Baletempest
Singer of Strange Songs
my ideal line up is infeasable at best so I'll just stick to some general ideas and follow ons form existing sudgestions
Mercury Rain: will have much more material, but I doubt they'll get much of a bigger set unless they headline the darwin stage, idealy, as with Biomchanical I can see them doing very well in europe (Gothic is big Power is big so a band that mixes the two...) and Idealy I'd like to see Jon and the others back in 10 years when they're legends and can headline (you know its gonna happen). But I'd still be very happy with a longer set for these guys
Cruel Humanity: 20 mins was way too short, they deserve a bigger set
Borknagar:very good band, I have all their albums except for the last one, I'd love too see them at BS05
Concept: great little band, going to see them on sunday, really good UK industrial metal
Therion: Legends, Therion would be a great headliner and they have no less than 2 new albums to promote
MDB: I'd consider it almost insulting if this band didn't get asked within the next few years, one of the most influential bands this country has ever produced, a brilliant emotional frontman and no less than 8 superb albums. plus their fan base is huge (they sold out the Astoria and thats a big big venue, and they're even more popular abroad) plus I love this band, along with Zyklon and Decapitated IMHO the best in the world.
Rotting Christ: well over 10 years on and still amazing, they were superb at the underworld in febury.
Decapitated: Possibly the best Death Metal band in the world, very popular without getting much mainstream exposure at all and capable of pulling off a devaststing live set (i've seen them 3 times and they never cease to amaze me)
Lacuna Coil: very big band, I worry tho' if they're getting too big. The problem is that Evanescence always got invalidly compared to them and not suddenly LC are "Kew"... This in mind it might be the last chance we get to see them at a proper metal fest.
Cathedral: great groovy, fun doom band, some good sing along songs too.
The Haunted: possibly the best Thrash band ever, these guys kick ass and the worst thing is that their next UK appearance is with those Emo crybabies Funeral or a Friend
, this'd make it up to the UK metal fans who would love to see them... but emo... (still it'd be fun too see the bemused expressions of the trendies and crybabies, and their terror if they tried to boo them off stage)
Now my big wish list, as you know I'm mostly into Death, Black and Gothic Metal, the former two are not really the pallette of BS followers so big bands are not really sensible. This in mind I'm only sudgesting a little known bands with one or two really special big names.
1)Sear Bliss: a great origonal band mixing Dimmu esq Symph BM with a wind sectionand it works very well, they've got a good string of 5/6 albums and have (IIRC) never played in the UK before
2)Hin Onde: Great Finish Viking Metal with very power Metal vocals and melodies, I'd reccomend this band to both camps and they have some great songs
3)Tvangeste: one of the best albums of last year for me was Tvangeste's Firestorm, imagine what the newest Dimmu album would have sounded like if they'd got the orchestra+BM thing right... epic majestic and still very sinister and cold.
4)Mind Eclipse: another Russian band these guys are the only band I can name that have actualy got a perfect 50/50 balance between Black and Death Metal, its very extreme and very powerful.
5)Funeris Nocturnum: they'll have thir fourth album out soon and are one of the most inventive BM bands I've ever encountered, they mix in bits of Death, Industrial, Power (they did a ManOWar cover on their second album) with a solid finish BM base and it just sounds fantastic (especialy The Walls Bleed Larvae and Yer All Perished)
6)Enochian Crescent: Possibly the best band Finland has ever produced, their third album is out soon and their live reputation is second to none, they've even gigged with Emperor so they got a lot of exposure for that
7)The Enchanted: Oh come on Vince, please These guys are gonna be the next Carcass in terms of pioneering DM. Fantsatic
8)Seranade: a real unsung hero of brit DM, a brilliant Tech DM band who manage to keep their songs interestng and diverse
9)Frozen Tears: an interesting, folky mix of Black Metal and Gothic Metal with Male/Female vocals, very refreshing and different.
