Review: Cradle Of FIlth (Liam Williams)

Cradle Of Filth – The Screaming Of The Valkyries (Napalm Records)

The legendary Cradle Of Filth are back on top form with their brand new 14th album The Screaming Of The Valkyries and you can bet I got my goth on with this one! This band have been around for a few years now and they’ve had a lot of success and garnered a big cult following in that time. So how does this new album hold up compared to the rest of their catalogue? Well, if you ask me, this has got to be one of if not THE best album(s) they have ever released. It’s got a little bit of everything we’ve come to expect from this band, and more! I am very impressed, so let’s get into it!

The album starts with To Live Deliciously. The intro has some thunder and other atmosphere building sounds before some strings and choir chants come in. We get some creepy whispers from frontman Dani Filth, before the band come chugging in to build up the heaviness. The main riff comes in with some blastbeats and then ol’ Dani boy comes screeching in, making a grand entrance. There’s some nice melodic lead guitar in the chorus and then a more lively, thrashy second verse. We’re also treated to not 1 but 2 flashy guitar solos back to back. A great start, but this is just the beginning! 

Demagoguery is up next and this one starts with some strings and a harpsichord. The real intro is when the band comes in and I love this part. There’s a nice flow to the verses between the band and vocals. They come in with some nice chuggy pre-choruses. I wasn’t really blown away by the choruses in this one but the rest of the song is really good. There’s a sombre instrumental part in the bridge with strings before Dani’s creepy vocals come back in. This bridge section has a bit of a Danny Elfman vibe to it. We get some duel guitars before another bridge section which leads into the final part of the song. With piano and strings closing things out after the final chorus. 

The Trinity Of Shadows follows up and immediately kicks off with a chaotic heavy intro with some great guitar work. They slow things down a bit for the verses in this one but build up speed with the pre-chorus and chorus. There’s some good backing vocals in the chorus sections and I love the piano part in the pre-chorus. We get a little bass solo leading into the bridge section which leads to a guitar solo/duel where both lead guitars compliment each other extremely well. After the final chorus we get another guitar duel for the outro.

Track 4 is Non Omnis Moriar and begins with a slower more haunting sounding intro. We get some lead guitars and whispers joining in for the first verse. There’s more great lead playing in the pre-chorus and some fantastic female vocals coming in for the choruses. We are treated to another short but sweet guitar solo before the final pre-chorus comes in leading to the outro. 

White Hellebore is really when this album gets exciting and the next few tracks are perhaps some of the best in Cradle’s entire collection! It’s kicks off with some crazy chaotic fun with epic lead guitar playing and blastbeats for the intro. There’s some great back and forth between Dani’s and keyboard player Zoe’s vocals for the chorus again, giving this song some heavy Nightwish vibes in some parts. The second verse keeps the heavy but feels a bit more bouncy compared to the first, just some great playing from the band overall. There’s a breakdown sounding part before the bridge comes in. The second half of this bridge is absolutely fantastic! This then leads to the final chorus before we get an outro with some spoken words from Dani to end this track. 

This is followed by another great track, You Are My Nautilus. This one has a big intro but calms things down a touch with some clean guitars coming in for the verses. They get heavy again leading up to the chorus with some more tasty lead guitar playing. Then we get a little drum solo with choir vocals leading into the chorus. This structure is repeated a second time around but with the addition of some creepy laughing in the pre-chorus. There’s 3 bridge sections broken up with some more brilliant lead guitar riffs and solos, with the 3rd bridge leading into the final chorus. Then the band fades out for the outro, leaving just the sound of waves to end the track.

Coming to the final 3 tracks of the album, first Malignant Perfection. This one has a particularly ominous intro which leads into a proper symphonic metal sound. They dial things back for the verses, but everything else is chaotic and over the top. Great guitar playing, great drumming, just another all round great sounding track, with a surprisingly scary yet somehow happy sounding outro. I don’t know how they managed to do that, but they’ve done it well! 

