So, to the third day of Bloodstock Festival 2026, we start in the Sophie Lancaster Tent with the enigmatic amphibious Doom merchants Froglord. Hailing from Bristol, they brought their own form of slime-drenched doomer grooves to the Sophie Stage.
Bloodstock Open Air Festival
Catton Park, Derbyshire – Saturday 8 August 2026
Words: Adrian Stonley
Photography: Adrian Stonley, Keith Conlin
Froglord
Usually, the first band on the bill have a tough ride to a minimal crowd, yet this was quite the opposite, as the Sophie tent was packed out, such was the interest.
So, the question is did Froglord disappoint? Of course not. Though they only had a short thirty-minute slot, Froglord more than filled their time and clearly were winning over new fans with ease.
As a band, they play Doom Metal, dripping with riffs and hooks, yet it is punchy and interesting. There are some nice alt-Metal segues. The band, dressed in robes and masks are ably assisted by two scantily clad dancers and they put on a forceful show from the moment they hit the stage.
With the set predominantly split between their The Mystic Toad and this year’s Lower and Slower Volume 1 albums, they provided a balanced overview of their work.
Entering the stage to Croak, they rapidly ripped into They Came From Saturn before Herman from their Metamorphosis album sent the audience into raptures. Of course, there is time for the Mystic Frog to make an appearance, not just via the song but in person as he is paraded around the stage.
The set ends with the heads-down party of Swamp Boogie seeing the reintroduction of the dancers who mob the lead singer whilst the audience, many dressed as frogs themselves, party the morning away.
This was an overwhelming start to the day, and those who made the effort will have some fantastic memories to take away. I see more coming from these guys, so watch this space.
Imperial Age
The first trip to the main Ronnie James Dio stage saw the arrival of Imperial Age, our favourite Atlantean-obsessed Russians. It has been a long journey for the band, who left their homeland, Russia, in protest at the attack on Ukraine and over a period of time they worked their way through Europe via Turkey before they were offered Asylum through artistic visas in the home of Heavy Metal, the UK.
Although the original band are only represented now by the two singers and founders, Jane Odintsova and Alexander ‘Aor’ Osipov, they have clearly spent their recent time working hard to reimagine the band, and this was one of the first outings of the new Imperial Age.
Despite a few technical gremlins, they provide a set of melodic and powerful Symphonic Metal with dual singers Aor and Jane swapping vocal duties. Interestingly, on the newer material, two songs played today, Jane has now turned to more extreme, dirty vocals to complement her symphonic tones. It works well with the newer extreme vocals, creating a much heavier sound that has the potential to reach across the varying Metal genres.
With a new band in place, it has also enabled them to redefine the sound of Imperial Age and has enabled the band to expand and adapt their songwriting and musical prowess, with them utilising sudden breakdowns, a thrashier approach to the music, and lower guitar tunings, which gives the music a darker resonance.
Though playing early in the day, the set is generally a success, and they pull a good crowd. Unfortunately, the gremlins continue, and as they introduce their latest single, Gnosis, a song which has not been played live before from their forthcoming album, the sound completely cuts out and the band are left high and dry. This, as it would later turn out, was due to a timing error on the part of Aor.
On the positive side, they had done enough in their time to show why they are still a pull, and that they can clearly expand and develop their career here in the UK. On this, showing the future looks bright.
Vended
Mid-afternoon sees the power and precision that is Ohio noise merchants Vended. Coming over in a similar vein to compatriots Slipknot, which is unsurprising due to two members of the band being the sons of members of Slipknot. Singer Griffin Taylor is the son of Corey Taylor, and drummer Simon Crahan is the son of Shawn ‘The Clown’ Crahan.
The band produced a set of cranium-crunching, intense heavy metal that saw fans flocking to the arena. These were a big pull, and they did not disappoint.
They have clearly learned a lot about the business from family, as Griffin is the consummate frontman who whirls around the stage like a dervish, spitting out the angst-filled vocals. He is ably assisted by the masked bassist Jeremiah Pugh, who clearly takes a strong role in the songwriting with the application of his heavy bass riffs.
This is a band that take no prisoners and they are here to ensure that Bloodstock is laid waste.
With songs played from across their career, it is no surprise that numbers such as Am I The Only One and set closer Asylum are religiously received by the delirious hordes. Quite simply a triumph.
Northlane
Next up are a quite different contingent in alt-Metal pioneers Northlane, an Australian Heavy Metal band hailing from Blacktown, Sydney who were formed in 2009. Their sound encompasses a number of different styles which are combined to make an interesting take on the genre.
You cannot take this band for granted, as they more than made it clear that if they thought the audience was getting comfortable within a song, then they would take a side step and mix it up.
They describe themselves as Metalcore and Progressive Metalcore with Djent overtones, courtesy of their keyboard wizard and guitarist Jon Deiley, who weaves techno magic in the background, creating a secondary layer to the tunes.
The band currently comprises guitarists Jon Deiley and Josh Smith, drummer Nic Pettersen and vocalist Marcus Bridge, who must go down as the best-dressed and nattiest singer on the bill so far this weekend.
Northlane have currently released six studio albums with their latest, Anemoia, due out later this year. From this set it is clear that they are a band who are unafraid to experiment and are clearly ambitious, although carrying no commercial compromise in their sound. Yet, there is a clear freshness in their approach to their music.
