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Bloodstock Open Air
2008 – Words by Chris Davison, Pics and additional words Strawbs
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| Saturday followed Friday, in accordance with ancient lore, and the
line-up promised come absolute gems. Rise
to Remain play a workmanlike set of neo-thrash, easily
drifting past as the collective hangovers of ten thousand metal
heads begin to fade and the drinking starts in earnest again.
Cloudscape's brand of
progressive metal seems to go down well with the already converted,
while Eluveitie are one of the
standouts of the festival. Their folky, authentic sounding metal
(complete with lead recorder) stands somewhere between Skyclad,
Finntroll and Korpiklaani, with the attendant dancing and jigging
that goes with it. Full of energy and hurdy-gurdy laden goodness,
theirs was the first set by a hitherto unseen band that convinced me
to buy their back catalogue. |
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| Swallow the
Sun play their brand of melodic doomy gothic metal in the
full glare of daylight, but play a solid, head nodding set none the
less. After all the internet hype over
Communic, I found myself completely non-plussed by their
set, and reminding myself that 99% of what is written on forums is
drivel. Moonsorrow emerged on
the stage to massive applause, and it seemed as if their stature had
grown on these shores. Their Viking tales seemed to find universal
appeal among a crowd that were left hungry for more.
Napalm Death, though, were the
real deal. Although reduced these days to a mere four band members,
they continue produce the most intense, devastating racket. Barney
Greenway, for all intents and purposes looking these days like a
Geography teacher is so understated and polite between songs that it
seems almost as if demons possess him when the music starts and he
starts to twitch away like an epileptic force fed amphetamines and
caffeine. Playing both recent and classic tracks, the stand outs of
“Suffer the Children” and “Silence is Deadly” reminded the crowd
just why these veterans have legendary status. (Chris) |
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| Whilst Chris was suffering almost physical pleasure from Napalm
Death, I sneaked off to the third tent, not to murder some old rock
tune via the medium of karaoke, but to catch the set of
Fury UK, a band I have reviewed
twice for this very oracle. I missed their entrance, but caught them
from well into the first song. Two initial impressions, firstly I
have spots older than they are, and secondly the hundred or so
people there enjoyed a treat that I am sure many more of the crowd
would have been present for were it not for the scheduling. Their
back catalogue is none too vast, but it was plundered to the extent
that time allowed, and a few theatrics a la ‘what can you play a
guitar against’ were exhibited. The |
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applause per person ratio
was deserved and as good as many bands were to receive – lets have
them back and on the main stage, this performance warrants that. (Strawb)
Eschewing Soilwork for a plate of curry and noodles,
Iced Earth took to the stage.
Being a big fan of Barlow-era Iced Earth, it was an absolute treat
to see him back with the band again. Incredibly tight, Barlow's
voice remained as powerful and emotional as ever – and Schaffer
cheekily added snippets of “The Trooper” to the closure of one of
the tracks. The cheeky fucker. Saturday headliners
Dimmu Borgir were, in every
sense, a revelation. Have never seen them live before and owning
about half of their back catalogue, I didn't know what to expect.
What I got was one of the most impressive, bombastic stage sets I
have ever had the fortune to see. Pounding out symphonic, epic tales
of debauchery and blasphemy, they had the crowd eating out of their
hands while the pyrotechnics roared and the back projector played.
In Sorte Diaboli may have been a jaw dropping return to form for the
Norwegians, but played live tunes like “The Serpentine Offering”
become even larger than life, and thus, tired and emotional, I
retired to the tent to be serenaded by drunkards mangling old metal
tunes on the karaoke... |
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Additional Saturday
Photos |
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Eluvitie |
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Moonsorrow |
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Dimmu Borgir Signing |
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Iced Earth |
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Iced Earth |
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BOA 2008 : Sunday
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