassing (three times) for us. Not that we don’t have other things to be embarrassed about, mind.
From the off, it is clear that Alice’s voice and energy is still absolutely top notch – something I can’t say about most other performers who’ve been going as long. The man is 76 and he’s careening around the stage and now swinging a crutch above his head like it’s nothing. ‘No More Mr. Nice Guy’ features a quick change into a custom battle jacket (which I would dearly like to pilfer), followed by a confetti gun used to spray the crowd in sparkly faux money for ‘Billion Dollar Babies’.
Bombshell guitarist Nita Strauss is absolutely ripping it up, under the watchful awe-struck eye of Alice. One thing I will note is that there is space made on this stage for every single artist to take the spotlight, and Alice showers all of them with reverence. It’s a nice thing to see from an artist as singular as he is, on the face of it.
Throwing a black cane to a fan on the front row, in order to take up his giant yellow snake who seems completely unbothered by the huge crowd, and is instead trying to see what guitarist Ryan Roxie is doing. I couldn’t find out the name of this snake (if anyone knows, hit me up) but I would like to do a quick mention of some of Alice’s previous snake-pals because they’re too good not to share. So big ups to; Julius Squeezer, Cobra Winfrey and Count Strangula. During a musical reprieve Alice can be seen just chatting to the snake and pointing things out to it, and now I have a vision of him walking around Birmingham taking his snake on a tour of the sights.
‘Lost In America’ sees Alice in a flag-adorned leather jacket, and he plays at murdering actors playing photographers (I do feel slightly targeted…) with the opening bars of the anthemic ‘Hey Stoopid’. The green lighting pulsing across the crowd now reveals a much more lively atmosphere, as people are standing and dancing along.
Two giant sets of prop stairs are wheeled around to face the crowd, with Alice atop one, bathed in spotlights and smoke for ‘Welcome To My Nightmare’, followed by his rather rough treatment of a very Sia-esque mannequin during ‘Cold Ethyl’. I also love him for brandishing four bulbous yellow maracas, and I’m not sure if they really are an instrument that can be played seductively – but he’s managing it, in a Gomez Addams sort of way.
An enormous cheer ripples around the arena for the iconic notes of ‘Poison’, and Alice is now rocking a gorgeous burgundy brocade jacket and a riding crop – another amazing souvenir for a lucky front row fan later on. ‘Feed My Frankenstein’ will never fail to give me chills, but I am a child of the Wayne’s World generation I guess. The giant stumbling monster comes out to lurk behind the guitarists, and he has more than a slight resemblance to Ozzy Osbourne with those upturned palms and shambling gait. I don’t think it’s on purpose, but we are in Birmingham so who knows.
‘Black Widow’ features on screen clips of Vincent Price, and an incredible Nita solo, before Alice’s straitjacket scene for ‘Ballad of Dwight Fry’. Kneeling on the riser, in a perfect beam of white light but uplit in green, Alice looks delightfully unhinged whilst being ‘tasered’ by his on-stage goons. Now enter Alice’s actual wife Sheryl Cooper, in her Marie Antionette get-up, to take him to the guillotine and then dance with his disembodied head. Each time I have seen this bit, I have wanted the head to sing along, alas.
‘Elected’ uses one of the stair sets now covered in stars and stripes, as a pulpit for Alice’s presidential speech (and yes he is still in the straitjacket, a nice touch). There’s a barrage of red white and blue spotlighting, and streamers sprayed out into the front rows, before the stage goes dark. As the school-bell rings, the lights go up on a stage filled with smoke-bubbles and Alice in a white tailcoat and tophat, brandishing another cane. Giant balloons are pushed out into the crowd and when they’re batted back to the stage, he pops them with a blade to expose bursts of sparkling confetti within.
“Birmingham England… Alice Cooper finally speaks to you!” he laughs, and introduces all of the members of the band, who have been predictably phenomenal tonight, ending with “She’s deadly, she’s delicious, she’s my one and only… Sheryl Cooper! …and playing the part of Alice Cooper tonight… big lights on… ME!”