10)Thus Defiled: The last album these guys did blasted my ears off, they're great necro BM without all of this "Kvlt" poser wankery and their British too
11)Arch Nemesis/Dimension F3H: AN are a very cool PM band (and normally I don't like PM at all) and they share several live members with Dimension F3H who are a colabaration of Morfeus (Limbonic Art) and AN's Nemstod. DF3H are Industrial BM with good melodic vocals, some of you guys might really like them. If you get one tho' you may as well get the other since both share members.
12)Rapture: They should have a new album out soon and are touring with their biggest influence (Katatonia) soon, great Gothic Metal band.
Now my 3 big requests:
1) The Gathering: No venue in the UK wanted a semi-acoustic gig, no matter how popular the band was. I am gutted. The Gathering have sold out 70% of their tour dates (even 2 dates in Chile) and yet no UK venue wants them. Thats fucked up. TG are one of the most influential bands in the whole Gothic Metal genre, they are still adored by the metal community (look at the summer Breeze 2001 performance) and still play mostly metal songs at gigs. Someone needs to make it up to the Uk Gathering fans and what better place than Bloodstock?
2) Without Face: Like Lacuna but better, much much better and I love Lacuna, very tallented with some Prog metal tendancies and a huge chunk of all the best aspects of Gothic Metal, very few bands can write genuinely engrossing 8 and a half min songs, Without Face can. They've played several dates in the UK and have all been well recieved so people will definitely be as enthsiastic as I am.
3) ...And Oceans: AO don't gig often and never to my knolage have they palyed in the UK, the term Industrial Black Metal is not old but AO were one of the first to aptly fit that term (along with Aborym). Creative, intense and weird, some call them the best band in the world, others the worst, I'm more in the former camp and judgeing by thier album sales so do a lot of people.
any of these 3 would make BS05 perfect for me and the bands involved would be thrilled. but most of all I think The Gathering's UK fans would be overjoyed to see them in a proper UK Metal fest, were they belong and it'd show all those narrow-minded fools who turned them down exactly how dense they were.
sweet revenge
Mercury Rain: will have much more material, but I doubt they'll get much of a bigger set unless they headline the darwin stage, idealy, as with Biomchanical I can see them doing very well in europe (Gothic is big Power is big so a band that mixes the two...) and Idealy I'd like to see Jon and the others back in 10 years when they're legends and can headline (you know its gonna happen). But I'd still be very happy with a longer set for these guys
Cruel Humanity: 20 mins was way too short, they deserve a bigger set
Borknagar:very good band, I have all their albums except for the last one, I'd love too see them at BS05
Concept: great little band, going to see them on sunday, really good UK industrial metal
Therion: Legends, Therion would be a great headliner and they have no less than 2 new albums to promote
MDB: I'd consider it almost insulting if this band didn't get asked within the next few years, one of the most influential bands this country has ever produced, a brilliant emotional frontman and no less than 8 superb albums. plus their fan base is huge (they sold out the Astoria and thats a big big venue, and they're even more popular abroad) plus I love this band, along with Zyklon and Decapitated IMHO the best in the world.
Rotting Christ: well over 10 years on and still amazing, they were superb at the underworld in febury.
Decapitated: Possibly the best Death Metal band in the world, very popular without getting much mainstream exposure at all and capable of pulling off a devaststing live set (i've seen them 3 times and they never cease to amaze me)
Lacuna Coil: very big band, I worry tho' if they're getting too big. The problem is that Evanescence always got invalidly compared to them and not suddenly LC are "Kew"... This in mind it might be the last chance we get to see them at a proper metal fest.
Cathedral: great groovy, fun doom band, some good sing along songs too.
The Haunted: possibly the best Thrash band ever, these guys kick ass and the worst thing is that their next UK appearance is with those Emo crybabies Funeral or a Friend
, this'd make it up to the UK metal fans who would love to see them... but emo... (still it'd be fun too see the bemused expressions of the trendies and crybabies, and their terror if they tried to boo them off stage)Now my big wish list, as you know I'm mostly into Death, Black and Gothic Metal, the former two are not really the pallette of BS followers so big bands are not really sensible. This in mind I'm only sudgesting a little known bands with one or two really special big names.
