OH, AND THIS HAPPENED

The bands that banged our heads off on Friday

Bathed in harsh blue and red lighting, AGRONA provide half an hour of blackened death metal to an engaged crowd at the Sophie Lancaster Stage, but would have more impact if their sound wasn’t so muddy – everything merges all too often throughout their set.

Over on the Ronnie James Dio Stage, Bristolian post-bm heroes SVALBARD put on an impassioned performance, with Serena Cherry emotionally paying tribute to Alexi Laiho and Joey Jordison between their sublime blasts of icy, hardcore-influenced metal. The road has been long for this band, and they grasp their chance with both hands.

Unexpectedly, RAGING SPEEDHORN set up a near-riot in the Sophie tent. In part it’s down to having grooves that sound like they are being kneaded by knuckledusters, but also because they seem to have swapped Iron Monkey for Beastie Boys as a main point of reference.

“You may have noticed I’m not Matt”, jokes EVILE frontman Ol Drake. Everybody has, of course, but he’s stepped into his brother’s shoes with gusto and their thrash metal incites pit after pit; it’s very much a heroes’ welcome back.

On the Hobgoblin New Blood Stage, Gloucestershire metalcore band BROKEN JAW are doing their best to incite a party. They’re a little dirtier and punkier than their contemporaries, which serves them well, and they win everyone over through sheer force of personality.

SKINDRED. Sub-headliner set. Friday night. You already know how this is going to go, right? An hour of pure, party metal bangers, culminating in a raucous Newport Helicopter during Warning, sets the tone perfectly for Hevy Devy to take over. Lovely.

In the meantime, in the Sophie tent, there’s CONAN. If you love bands that sound as though they’re in a wind tunnel – Jane’s Addiction, Kylesa, W.A.S.P. – Conan have your back. Jon Davis’s wretched, managainst-storm vocals also contend with colossal, doom-laden riffs like slaps from time immemorial.