Next up is Ex Sanguine Draculae. This is another fun, heavy track which is easy to headbang to. The best way I can describe this track is it’s all over the place in the best possible way! And to end the album, they created a very fitting song, When Misery Was A Stranger, which sounds like the kind of music you’d hear during a final boss fight at the end of an epic game. Very heavy energetic intro, thrashy verses, a return of Zoe’s angelic vocals in the choruses and 2 guitar solos. Things slow down a bit for a short instrumental section before the guitars and drums come back strong for the bridge/verse section leading to the outro where things slow down again before the band fades out and the album ends.

This album really blew me away. I’ll admit, I naively considered maybe I’d be disappointed, but I am so glad I was wrong! Cradle have proven they’ve still got it! And this might just be my new favourite album of theirs! The band played exceptionally well! And although I am not a massive fan of Dani’s vocals, they just work here. Brilliant stuff, can’t fault them. Album sounds great, the band played great, and it was a lot of fun to listen to! 10/10

Review: Steven Wilson (Matt Bladen)

Steven Wilson - The Overview (Fiction Records)

A new Steven Wilson album! Ring the bells! Sound the claxon! Fire up the synthesizers! It's no secret I love this musical maven, I've pretty loved everything he's ever been involved in, even Bassinvaders, so I always have a huge amount of anticipation when he releases something new.

Previous album The Harmony Codex was his isolationist record, a more complex sprawling musical journey than previous records, it was his most experimental album since Grace From Drowning. Wilson recorded in solitude the guest appearances coming remotely.

It was quite sparse clinical collection, so it's no wonder then that The Overview, Wilson's eighth album is a warmer sounding affair, musically harking back to Tangerine Dream, Vangelis and middle period (post Saucerful/pre Darkside) Pink Floyd.

Again Wilson plays the majority of the instruments with particular focus on keys/synths/organs to set the atmosphere of this record, but moving away from the electronic influence that was present of previous albums, shifting more towards the classic prog rock he previously dabbled with on The Raven That Refused To Sing.

Wilson joined by Adam Holzman (Hammond/Rhodes/Synth), Randy McStine (guitar/keys/synth), Theo Travis (sax/flute) as the core band on the album as Russell Holzman and Craig Blundell are the two drummers, one per track. The Overview is just 2 tracks but 41 minutes of music and the concept around it deals with the cognitive shift that comes from viewing the earth from space.

So for the first track we have Objects Out Live Us, quietly beginning it's just that distinctive Steven Wilson voice and stripped back synthesizers, there's something building and then a piano comes in, then a drumbeat and things begin properly with an insistent build ala Astronomy Domine then dives into off-kilter harmony and acoustics that bring to mind the Porcupine Tree material.

Existential meets mundane, the lyrics are suitably obtuse allowing you make your own interpretation of what's happening, I believe Andy Partridge of XTC was involved with this side and it's obvious when you listen. In the middle we shift into a middle section that would be out of place on a King Crimson record, all angular guitar and jazz drums. We return to the beginning then switch to a keening guitar solo that takes us to the last dissonant moments, throughout the backing vocals of Willow Beggs spectrally joining both Wilson and McStine's harmonies.

As things fade to black the oscillating EDM thump of The Overview begins as Rotem Wilson starts to describe the largest celestial bodies in the universe by size. It's with track that the Vangelis influences are strong, much like Laibach too. But those gorgeous acoustics return and we begin things properly with an epic, cinematic scope. We float through the vast emptiness of space and let the beauty of the planet wash over us, reminding us just how important yet infinitely forgettable we are in the scope of the universe.

Upbeat tinged with bittersweet it's Steven Wilson 101, however it does seem that Wilson has mellowed since getting married, but musically he still creates innovative songs that are heavily inspired by classic prog but always carry his own seal. The Overview (song) closes with sax and smooth synth and a whiff of Shine On You Crazy Diamond.

Another classic piece of Steven Wilson brilliance, The Overview is just two tracks but will leave you in bit of awe of the talent involved. 10/10

Reviews: Tiberius (Matt Bladen)

Tiberius - Singing For Company (Self Released)



When I first saw Tiberius I was hooked, the Scottish band were thrilling with a boisterous stage show and a musical range that pours power metal into Djent. They were a joyous addition to any festival or show I saw them at never staying fully on the stage and getting the crowd involved as much as they could with their antics. Behind all the antics though were a five piece who were all skilled musicians and knew how best to approach songwriting and their stage show.

