Taking place at KK’s Steel Mill in Wolverhampton on 6 December 2025, the inaugural Bloodstock Winter Gathering by the team at Bloodstock Festival promises to be an epic day of Heavy Metal. With two stages and headlined by the legendary Swedish godfathers of Doom, Candlemass, it is a departure from the usual four-day outdoor extravaganza.
Candlemass said they are proud to be part of the Bloodstock Winter Gathering. “We have always felt welcome on British soil,” they said, “and we’re excited to be there once again and deliver our special brand of Swedish doom metal! See ya all soon… Love you.”
A one-day indoor event has more than a few echoes of the origins of the festival, which has been well documented and which we will no doubt hear more about in 2026 with the 25th anniversary of the main festival.
There is no doubt that the best and biggest UK indoor Metal festival is Damnation in Manchester, and having attended their 20th anniversary event just weeks ago, I can see that this is not designed to be a competition in any way.
However, there are a few bands who would look very comfortable on the Damnation bill, and of course, there is one band that tore a burning hole on the Damnation stage in 2025 on this bill – the blackened thrash of Hellripper, who sit snuggly on the post tea slot.
When you are flagging, there is no one better than the DIY ethos of James McBain to get the pit swirling once more. It has been over a decade since Hellripper first hit our vision, and if their set is half as intense as it was at the BEC arena, they should be a massive hit.
I would also be unsurprised if the likes of Venom Inc, special guests on the day and Mancunian thrashers Tortured Demon grace the Damnation stage in the future. But this is not about Damnation, but Bloodstock.
It is a return to the heavier sound that Bloodstock used to offer, with Welsh bruisers King Kraken and the antics of Raised By Owls also on the bill.
There is never anything less than 110% from Tony Dolan and his Venom Inc. troops, and with the band’s own songs combined with those Black Metal classics, Venom Inc., will fill the special guest slot with ease.
If it’s a bit of fun you want, then look no further than Raised By Owls. A band that commanded one of the biggest morning crowds in the festival’s history in 2024, there is also the promise of Sam’s mum joining the fray.
For those who witnessed the band on that warm morning, you will know that this should be a lot of laughs. Owls follow Mancunian thrashers Tortured Demon, who are due to release their third album soon. Going out on tour with Bristolian legends Onslaught in 2026, Tortured Demon will take no prisoners with their mid-afternoon Thrash.
Anyone at Stonedead 2025 will know that Welsh metallers King Kraken do not do anything quietly, and whilst we can’t have the amount of pyro they brought that August day, the boys are geared up to smash open the festival.
With a few dates supporting Crobot either side of the festival, the slimmed-down quartet will be looking to make more new friends as they continue their rise.
That’s the warm-up, but for me, this is all about the headliners. Their set at Bloodstock in 2023 was amongst my favourite of all time, and the chills run down my spine just thinking about it.
Over four decades has cemented Candlemass’s place as legends, and I expect to spend a large portion of their set with my head in slow-motion headbanging to those gargantuan riffs. A band that has rarely graced the UK over the years, just 34 shows in their entire career, this promises to be an epic finale.
There’s also a second stage, which sees the theatrics of Red Method joined by thrashers Hell Bearer and the stoner vibes of Thuum. All three bands are worth a watch and combine to make it a stacked bill.
Bloodstock promises loads of additional entertainment, and in typical style, it will be impossible to do everything. We will be catching all the action at MetalTalk.
Final tickets are still available at Bloodstock Winter Gathering.
