Bloodstock 2025 // The Sophie Lancaster Stage // Sunday August 10th
Review + Photography: Jayne Slater
Sunday mornings at Bloodstock always have a different feel — the last push before reality comes creeping back. It was somehow warmer than Friday’s scorcher, but the site still hummed with that mix of exhaustion and anticipation. Some wandered in slowly, coffee in hand, while others looked ready to dive straight into the pit. And with a stacked Sophie Stage lineup ahead, there was no time to ease into it.
Apathy UK, hailing from the South West, had the honour of opening the stage. For an early slot on the festival’s final day, the tent was surprisingly lively, with plenty of people shaking off hangovers to catch their set. Their live energy was infectious, and sonically, they hit that perfect balance of grit and polish to wake up the crowd. You couldn’t help but nod along, even if your head was still pounding from the night before.
Barbarian Hermit brought a northern flavour next, delivering a blend of sludge and doom metal that somehow felt like the soundtrack to a lost early-2000s video game. The riffs were thick, the grooves slow and heavy, but it was the vocalist who tied it together — not just singing at the audience, but to them, making every lyric feel aimed directly at someone in the crowd.
Frayle’s arrival slowed the tempo but deepened the atmosphere. Described as “heavy, slow, and witchy,” the female-fronted four-piece radiated a thick, almost tangible mood. While some haunting visuals behind them could have elevated the set further, the performance itself was captivating — especially the drummer, who attacked every beat with weight and precision. At times, it felt like you could watch him alone and still get the full impact of the show.
Walls, an instrumental duo of twin brothers, stripped it back to pure musicianship. Their chemistry was obvious, honed long before forming Wall, and their set was a treat for anyone who likes their riffs uninterrupted. With no vocals to cut in, it was all about the interplay between the two guitars — the kind of music you could imagine blasting on a long, head-clearing drive.
Dogma shifted the tone entirely. This all-female band has a concept that’s as striking visually as it is musically, dressing as “haunted nuns” with stage names pulled from villainous female icons in religious history. Their sound, a classic rock blend reminiscent of Within Temptation or Kamelot, had the packed tent in rapture. The audience interaction was next-level — every member making deliberate eye contact and working all sides of the crowd. Fans along the barrier were fully committed, some in painted faces and nun headpieces, turning the performance into a shared experience rather than just a set.
Lowen carried that thematic richness forward but in a completely different way. Drawing on Middle Eastern influences, their music felt like stepping into a myth from a long-forgotten world. The percussion drove each song forward while the vocals soared above it, creating a layered, cinematic effect that was both heavy and hypnotic.
Siglos, hailing from the US, kept the sense of theatre alive with a look somewhere between KISS and blackened doom. Known for their blend of doom and industrial metal, they had a knack for pulling the audience in, not just with riffs but with deliberate, well-paced moments of interaction. They made the set feel like a communal ritual, something you were part of rather than just witnessing.
Thrown brought the chaos back in full force. The Swedish heavyweights have been making serious waves in the hardcore/metalcore new wave, and it’s easy to see why. Their electronic drops ignited the crowd every time, setting off wave after wave of crowd surfers that kept security on high alert. The breakdowns hit like a hammer, and the harsh vocals held their own against the crushing riffs — a set that felt like it could shake the tent apart.
The penultimate slot went to Canadian act 3 Inches of Blood, a band whose sound wears its classic rock influences — especially AC/DC — on its sleeve. The vocal techniques and driving rhythms felt like a love letter to that era, but the heaviness gave it a fresh edge. It was a smart booking for the pre-headliner, offering something both nostalgic and high-energy to bridge the evening into the festival’s final moments.
And then it was time for Obituary to close out Bloodstock 2025. By the time they hit the stage, the Sophie tent was rammed, fans pressed up against the barrier in anticipation. The band’s enthusiasm was palpable — beaming smiles, constant movement, and interaction with the crowd from the very first song. The vocalist made a point of working each side of the stage, hyping the audience into one last frenzy. It was a fitting end: a veteran band delivering a performance that felt celebratory, communal, and just chaotic enough to remind everyone why they’d come in the first place.
As the final notes faded and the crowd spilled out into the night, the weekend’s blur of riffs, heat, and shared moments settled in. Bloodstock 2025 had been three days of unrelenting energy and genre-spanning performances, and if the aches, hoarse voices, and dust-caked clothes were anything to go by, no one was leaving without a story to tell.
Review + Photography: Jayne Slater