I didn't actually the know the band had been going for so long when I saw them but I immediately picked up their debut album Peaceful Annihilation and played the hell out of it, the way that they combined the technical prog metal style with D&D-like fantasy, melodies and chunky riffage melded together alongside only clean vocals (no growls here), made it one of my most played. 

On the back of the debut album they have toured all over and played festivals such as ProgPower and Radar, it's in these shows that a lot of this material that appears on this album was workshopped, through all the breakdowns, Goblin pits and facial gurning, Tiberius became something fresher, something that will captivate a wider audience, streamlining their songs for maximum anthemic value.

So I was very excited to hear they were releasing a second album. Singing For Company is that album and from the title you can see that the whole point of these tracks is to get you moving, get you upbeat, even when things seem hopeless, or the world is getting worse, you can still escape with music. Tiberius have knack for putting often political, personal lyrics through fantasy world building and satirical, often snarky delivery. 

A track such as Tip Of The Spear for instance has been in their set for a while now and the refrain of "Feed Me Please My Oracle" is there for call and response, a big chorus hook that will get stuck in your head. It's of course also a double entendre about how we are fed information right or wrong. Chunky start stop riffs give way to flowing melodies and technical arpeggios as guitarists Jahan Tabrizi and Chris Foster wield their weapons with mastery. Driven by the fat grooving basslines and moments of fingerstyle virtuosity from Ryan Anderson.

Tiberius is prog you can dance too and there's nothing wrong with that as you will get jiggy with Anderson and Nick Kelly controlling the rhythm on the propulsive Juggernaut, it's angular but funky, elements of dance cultures and the use of synth patterns that is so prevalent in djent today. With Grant Barclay, Tiberius have a vocalist who has all the gravitas of someone such as Paul Carrack or Myles Kennedy, Mosaic and Singing For Company both using them well with big melodic rock influences. 

Though the former also showcases what I said in a recent Tesseract live review that Djent style riffs are now the acceptable face of prog and metal in general. The latter meanwhile is classic prog metal fused with Journey-like melodic rock choruses. Singing For Company advances Tiberius as a band be it the, the acoustic classical guitar middle section of Soul Saviour, more strings in Mosaic or those synth patterns that I talked about. The whole record feels fully formed, the band Tiberius have become through years of sweat and tears.

The orchestration in opener New Revelation and last track Touch The Past are the alpha and omega of this record, they share similarities but feel like a definitive beginning and end. The darker opening builds from their last album while the parp of bagpipes on the finale closes with guests female vocals and boisterous modern prog metal with shifting rhythms. Tiberius are Singing For Company and you definitely need to join this choir if you love thrilling modern prog. 10/10

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025: Interview With Bleed The Fifth (Swansea Heat #3)

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025



1. Please introduce yourself for anyone who may not know you. Tell us a little bit more about you as a band.

We're Bleed the Fifth - a metalcore band hailing from South Wales. We formed in 2022 with the intentions of bringing back that 2000's metalcore sound. If you haven't heard us yet, then you're in for a hell of a show!

2. What made you want to participate in the Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025 campaign? Have you had previous experience? Or is this your first time?

This is our second time in M2TM, but we're looking forward to crushing it (hopefully) this year. We love metal, festivals and playing shows so BOA would be a dream show for us.

3. M2TM is all about supporting your local scene. How important is the local scene to you as a band?

Very important. We've made a it a tradition of sorts to play our first show of the year at the Bunkhouse, as it was our forst ever show there, our first show with our new bassist a year later, and there's so many good memories there. Without the local scene we wouldn't be pushing to go bigger and better as a band. It means everything.

4. What are your expectations from being a part of M2TM?

We hope to just have a sick time. We're all about having fun and having that party energy in our sets, and we know we'll get that same energy back from the competition.

5. What would playing a Sold Out Bloodstock Festival mean to you?

Pretty much everything. It would be such a big milestone in our careers, and our bassist goes every year so it would be the BEST show we've ever played.

