Heavy Music Festivals (Part 1)
Heavy music festivals for fans left wanting more after the big weekend line-ups were announced.
From the archive. This post first appeared on the earlier music blog at this address and is kept as it was published, apart from the design. Names, prices and links may be out of date. All archive posts.
Festival season is almost upon us, and up and down the country and throughout the rest of Europe people are preparing themselves for the onslaught of riffs, beers and mud pits. But with Sonisphere leaving a noticeable hole in the festival schedule, and the Download lineup leaving a dissatisfied itch for the heavy music lover this year, what alternatives are there? Luckily, there are still a tonne of amazing festivals out there – even if you will need to travel a little bit further afield.
HELLFEST – France
This world-renowned festival is fast becoming a fan favourite, with metal, hardcore and punk fans travelling to the sleepy town of Clisson every year for one of the most varied line-ups out there. This year features performances from Hardcore titans like Refused, Biohazard and Madball; a whole stage dedicated to the best in Black metal including big names like Enslaved and Shining; and appearances from legends like Entombed, Nasum, Sunn O))) Megadeth and Blue Oyster Cult as well as two shows from Wino in Vitus and the Obsessed this really is one of the most amazing line-ups I’ve seen in a long time from a festival that is consistently clean, well organised and still relatively inexpensive!
Taking place in a couple of weeks, tickets are still available at 149 Euros for 3 days. See the full line up here.
BLOODSTOCK – UK
Situated in Derbyshire, the Bloodstock Open Air festival is already shaping up to be a blinder this year. With headliners still yet to be announced, the bill already includes names like Crowbar, Watain, Mayhem, Deicide and many, many more. Undoubtedly one of the most extreme of the more mainstream festivals, BOA offers fantastic value for money with 3 day tickets costing just £115.00.
BOA takes place between the 9th and 12th of August. See the full line-up here.
HEVY FEST – UK
Making up for the disappointing lack of punk and hardcore at Download this year, Hevy is gaining even more momentum as one of the best festivals in the UK for fans of hardcore. Featuring appearances from legends like Descendents, Glassjaw, H2O, Converge, Madball, Meshuggah and party favourites like Deez Nuts and Andrew WK Hevy takes place at the Port Lympne Wild Animal Park in Kent and ticket prices include free animal park entry.
HEVY takes place between the 3rd and 6th of August and tickets are £96. See the full line up here.