“It’s great to be back in Birmingham, and it’s almost Halloween… so from all of us – to all of you, may all of your nightmares be horrific, Goodnight!” Alice bows to the audience. I would see Alice Cooper on every night of this tour if I could, standing front and centre. There is something quite magical about this type of show, that I don’t think is going to be on the menu in 20 years, which is a bit sad. Immersion, theatre, a willingness to take life with a pinch of whimsy – alongside truly iconic music, taken as a tonic in an uncomfortable world.
In the immortal words of Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar, we truly are not worthy.
SETLIST
Lock Me Up (Shortened)
Welcome to the Show
No More Mr. Nice Guy
I’m Eighteen
Under My Wheels
Bed of Nails
Billion Dollar Babies
Snakebite
Be My Lover
Lost in America
He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask)
Hey Stoopid
Drum Solo (Glen)
Welcome to My Nightmare
Cold Ethyl
Go to Hell
Poison
Feed My Frankenstein
The Black Widow (Vincent Price segment)
Guitar Solo (Nita)
Black Widow Jam (Full Band Solo)
Ballad of Dwight Fry
I Love the Dead (Opened with Killer snippet)
Elected
Encore:
School’s Out (With Another Brick in the Wall snippet & band introductions)
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.
There are just 44 days to go until BLOODSTOCK!! Actually, make that 43 days, if you’ve snapped up an early arrival add-on ticket for an extra day’s camping!
Did you ever think there’d be an announcement about bins? No, us neither. Knights of heavy metal, prepare your steeds… There’s also celebratory news about the latest group of winners from the Metal 2 The Masses finals, bagging themselves a coveted spot on the Hopical Storm New Blood stage, plus info on how to click & collect your fave merch items so the person in front on site doesn’t get the last one you wanted, travel help, fancy dress themes, and more. Read on, fellow headbanger.
Perhaps you have heard of the infamous, illicit bin jousting, usually late night in the Midgard campsite? BLOODSTOCK frowned hard, wagged a finger, brought in more security, warned about safety, took bins away, and even tried chaining bins up, but to no avail. Bin jousting continued. The Midgarders were relentless and proud; it’s become a tradition, a part of BLOODSTOCK lore. And you know what they say… if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!! BLOODSTOCK proudly confirms there will be Official Bin Jousting at this year’s event, running Thursday-Sunday from late evening to 2am, in Midgard. Do you dare to have a go? There will be a marshal for safety but the true essence and rawness of BLOODSTOCK’s new official sport will continue. Do you have what it takes to be 2024’s champion!?
The Metal 2 The Masses finals continue across the UK (and Norway), with the best new talent smashing it out the park on stage every night, to win spots on the Hopical Storm New Blood stage. Friday’s bill now also welcomes Essex victors REVERENT SON, Nottingham hardcore winners ROGUE LIMB, TIM WHYTE AND THE DEADBEATS who took first place for Somerset, and metalcore squad BY VIRTUE FALLSfrom the East Anglian final. Saturday adds alt-metallers THEM BLOODY KIDS from the London heat, Norway’s brutal top dogs SLAUGHTERHEAD, and North Wales death/thrash champs JUDGEMENT. On Sunday you’ll also be able to catch Kent’s conquerors CROWGOD and vanquishers from the Birmingham event, KENSEI.
Unfortunately, Japanese metal maniacs RYUJIN have had to withdraw from this year’s event for health reasons. However, their spot has been swiftly grabbed by blackened doomsters MOON REAPER, who slide into the Sophie Lancaster stage line-up underneath OSIAH on Sunday.