6. We encourage all the bands in M2TM to try and check out the other bands, who are you most looking forward to? Who should your fans also try to catch?

There's too many to name, but Struggler, Akuma, Hallowed Existence are definitely one's to watch out for

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025: Interview With Thawn (Swansea Heat #3)

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025



1. Please introduce yourself for anyone who may not know you. Tell us a little bit more about you as a band.

We’re Thawn, a Bridgend based band looking to write great music and find our own form of success. We consist of Miles Davis (drums) Dylan Norris (vocals and guitar) and Kate Roberts (bass). We started in January of last year and have since played a host of gigs including Green Rooms and more recently Black Cat, and have released two tracks on Spotify. We love all sorts of music and like to consider ourselves pretty eclectic, but our style leans more towards the grunge and metal side. This year we’re looking to really expand our following and we hope to gain a small army and take over a historical castle.

Our socials are:

thawn.official - Instagram
Thawn - TikTok, YouTube and Spotify

2. What made you want to participate in the Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025 campaign? Have you had previous experience? Or is this your first time?

This is our first time participating in Metal 2 the Masses, and whatever happens, we just enjoy playing and are happy to get out there and make connections. Being realistic, it feels us though we haven’t amassed enough of a following to get us to the big stage, but prove us wrong!

3. M2TM is all about supporting your local scene. How important is the local scene to you as a band?

We absolutely love being part of a local music community in Bridgend, although more specifically in Maesteg where 2/3 members are based, there isn’t much of a scene at the moment, which is really disappointing because we’ve heard many a story of what it was like back in the day, if anything we’d just be happy to restore a bit of life to that scene.

4. What are your expectations from being a part of M2TM?

Well of course we would adore to play Bloodstock, and trust us we’d make full use of that spotlight, with that opportunity it could open us up to making a tangible career of something we’re so passionate about. However, even removed from that, we’re happy to see other bands play and get involved in the scene a bit more, really placing our mark as the year goes on.

5. What would playing a Sold Out Bloodstock Festival mean to you?

The world, really. The idea of playing in front of hundreds of people on a big stage with other major bands and indulging in all of our musical fantasies is picturesque. We’d develop ourselves as artists, giving what we have to say back to the world. It feels completely detached from reality, but it lets us sleep at night believing good music eventually gets the attention it deserves, even in such a cruel and apathetic industry. Daniel Johnston would be a good example of this.

6. We encourage all the bands in M2TM to try and check out the other bands. Who are you most looking forward to? Who should your fans also try to catch?

After listening to some of Mudlarker’s stuff, we’d say they’re worth checking out! The vocals we think are the standout with some nice atmospheric guitar work at points!

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025: Interview With Hollowed Existence (Swansea Heat #3)

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025


1. Please introduce yourself for anyone who may not know you. Tell us a little bit more about you as a band.

We are a 4 piece metalcore band based in Carmarthen.

Robert Williams: lead guitar/vocals

Steff Davies: Drums

Iwan Brown: bass/vocals

Tom Ferriman: rhythm guitar/vocals

We will have been playing live shows for a year in April, during our time together we have released 3 singles (Hollowed Existence, Fuelling Fire & Dead Man's Eyes) as well as an EP. We are currently working on new material for an album which is yet to be announced.

Each member of the band has different influences therefore our song writing is inspired by a variety of metal bands such as BFMV, Trivium, The Ghost Inside, slipknot, cannibal corpse and many more.

2. What made you want to participate in the Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025 campaign? Have you had previous experience? Or is this your first time?

This will be our first time playing in M2TM. We decided to enter to gain more experience playing in front of a larger audience and judges as well as getting the chance to meet more people in the scene and bands to look out for. Each member of the band’s dream is to turn what is currently their hobbies into a full time job and we believe M2TM will be the perfect direction to take to make our dream a reality.

3. M2TM is all about supporting your local scene. How important is the local scene to you as a band?

Supporting the local scene is very important to us. Without other local bands agreeing to play shows with us or asking us to play shows with them, we would not be in the position that we are now. It’s also very important to build a good relationship with other local bands so we can all work together and help each other succeed in the music scene.

