Live Reviews – Wonderbox Metal

Damnation Festival 2025 – BEC Arena, Manchester – 08/11/25-09/11/25 (Live Review)

Another year, another Damnation Festival. Has it really been 20 years? I went to the very first one waaaaay back in 2005, and a love affair was born. It has been great to watch it become one of the world’s best festivals. Kudos to the organisers for their continued passion and ability.

This edition is therefore the festival’s twentieth year and sees Damnation bigger and arguably better than ever before. It’s across two days now, and the lineup is strong in both depth and breadth. From veteran classics to newborn sensations, the festival has it all. Continue reading “Damnation Festival 2025 – BEC Arena, Manchester – 08/11/25-09/11/25 (Live Review)”

Blood Incantation/Oranssi Pazuzu – Albert Hall, Manchester – 08/10/25 (Live Review)

One of the hottest bands around at the moment, (for good reason), playing in a venue I haven’t been to before, supported by another great band I’ve really wanted to see? Hard to pass up. So here we are, Blood Incantation and Oranssi Pazuzu at Manchester’s Albert Hall. Win. Continue reading “Blood Incantation/Oranssi Pazuzu – Albert Hall, Manchester – 08/10/25 (Live Review)”

Portal/Impetuous Ritual/Abduction – Rebellion, Manchester – 18/09/25 (Live Review)

When a rare chance to see Portal and Impetuous Ritual appears, you take it. The show being opened by the mighty Abduction is then simply the icing on the top. Continue reading “Portal/Impetuous Ritual/Abduction – Rebellion, Manchester – 18/09/25 (Live Review)”

Pelican/Ni – Yes (Pink Room), Manchester – 13/08/25 (Live Review)

Both Pelican and Ni are in the UK for ArcTanGent, (I’ll get there one day), so it’s a great opportunity to catch them doing their thing. I don’t know Ni at all, but I’ve been waiting to get the chance to see Pelican for over two decades (!), so am very excited.

Yes isn’t a venue I’ve been to before, but I like it. Melvins are also playing Manchester tonight, which is a bit of bad luck for both bands really, as I’m pretty sure there are more than a few shared fans between them. Regardless, those in attendance tonight are in the right place as it turns out. Continue reading “Pelican/Ni – Yes (Pink Room), Manchester – 13/08/25 (Live Review)”

Psycroptic/Ghost Bath/Underdark – Rebellion, Manchester – 02/08/25 (Live Review)

Psycroptic, Ghost Bath, and Underdark were originally part of a larger event, (with a pretty damn sexy lineup), that got cancelled for reasons unknown. In its place is this very enticing show, with only these three bands surviving the cut. It was a relatively late change, with the tickets not transferring, so I was hoping that this new event would have sold enough tickets in its own right to have a decent-sized crowd for the bands. Regardless of the turnout, I’ve been looking forward to this, Psycroptic especially, as I’ve never seen them and they’re one of the best tech death bands in existence. Continue reading “Psycroptic/Ghost Bath/Underdark – Rebellion, Manchester – 02/08/25 (Live Review)”

Offal Fest – Sunday Evening – Defeated Sanity/Wormed/Indecent Excision/Iniquitous Savagery – Manchester Rebellion, 27/07/25 (Live Review)

Offal Fest is a three-day festival of ultra-brutal death metal carnage. It consists of two main days, with a pre-show. Originally I was meant to attend both the Saturday and the Sunday, but much to my chagrin life got in the way, and instead the final four bands of the Sunday are all that I can manage, (I’m particularly gutted about missing Skinless). It’s time to make the most of it though, as I can still see some cracking bands, and I’ve been looking forward to it. Continue reading “Offal Fest – Sunday Evening – Defeated Sanity/Wormed/Indecent Excision/Iniquitous Savagery – Manchester Rebellion, 27/07/25 (Live Review)”

Mangata Festival – Nottingham, 12/07/25 (Live Review)

Mangata Festival was not at all on my radar, until I found out that Ante-Inferno, Abduction, and Devastator were playing it, (originally The Infernal Sea too). Throw in Wolvencrown, who I’ve never seen before, and it certainly peaked my interest. Continue reading “Mangata Festival – Nottingham, 12/07/25 (Live Review)”

Fortress Festival 2025 – Scarborough Spa, Scarborough, 31/05/25-01/06/24 (Live Review)

I’m so happy to be back at one of the world’s best black metal festivals. I love it here at Fortress Festival, and I can’t wait to work through such a great lineup again. If you haven’t been here before, make sure you don’t miss the 2026 edition.

Last year’s Fortress was excellent. I saw every band available, with the exception of a mere few when I needed to find food, essentially. This year I’m going to try an adopt a more sensible approach, (at least from one perspective), and not kill myself trying to catch everything again. Having said that, I’ll still be trying to watch as many bands as I realistically can, while factoring in food, downtime, circumstances, etc. This year’s lineup is so good though, that every band is worth seeing, and in an ideal world I’d do just that. Regardless, we’ll see how we get on. And also, there are some bands playing this weekend that are just absolutely mandatory.

Before we get into it – as was the case last year, I have once again been blessed to be able to use the stunning photographs from the very talented Aleksandra Hogg, (which is why they are far, far, far superior to the photos I normally take when left to my own devices). I urge you to check out her work at Acidolka here, here, or here. Continue reading “Fortress Festival 2025 – Scarborough Spa, Scarborough, 31/05/25-01/06/24 (Live Review)”

Make Them Suffer/Resolve/Conjurer/If Not for Me – Academy 2, Manchester – 10/05/25 (Live Review)

I fell hard for last year’s Make Them Suffer, so the opportunity to catch the band live was irresistible. Since then, I’ve only enjoyed the album more and more, and I’ve delved into their back catalogue too. In general, I’m not a huge fan of modern metalcore, but Make Them Suffer are a notable exception. They somehow manage to effectively manifest a host of ideas and sounds that I would usually not care for most of the time; they have that special something in abundance.

Anyway, fawning over with, let’s get to the show. There are three other bands first, only one – Conjurer – that I already know. Continue reading “Make Them Suffer/Resolve/Conjurer/If Not for Me – Academy 2, Manchester – 10/05/25 (Live Review)”

Ultha/Ante-Inferno/Andracca – Rebellion, Manchester – 15/03/25 (Live Review)

Featuring Andracca and Ante-Inferno, two of the leading lights of the UK black metal underground, as well as the mighty Ultha, this was a show I could not afford to miss. Especially as, in my humble opinion, Ultha are probably the best modern black metal band in the world. It promises to be a great show. Continue reading “Ultha/Ante-Inferno/Andracca – Rebellion, Manchester – 15/03/25 (Live Review)”