For those who like a little fancy dress fun to liven up your festival weekend, why have one theme when you can have three?! Join in with just one, or all three, on whichever day(s) you like! How do you feel about horror movie characters? BLOODSTOCK cordially invites Freddy, Jason, Carrie, Chucky, Regan, Frankenstein and all their creeptastic pals for some frightfully good fun. Something a bit less OTT? Be part of the Motorhead tribute and wear something to commemorate Lemmy! This year’s final theme harks back to prehistoric times…. dinosaurs! We look forward to seeing a T-rex or two, and their mates, headbangin’ down the front. Please note, mini moshers are not on the dinner menu (though they can get in for free under the age of 4). For plant and meat-eating dinosaurs, there will be a wide range of food stalls available to sate your appetite.
Want to make some new pals for BLOODSTOCK, or maybe you’re debating which campsite to stay in?! Every campsite has its own vibe, but if you’re looking for the designated quiet campsite, make a beeline for Ragnarok. Niflheim is the accessible campsite for those who have applied successfully in advance to camp there. Coming on your own and/or a bit anxious about that? Consider joining unofficial Bloodstock group Camp Loners & Newbies, who always camp in a corner of Valhalla. With Ironwood, Midgard, Jotunheim, Asgard, and Hel to choose from too (plus Vanaheim for our campervan friends & the Serpent’s Lair campsite for VIPers) you’re sure to find your home away from home!
Did you know? You can also utilise BLOODSTOCK‘s ‘click & collect‘ service to pre-order your favourites online from the 2024 merchandise range! Pre-purchase your favourite t-shirt or grab the 2024 beer mug without fear of your size or design being already sold out on site. Pre-order here and simply collect at the arena merch stall on the weekend, knowing your item is guaranteed. All ‘click and collect’ items in the store will be clearly marked with a yellow C&C badge. Maybe you want that BOA hoodie for when the sun goes down, so order, then collect from the merch stall to save a trip back to your tent. In a ‘click & collect’ exclusive, if you order over £100 of items via this method, you get 10% off, and over £200 gets 15% off.
BLOODSTOCK’s dedicated one-stop-shop with Preo is now up and running, featuring an array of festival essentials. From cold beers (and 4 pinters of mango cider) to merch, through to camping equipment and much more, you can secure all your must-have items in advance from one online shop, eradicating the need for last-minute scrambles, long queues or searching in multiple online stores. And then just collect on your arrival at BLOODSTOCK! For more info and to explore the online shop, visit the Bloodstock Festival Preo store. VISIT BLOODSTOCK’S PREO STORE
If you’ve already snapped up your ticket and want to square away your travel arrangements for BLOODSTOCK 2024, BIG GREEN COACH offer a great solution, taking you directly on to the festival site with all your camping gear, from a town near you. There are 35 pick-up locations this year! Full list includes: Birkenhead, Bournemouth, Bradford, Bridgend, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chester, Coventry, Crewe, Edinburgh, Exeter, Glasgow, Gloucester, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Middlesbrough, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Newport, Nottingham, Norwich, Oxford, Plymouth, Preston, Sheffield, Southampton, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Swansea, Taunton, Worcester and York. If you’ve not yet booked your festival ticket, you can also opt for a bundle that includes one. Get full detailshere.
If you’re coming by train maybe you want to book seats on a shuttle to & from the festival site! BIG GREEN COACH have now got their shuttle service available for purchase, running to/from Tamworth station. Click here to buy your tickets while space lasts – a round trip is £14. If you’re looking for sold out tickets like VIP or campervan passes, BLOODSTOCK has a new exclusive secondary ticketing partner, Tixel, where you can maybe still find what you’re looking for. 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.
The new deal 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.
Standard weekend tickets for BLOODSTOCK, priced at £185 (+ booking fee) are available now in the 2024 ticket store. You can also snap up limited day tickets, child tickets (mini moshers under 4 yrs can come for free!), and if you want all the BLOODSTOCK you can get, add-on early arrival for an extra day of camping on Wednesday too. Early Bird, VIP, and campervan tickets are sold out.
