Metal To The Masses is a revered competition: the chance for a select few lucky bands across the UK to play at Bloodstock Festival is tantalising, and brings forth all the talent the underground metal scene has to offer. The Old Cold Store just hosted the final for the Nottingham branch of the competition, with King Abyss, Death Warmed Up, tealdeer and Hrönn all fighting for the biggest break of their lives. Adding on a guest headliner set from Manchester’s thrash giants Hellbearer, the 2025 final was one of the most triumphant, death-defying shows you could hope to catch.

At a competition like Metal To The Masses, you want riffs— King Abyss, bringing their full-throated death and thrash metal sound to the Old Cold Store, had plenty in store. Kicking the night off on its heaviest note, the five-piece had only one goal in mind: to rip their way through as many barreling guitar parts and thunderous breakdowns as humanly possible. Vocalist Dom Bould seemed to transform as he took the stage, morphing into a monstrous tormentor from the first moment. His banshee shrieks simply hammered away at you, only growing increasingly twisted and impressive across the thirty minute set. The group’s guitar solos were similarly impressive, placing the delicate art of shredding at the forefront of the band’s sound— King Abyss embodied metal, and they did it damn well.

The five-piece had every head banging, and would almost certainly have earned themselves a circle pit or two if they hadn’t been unlucky enough to play at 6pm: the set was certainly vicious enough. New single ‘Scored Above The Breath’ seemed to be quite the hit, burying the audience over and over and over again under wave after wave of brutality: that became a running theme of the performance, with ‘Eyes Always Watching’ being the runaway standout for the sheer heft of its riffs. Admittedly, the band might have leaned into that appeal even further, with some members lacking the stage presence to really sell their dominating sound. It’s a minor nitpick though, and what can't be denied is that King Abyss were the most oppressively heavy band competing, and one you’d be a fool not to check out moving forward.

As you might expect, the purpose of this gig as a competition’s final meant there was little in the way of cohesion between the bands: the whole audience got to experience a hefty dose of musical whiplash when Death Warmed Up took to the stage. The five-piece were, by a considerable margin, the youngest competitors, but carried with them the unmistakable spirit of 80s hair metal: they embodied Mötley Crüe-esque bravado through-and-through, from their outfits to the extreme levels of pomp coursing through their overblown intro. The so-called ‘loudest band in Nottingham’ may not have quite achieved that, but they were certainly larger-than-life: constant hair flicks, ad-libs and moments of crowd engagement gave Death Warmed Up an aura of authority that did much of the heavy lifting throughout their set.

Don’t let their age fool you though: those kids can play. The band showcased an extreme level of professionalism unlike anything you’d expect from an act their size, sprinting through their show without so much of a lull in sight. Guitarist Charlie Willis was surely the standout, blazing his way through some ridiculously technical shredding, though the entire band exuded star power: even vocalist Will performed well, though a throat infection did have him sounding a little scratchy at points. Of course, the band’s arrogant exterior (complete with several lyrical changes urging the crowd to ‘get them to Bloodstock’) is very much a love-it-or-hate-it aspect of their style, and we couldn’t blame audience members who found it off-putting. Even still, the chants of ‘Death Warmed Up’ that followed hit single ‘Rising Star’ should’ve been evidence enough that the band put on a fantastic showing at the Old Cold Store, and are surely primed for future successes.

The Nottingham Metal To The Masses final was full of surprises, though maybe none were quite as shocking as the performance from tealdeer. The band’s sound is incredibly difficult to pin down, with the group simply categorising themselves as ‘ominous deer anthems’— whether you’d call it avant-garde metalcore or something else entirely though, what was apparent was the extreme love pouring out from the crowd. tealdeer had the Old Cold Store in a frenzy from their first notes, earning themselves circle pits, moshing, crowd-surfing and all manner of mayhem: from the logo-adorned shirts and deer horns many audience members were wearing, it seemed clear who the most popular act of the night were. That feat is especially impressive given just how odd the tealdeer sound is: crushing breakdowns sat alongside melodic choruses, ambient sections and a host of weird and wonderful set-pieces, making this the most unique of the competing performances.

