FESTIVAL REVIEW: Bloodstock Festival 2023 Part 3


 

Friday:

A challenge of being a concert photographer is seldom experiencing a full set. Often, I dash between stages, trying to capture each band as if on a Pokémon quest – though “gotta shoot ’em all” has a different ring to it. Nonetheless, the silver lining is I often witness a good portion of every set over the weekend. Here are my top picks and suggestions from Bloodstock’s two smaller stages, showcasing their stellar support for the underground scene and nurturing emerging metal talent in the UK and beyond.Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Battering Ram – Second To None


A Hard Rock quartet from Sweden, Battering Ram’s sound is straight to the point, uncomplicatedly big rock and roll – with their aptly titled second album Second To None (Uprising Records) full of sizable riffs and choruses, with a Volbeat, Judas Priest, and nineties era Metallica flavour to it.

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ALBUM REVIEW: Spheric Universe Experience – Back Home


The new album from melodic progressive heavy metal act Spheric Universe Experience (never have I heard a more perfect name for a band!) Back Home (UPRISING!) is a true musical journey. This new cut, the band’s fifth overall and first for a decade, plays through like a movie soundtrack for some epic sci-fi adventure, which is apt considering this is a concept album set in space.

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REVIEWS ROUND-UP: Black Metal Special – I Am The Night – Freja – The Dark Overlords – Vimur – Haunter – Moonlight Sorcery


I Am The Night – While The Gods Are Sleeping (Svart)

While The Gods Are Sleeping is the debut album from Finnish black metal artists, I Am The Night. The band is made up of veterans of the scene that includes members of Insomnium, Paradise Lost and Omnium Gatherum. Here is an album dripping with nineties Norwegian black metal goodness clearly inspired by the works of Mayhem and Emperor. The traditional style and sounds are performed flawlessly by I Am The Night. The band not only plays a great tribute to the classic second wave of black metal but still manages to stamp their own signature on it.Continue reading