BLOODSTOCK’s 2024 Ronnie James Dio main stage headliners are AMON AMARTH, OPETH, and ARCHITECTS. Across the weekend you can also expect to see CLUTCH, HATEBREED, CARCASS, ENSLAVED, MALEVOLENCE, SATYRICON, ROTTING CHRIST, SYLOSIS, WHITECHAPEL, DEICIDE, GRAND MAGUS, DESERT STORM, THE VINTAGE CARAVAN, SOEN, GREEN LUNG, COMBICHRIST, XENTRIX, EXIST IMMORTAL, ETERNAL CHAMPION, GROVE STREET, MIMI BARKS, CRYPTA, FORBIDDEN, NERVOSA, BEAST IN BLACK, KORPIKLAANI, UNLEASH THE ARCHERS, FLOGGING MOLLY, SEPTIC FLESH, IGORRR, GROVE STREET, UNPEOPLE, NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA, HELLRIPPER, INFECTED RAIN, CULTURA TRES, SADUS, LUDOVICO TECHNIQUE, BURNER, RED RUM, EVERGREY, RAISED BY OWLS, TAILGUNNER, SOUTH OF SALEM, and ANKOR amongst otherswith yet more still to be announced.
Get full festival information over at bloodstock.uk.com. BLOODSTOCK will take place at Catton Park, Derbyshire on 8th-11th August 2024.
With only one month to go until the mighty return of Liquid Death presents Download Festival, DLXXI has unleashed its ‘Beyond The Bands’ offerings, giving Download-goers an even more exciting experience onsite with brand new food, drink, gaming and sport options. Taking place on 12-16 June 2024 at the hallowed grounds of Donington Park, Download will be headlined by Queens Of The Stone Age, Fall Out Boy and Avenged Sevenfold. You can buy the last remaining tickets here: www.downloadfestival.co.uk.
Bigger, better and bursting with exclusive goodies, the DownloadMegastore is set to impress with new product lines, limited editions and exclusive collaborations with the likes of P&Co, Mary Wyatt and more. From Lou’s Hot Sauce to patch and pin badges and exclusive plush toys, there’s something for everyone. Plus, fuel up with an exclusive 200 Degrees Coffee x Download Festival blend, complimentary with every reusable cup purchase.
For those looking to murder their thirsts, Liquid Death hydration stations will be dotted around for festival-goers to grab a cold can of Liquid Death. And if you’re super lucky, you might just catch a glimpse of their iconic branded Liquid Death Hearse somewhere too. Will their beloved mascot Murder Man make an appearance and get up to his usual antics?
Step into a realm of audio wonder with the Eulogy immersive experience housed in an intriguing shipping container. Created by Darkfield, and free for fans, this is a 30-minute journey of complete darkness, using binaural sound and sensory effects to situate each participant in the centre of intense evolving narratives.
The Outpost is set to host live fire cooking demos with Shropshire Lad & Boca Loco, fire lighting and primitive skills showcases from Axe & Paddle, chilli eating contests from League of Fire, hot dog eating contests, wellness mornings, and classic Hammer Films screenings for the ultimate fright night experience. Footy fans will also be able to watch the key opening games in EURO 24, as The Outpost will screen the Scotland (Friday) and England (Sunday) games live.
Elsewhere, the food and beverage offerings onsite promise to be better than ever, with dozens of vendors catering for all dietary requirements, including the likes of In For A Penne, Bunnyman’s Chow, Happy Maki, King of the Yorkie, The Rock and Roll Toastie Company, Spud Gun Loaded Fries, Señor Churro, Crooked K’s Macaroni, No Frickin’ Chicken and many more.
Back by popular demand is the LoNo bar, serving up a choice of non-alcoholic beers and cocktails, proving that you don’t need alcohol to have a good time. But for those who fancy an ice cold beer, The Tap House and Beer Hall are also returning for this year, as well as Rocktail Cocktail, who will be serving up tasty cocktails alongside a host of DJs playing epic tunes.
