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BLOODSTOCK (BOA), Catton Hall, Derbyshire Having been to last years BOA as a pure fan it was my privilege to come again but under the 'Press Umbrella' to give my opinion of the only full Metal festival in the UK at present. So having finished work on the Thurs night I got onto my fully loaded motorbike and headed up to Catton Hall in Derbyshire to start the proceedings early, the sign posts to the site were perfect for such a small event and having booked in I parked my bike 20 yards from my TeePee (Perfect) - so after setting up I went in search of friends and to find out how the real half survive. The steady stream of people coming into the event seemed well organised and the queues were moving at a reasonable pace. Camp Sites They had more camp sites this year - A, B, Quiet, VIP & Disabled/Press - I had a walk round all except VIP but knowing friends in that one I can say to start with that it was in totally the wrong place (Next to Camp A), it was noisy and they had things thrown over the fence onto their tents from A as well - not good when you have paid £100 more than other people.
Camps A & B
had plenty of room around the tents and clear walkways, they also had food
outlets open all hours and toilets as well. As for Disabled/Press,
although to was quiet and had plenty of room - I feel the lack of water
near the tents could have been avoided. You can see a lot of thought has gone into the layout for this Festival and with three stages so close, it was set up perfectly. Including a good mix of Stalls. Merch and food outlets. The main stage could be seen and heard even whilst at the beer tent nearby. During breaks in the Music the excellent 'Monster' roadshow came into swing with motorbikes in a large metal ball just missing each other whilst looping the loop.
The staff
throughout the festival were very friendly and that in turn made the
punters happy as well. All in all a very well turned out Fest with a
very good atmosphere.
Friday 14
August Well what can I say but that they burst onto the stage in a cloud of smoke and hangovers!! They soon brought the crowd alive with their own brand of NWOBHM. Unfortunetly they only had a short set to show us why BOA choose them to start this festival off and boy did they do it in style, with their no frills british metal.
They went
through 'THE PHANTOM, DARK CITY, THEATRE OF THE DAMNED then onto their
back to back tracks based on the TV show 'The Prisoner' namely 'MY LIFE IS
MY OWN & ESCAPE FROM THE VILLAGE finishing off with the self titled
'BLITZKRIEG' The crowd and the battle was won as they made a field in the
Derbyshire countryside their own. What a start to the weekend and for me
they get **** Although the vision of Dr Pest running around stage looking like an extra from a porno film to some getting used too - even with his swing on stage as well!! As for the music - with their unique combination of power and melodies, bittersweet lyrics and a breathtaking, outstanding live performance, this band is definitely in a class of their own. This is the band's second UK appearance and they shone like a beacon out onto the Crowd, literally whipping up a storm and showing that there is more to them than meets the eye!! The sound and commitment was awesome as they went through their set, bringing the crowd into their power, they culminated their performance by sending a girl previously plucked from the crowd to be song too - out into the masses on a yellow rubber boat - the funniest thing is that she told the crowd to turn her to the right and they did - Metal or what!!!! ****
Saturday
15 August It was quite funny to see everyone in a daze looking for breakfast, there were a few stalls open and security were in a good mood too! First on stage for the Saturday was the bizarre Uncle Rotter both in look and music, consisting of the aptly named - UNCLE ROTTER (Lead Vocals, Samples and Songwriter), GENERAL SLAVE (Lead Guitar), TWIGGY BANG BANG (Lead Guitar), VENOM ROTTER (Rhythm Guitar), DR T (MD) (Bass Guitar) and lastly RAMIREZ ROTTER on Drums!!
They are
best described by themselves as 'The Kings of Thuggish Cartoon Disco
Metal'. Well they certainly woke the crowd up and the lyrics (Which I
can't repeat were inventive, funny and downright rude) Musically they
rocked my boat and were another fitting start to the days proceedings.