4. What are your expectations from being a part of M2TM?

No matter what the outcome turns out for us, we hope to make a positive impact for everyone who watches us perform at M2TM. We want to spread our music across to as many people who are willing to listen so that we can bring our fans to more shows and give them the opportunity to listen to more bands and help the scene grow. Alongside making new connections and friends with other local bands for future shows and expanding our fan base. Also to impress local music promoters and potential record companies.

5. What would playing a Sold Out Bloodstock Festival mean to you?

Playing a sold out Bloodstock festival would mean the world to all members of the band. We have all worked hard to get to where we are currently at so if we were able to play at Bloodstock it would show us and other bands that all the hard work will pay off. Every single member of the band's goal is to make it on the bill for Bloodstock as we are all huge fans of the festival so the opportunity to play there means everything to us.

6. We encourage all the bands in M2TM to try and check out the other bands. Who are you most looking forward to? Who should your fans also try to catch?

During this last year, we have come across a number of local bands who have or haven’t already played shows with us. Every single band deserves to get as much exposure as they can. We recommend our fans to check out Bleed the Fifth, Struggler, Paradox to Stay and Akuma as we’ve had first hand experience checking these guys out and know they will not disappoint. We recommend our fans to listen to as many local metal bands as possible as we will be looking to work with as many bands as possible in the future.

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025: Interview With Risperidrone (Cardiff Heat #3)

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025



1. Please introduce yourself for anyone who may not know you. Tell us a little bit more about you as a band.

We are Risperidrone, a four-piece from Cardiff who play groovy, doomy metal with heaps of chunky riffs, nasty vocals and self-deprecating stage banter, with a bit of room every now and then for some more laid back moments in between the fuzz. If we can get a few stank faces going in the audience then we know we’ve done our job.

We’ve been playing together for almost 2 years now in our current line up of Giacomo Fiderio on vocals, Wigg Grant on guitar, Tom Kirkby on the drums and Rob Edwards on bass.

2. What made you want to participate in the Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025 campaign? Have you had previous experience? Or is this your first time?

We love M2TM! We’ve been involved as a band in both 2022 and 2024, making it to the quarter finals last year, and each show we’ve participated in, it’s always been a great time. We’ve had experience with M2TM in previous bands also, and Giac and Rob also made it all the way to Bloodstock last year in their other band Root Zero.

It’s been so much fun both times and it really feels like there’s a big energy at each of the shows. We’d love to go the distance this year but there’s a lot of joy in just participating, there’s always a great crowd, and it’s a time where every band involved brings their A-Game and puts on a hell of a show so being able to discover and meet with other bands is also a big driver for wanting to be involved.

3. M2TM is all about supporting your local scene. How important is the local scene to you as a band?

The local scene is really important to us! We absolutely wouldn’t be where we are as a band without the support of the bands and venues in the scene. Fuel and The Bunkhouse in particular are venues we’re very familiar with as a band and have had a lot of great times playing at both.

As well as that we’ve made some great friends with some of the bands we’ve played with here, and always have a great laugh whenever we’re playing a local show.

4. What are your expectations from being a part of M2TM? (Try to talk about more than playing Bloodstock, making connections, anything else etc)

We’d love to try and get further through the competition this year, the Day of Wreckoning last year was a hell of an event, the organisers really put on something special, so being able to take part in that as a band would be amazing! And of course we’ll be playing with plenty of bands that we’ve not had the pleasure of meeting yet, so it’d be awesome to make some new band friends!

5. What would playing a Sold Out Bloodstock Festival mean to you?

Well it means some of us would need extra room in our tents for our gear! Bloodstock has become the go-to festival for a few of us and has a special place in our hearts. Being able to play this year and get on the poster with some of our favourite bands like Mastodon, Static-X and Machine Head would be unreal

6. We encourage all the bands in M2TM to try and check out the other bands, who are you most looking forward to? Who should your fans also try to catch?

We’ll definitely all be down to the Cardiff Heat 2! Karmen Field and Painted by Monsters are both amazing bands who put on incredible shows, we’ve had the pleasure of playing several gigs with and we’ll be rooting for both!