New for this year are The Gooseneck Inn, a biker bar with premium spirits, and the Ace Of Spades Tavern, which will host food and entertainment in District X. The Welders Yard, by the arena entrance, will host some fantastic food stands and specialist bars, and Nohrlund will be holding cocktail making classes and demonstrations and serving their organic cocktails across the festival.
Inside the arena, festival-goers will find a Liquid Death Skate Ramp where they can catch pro skateboard and BMX riders in action. Tattoo booths from Liquid Death Tattoo and Old Sarum will be ready to make this year’s Download a memorable one, Mantorship will be running an open circle for men to discuss their mental health, plus iconic fairground rides and more than 80 independent market traders offering everything from jewellery, camping goods to body art.
Sega and Atlus Games will be bringing a gaming experience like never before to Download, with festival-goers among the first to play Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance at the immersive gaming experience. In honour of this, Friday night’s hugely popular fancy dress theme will be based on Video Game Icons, with people invited to dress for the anime / manga / cosplay theme.
BBC Radio 1 will once more broadcast live from the festival and give fans the opportunity to enjoy their photobooth activation with some very special surprise guests!
Following on from the recent District X announcement featuring Silent Disco, Comedy and Podcasts, the DLXXI’s Beyond The Bands offerings prove that Download is much more than just its stellar band line-up, with truly something for everyone to enjoy across the 5 days. More information and tickets at www.downloadfestival.co.uk.
2024 seems be the year of the giant arena tours, with the likes of Foo Fighters, Bring Me The Horizon and Taylor Swift busting out the big guns all around the UK, you’d be forgiven for thinking a mock-rock band of humble origins wouldn’t be a huge scene this year. JB would tell us to never underestimate the power of rock, and with over fifteen thousand piling into the Birmingham Resorts World Arena tonight – a completely sellout show – it’s clearly going to be a wild one.
We take a quick gander at the merchandise offerings, but are unsettled to find t-shirts peaking at £50 (ouch) and the cheapest being £35 – half of what a standing ticket cost tonight, which is diabolically expensive when you consider two non-purchases of a tee could get you another ticket to a huge tour show. I do rate their alternative merch choices like tabi/sandal socks, bags of branded plectrums, and crocs charms – they’re much more in the realm of affordability and are something different than yet another black band tee. Here’s my heartfelt plea to bands to push smaller merch offerings that are at the £5-£20 mark, we all wanna participate but… cozzie livs innit.
VIP Nation patrons however, were also able to pick up a Jack Black curated fan gift with their priority seating tickets, comprising of a very fun Tenacious D pizza box, red apron, tea-towel and lanyard – all branded with the Spicy Meatball artwork.
Dave Hill
As the arena begins to fill, we are treated to the very weird but funny musical/comedy stylings of support act Dave Hill. Dressed in a Slipknot-esque boilersuit which is covered in whimsical floral and animal patches, he races onto the stage pretending to… well, fuck shit up, I suppose. He proceeds to play three or four chords on his axe between mumbling, kicking and moshing. I am bemused, but also amused. At one point he even grabs a pair of nunchucks and cavorts wildly about the stage.
Finally he settles down slightly, and jokes “Great to be back here in Birmingham… The Paris of the Midlands. I’ve not been back here in ten years! For legal reasons…” before taking requests, for what turns out to be the first 5 seconds of any song yelled out. Yes, it was Freebird.
What follows is a very strange rant about Poundland – “Poundland, we sell everything but dignity” and then some pick-up lines that “will only work in Birmingham”. Dave smiles slightly, betraying his persona “Are you the west midland metro making stops between Birmingham and Wolverhampton? If you are I’d like to ride you all the way free of charge”. I don’t really know what I make of it all to be honest, he’s definitely not a traditional opener, but he gets the laughs and is actually a more than decent guitartist. Oh and I will always appreciate someone who exits the stage on a BMX for no discernable reason whatsoever.
The stage lights dim to the mightiest roar from the packed arena, as the choral opening music from Tenacious D’s ‘The Pick of Destiny’ movie, sets the scene.
