BLOODSTOCK 2003
Assembly Rooms
Derby
Friday August 29 & Saturday August 30 2003
A posse of Fireworks writers (Phil Ashcroft, Dave Cockett, Bruce Mee and myself, Paul Jerome Smith) were on hand to record the sights and sounds of the third Bloodstock event – the UK's premier Rock & Metal festival.
It has to be stated right from the outset that the management and organisation of the festival were absolutely first rate and having arrived at the venue early I was able to check out the whole of the excellent backstage facilities. During the festival I was also able to observe the tremendous efficiency of the stage crew at close quarters and in particular the period between the end of Paradise Lost and the start of headliners Nightwish. I was readily furnished with a set list, and then made my way to the balcony to watch one of the most awesome performances it has ever been my pleasure to witness. But I am jumping ahead…….
Sound quality from the main stage was generally very good throughout the festival, and – in the case of the set from Saracen – really excellent. Their audience may not have been the largest of the day but those present experienced something quite special, as Bruce tells us later on. Indeed, all of the writers from the various magazines present were very generous in their praise of Rob Bendelow and his cohorts – in a number of cases praise that they had not expected to give.
The Metal Market occupying much of the foyer area of the Assembly Rooms is one of the additional features of the festival that deserves a special mention with CD/DVD stalls, stalls selling all manner of fantasy items, clothes, miscellaneous appendages and accessories! Mercury Rain also had their own stall, and much interest did they generate: a shining example to all unsigned bands with a self-financed CD as to how to promote themselves at such a festival.
I spoke with various members of bands that were not appearing, including Bob Catley, Ralph Santolla and Shane French from 'Millenium' (at that time over in the UK recording new material) and Steve McKenna from 'Ten' and saw members of many others passing by!
Friday August 29th
5th Man Down
Only the main stage was in use on the opening day of the festival and first up were unsigned band 5th Man Down from South London. Originally scheduled for an appearance on the Saturday on the second stage in the Darwin Suite, they took their opportunity well to win over the initially small but enthusiastic crowd. I met the band's manager at the after show party on the Saturday night and he told me it was the biggest gig they had ever played; until then they had not escaped the pub and club circuit. Their brand of quite melodic nu-metal had a Creed / Pearl Jam vibe which whipped up quite a storm as the opening band. With songs such as 'I Cried' and 'Still', 5th Man Down laid a solid start to a really enjoyable festival.
Paul Jerome Smith
Power Quest
Power Quest was one of several bands I was really looking forward to seeing. Their debut album 'Wings of Forever' marked Power Quest out as a band to watch for the future, and their new album 'NeverWorld' has completely realised the potential that their new record label had identified in signing them. It is one helluva melodic hard rock album, with instantly memorable songs and quality performances and it has hardly been off my CD player since I received an advance copy of the Japanese version. But how would they fare in this, only their 5th gig – and following a very traumatic period in the band's existence, having only recently recruited drummer Gav Ward and with only one lead guitarist (Andrea Martongelli) because the second had jumped ship at the start of the week!
I need not have worried because one shredding guitarist more than compensated for his absent companion, vocalist Alessio Garavello sang his heart out, whilst the excellent rhythm section of Steve Scott (bass) and the aforementioned Gav Ward provided a powerful undercurrent to the proceedings. Keyboardist Steve Williams delighted the crowd with his one handed solos! It might have only been the band's sixth gig (and first with this lineup) but you would not have known it from their stage presence.
The size of the crowd had more than doubled by the time 'Prelude to Destiny' (the introduction to the first album) boomed over the sound system. A good balance of material from the first and forthcoming albums was featured in the 35 minute set, including 'Glory Tonight' and 'Power Quest (Part 1)' from the former followed by the hugely memorable 'Edge of Time' and 'Temple of Fire' from 'NeverWorld', both of which received a tremendously enthusiastic audience response. 'Far Away' from the first album brought matters to a close, and for me this was perhaps not the most obvious track with which to finish. Nevertheless, the chorus is a killer and by the end the crowd were chanting for more – but the strict schedule did not allow such an opportunity.
Paul Jerome Smith
Blaze
I'm totally on unfamiliar ground here because not only have I never seen Blaze before, I never saw him with Iron Maiden either. My last encounter with Mr. Bayley was with Wolfsbane, and a very unpleasant one it was at that. However, in the spirit of fairness to all bands that seems to run through the Bloodstock festival, I was prepared to give him a chance, and while I wasn't totally impressed, I wasn't particularly repelled either.