On the Swansea side, Kill By Mouth are an absolute powerhouse and put on an amazing set in last year's final so it would be great to see them again!

Reviews: March Of Scylla, Crown Magnetar, Adamantis, Circu5 (Matt Bladen)

March Of Scylla - Andromeda (Klonosphere Records/Season Of Mist)

French prog metal, now before you start shouting Gojira! March Of Scylla come from the style that's more influenced by Djent bands such as TesseracT, Architects and they've even been compared to Sleep Token which I can hear but they've got a bit more heaviness to them.

Hailing from Aimes, they're a relatively new band on the scene but have releases a couple of EP's before Andromeda but these have bled into creating this debut album. Lyrically inspired by the vastness of space and how our relationship with science can influence our expectations of the afterlife, March Of Scylla makes thought provoking music that has a metallic chug driving an atmospheric post-metal melodious quality.

Now a four piece Andromeda displays the more focussed sound, though I'm not totally sold on the clean vocals, there's still a good balance in the harsh/clean dynamic. Andromeda has March Of Scylla shifting into the alternative metal of today, born from djent but wrought with emotional and radio melodies. 7/10

Crown Magnetar - Punishment EP (Unique Leader Records)

Ah deathcore, the Marmite of genres, on the whole you either detest it or you base you're existence around it. I've always taken it case by case, the bands that add something a little bit different to the mix always interest me more for instance a lot of the Blackened Deathcore bands have gained decent reviews from myself.

Crown Magnetar are about as deathcore as it gets Decapitation Ritual turns breakdowns into breakdowns, into more breakdowns, getting slower and more intense each time as the guttural vocals gurgle and the drums blast at an inhuman pace. It's the last track on this four shit EP but it could be the first, third or second, there's lots of similarities in the music but that's sort of why people like this.

Deathcore is about violence, bloodshed, making sure you punish the listener and terrify then by showing what to expect when you come to see the band live. That's probably why it's called Punishment as if you're a fan you're going to be revelling in smashing the shit out someone in the pit to tracks such as Barbed Wire Noose while if you aren't a fan then you'll be able to hear how long you have to make yourself scarce, about 39 seconds on the intro to Nailed The Fuck Down.

It's pretty simple if you like deathcore you'll like Punishment if not, you won't. Crown Magnetar are prolific proponents of this divisive genre and there seems to be no stopping them. 7/10

Adamantis - Reforged (No Remorse Records)

Yes, yes and yes again! This is a bit of me, epic power metal, high energy songs and histrionic vocals, Reforged is an album  that when I pressed play, I immediately turned it up and oiled up my chest. Forming in 2016 and releasing their debut in 2020, Adamantis are obviously inspired by American acts such as Manowar, Helion Prime, Visigoth and Ironflame plus a glut of European bands such as Hammerfall and Blind Guardian.

Lyrical inspiration comes from J.R.R. Tolkien, Michael Moorcock and Andrzej Sapkowski, this is fantasy metal at it's most brazen, the vocals of Jeff Stark telling these tales of Swords and sorcery abound. Tracks such as Sailor On The Seas Of Fate bring swaying nautical themes, while Ride To Ruin gallops at speed, Alex Scofield's bass runs against, Jeff Loomis' extra guitar.

Time Of Contempt heavily leans on Iron Maiden anthemics, Javier Estrada and Vance Simmons trading guitars here and widdling on anthemic Gates Of Miklagard as drummer Evgeny Gromovoy comes in as the cavalry barrage. Reforged keeps Adamantis marching towards their next battle. 8/10

Circu5 - Clockwork Tulpa (Self Released)

Very similar to a bands such as Rush, Tiles, Frost* and Lonely Robot, Clockwork Tulpa is the second album from UK progressive rock act Circu5.

Started as a solo project by multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Steve Tilling, this is their first album with a full band, though Tilling plays most of the music, similar to the way John Mitchell curates a band around his impressive mastery of instruments.