Of course, a boundary-pushing act like this is bound to encounter its hiccups, and tealdeer’s show could be a little rough around the edges at times— the group’s clean vocals were somewhat inconsistent, in particular, and the reliance on backing tracks could grow a tad distracting in places. The real make-or-break aspect of the performance, however, was your ability to get behind a show this wacky. Cuts like ‘sign here’ and ‘the devil’s toybox’ were simply overwhelming, receiving responses ranging from violent moshing to ballroom dancing: the contrast between the band’s cheery nature and the extreme experimentation of their music was a charming one, no doubt. Given how popular the band seemed to be, it was no surprise to see them riding that wave of excitement, delivering a show-stopping performance that set the band apart (and then some).

It was disheartening to see so many audience members failing to stick around to check out the remainder of the acts— it seemed like tealdeer really had brought the bulk of the crowd, who were surely missing out by failing to catch an excellent showing from Hrönn. The four-piece are an unassuming lot, taking to the stage without all too much fanfare: as with Death Warmed Up, the band were committed to embodying their genre (stoner rock, in this case) in everything they did. The powerful grooves of tracks like ‘Sacrosanct’ and ‘The Warden’ had a real weight to them, slamming into you over and over again— though the crowd was thinner than ideal, all in attendance could be seen head-banging (safe in the knowledge they wouldn’t have work the next day). Hrönn were keen to respond, playing with an infectious enthusiasm from start to finish.

There weren’t all too many theatrics to the set, save for some precarious standing on the drum kit— Hrönn’s set was arguably a lot less flashy than some previous, putting the focus squarely on those stoner rock riffs. The group give the impression of a group of mates who decided, possibly drunkenly, to start a band: it’s a feeling that only added to the humanity and fun of their performance, with Law-Bregan, Stukins, Spindley and Osborne all clearly having the time of their lives. Whether they were delivering gigantic screams or laughing in-amongst themselves, Hrönn brought all the riffs, all the heft, all the power you could possibly want from them: their show may have gone underappreciated at the Old Cold Store, but that was surely no fault of the band themselves.

The capstone on this incredible night of metal mayhem was a set from guest headliners Hellbearer— after prevailing over the Manchester division of the competition last year (and putting on a wild show at Bloodstock 2024), the four-piece had brought their wicked thrash riffs to Nottingham. Once again, a great many audience members were missing out by not giving the band a chance— Hellbearer are one of the most exciting thrash acts around, delivering a show packed full of speed, intensity and a ‘no-f*cks-to-give’ attitude. Opener ‘The Witch’ laid out the band’s philosophy, bare for all to see: every moment of the performance captured that same focus on riffs, riffs and more riffs (as well as a fair few blazing solos thrown in for good measure).

The crowd that was in attendance were clearly having the time of their lives, with Hellbearer earning themselves constant moshing and even a small rowing pit— the band’s sound, harsh and ripping as it was, certainly made you want to move. There was no respite from the thrash metal chaos, and the show might have grown a little monotonous for some audience members as a result. For fans of old school thrash though, the four-piece’s set was just about everything you could’ve asked for: from the tearing solos of ‘Absolution’ to the climactic closer ‘Thrash Without Boundaries,’ Hellbearer were bringing the heat (quite literally, given how exhausted the group seemed by the set’s close). The group were booked for an hour of material, but barely broke the fifty minute mark— they were simply that fast.

The victor was decided by six guest judges, including three members of the ever-lovable Raised By Owls. Though all four competing bands absolutely deserved the chance to play on the New Blood stage, the crowd’s chanting (so loud that the announcement could hardly be made) meant the momentum was clearly behind one act in particular: tealdeer took the win, and not undeservedly. We’ll have to see if Bloodstock can get behind the band’s crazed sound— in the meantime, it suffices to say that King Abyss, Death Warmed Up, tealdeer and Hrönn all put on phenomenal shows on Saturday night, showcasing the extreme levels of talent and enthusiasm bubbling away in the underground metal scene.