The day starts with a few Tweets about Cowley Roads untimely power cut and there is a brief worry that today’s proceedings are going to be delayed. But it seems the metal gods favour the show going ahead as planned and the fifth anniversary of Oxfordshire’s Rabidfest kicks off with no issues at The Bullingdon for a sterling weekend. It’s everything that the discerning metalhead could truly ask for, and there’s plenty for fans of every metal genre to relish in.
Saturday 4th November
“This next song’s about trains”
Mark: Stone Soup bring some stoner metal to start the day. There’s a reasonable crowd for the openers with plenty of head banging early on. There’s also plenty of harmonica from the lead singer.
Nickie: First band on as you walk through, the room is already full. Bluesy, tambourine, harmonica doom, great fun, great warm up, what you would usually expect at the end of the night as everyone hits party hour but clearly the crowd had breakfast beers and the party is starting early. Once again the opening band of Rabidfest shows the true diversity of what is to come this weekend.
“Is there anyone called Brian in the house?” “I’m Brian and so’s my wife.”
Mark: Second Hour are up next with some straight heavy metal that sees the lead singer on the barrier for ‘Seven Deadly Sins’. Plenty of nodding heads and fists in the air.
Nickie: The vocalist during warm up sounds colossal and I forgo a second beer to see what the band will bring. Their performance is widely received by a dedicated front row audience but I’m a little let down by the reverb on some of the heavy vocals. ‘Seven Sins’ is a highlight with chants of “Sin Sin Sin” getting the crowd air pumping. The blow up beach balls are circulating and the band play a tight set but it seems a little paint by numbers at times.
“You’re not Lars Ulrich, you can actually play in time”
Mark: It’s a step up the metal ladder for some of the band, the drummer used to be in The Suicide Notes. Even though Reveller is now a four piece they still sound great and the crowd actually moves forward towards the barrier for them.
Nickie: The room fills quickly and the Witney band perform their opening track to a room full of smiles and enthusiastic nodding heads. The vocalist shows huge diversity in his abilities and the band competently provide the arrangement to make this all happen. Its melodic, it’s inspiring, it’s talent. Drummer Gavin is an absolute powerhouse channelling animal from The Muppets at times. ‘Let Me Go’ is a tune that would put them on the map, however the vocals did seem a little quiet and drowned against the guitars for this one.
“If you keep playing you’ll be alright”
Mark: It’s a late start for Pryma as the band tracks down some interference that means the guitarist ends up swapping his wireless kit for a cable. It’s a brutal start and the band continues getting heavier as they go on. There’s a growl to the singers voice that gives it a gravelly tone.
Nickie: Hailing from Canterbury and I quote “tight as a duck’s asshole!” ‘My Cold Shadow’ is the latest single, it’s a superb heavy rock tune and vocalist Gabi shows off her cutting range. Ending with ‘Freaky Fright Night’ the seductive heavily guitar led song calls for crowd participation and the band end their set on a high note. Will be keeping an eye on Pryma’s progress as they cement themselves in the scene.
“We’re from Oxford and we play prog metal”
Mark: The local lads in LestWeForget put on a good show. Plenty of head banging ensues. The set feels shorter than it actually is, mainly due to how long the songs actually are, so there’s only time for four songs before they finish.
“Rabidfest you know what to do, split this fucking room right now.”
Mark: It’s the first proper circle pit and it’s from the start of Sworn Amongst’s set. Hair flying and brutal riffs. They’re putting the heavy back into heavy metal. Mortishead’s singer exclaims: “I don’t know much about these lads but they’ve got a new fan”. Part way through the last song the mosh pit turns into an impromptu selfie pit as everyone tries to get in on someone’s selfie.
Nickie: Two words. Fucking amazing. Thrash with tinges of black metal and a confidence that rivals a cokehead walking with a swagger into a club on a Saturday night. Meaty riffs are in abundance and a wall of death to accompany. An inspired set and Sworn Amongst are certainly worthy of a headline appearance soon.
“Wall of death right now”
Mark: Mortishead are always heavy, they do a great job of getting the crowd moving. This is their only show in 2023, as they’re currently in the studio recording.
Nickie: Chaos incarnate. Metal laced with an almost industrial furrow is displayed at its finest with ever changing vocals and growls and guttural screams that penetrate and tremble through the walls and floors. Huge circle pits and chants of “Free Palestine!” end the set to applause. Worth noting the seamless tempo switches that provide electric excitement – were all eagerly awaiting the next release so hurry up lads!
“The lunatics have taken over the asylum”
Mark: With the number of Ward XVI shirts in the crowd there’s no surprise that this lot from Preston get an incredibly warm reception. It’s easily the performance of the night, of the weekend even. It’s a highly theatrical show full of psychodrama, blood, and murder. Dave Stott is the Master of Ceremonies on guitar, while Kberrie Nutter on vocals plays the part of escaped lunatic to perfection. If you haven’t seen them yet then keep an eye on their tour schedule for the next year – you will not want to miss them!
“Obviously this band is so powerful we’ve broken the microphone”
Mark: Absolva are the penultimate band of the night, and it doesn’t take long before things start breaking. A quick fix of the microphone and they’re back on. It’s pretty standard heavy metal fare, power chords and solos, but there’s no doubting that they’re skilled musicians.