Tilling goes further though playing guitars, keys, synths and even providing the field recordings, but he is joined by Tin Spirits frontman Mark Kilminster on bass/vocals and drummer Lee Molding to make this now a band, more collaborative and more conceptual.

There's that word, one of the most used in prog rock and with debut of Circu5 in 2017 there came this story of a boy who was moulded from birth to be part of a cult-like organisation. This means the album is dark and dramatic but also brimming with complexity and melody, sitting in the gap where pop meets prog the inspiration of the bands I've mentioned and a huge amount of XTC and Talk Talk too.

Bringing a wide range of influences to this second album is important as Circu5 now have this 'band' line up that creates brilliant British prog rock. 9/10

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025: Interview With Adfeilion (Swansea Heat #3)

 Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025

1. Please introduce yourself for anyone who may not know you. Tell us a little bit more about you as a band.

From the mists of the Otherworld is borne Adfeilion, an atmospheric and experimental folk metal band from Swansea that weaves sonic landscapes of enchanted forests, ruined castles and heroic kings. Their first album, ‘Hela’, was released in 2023 and explores the fusion of Paganism and Christianity in Dark Age Wales, and the band have since honed their live show by playing numerous gigs across their hometown of Swansea, headlining local festivals such as ‘Dead of Night’ at Hangar 18 and ‘The Gower Wassail’ at the Gower Heritage Centre. Adfeilion finished their successful 2024 by winning the annual South Welsh Battle of the Bands competition held at the Bunkhouse in Swansea.

2. What made you want to participate in the Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025 campaign? Have you had previous experience? Or is this your first time?

This is our first time participating in Metal To The Masses. We have followed this epic competition for a while and finally felt the time was right to enter M2M after proving ourselves in the Swansea battle of the bands 2024.

3. M2TM is all about supporting your local scene. How important is the local scene to you as a band?

The local scene is fundamental, the cauldron and crucible for bands to emerge and carve their legacy into the culture of their communities. We love being a part of the beautiful, crazy narrative that is the Swansea music scene, and feel deeply honoured to have the opportunity to contribute our art to the city that raised us.

4. What are your expectations from being a part of M2TM?

Playing awesome shows to an audience that demands real passion and creativity in music and performance.

5. What would playing a Sold Out Bloodstock Festival mean to you?

It would mean that the Old Ways have returned, Bardic storytelling and Folk metal. Legends of the past would permeate the culture once more, creating a more epic and wonderous world in which to live.

6. We encourage all the bands in M2TM to try and check out the other bands, who are you most looking forward to? Who should your fans also try to catch?

Made Of. These guys were in the Swansea Battle of the Bands 2024 Final with us and we were very impressed with their energy, musicianship, killer riffs, technical song writing, we love them!

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025: Interview With Walpurgis (Cardiff Heat #3)

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025



1. Please introduce yourself for anyone who may not know you. Tell us a little bit more about you as a band.

Walpurgis is a four piece speed rock band from aberystwyth, wales. with a duel guitar attack, bonebreaking bass, ten tonne drums and frantic screams, we believe we bring back that classic 70s and 80s nwobhm and speed metal sound

2. What made you want to participate in the Metal To The Masses South Wales 2025 campaign? Have you had previous experience? Or is this your first time?

We saw it was a good opportunity for bands, and we believe it'd be a good chance for us to network and get to meet some bands farther south than ourselves. This will be our first time playing metal to the masses

3. M2TM is all about supporting your local scene. How important is the local scene to you as a band?

Entirely, wholly, unbelievably important. If it was for local scenes all around the country we wouldn't be able to do any of this

4. What are your expectations from being a part of M2TM? (Try to talk about more than playing Bloodstock, making connections, anything else etc)

Ideally, we'd like to have a larger crowd view us, and a bigger stage for a bigger show. We're in entirely for fun, But hopefully we can win a few people over

5. What would playing a Sold Out Bloodstock Festival mean to you?

A huge opportunity that would likely open a lot of doors. We have attended bloodstock previously and it would be amazing to share the stage with some of these bands

6. We encourage all the bands in M2TM to try and check out the other bands, who are you most looking forward to? Who should your fans also try to catch?

We're looking forward to seeing Risperedrone