Bloodstock Festival Countdown : 30 Bands Not To Miss - Forbidden
30. Forbidden - Ronnie James Dio Stage - Saturday, August 10th, 1.45pm-2.30pm
For those of us of a certain age, Forbidden's appearance at Bloodstock 2011 was manna from heaven. Seeing one of eighties thrash's forgotten heroes illustriously resurrected was genuinely exciting. But reunions are not easy things to maintain and the tensions that brought about the early demise of Forbidden were quick to resurface. Not twelve months after their triumphant appearance at Bloodstock the wheels came off and it was once more all over.
But it isn't easy either to put a good band down. Matt Camacho has once again put his legal career on hold and the bay area sloggers are back. Russ Anderson has turned his back on music altogether so Matt and his partner in crime (and thrash) Craig Locicero are the only members of the classic line up left (though Steve Smyth is back, filling the esteemed shoes of the sadly no longer with us Tim Calvert). Vocals are now the preserve of Norman Skinner and the reports are good. so get ready to throw your horns at one of thrash's unsung heroes and let’s hope the rumours of new material come to pass.
I just love Metal. I love it all. The bombastity of symphonic, the brutality of death, the rousing choruses of power, the nihilistic evil of black, the pounding atmospherics of doom, the whirling time changes of prog, the faithful familiarity of trad, the other worldlyness of post, the sheer unrefined power of thrash. I love it all!