Workman-like British Metal is how I guess you could describe it, with a band of reasonable players including a good drummer and a decent guitarist, the band tore through a set of hard and heavy Maiden-esque tunes played the old-fashioned way. To his credit, Blaze is a decent front man who comes across as everybody's best mate, encouraging the crowd to clap and jump up and down while he's onstage, and get drunk with him when he's finished. He didn't dwell on his (short) Maiden connection too much, and the couple of 'X-Factor' songs he played were almost indistinguishable from his solo stuff, in fact the only real change-of-style and tempo was Zep's 'Dazed and Confused'. The sound was good, and the man's voice certainly fit this material better than I'd remembered the Wolfsbane from many years ago. All in all, not much inspiration but full marks for effort.
Phil Ashcroft
Saxon
Two years after their storming headline set at the inaugural Bloodstock here in Derby, and NWOBHM stalwarts Saxon were back to kick some ass at this year's event. For too many years the butt of a string of stereotypical jokes, Saxon have enjoyed something of a renaissance in more recent times, their rich legacy finally recognised for what it is. Led as ever by the inimitable Biff Byford, Saxon 2003 took to the stage with a rabble rousing run through of the timeless 'Heavy Metal Thunder' – if there was one song which encapsulated the whole weekend, this was surely it!
Come rain or shine, you know exactly what you're gonna get from a Saxon show two hours of pure, unadulterated entertainment. Grasping the mettle from the word go, Biff and da boyz delivered body blow after body blow with a string of immortal anthems such as 'Strong Arm Of The Law, 'Solid Ball Of Rock', 'Dogs Of War, and 'Backs To The Wall. As the pace lowered a little for the poignant 'The Eagle Has Landed', the crowd were treated to the first UK sighting in over a decade of the fabled 'eagle' light rig. Affectionately known as 'Biff's budgie', the eagle has been fully renovated, it's reappearance sparking memories of many a Saxon gig from my youth.
One small fly in the ointment was the rather excessive drum solo after 'Warrior' which saw the band lose a little momentum on following number 'Killing Ground'. Still, normal service was soon resumed as the countdown to their explosive finale began in earnest with 'And The Bands Played On'. This was quickly followed by '20,000 ft', 'Crusader', a truly awesome 'Metalhead', and '747 Strangers in The Night', before the main set wound to a close with 'Princess Of The Night'. With the crowd baying for more, the band once again took to the stage to deliver a much deserved encore with 'Denim And Leather', 'Wheels Of Steel', and 'Motorcycle Man'. Finally satisfied, the audience melted into the night to grab a few hours much needed sleep in preparation for the following days events.
Another memorable performance from a band who've earned their place in rock 'n' roll's hall of fame.
Dave Cockett
Saturday August 30th
Two stages were in force on the second day, and before matters had commenced in the main hall, I went and had a look at the gloriously named Bumsnogger in the Darwin Suite. However, what I heard was not at all to my liking, so I fled back into the safety of the main hall in time to catch Mercury Rain. Phil Ashcroft takes up the story…………
Mercury Rain
I was particularly looking forward to Mercury Rain, what I'd heard of their 'Dark Waters' album had been very promising, and certainly a little different to what most UK bands are doing. Unfortunately for them, the sound as they nervously start 'The Chosen One' is not all it should be, singer 'Sonia Porzier' sounding like she's singing a different song from what the band are playing. It doesn't help that she has very little stage presence and the band look like a bunch of people plucked from different genres of music. The style is equal parts Symphonic/Prog/Power Metal, with Goth overtones to confuse the listener even further. To be fair, Sonia's voice is good in parts but doesn't really fit the music all of the time, with the best musical bits provided by the keyboard player. 'Bride Of The Dark' and 'Broella' have some great ideas in them, but a lot of the songs meander way too much and Sonia's sometimes folky vocal style and detached, dreamy stage movements are completely at odds with the powerful dynamics. I'd like to see them again with a decent sound, but playing on the same stage as Nightwish just emphasised how much they have to improve.