**** Now I have never heard of the band although I love watching bands on the unsigned as it's the future of our music, so I didn't know what to expect. I was very surprised and pleased with what I heard. The band consist of Matt Dorian on vocals, Alan Douglas on guitar/backing vocals, Steve Scott on Drums and the two founder members Stuart McLeod on bass and Gary Law on guitar hail from Glasgow and have only been about since 2007! The lead Singer Matt had the voice and the presence of a veteran performer and that along with the tight guitar riffs and excellent drumming - made for a very good mix. This was good classic rock mixed with just about everything as the guys enjoyed their first taste of the big time. The quality of the band was self evident and they act as though they have experience far beyond their years. The crowd was rockin from one track to the next and they even had a circle pit going in this smaller tent. At the end of the set the crowd erupted with applause for an excellent band with a great future - one to watch ****
Towards the evening I decided to check out the performance of Blind Guardian on the Main Stage, as I hadn't heard anything by them and seeing as my mate Jez was sporting one of their tour T-Shirts I realised that I could be in for a treat but what I wasn't prepared for was the awesome set from the guys from Germany namely Hansi Kursch - vocals, Marcus Siepen - guitar, Andre Olbrich - guitar, Frederik Ehmke - drums. Now this isn't a band that runs around the stage as they were all standing by their mic's except for Hansi, but this didn't lessen their impact at all. Visually and vocally they are top drawer. They moved with ease from one track to the next with the crowd singing along almost anthem like with raised hands and raised voices showing what a following this band have and from now on you can add another one to the list - I was hooked. The guitar riffs along with the harmonies and lead vocals were immense and to me this was the headline band of the day, they culminated their performance with a rendition of the famous (So I am told) The Bard's Song (In The Forest) and finally Mirror, Mirror. All I can say is that if you don't know them then check them out ***** Well what a day Saturday has been with blinding performances on all three stages with the crowd in such a good mood that you wished this Fest could last forever. For me the highlights of the day were Uncle Rotter, Wolf & Blind Guardian. I didn't catch the problems during the 'Cradle of Filth' performance which was abruptly cut short when a missile struck guitarist Paul Allender who was reportedly knocked unconscious but it turns out that the object was a large (Cricket Ball size) gobstopper bought along with 5 others from a stall earlier on. BOA staff were quick to withdraw them from sale and Security was heightened to make sure it didn't happen again. To 'Cradles' credit they finished the song with a band member on the floor and then left the stage. When the stage was cleared 4 more gobstoppers were found - One idiot ruining it for the masses, unfortunately thus far he hasn't been caught!!
Sunday 16 August Right then back to the music and the first band on the Main Stage Beholder. Well what can I say!!! I know these guys from the club & pub circuit and from other Fests and it was good to see them perform on the Main Stage at such a prestigious festival. They are Simon Hall (Vocals), Si Fielding (Bass & Vocals), Chris Bentley (Drums), Simon Cliffe (Guitar & Vocals) & Martyn Blackwell (Guitar & Vocals) . From the outset of this performance they owned the stage and with Simon Hall prowling up & down like a caged animal, the guitarists pounding out the riffs ably assisted by Chris on Drums (Who was awesome), bringing the crowd awake at such an early hour. The sheer energy that this band pushes out had even more people running over to see what they were missing. The whole crowd got behind them and all Simon Hall could do during the performance was to have a beaming smile from ear to ear along with the whole band - this was an appearance to be proud of and one that will live in their memory for a very long time.
The whole
band were literally awesome and as they completed their set with the
Sophie Lancaster tribute 'NEVER TAKE US (DOWN)' they were as one with the
crowd (I must admit that every time I hear them play it I have a tear in
my eye). This band are going a long way in the business and in my opinion
it is well deserved. 5/5. The band consists of Krissie on Vocals, Gio on Lead Guitar, CJ on Rhythm Guitar, Owen on Bass Guitar & Giles on Drums. You could see they were having the time of their lives and Gio on Lead was truly awesome whilst strutting his stuff with the ease of a seasoned professional. The riffs he delivered were pure genius and if this band doesn't make it, I am sure he will!! As for the band as a whole, they were classy and delvered a powerful sound far beyond their years.
Krissie had
a powerful 'air' about her whilst belting out track after track of good
hard Metal tunes. They have an EP out at the moment and are shortly to be
releasing their debut album - I kid you not….go out and get it as they
Rock!!! ***** Additional reporting: Ian Pollard Photo Gallery by Ian Pollard
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