Strutting calmly on stage the duo, Kyle Gass and Jack Black revel in the full force thunder of the crowd. Taking their places in front of two red devil-hand mic stands they steal a quick nod to each other before launching into story-setting memoir song Kickapoo. Despite knowing the words myself, I don’t think I was really prepared for how much of tonight would feel like a Rocky Horror singalong – EVERYONE and their rockin’ mother was giving it a ruddy good go.
With his signature wry smile, Jack laughs “So Birmingham… Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin. There must be something in the water here, Rock. Rock is in the water. This might be the rock capital of the world” before sweeping his sweaty hair out of his face and catching a helpful fan’s scrunchie from the crowd, to tie it up.
Low Hangin’ Fruit and Rize of the Fenix come with a side of “Any of you seen our film ‘Pick of Destiny’? NOT AT THE CINEMA YOU DIDN’T” referencing the flop that almost scuppered the band, and requesting pyrotechnics which never materialised. “When we planned this tour, we had to rock a bit harder, be a bit spicier, we had to have pyro!” they yell as a very underwhelming single flame spurts from the stage.
Wonderboy rolls on to arguably the most anticipated song of the night, whose opening chords draw a huge cheer from the fans. A huge inflatable Satan at the back of the stage heralds the iconic
Tribute, and at one point the band are almost drowned out by everyone singing. Coming up from their bows, both adopt a slight stagger, joking “We’re getting too old for this shit.” before Jack snaps a quick high kick and a toe touch jump and shouts “Nope, still got it” to tremendous applause.
Next up is Video Games, followed by The Metal – in which a very Iron-Maiden-esque stage walker robot (that looks a bit like one of the goblin suits from Labyrinth with David Bowie) stomps his way across the stage to dance, rock, and at one point pretend to slam Jack doggy style. Then, as a treat “I need a palette cleanser… Sax-a-Boom please!” Jack shouts, and the now infamous children’s toy is ferried to the stage.
The Sax-a-Boom solo is summarily upstaged when KG brings out a ‘Max-a-Boom’, a giant version which plays funnily enough like a real sax, and the iconic Baker Street by Gerry Rafferty solo. Miffed, Jack calls for a Max-a-Boom removal, “Oh my fucking god, that’s Dana! She’s best roadie in the business right there” and a nice segue into Roadie, with the pronouns thoughtfully changed to ‘she’ throughout the song.
There’s a fun little skit of a silent argument “Hey Kyle can we talk by the drums, no mics please?” and KG pretending to quit, which lines up the lament Dude (I Totally Miss You) and the whole arena using their phone torch lights to join in. Kyle returns, there’s a joyful screened video of the pair leaping through the waves on a beach, and we get a rendition of Chris Issak’s Wicked Game before we come to another iconic D song. “KG… I think there’s something wrong with our electric guitar player… I think he’s possessed… BY SATAN”.Beelzeboss (The Final Showdown) is everything you want from Tenacious D, kinda camp, slightly ridiculous, and heaps of fun. We even get a double recorder solo from KG – which in the UK is everyone’s starter instrument at school, and every parent’s worst nightmare.
A traditional band intro/solo section is absolutely gratuitous but in keeping with their classic metal pastiche, they thank the sound crew and the lighting crew (who also get to do a lighting solo, love that) before Jack Black takes his own solo starting with the opening of Black Sabbath’s War Pigs. 10/10 very topical and locational, absolutely every voice in this place is joining in.