Phil Ashcroft
Dragonforce
Having been greatly disappointed by their performance at the Sweden Rock festival (due to losing their drummer days before) I'm happy to report that UK Speed Metallers Dragonforce have regained their lost momentum, and then some! The band with probably the most hair in rock, gave an energetic display of precision Power Metal that was so over-the-top that the crowd had to get their breath back before they could cheer. The lightning fast guitar harmonies of Herman Li and Sam Totman were almost too much for the p.a. to cope with at times, with the pair of them swapping sides and weaving in and out of 6 string-bass player Adrian Lambert and singer Z.P. Theart. It's a wonder everyone makes it to the end without concussion. It's very entertaining to watch if a little samey musically, and the speedy playing sometimes detracted from the power of the band, as evidenced by the few moments where they slowed to a sedate 80 mph. But despite the problems with Vadim's keyboards it was all enjoyable fun and good to watch, Z.P. even took one of the many plastic swords from the (surprisingly) young members of the crowd during 'Valley Of The Damned'. If you like the thought of a young band taking the blueprint of Iron Maiden to the Nth degree, Dragonforce, along with Power Quest, are the ones to look out for.
Phil Ashcroft
Saracen
Richard Bendelow, current Saracen bass guitarist and18 year old son of founding member/lead guitarist Rob Bendelow, was feeling slightly nervous before tonight's live set. Not surprising really, when you consider Richard wasn't even born the last time Saracen played live! However, his worries were unfounded as Saracen stormed through a set which belied their years, turning back time to an era when epic, majestic rock was king. Richard settled into the line-up with ease, forming a pulsating rhythm section with drummer Jamie Little, and opening number 'Flame of Youth' was really rather fitting.
No ballads tonight as the band went for wall to wall rock, rolling out the classics with consummate ease. The likes of old favourites 'Horsemen of the Apocalypse' and 'Heroes, Saints and Fools' sent the faithful into raptures, whilst newer numbers like 'Red Sky' and 'Ride Shotgun with the Wind' showed that Saracen could rock out with the best. My own personal favourite was 'Follow the Piper', a massive epic of a song that got the hair flowing and fists punching the air down front.
Vocalist Steve Bettney seems to have hardly changed during the intervening twenty years, still able to hit those high notes with an almost Rob Halford perfection, whilst Rob Bendelow marries the poise of Tony Iommi with the sublime touch of Ritchie Blackmore, a cool figure in long, black leather coat, firing out massive riffs and coaxing wonderful melodies in equal measure.
Co-founding member Richard Lowe attacks the stage like a madman during 'Jeckyl & Hyde', fittingly taking the vocal part of Hyde before sharing keyboard duties with current keyboard player Paul Bradder on closing number 'Ready to Fly', another Saracen epic from the debut album and due to be re-recorded for the next album. So, after twenty years Saracen have had a triumphant rebirth, and hopefully this is just the first chapter of another successful story!
Bruce Mee
Masterplan
One of the weekend's most anticipated sets from my point of view was the UK debut from Masterplan. A scintillating combination of Roland Grapow's searing guitar licks and Jorn Lande's smouldering vocals, their self titled debut album has been creating a few waves of late, so the chance to see them in action was not to be missed.
Taking to the stage after a blinding comeback set from local heroes Saracen, Masterplan opened their account with a biting run through of album lead off track 'Spirit Never Die'. To be honest, the sound didn't do them any favours early on, the muddy listless mix effectively stifling all the idiosyncratic nuances which made the album version so special. Thankfully, most of these were sorted by the end of the song, so the band could show the Bloodstock crowd just why there's a big vibe surrounding them at the moment.
With the arrival of 'Crystal Night', Masterplan at last settled into their stride, teasing and tantalising the crowd with a dazzling display of hi-tech, melodic metal. As a frontman, Jorn Lande is one of the most remarkable individuals to emerge in the last decade, stalking the stage like a panther he soon had the first half dozen rows eating out of his hand. Former Helloween guitarist Grapow (who incidentally was celebrating his birthday) on the other hand is one of the most laid back technicians on the planet, his nonchalant, 'cool as fuck' attitude belying his extraordinary talent as a lead guitarist. Next up the band aired a brand new song 'Heroes', a galloping, full blooded rocker in a classic 'Enlighten Me' vein. The swaggering epic 'Soulburn' saw temperatures sent even higher, but by this time the crowd didn't care, they were completely sold on Masterplan
A stunning UK debut from a band with a big future.
Dave Cockett
Edguy
Having missed them in London last time, I was really looking forward to finally acquainting myself with Swedish gods HammerFall, so their eleventh hour withdrawal (due to guitarist Oscar Dronjak breaking his arm) was a bitter disappointment. The one bright thing to come out of it however was that the band chosen as a late replacement were the mighty Edguy!