1)Sear Bliss: a great origonal band mixing Dimmu esq Symph BM with a wind sectionand it works very well, they've got a good string of 5/6 albums and have (IIRC) never played in the UK before
2)Hin Onde: Great Finish Viking Metal with very power Metal vocals and melodies, I'd reccomend this band to both camps and they have some great songs
3)Tvangeste: one of the best albums of last year for me was Tvangeste's Firestorm, imagine what the newest Dimmu album would have sounded like if they'd got the orchestra+BM thing right... epic majestic and still very sinister and cold.
4)Mind Eclipse: another Russian band these guys are the only band I can name that have actualy got a perfect 50/50 balance between Black and Death Metal, its very extreme and very powerful.
5)Funeris Nocturnum: they'll have thir fourth album out soon and are one of the most inventive BM bands I've ever encountered, they mix in bits of Death, Industrial, Power (they did a ManOWar cover on their second album) with a solid finish BM base and it just sounds fantastic (especialy The Walls Bleed Larvae and Yer All Perished)
6)Enochian Crescent: Possibly the best band Finland has ever produced, their third album is out soon and their live reputation is second to none, they've even gigged with Emperor so they got a lot of exposure for that
7)The Enchanted: Oh come on Vince, please
These guys are gonna be the next Carcass in terms of pioneering DM. Fantsatic8)Seranade: a real unsung hero of brit DM, a brilliant Tech DM band who manage to keep their songs interestng and diverse
9)Frozen Tears: an interesting, folky mix of Black Metal and Gothic Metal with Male/Female vocals, very refreshing and different.
10)Thus Defiled: The last album these guys did blasted my ears off, they're great necro BM without all of this "Kvlt" poser wankery and their British too
11)Arch Nemesis/Dimension F3H: AN are a very cool PM band (and normally I don't like PM at all) and they share several live members with Dimension F3H who are a colabaration of Morfeus (Limbonic Art) and AN's Nemstod. DF3H are Industrial BM with good melodic vocals, some of you guys might really like them. If you get one tho' you may as well get the other since both share members.
12)Rapture: They should have a new album out soon and are touring with their biggest influence (Katatonia) soon, great Gothic Metal band.
Now my 3 big requests:
1) The Gathering: No venue in the UK wanted a semi-acoustic gig, no matter how popular the band was. I am gutted. The Gathering have sold out 70% of their tour dates (even 2 dates in Chile) and yet no UK venue wants them. Thats fucked up. TG are one of the most influential bands in the whole Gothic Metal genre, they are still adored by the metal community (look at the summer Breeze 2001 performance) and still play mostly metal songs at gigs. Someone needs to make it up to the Uk Gathering fans and what better place than Bloodstock?
2) Without Face: Like Lacuna but better, much much better and I love Lacuna, very tallented with some Prog metal tendancies and a huge chunk of all the best aspects of Gothic Metal, very few bands can write genuinely engrossing 8 and a half min songs, Without Face can. They've played several dates in the UK and have all been well recieved so people will definitely be as enthsiastic as I am.
3) ...And Oceans: AO don't gig often and never to my knolage have they palyed in the UK, the term Industrial Black Metal is not old but AO were one of the first to aptly fit that term (along with Aborym). Creative, intense and weird, some call them the best band in the world, others the worst, I'm more in the former camp and judgeing by thier album sales so do a lot of people.
any of these 3 would make BS05 perfect for me and the bands involved would be thrilled. but most of all I think The Gathering's UK fans would be overjoyed to see them in a proper UK Metal fest, were they belong and it'd show all those narrow-minded fools who turned them down exactly how dense they were.
sweet revenge
