The popularity of metal has astounded me a number of times in recent years, from the likes of Korn and Deftones filling stadiums when it felt like their peak had passed, to System Of A Down and My Chemical Romance coming back and playing stadiums but this feels like something else. It’s very much on a smaller scale but it feels light-years beyond what I expected. Even during the funk metal boom …

Bloodstock may be taking part less than eighty miles away but metal still lives and breathes elsewhere for those who cannot attend. It’s a really encouraging turnout too as Gorilla is around three quarters full. Spectral Wound made a couple of appearances on our shores last year at Incineration and Damnation Festivals and playing shows of such stature has possibly helped in drawing a good crowd…

Tonight’s gig is the culmination of a rather splendid week at the iconic Tivoli venue in Buckley. Perennial favourites Massive Wagons are performing to an almost-capacity crowd, following four totally sold-out nights from the iconic grandfather of industrial/electronica Gary Numan. In the space of just 9 days the Tiv has opened its doors to over 6000 people, not bad for a totally independent grass

Liverpool’s Outpost is an oasis in a city that doesn’t really do rock and metal. Its tight confines are designed specifically to capture the unfiltered energy and raw atmosphere of the bands that play there. And what better complement to this sanctuary than the sound of extreme metal?

Maebe start the Sunday off with their impressive brand of instrumental math-rock. It’s all from the brain of Michael Astley-Brown, dreamt up in lockdown as a solo act that has since transformed into a full five-piece onslaught. It’s intricately technical and surprisingly catchy as well.

Dacara are building a bigger and bigger name for themselves both locally and further afield. Their ever present black and green visual style is out in full force this morning to wake up any of the weary heads and blurred eyes from late nights of the first day of the festival. It’s accessible, pop metal with youthful and assured energy from vocalist Emma Shippen. Their sound is becoming more ...

Rozemary open the day with accessible female-fronted alternative rock metal. There’s obvious potential here yet more definition to their sound and clarity to their songwriting will be needed and undoubtedly will come.

And just like that, it is Sunday. The weather has behaved itself all weekend long. No rain but just a normal Sunday roast. Sunday may be the day of rest or at the very least chillfull reflection, but as it goes to stand nobody has told Acid Throne. They have slightly unorthodox intro as happy birthday is sung to an unknown crew member and then it’s for time for doom for breakfast. Acid Throne ...

ROCKFLESH catch up with Milan's stupendous prog metal heroes Benthos at RADAR 2026. We chat about everything from influences to festivals...and how do you pronounce Benthos!

Danger Matt of ROCKFLESH brushes off a near fatal stunt (see the end blooper for proof) to chat with DALI FR at RADAR 2026. The French experimental groove metal titans talk to us about everything from the evolution of their sound to dealing with challenges on and off the stage.

ROCKFLESH step out into the sun at RADAR 2026 to interview theatrical Finnish prog metallers Royal Sorrow. Songwriting, recording and facial expressions are just some of the things we chat with them about.

ROCKFLESH are hitting RADAR 2026 and grabbing a chat with the guys from Ghost Iris. The Danish metal maestros talk to Matt about everything from musical evolution to cities of the Western world.

The most interesting thing about this year's Download line up (aside from the depth and variety) is that it is now at a point in its history where it can feast on its own nostalgia. For many years, it relied on call-backs to its predecessor “Monsters of Rock”, with seemingly endless headline appearances by Aerosmith, Def Leppard and Iron Maiden. However, since its mammoth 20th birthday bash in 2023, Download has become comfortable with recycling from its own heritage and celebrating the bands that belong to the generation that has grown up with the festival. 

On Friday the Foo Fighters played a late-night show at the O2 Ritz here in Manchester. Whilst the prospect of seeing perennial stadium botherers in a 2,000-capacity venue is in itself unique, its most noteworthy point is how they managed ticket distribution. There was no mad internet dash for tickets, no ludicrous presale (there is no such thing as a presale, tickets are either available or they are not) and no secret codes and loops to jump through. You simply queued up last Sunday at the Ritz and from midday and a REAL person sold you a paper ticket. It was like the last thirty-odd years hadn’t happened, and instantly they did away with all the issues around touts, bots, scammers or fakes.

The evolution of the Damnation festival has been a joy to behold. It is the true definition of an underground success story. This is not a corporate giant forged within a soulless focus group. This is a twenty-year-long tale of overnight triumph. Damnation started two decades ago as a ramshackle attempt by a bunch of wide-eyed amateurs to put on the bands that they wanted to see, as opposed to the ones they felt Live Nation was force feeding them at Download. A chaotic day at the now-defunct Jilly’s Rockworld in Manchester was headlined by the then high-flying Raging Speedhorn and the Swedish legends Entombed.