After a brief encore, Good Times Bad Times (a Led Zeppelin cover) is chased up by the excellent Master Exploder. “We don’t often perform this one because it’s too hard to perform live. This is The Spicy Meatball Tour though… are you ready KG?”… “Hahahaha I’m not ready, it’s too hard!” they joke. There’s a moment where Jack finally produces the Pick of Destiny and holds it aloft “God that would have been a good time for pyro. I even cued it up! BIFFY PYRO TO THE STAGE NOW”. It is a very kitschy skit with a bumbling pyro guy and a big red button, but it’s part of the charm and comedy. The Spicy Meatball Song (to the tune of Indiana Jones) is very funny, but we close with Fuck Her Gently and the entire crowd singing along again. Finally, we get the big stage fireworks and flame cannons, and the band triumphantly leave the stage with their arms in the air. Biffy Pyro is left alone, grinning smugly.
It’s hard to categorise Tenacious D, because ultimately they are a comedy show – and all the skits drive the narrative of the night, but I think it’s really important to note that underneath all of that, they’re just damn good songwriters and musicians. Tonight was a blast, a well deserved sell-out tour.
Regarding the new collaboration, EMP tell us, “We are absolutely thrilled to announce our partnership with BLOODSTOCK 2024! As proud sponsors of the 4th stage, EMP is ready to rock alongside the best in metal. Stay tuned for exciting giveaways and exclusive content in the lead-up to the festival. As Europe’s #1 for music, films & TV, gaming merchandise & alt fashion, EMP is honoured to be part of the UK’s biggest independent Metal Festival and can’t wait to join forces with BLOODSTOCK to make history on the EMP STAGE!”
To celebrate, our friends at EMP want you to get BLOODSTOCK ready with a special discount at their online store. Grab your festival attire and any festival essentials you need at EMP here and get 20% off (minimum order £30)! Just use the code BOA20 at checkout.
[T&Cs: MOV £30 . Valid until 07.06.2024. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotional codes. Only redeemable once per customer on emp.co.uk. After entering the code, the discount will be automatically deducted from your shopping basket. Books, media, tickets, Rammstein, Die Ärzte, Die Toten Hosen, Feine Sahne Fischfilet, Broilers, New Balance, Böhse Onkelz, Funko Pop!, vouchers & items that include a donation in the price are excluded from the promotion.
If you’re looking for sold out tickets like VIP or campervan passes, BLOODSTOCK has a new exclusive secondary ticketing partner, Tixel, where you can maybe still find what you’re looking for. 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. The new deal 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.
Also, if you’ve not yet checked out BLOODSTOCK’s new podcast, hosted by the inimitable Beez, head over to Spotify or Apple Podcasts and check out the episodes so far, including guests such as Clutch, Sylosis, Green Lung and more! You can also now find some of these episodes on the official BLOODSTOCK YouTube channel.
Standard weekend tickets for BLOODSTOCK, priced at £185 (+ booking fee) are available now in the 2024 ticket store. You can also snap up limited day tickets, child tickets (mini moshers under 4 yrs can come for free!), and if you want all the BLOODSTOCK you can get, add-on early arrival for an extra day of camping on Wednesday too. Early Bird, VIP, and campervan tickets are sold out.
BLOODSTOCK’s 2024 Ronnie James Dio main stage headliners are AMON AMARTH, OPETH, and ARCHITECTS. Across the weekend you can also expect to see CLUTCH, HATEBREED, CARCASS, ENSLAVED, MALEVOLENCE, SATYRICON, ROTTING CHRIST, SYLOSIS, WHITECHAPEL, DEICIDE, GRAND MAGUS, DESERT STORM, THE VINTAGE CARAVAN, SOEN, GREEN LUNG, COMBICHRIST, XENTRIX, EXIST IMMORTAL, ETERNAL CHAMPION, GROVE STREET, MIMI BARKS, CRYPTA, FORBIDDEN, NERVOSA, BEAST IN BLACK, KORPIKLAANI, UNLEASH THE ARCHERS, FLOGGING MOLLY, SEPTIC FLESH, IGORRR, RUIJIN, GROVE STREET, UNPEOPLE, NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA, HELLRIPPER, INFECTED RAIN, CULTURA TRES, SADUS, LUDOVICO TECHNIQUE, BURNER, RED RUM, EVERGREY, RAISED BY OWLS, TAILGUNNER, SOUTH OF SALEM, and ANKOR amongst otherswith even more still to be announced.