If Masteplan came to dazzle with their brand of intelligent metal, Edguy came with but one intention … to party! From the moment they bounced on stage to the strains of 'Welcome To The Opera', it was abundantly clear that Toby Sammet and company weren't gonna let anyone go until their soul had been well and truly rocked. Highly reminiscent of Iron Maiden at their intelligent best (helped no end by Sammet's decidedly Bruce Dickinsonesque vocals), Edguy went down a storm with the metal faithful. Promoting their brand new double live extravaganza 'Burning Down The Opera', the band's set was packed with highly infectious metal from the word go.
Pulsating opener 'Fallen Angels' gave way to the cerebral intensity of 'Tears of A Mandrake', which in turn melted effortlessly into 'Babylon'. Looking round the crowd, those unfamiliar with Edguy seemed suitably impressed by this point, and from here there was no going back. Ballad 'Land Of The Miracle' provided so much needed respite from the onslaught of tracks like 'Out Of Control', and it was great to hear the band put their heart and soul into 'Avantasia' from Sammet's side project of the same name.
Exuberant and infectious, overblown but completely controlled, Edguy won themselves an army of admirer's today. Not the last we'll see of them on these shores I'm certain.
Dave Cockett
Paradise Lost
Paradise Lost have been around for quite a time now, frequently re-inventing themselves from sub-Queensryche metallers, through mid 90's angst-ridden industrial-rockers, to the hypnotic sonic landscapes of today. The strange thing is, when you see it all played together it makes total sense. With a whole caboodle of keyboards, intros, and backing vocals on DAT, Paradise Lost are still far simpler than what's gone before, and as such enjoy (along with Saracen) the best sound of the day. It's rhythmic and hypnotic, and unlike many of the Saturday Bloodstock bands, the music has room to breathe and you can see those big chord changes coming ages before they actually happen. The dynamics of the last album's title track 'Symbol Of Life' are huge, dragging you into a dark world where you don't particularly want to go. It's all so impressive, so what went wrong? For one thing Nick Holmes obviously has no respect for his fans, his little digs and off-hand remarks causing many people to walk out in disgust. And while the music (predictable taped intros notwithstanding) continued to impress, the antics of the frontman didn't. "Clap like you give a fuck!", he says, sing like YOU do and we might. Musically they were excellent, but I have better things to do with my time than listen to someone so obviously ungrateful to the people who put him where he is. Next!!!
Phil Ashcroft
Nightwish
By the time the headliners made their dramatic entrance, the show was running over 30 minutes behind schedule. Nobody seemed to mind once the lights dimmed and the choral/spoken section at the opening to 'Bless This Child' echoed out from the PA. The band members appeared one by one and finally Tarja Turunen dressed entirely in shimmering white made her grand entrance…the scene was set for the British debut of the operatic metal grandmeisters. 'End Of All Hope' followed with its dramatic mix of male and female vocals. Having started with material from latest album 'Century Child' we were then treated to a wide-ranging repertoire from their earlier albums….'Come Cover Me','The Kinslayer' and 'Deep Silent Complete' from 'Wishmaster'. The first part of the set was completed by 'Dead to the World' and 'Sleeping Sun' – a wonderful dreamy and cathartic song! Tarja left the stage at this point and the rest of the band indulged us in what the set list showed as 'Ozzy' and was actually the band's version of 'Crazy Train' and featuring bassist Marco Hietala on vocals. This was rapturously received by the crowd, as was the rarely performed 'The Pharoah Sails To Orion' from 'Oceanborn' and which again features both male and female vocals, and to my ears was far superior to the original. 'She Is My Sin' and 'Slaying The Dreamer' followed, this latter having some of the most dramatic male and female vocal interplay of the entire set. The superb title track from 'Wishmaster' brought the main part to a close in rapturous style. The band returned to perform a two song encore – 'Walking On The Air' and their great singalong version of 'Over The Hills'.
For me, a magnificent end to a really enjoyable festival, although I emerged from the Nightwish set to find the glum pair of Phil Ashcroft and Dave Cockett, wondering what all the fuss is about. Neither are fans of the band. Looking at the departing, happy crowd, I would say they were in a very tiny minority!
See you there next year? If so, get your tickets early, because this year's festival was a sell out! British interest in metal has certainly seen a resurgence, and there were some very good examples on display at Derby.
Paul Jerome Smith
