Though Bloodstock is far from the longest festival around, it may just be the most exhausting: this year, the campsite was chock-full of bloodshot eyes and sunburned necks, with metalheads from across the country determined to see things through. Thankfully, all that effort was rewarded: the final day of Bloodstock 2025 hosted a ridiculously consistent lineup of bands on its main stage, with almost everyone— from the underrated gems to the much-anticipated stars— giving their all to make this a festival to remember.

Ghosts Of Atlantis

It’s always extremely respectable to see smaller bands exuding the energy and showmanship of a headliner: Ghosts Of Atlantis may have been opening the main stage on Sunday, but their gigantic flags and detailed costumes seemed far too grandiose for such a slot. There was a mystique to the show that showcased the group’s boundless ambition, with their larger-than-life staging fitting well against a triumphant symphonic metal sound. Few bands, even those higher on the bill, made so bold an entrance, as the ominous chanting of ‘Sacramental’ gave way to a humongous tidal wave of chugging guitars and roaring orchestrations— Ghosts Of Atlantis did an excellent job making their performance feel like an event, standing as the most definitive and confident main stage opener of the weekend. Between Phil Primmer’s gruff growls and Colin Parks’ passionate singing, the group were able to bring their material to life like never before, with new single ‘Melvin’s Tale’ going down especially well with the growing crowd. Unlike their titular city, Ghosts Of Atlantis kept their head firmly above the water at Bloodstock 2025.

One Machine

If there was a common enemy among everyone at the festival this year, it was the extreme heat— a curse upon One Machine, then, who brought out all-manner of pyro at noon. The five-piece are a supergroup created by Steve Smyth (of Forbidden, Nevermore and Testament fame): as you might expect from that lineup of past projects, the group were delivering another healthy helping of that old-school thrash metal sound. The band were certainly relentless, though their style wasn’t quite as overpowering as the offerings Flotsam & Jetsam or Warbringer had brought in the past few days— One Machine didn’t quite manage to achieve any circle pits across their show, even if a desperate few attendees were trying to start some. Across the set, a remarkable awkwardness could be felt hanging over every song (though whether that was the fault of the laughably dramatic intro of ‘The Final Cull’ or of Tasos Lazaris’ grating vocal displays is hard to say). Despite it all though, the band did indeed deliver on thrash metal intensity, with guitarists Steve Smyth and Jamie Hunt ripping their way through a number of jaw-dropping technical solos.

Rivers of Nihil

Progressive metal can often be a polarising genre— just last year, Opeth’s headlining set had much of Bloodstock in a head-banging frenzy, while others were left scratching their heads as they attempted to follow the group’s eclectic sound. For Pennsylvania’s Rivers of Nihil though, bringing their new self-titled album to the stage seems to have been an effortless task. The band’s set was sporting some of the cleanest sound design of the entire festival, with Jared Klein’s furious work on the double kick settling in amongst the pummelling guitars beautifully— the sound, both on slower cuts like ‘Despair Church’ and on full-throttle stompers like ‘Dustman,’ was electrifying. Adam Biggs has stepped into his role of frontman superbly, delivering some of the most vicious and bestial growls of the day: alongside the more melodic offerings of Klein and Thomas, it’s hard not to argue that Rivers of Nihil’s set sported some of the best-executed vocals of Bloodstock 2025. Even if the setlist might’ve enjoyed a less single-minded focus on the band’s newest release, not a single audience member was complaining when the barbaric riffs of ‘American Death’ and memorable saxophone solo on ‘Water & Time’ were this thoroughly captivating.

August Burns Red

If there’s one thing that can push a metal show into the stratosphere, it’s energy: simply put, the overabundance of enthusiasm that Pennsylvania’s August Burns Red brought to Bloodstock was enthralling. The band opened, strangely enough, with a metalcore-infused cover of System Of A Down’s iconic hit ‘Chop Suey!,’ giving us our first taste of Jake Luhrs’ boisterous lead vocals (that is, when you could even hear the band over the screams of fans). The entire band were off their feet from the moment the roaring guitars smacked you in the face— August Burns Red weren’t the youngest band at Bloodstock this year, but they certainly felt the most youthful. The five-piece have bloodthirsty metalcore down to a science after more than twenty years together, throwing the crowd into the meat grinder with the mind-bending guitar work of songs like ‘White Washed’ and ‘Exhumed:’ the group even earned themselves some of the most enthusiastic crowd-surfing of the festival, with Luhrs reminding everyone that the security team were “here to help.” Though metalcore isn’t always every Bloodstocker’s cup of tea, August Burns Red proved that the genre absolutely has its place at the iconic event.

Feuerschwanz

Based on the ominous skulls and giant, looming dragon that made up their staging, the average Bloodstock attendee probably wasn’t expecting Feuerschwanz to be the brightest, silliest, most joyous group to grace the Ronnie James Dio stage: if anything, those labels fall short to describing just how lighthearted and entertaining the German band were. The eight-piece power metal band had brought with them a truckload of instruments— all the way from conventional elements like electric guitars and drums to left-field choices including violins, hurdy-gurdies, mandolins, harps and more— that all fit together surprising well, leading to some uncompromising renditions of cuts like ‘SGFRD Dragonslayer’ and ‘Berzerkermode.’ The group had never played in the UK before (making this a real treat for Bloodstock’s power metal fans) but nonetheless commanded the stage like they’d personally paid for it: frontmen Henrici and Metzner had everyone in the palm of their hand, whether they were urging the crowd to sing along, jump around in the ‘Knightclub’ or form opposing armies for a brutal wall of death. Metal festivals are always in need of some levity, making it no wonder that Feuerschwanz went down as one of the most talked-about bands of the weekend— they left the stage to ‘Gangnam Style,’ for goodness sake!