Get full festival information over at bloodstock.uk.com. BLOODSTOCK will take place at Catton Park, Derbyshire on 8th-11th August 2024.
The Metal 2 The Masses tour returns in 2024! BLOODSTOCK’s initiative to give emerging bands a step up and also support grassroots venues, kicks off on 10th May, with 30 regions and 6 countries participating. The fun begins in Belfast and rolls down through Dublin and back to England, Scotland, and Wales, taking in Norway and Poland along the way. The tour wraps up in Coventry on 15th July, with all the regional winners from the finals being revealed in due course. Check out the local events below and get along to your nearest event to support the headliners of tomorrow!
BLOODSTOCK is also thrilled to announce a collaboration with Timothy Taylor’s Hopical Storm as the official Metal 2 The Masses sponsor for 2024. Expect to see them on site and lend their name to the Hopical Storm New Blood Stage! To celebrate the new partnership, BLOODSTOCK’s very own S’tan popped by their brewery to greet the team… watch here.
Today also marks the first batch of bands selected to showcase their talent at 2024’s event, outside of the M2TM tour initiative.
2023’s Northern Ireland victors and ‘war-jazz’ thrashers,ACID AGE will open Thursday’s Sophie Lancaster stage. They tell us “We love everything about M2TM. The exposure, photography, stage, lights and friends we made was more than satisfactory, but then we won and got to both attend and play BLOODSTOCK 2023! We couldn’t believe it, BLOODSTOCK is heavy metal Mecca. It’s where everyone comes together with a common goal, HEAVY FUCKING METAL! The sense of community at the festival is undeniable. Now that we have a chance to return and play the Sophie stage, we aim to show everyone why we are the best War-Jazz band in the world and we will do it for Sophie. See you in August.” Check out their video for ‘Slave Girl’ and get up to speed.
Selected from 600 email submissions, on Friday’s Hopical Storm New Blood stage expect to see Scottish thrash squad DISPOSABLE, Leicester’s prog metal outfit FINAL COIL and Scottish rockers SHE BURNS RED. Saturday’s bill will feature London industrial noiseniks BIOMECHANIMAL, Herts heavyists PRAETORIAN and metalcore squad, LOST TO LIGHT.
In other 2024 BLOODSTOCK news, OPETH‘s headline set on Friday night will be a fan-voted set! OPETH mainman, Mikael Akerfeldt explains in his inimitable dry humoured way: “This boils down to YOU voting for your favourite OPETH songs, culled from a list that we’ve put together (ie: songs that we know/believe/hope we can play fairly well). There are a few rarities in there, a few ”hits” and a few ”whatever” songs to choose from. Depending on our set length, we’ll put together a nice list of the top-voted songs that adds up to match the stage-time in question. Have fun! Be gentle! Thanks for participating!”
From 1st May, you can also utilise BLOODSTOCK‘s ‘click & collect’ service to pre-order your favourites online from the 2024 merchandise range! Pre-purchase your favourite t-shirt or grab the 2024 beer mug without fear of your size or design being already sold out on site. Pre-order here and simply collect at the arena merch stall on the weekend, knowing your item is guaranteed. All ‘click and collect’ items in the store will be clearly marked with a yellow C&C badge. Maybe you want that BOA hoodie for when the sun goes down, so order, then collect from the merch stall to save a trip back to your tent. In a ‘click & collect’ exclusive, if you order over £100 of items via this method, you get 10% off, and over £200 gets 15% off. Mark your calendar and head over on 1st May to grab your swag.
Also, if you’ve not yet checked out BLOODSTOCK’s new podcast, hosted by the inimitable Beez, head over to Spotify or Apple Podcasts and check out the episodes so far, including guests such as Clutch, Sylosis, Green Lung and more! You can also now find some of these episodes on the official BLOODSTOCK YouTube channel.
