Bloodstock Open Air Festival // Metal 2 The Masses // Semi-Final 1 // Northern Ireland

So, here we are at the business end of M2TM for Northern Ireland, our first semi-final of 2025 and it will be a good one!

This is less of a review and more the ramblings of a man-man, Tarrifs wha! Yeeeeooo!

We’ve seen these bands before, all clawing their way out of their respective tasty heats to be here again this evening at Voodoo, Belfast. It has been a lovely week’s weather and the spirits are high as we make our way into the weekend and another night packed with metal and more from some of Northern Ireland’s finest up-and-coming bands.

The good weather means that those who are working in the city centre are packed into the local pubs and the town is tres busy, so much so parking is an issue and I do a few laps before finally landing a spot close to Voodoo itself, the crowd outside enjoying the warm weather means everyone is in fine form as we count down the minutes to tonight’s opener, From Ruins.

From Ruins is one of Northern Ireland’s hottest properties on the metal scene right now, grafting away, heads down refining their sound, they have grown exponentially over the last few years since they made their return to the local scene, fusing a modern multi-layered sound with ambient backing tracks, they have a gargantuan sound and deliver so well every time they play. Tonight is no exception, and they lay down a powerful set that sets a pretty high bar for all to follow. A great start to this evening’s proceedings.

Eighty-Four take to the stage next, and an unexpected band in the competition they’re all out punk and a blend of old-school and newer pop-punk which goes down well with the Voodoo crowd, heads are bopping and feet are tapping away, and whilst their frontman keeps apologising for being there as they are “Not a metal band” they are well received as are any Punk-Pop-Punk band who grace the bigger stages locally, we defo need more bands to step up and out of their comfort zone so that our audiences can grow year on year. There is plenty of space out there for any band that can deliver a quality set live. The guys deliver a banger of a set, showing off their years of experience and passion for their genre that spills out into the crowd with their high-energy energy addictive set.

Arc Dakota stepped up next, once again a fresh face in the competition they delivered a strong set on their debut that landed them a well-earned spot in tonight’s semi-final, and again they hit the spot with the Voodoo crowd, plenty of new faces in the room tells me Arc Dakota have brought along an army of fans with them as they step up close to the stage to cheer them on. There are plenty of ladies in the room who seem to be glowing with joy watching their friends do their thing live on stage, they are the lighter side of rock and metal we have in the competition with the only female-fronted band this year left in the competition, so they have a vibe all their own. Three bands down and one to go.

Now Soma are new to me, I must have been covering another show elsewhere when they came through their heat so I didn’t know what to expect, but the arrival of one of our local rockstars standing in the middle of the room awaiting the band to kick off, Anaïs, from the fantabulous Domhain, you know something is afoot, and when Soma kick into their set you realise they’re something pretty special. Post-Metal, all quality. They delivered a set that captures the imagination and makes you stop in your tracks and pay attention, the last time that happened was with Domhain when they debuted in M2TM a while back, and the similarities are eerily similar. A great and unexpected way to end the evening, although it makes you rethink how the voting now may go. Bands that you thought may be in with a chance may be teetering on the edge now.

As James (Loveday) aka Mr Distortion Project, said himself, “Congratulations to S O M A and From Ruins on going through to the Grand Final from last night’s Metal 2 the Masses NI Semi-Final ONE. Strong performances all round! Special thanks to guest headliners Nømadus for closing out the show. They were immense!”

Two killer bands already set a very high bar for the final, Jaysus!

Of course, the night would not have been complete without our very own monsters of metal Nomadus closing off the nights proceedings with a blistering set that drives home just how good these guys are, a stellar band that made their debut in M2TM and took it by the balls and just haven’t looked back since.

One semi-final down, two to go. Tariffs wha? Yeeeeeeoooooo!!!!

Metal 2 the Masses NI powers on this Thursday 10th April with Semi-Final TWO. Expect another hotly contested round, with 2 more grand final places up for grabs. Ticket link and info belowz

https://wegottickets.com/event/653965

Cannibalised Seagulls
Devilsome
Frayed Ends BC
If It Bleeds

**Guest Headliner**
Lost Brethren

Doors 8.00pm – Voodoo Belfast

Band 1: 8.30 – 9.00
Band 2: 9.15 – 9.45
Band 3: 10.00 – 10.30
Band 4: 10.45 – 11.15
Lost Brethren 11.30 – 12.15

Voting closes at 11.30, results announced after Lost Brethren’s set