The Black Dahlia Murder

Adding to the ridiculous level of name recognition on the main stage’s line-up was The Black Dahlia Murder, who were undeniably one of the most anticipated acts of day: to no-one’s surprise, the band’s devilishly enjoyable brand of melodic death metal continues to kick ass is 2025, to the delight of many. Brian Eschbach has stepped into his new role as frontman expertly, allowing his piercing shrieks to ring out across Catton Park: perhaps even more enjoyable, though, were his amusing anecdotes between tracks, which worked to keep the show’s momentum up in the face of tech issues. New record ‘Servitude’ got its fair share of love, with the stomping ‘Mammoth’s Hand’ being amped up to extraordinary level of heft on Bloodstock’s main stage— the group’s classic hits were much more celebrated though, of course, with the circle pits to cuts like ‘Warborn’ and ‘Everything Went Black’ becoming increasingly massive and cutthroat as the show wore on. As ever, it was disappointing to see the band run out of time, cutting their final song and ending things out on a somewhat subdued note: even still, The Black Dahlia Murder delivered exactly what was expected of them, proving that the band are still as relentless and loveable as ever.

Lord Of The Lost

There was probably a time that a Eurovision band playing at Bloodstock would’ve been unthinkable— in 2025, the Hamburg-based Lord Of The Lost took to the stage to a deafening welcome from their sea of adoring fans. The band certainly have a unique look, with all six members walking out in ghoulish face paint and lycra: if that didn’t prepare you for the group’s blend of theatrical rock and pounding industrial metal, nothing would. Lord Of The Lost had a unique advantage over so many groups at Bloodstock this year, in that their songs are so effortlessly catchy— the crowd, massive as it was, was obviously living it up, screaming along to the fantastic hooks of ‘Drag Me To Hell’ and Within Temptation collab ‘Light Can Only Shine In The Darkness.’ Frontman Chris Harms certainly knew how to command such a huge audience, running around to high-five as many onlookers as possible: really though, the entire band looked to be having an awesome time up on the Ronnie James Dio stage, jamming out to their own songs with an infectious enthusiasm. Every cut, from Eurovision-hit ‘Blood & Glitter’ to a metal cover of Bronski Beat’s ‘Smalltown Boy,’ had the place jumping, solidifying Lord Of The Lost as a force to be reconned with on the festival circuit.

Mastodon

Mastodon in the special guest slot: whatever will they think of next? If the Georgian five-piece were upset about being demoted from festival headliners, it certainly didn’t show— if anything, Mastodon seemed happier than ever on the Ronnie James Dio stage, no doubt spurred on by new member Nick Johnston (and the sea of expectant onlookers, of course). The group have a rich catalogue to draw from, pulling out everything from the overwhelming sludge metal of ‘Mother Puncher’ and ‘Megalodon’ to infectious modern hits including ‘The Motherload’ and ‘Steambreather:’ with so many diehard fans in the crowd, it’s no wonder that every cut received a triumphant response. After the sea of bad press surrounding ex-member Brent Hinds in recent months, it was relieving to see Mastodon sounding better than ever at Bloodstock— Troy Sanders’ bellows were massive, pairing well against Brann Dailor’s more melodic offerings. Really though, Mastodon’s show at Bloodstock was just pure fun, and packed with highlights; Kelliher and Johnston playing rock-paper-scissors in the middle of ‘Spectrelight;’ the crowd going bananas for ‘Blood and Thunder;’ a fantastic cover of Black Sabbath’s ‘Supernaut;’ and the confirmation of a new album and tour from the group coming soon. 

Gojira

Before making their entrance, Gojira built a city: swathes of crew members were tasked to transform the Ronnie James Dio stage, giving rise to a towering three-step drum riser and staggering arched platform to encircle it. The French four-piece arguably had the most elaborate setup of any band at Bloodstock 2025, though not without reason— the Duplantier brothers are no strangers to spectacle, having performed at the Paris Olympics last year. Gojira’s show was arresting, with every booming drum hit and groaning guitar chord being accented by blinding strobe lights and walls of pyrotechnics (a welcome surprise to all but the epileptic). Of the headliners at this year’s Bloodstock festival, it was Sunday’s that felt the biggest, the most climactic, the heaviest— Gojira had a stage presence best described as monolithic, as if the band themselves were merely instruments of some devilish god hell bent on the destruction of your eardrums. Beyond that, the show was everything you’d want it to be: the bulldozing riffs of any number of cuts like ‘Silvera’ ‘L’enfant Sauvage’ and ‘Backbone’ pushed the speakers to their limits, pummelling the entirety of Catton-On-Trent into submission. It was, however, lovely to see some moments of relief peppered in amongst the chaos, including a hilarious sign-based skit from drummer Mario Duplantier. At this point, Gojira are metal royalty: at Bloodstock 2025, you could really feel the reverence.