A stone through away from London Bridge, Moor Beer Vaults got ready to host the first night of the bleedingly good event, No Sleep Till Hellfest. Back after its 2024 debut, the competition saw bands battle it out for a chance to play at the notorious Hellfest this summer. From an initial entry list of just under three hundred bands, ten of those shortlisted descended upon one of the capital’s most exciting heavy music venues.
The stage rumbled under the hefty weight of talent as heads were banged, guitars were struck, and a winner (just one?) was decided. MetalTalk headed down to capture the event, with Bangkitan, Bind and Nymphic taking to the stands first.
No Sleep Till Hellfest
Bangkitan – Bind – Nymphic
Moor Beer Vaults, London – 12 February 2025
Words: Monty Sewell
Photography: Ryan Hildrew
Bangkitan
With a fiery stride, the opening band of the night launched the event into a hot and heavy race as they raised the bar high from the get-go. Bangkitan – hailing from Cambridge – brought fire and flame as they doused the Vaults with their thumpingly good set.
Latest release, Whale Fall, drew the audience into their uncontainable passion for putting on only the best of performances. It was a privilege to see the event kick off with such Hardcore style.
Catching up with the lads after, the atmosphere was nothing but good words for the scene and their fellow band comrades of the night. “It is only our second time playing in London, but it is definitely a step up from last time. It was fucking sick. To play with these other grassroots bands is rewarding in itself.”
Bangkitan’s onstage palpable rage within their music was translated into big grins as they spoke. “We just want to get out there. It is what you dream about as a kid, being in a band and travelling the world. It sounds cheesy, but we are a band of cheese!”
Cheese or not, the one thing for sure is that this band has ambition and the heavy-set sound to match it. “Whale Fall especially is about who you are, what you have done and how you can keep moving on. After this release, we are working on two more, which we are equally excited about. We will play anywhere, birthdays, weddings, divorce parties, just get in touch.”
With a fine catalogue of released music already being built, be sure to check these guys out.
Bind
If there were one way to describe Bind, it would be the absolute King’s of The Breakdown. This band brought everything and more to the stage, with soaring vocals screaming high and basslines heavier than an elephant’s thump. By this point in the night, the beer was flowing, and the audience was packed into the Vault, matching Bind’s energy as they cast their insatiable Metalcore net over London.
In their third year as a band, Bind has already released a plethora of music, including the Split EP, which they did with Born In Dissonance. The comradery in the scene is rife and clear, with Bind’s enthusiasm for sharing their passion equal to their excitement for what is yet to come.
“We actually have another EP in the works which nobody knew about, so that is hot off the press. Some songs were played tonight, which was the first time we played them live, and that was great.”
Another EP and perhaps a trip overseas? “Hellfest would be our first international appearance. I mean, if we got the chance to play Hellfest, we might just do that and then quit. Because how could it get better?”
With constant laughter between them throughout our chat, it is clear Bind has an easy chemistry with one another on and off stage. But they had been mere hours away from not attending the event altogether. “I have tonsillitis, so we only made the decision to come down this morning,” states lead vocalist Jacob.
“We confirmed it with a Peep Show meme. Peep Show and Bind that is what we do.” They do it bloody well, too. And if they had never mentioned the tonsillitis, with vocals like that, we would have never known.
In the true style of a band with huge things on the horizon, Bind goes on to mention they have more announcements to come but must keep things under wrap for the time being. The guys are a true testament to what great things are coming out of the underground scene, and after just one performance, I am completely hooked.
Nymphic
You know you have hit the jackpot with a band when their set leaves you feeling knocked out and gasping for more all at once. Nymphic is precisely what the industry is yearning for to hit the big stages, and no doubt they will do just that. With an infectious energy pounding through every song and an almost overpowering stage presence (not to mention the Alt-Metal-Styled coordinated attire), this band is Hardcore through and through.
There is an underlying political fury for today’s situation, which batters through every lyric screamed. The band scorches the venue into a head-banging pit as they demand the attention of every ear in the building. Nymphic is an unstoppable force that simply needs to be experienced.
“There was only a short time to prepare after our last gig, but it has been so exciting,” Nymphic says after their set. “We gave it our all.” Give it their all; they certainly did. Eager to get their music blasting into my headphones, it was great to hear the band already have a bunch of songs out and with plenty more to come.
“We just released our latest single, Enemy, with a music video and are currently planning the next single release, which will be out soon. Then, after that, an EP.” Despite being seen to be on the incline climbing the tiers of the scene, Nymphic experienced the struggles bands on the rise so frequently do with their song Peony.
“Our aim was to do all the promotion for Peony organically, so we were out on the streets handing out cards, doing everything ourselves. The streams started to go up massively, and because of this, our distributor assumed they were fake – done by bots – so they took the song down. After proving that the streams were, in fact, real, they put the song back up, but it was crazy.”
Not being recognised for efforts is one thing, but being recognised and punished for hard work is something else. We were very happy to hear this hasn’t slowed down Nymphic’s ambitions, who you can catch through March about and around London.
As No Sleep Till Hellfest continued into the night, three more bands were still to go…