In the future, they have a seven-date UK tour announced for November and early December this year, starting in Wolverhampton and culminating at the 02 Academy Brixton. So get along. You may be very pleasantly surprised.
Nevermore
This weekend, Bloodstock is fortunate enough to be responsible for Nevermore playing one of their first shows in 16 years. The US Power Metal titans brought a perfect retro set of thrash aggression, and progressive complexity.
With the show being a tribute to founder Warrel Dane, who died after a heart attack in 2017, it meant that today was very special for all concerned, and the band were clearly intent on ensuring that this was a triumph.
Currently, the band remains built around long-time members Jeff Loomis on guitars and Van Williams on drums, but have recently been joined by Jack Cattoi on guitars, Oceans Of Slumber’s Semir Özerkan on bass, and Turkish singer Berzan Önen on vocals.
With no new material, the set was built around their greatest hits, and there was no one complaining about that. As intimated previously, it has been a long time since they visited these shores, and there was a strong and clear intention of putting that right on the Bloodstock stage.
With songs such as Beyond Within, Narcosynthesis and The River Dragon Has Come, there is a multitude of opportunities for the band to unleash their own special and seasoned Thrash upon the willing fans. Additionally, it seems as though there is more headbanging going on stage than in the audience, although this is probably because the assorted Bloodstock hordes are too busy creating circle pits.
It is energetic, it is enthusiastic, and it is completely entrancing and enthralling. If Nevermore came back with a message, then they more than delivered it.
Bleed From Within
So, from the old skool to the new kids on the block. Well, I had written that in advance before realising that Bleed From Within have been a band for 23 years and are nearing a similar anniversary to the one that Bloodstock is celebrating this weekend.
However, the booking of this Scots Metalcore/Death Crossover was a moment of absolute magic.
Producing the biggest audience of the day, they were here to conquer. If the Scottish football team had as much attitude and enthusiasm as Scott Kennedy and his motley crew then they may well have won the World Cup. Unfortunately, Scott, you have got to keep dreaming.
Their approach to the show was one of conquering uncompromise. Opening to a bagpiper, the Celtic and delicate choral vocals of Hannah Boulton who is almost an additional member of the band having performed backing vocals on their last four studio albums and for the first time today in the live environment.
It was clear that for the band, today was something very special, and as Scott pointed out, it was the biggest gig they have played in their career so far. Being honest, on this appearance they should have no problem moving up to headliner status soon.
Not only do they have the stage presence they also have the songs. With Scott Kennedy berating and cajoling the audience at every opportunity, they worked Bloodstock to its knees, although they did bounce back when requested.
Opening the set with Zenith from their latest album, they tore through a set that was intrinsically popular with the audience, who were gleefully screaming every note and crunching chord.
Levitate and In Place Of Your Halo saw the audience ecstatic, and it was clear that for many here today, this was the set of the day. Long may the Scottish hordes continue to conquer.
Slaughter To Prevail
Finally, we come to the evening’s headliner, and it was of interest to us to see how Slaughter To Prevail would be received. Lead Singer and Frontman Alex Terrible (Aleksandr Shikolay) has made no secret that there are parts of his life that he now deeply regrets, and he aired this openly during this performance.
On tonight’s show, it seems as though Bloodstock are forgiving, as the band came out and brought a visually stunning and intense Deathcore experience that shook the night.
The band, originally formed in Yekaterinburg in Russia are now based in Orlando, Florida, USA and have been through numerous line-up changes over the years. So, what do we make of the latest version?
Visually, they were stunning, hitting the stage to storms of pyro and bedecked in devil masks. It seemed as though the gates of Hell had opened in Derbyshire, and from the start there was no holding them back.
This was an experience and an absolute triumph.
Technically, the band are awesome, and their bone-crunching delivery shakes you to the very core. There is a visceral musical extremism on show tonight, with the band not risking leaving survivors. The crowd was worked constantly and to within an inch of their lives, yet the band were also leaving their souls on the stage. This was an incredible musical love in based on uncompromising attitudes.
The songs reflected the intensity and angst that the band bring to their performances. Bonebreaker, Demolisher, I’m Dead are delivered with a brutality that is reflected in Alex guttural delivery. Every growl and scream is returned by the audience, who are worshipping at Slaughter’s dark altar.
I have said it before, and I will say it tonight. But coming in with an open mind made this show all the more interesting, and by the end there was another convert.
Quite simply awesome.
Bloodstock 2026 will be held over the long weekend of 6-9 August 2026. MetalTalk’s Matty Hunter, Adrian Stonley and Keith Conlin will report from Catton Park.
Take Part: Were you at Bloodstock this year? Who did you enjoy seeing the most? Email MetalTalk Editor Steve Ritchie to share your experience at Bloodstock@MetalTalk.net.
#boa26. For more information, visit bloodstock.uk.com. You can view a map of Bloodstock HERE.
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Bloodstock 2027 will be held over August 5th – 8th. Early bird standard weekend tickets will be available at the main entrance box office throughout the festival, priced £210.00 with no booking fee. Tickets can be purchased online from Monday 10th August at 9 am at the official Bloodstock website.
