FESTIVAL REVIEW: Bloodstock Open Air, Catton Hall, Derbyshire 08/08/24 - 11/08/24

This is not a comprehensive review of the weekend from a team of media savvy writers and togs. It’s a collective of fans who were at the festival and who have spent time reflecting on their favourite performances over a stacked and packed weekend.  We move onto some of our personal highlights from Friday. 

It’s Brazilian thrashers Nervosa who are first on Friday. Signed to Napalm Records, the band have changed line-ups several times but have also released five albums since their formation in 2010. They open with the blistering Seed of Death, the quiet harmonics of guitarist/vocalist Prika Amaral and guitarist Helena Kotina lead into the driving drums of new drummer Gabriela Abud and thundering bass of Hel Pyre. The thrash metal riffs flow into a more traditional feel, with the band’s evident influences crossing from a diverse pool ranging from Sepultura to Girlschool. The band look comfortable on the main stage, fully owning the space. The songs move along at pace, a pleasing combination of brutal delivery with catchy hooks. Masked Betrayer and Guided by Evil are standout tracks. Prika’s vocals are harsh but beautiful in their own way, and certainly make the band stand out above their peers. A new band for me, I had never heard of Nervosa before, but have already bought their last two albums, and very much look forward to seeing a full set sometime in the future. 

I first saw Green Lung on the Sophie stage in 2021and really enjoyed them. Since then, I have seen them a few times at various festivals. This was by far the best I’d seen them though, with the band appearing more relaxed and at ease with their stage presence; they are soon able to exploit the larger stage to full advantage. The opener The Forest Church from their latest album, This Heathen Land sounds great, with singer Tom Templar owning the stage. He struts around like any of the best frontmen, something he is quickly maturing towards. The band sound at their absolute best with the combination of bassist Andrew Caves and Joseph Ghast’s driving percussion pushing the music forwards in total harmony with drummer Matt Wiseman. This combination makes a blistering rhythmic force. The minimal guitars from Scott Black give the song a stoner vibe. The set drives along in the same way songs with Old Gods and the powerful Mountain Throne, whilst Song of The Stones brings Ghast to centre stage as he beats out a rhythm and sings the main body of the song with Templar adding harmonies and backing vocals. Overall, the song choices are great, six of the seven drawn from This Heathen Land, and although the subject matter isn’t my thing Green Lung are on top form and draw one of the biggest crowds of the weekend. 

For all the various subgenres and different sounds within the metal sphere it is always satisfying when a band strips it back to basics and plays the heavy metal of yesteryear. That band is Grand Magus who invoke the spirit of Rainbow, Black Sabbath and Manowar in their no-nonsense heavy fucking metal. For a three piece, the band possess a thunderous sound and let the music do the talking, with classics such as I, The Jury, and Steel Versus Steel ensuring heads were banged into oblivion. 

New song Skybound sounded amazing and shows great promise for the upcoming album from the band in October. The Bloodstock crowd love a good singalong and set closer Hammer of The North provided that opportunity, with the crowd singing the melody at the top of their voices long after the band had put their instruments down. It was one of the most spine tingling and epic moments of the festival weekend. 

Hellenic black metal legends Rotting Christ have been doing this for over 35 years and their live show is a fine tuned and epic experience. A ritualistic involvement as much as a metal concert, the band incorporate chants and choirs into their gothic melodic black metal and it was nigh on impossible not to get caught up in the atmosphere of the performance despite the blazing sunshine. The band focused mainly on their latter-day material with songs such as P’unchaw Kachun - Tuta Kachun, Demonon Vrosis and Grandis Spiritus Diavolos ensuring arm hairs were standing on end. This sort of music usually works better in a dark indoor environment rather than in the (rare) British summer sun, but the band ensured their atmosphere blacked out the summery weather conditions. 

Much like fellow countrymen Grand Magus, Wolf perform heavy metal of the old school variety. In fact, you could consider them the band that kick started this NWOTHM (New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal) movement that is providing killer retro metal sounds to the masses in 2024. The band had only just made it to the festival in time due to lost luggage, but they channelled the stress and urgency of their situation into a blistering performance and probably the best set I’ve witnessed the band play. Fist banging heavy metal was the script and Wolf duly delivered with a powerhouse set loaded with anthems including Shark Attack, Skull Crusher, Voodoo and Speed On goading the masses in the Sophie Lancaster tent to sing along and bang their heads. For old school metal fans this set was a real treat. 

The highlight of the day for me were Hatebreed celebrating their 30th anniversary. The band take the stage as a video of famous and influential artists plays. The video is a tribute to the band, so they had a lot to prove. From the opening track To the Threshold to the last note of the crowd pleasing I will be Heard the band play their socks off. Jamie Jasta bounces round the stage spiting the lyrics to each song with the same venom he had when I saw them 20 odd years ago. 

Bassist Chris Beattie constantly spins and jumps whilst keeping the beat, and guitarists Frank Novinec and Wayne Lozinak know all the shapes and fire out the tunes as aggressively as always. Matt Byrne’s drumming holds the well-honed machine together. The set is full of crowd pleasers which gets the audience into the frenzy; the band are orchestrating expertly. A Call for Blood, Empty Promises and Betrayed for Life stand out and get the pit wound up tight. Halfway through the set Hatebreed pull out a special treat with a blistering cover of Slayer’s Ghosts of War which sees the crowd explode and the pit erupt into a frenzy, yet everywhere I look, everyone has massive grins on their faces. The addition of a massive Hatebreed ball entertains the crowd but for me the set of their greatest hits is much more pleasing as we all sing / shout along to Tear It Down, Perseverance and Honour Never Dies, and as the last notes of I Will Be Heard closes the show we are left fulfilled but wanting more. 

The band have just shown that they are still needed and still relevant and still angry. I have seen the band many times, but this was one of the best. Roll on a proper tour so we can see the full set and watch this masterclass of hard-core crossover again. 

After plenty of fist banging and skull crushing metal throughout the day, it was time to take it down a gear and Icelandic hard rockers The Vintage Caravan provided a much-needed breather with their retro and bluesy style of vintage hard rock. Not to say these boys didn’t rock the hell out of the Sophie Lancaster tent, but their set’s hard rockers were interspersed with calmer bluesy numbers which were just perfect for a late summer’s evening. 

Again, for a three piece they create some severe volume, and the band are an incredibly tight unit especially considering they had stand in bassist Matti for these shows. His performance was so good he felt like he had been playing in the band since the very beginning. Songs such as Crystallized, Babylon and On The Run were the dose of classic rock that was perfectly suited for the time of day, and accompanied by an ice cold pint, it was utter perfection.

Reviews: 

Nervosa, Green Lung & Hatebreed - John Caffery

Grand Magus, Rotting Christ, Wolf & The Vintage Caravan - Richard Oliver

Photos:

Hatebreed & Green Lung - John Caffrey

Nervosa, Grand Magus, Rotting Christ & The Vintage Caravan - Hutch