“This is the best Saturday of the tour so far. It’s the first one”
Mark: It’s probably the quickest changeover and soundcheck in history, as the band pretty much just stays on stage. The guys in Absolva have been Blaze’s touring band for years and there’s plenty of camaraderie onstage. It’s a set of Blaze Bayley’s solo work and a select few tracks from his time as Iron Maiden’s frontman and as always his vocals are on point. You’d hardly believe this is a guy who earlier in the year had to stop a tour for a heart attack that resulted in a quadruple bypass. The only indication of which is that he looks healthier than ever and still puts out a powerful performance.
Sunday 5th November
“I didn’t know my ego could get bigger and then you all cheered”.
Mark: Rabidfest’s own, Maelstrom, start the day off, it’s a very loud start to a Sunday afternoon. Being Sunday it’s no surprise that the crowd is thin on the ground, but we do get the world’s smallest circle pit going.
Nickie: The festivals Director Mark is the last person I thought I’d see ripping open the stage at 1pm with his band busting out a ton of shouty fast paced hardcore goodness. It’s a joy to watch the band rip through their set with a fun rapport with the crowd. It was only yesterday that Mark was candidly snapped with a cup of tea in the pit…today he’s owning the stage and conjuring his own pit. In beige chinos none the less!
“We’re having fun and that’s all that matters right now”
Mark: Fetus Destruction are a brutal onslaught. The drums sound like a machine gun going off, loud, heavy, crushingly brutal metal. It’s like a pig being murdered live on stage.
Nickie: This Sunday sermon is in clear effect. Bathed in a red light for the duration of the set the trio conjure up some gnarly death metal complete with magnificent pig squeals and deafening drums. Ascending into a beautiful construct chaos the tracks crash into each other like violent waves. More of this please.
“Let’s make some fucking noise Oxford”.
Mark: This young metal band certainly make some noise. Depolarize’s lead singer screams into his microphone. In a surprise announcement it’s the singer’s last show with the band.
Nickie: With a 2 step breakdown interlude, the hardcore bruisers are loving this. A lot of BLEURGH moments worthy of a spot on Orion reactions. Finally, the pit truly opens up, ‘Godless’ is the last song the band plays with an announcement of the vocalist stepping down making this his last show – bittersweet indeed. He’s been a singer and a preacher throughout this spectacle and the final rings of ‘Where is your god now?’ echo around the Bulllingdon wall’s and it’s a fitting tribute departure for the vocalist.
Draconian Reign are forced to pull out due to a car crash involving the singer on the way to the festival. They’re alright, but unfortunately unable to make it in time. So with time to spare and no replacement band lined up due to such short notice the festival shaves Jay’s head for charity instead.
“We’re a last minute change so thank you for coming down”
Mark: From Her Ashes also had to pull out before the festival, but Those Once Loyal, a hardcore band from Nottingham, are more than up for the job. They finally break the curse of all red lighting. It’s green. Plenty of energy on stage which translates into plenty of energy in the crowd.
Nickie: With hooks meatier than a pepperoni the band step up and they go hard. A superb cover of ‘My Last Serenade’ Killswitch Engage keeps things in play. ‘Carry You’ is a song relating to stress and struggles and ends the night with the crowd chanting “I will carry you” It’s a poignant moment for both band and crowd and ends their high vigour metalcore set gloriously.
“Jinkies”
Mark: Gutlocker are absolutely brutal, it’s like being hit by a freight train, and how the bands are getting heavier as the day goes on is a mystery that even Scooby Doo couldn’t solve. Somehow after their set they’re given a cabbage to sign and the festival is reborn as Cabbagefest for the rest of the day.
Nickie: Absolute precision powerhouses. The crowd literally lose all inhabitations and it’s almost primal seeing people truly let go and embrace the groove metal that is on offer. They make it all seem so effortless, but the show is ruthless perfection and the sound is booming. What’s not to love? And frontman Craig ensures he engages with and hypes the crowd into a passionate frenzy. A beefed-up cover of Jamiroquai’s ‘Deeper Underground’ is thrown in for good measure. Its ruthless, it’s beautiful, it’s Gutlocker.
“A haunting in Oxford”
Mark: Tribe Of Ghosts are a totally new band to us but a set that was full on and completely blew us away. The show ends with the guitarist and the singer both in the crowd. Very nearly the set of the weekend and they’ve certainly impressed this crowd.
Nickie: The show was fiery intense, exhilarating and absolutely power driven from the very first riff stroke. One can finally begin to understand how Frankenstein’s monster might have felt when that channelled electricity first surged through his purpose built body – a true spiritual awakening. Phenomenal. The chemistry between vocalist Beccy and guitarist / vox Adam was out of this world. Justly electric. A gem of a band hailing from Brighton who whole heartedly stole the show. So excited to see what the future has in store for them and if Tribe Of Ghosts were the soundtrack to the end of the world – I wouldn’t have an issue with that at all.
“Boing”
Mark: It’s starting to feel like a late evening when Shoot to Kill take to the stage and it’s not long before Chris, the singer is in the crowd. It’s high energy with springs on as he leaps about the stage. The hardcore fans are out in force and the crowd leaves room for them to go wild.
Nickie: Climbing onto the floor to dance and head bang amongst his peers Singer Chris is a hardcore Pied Piper. Not a moment of reprise, the band are a full metal assault and no time given to catch your breath. A circle has been made where the hardcore hearts get to show off their sporadic moves as if were in a cheesy rival dance off battle which is a sight to behold on a Sunday night. A chaotic non choreographed mess with high kicks and windmill arms but hey – fun is fun right? And were all here to express ourselves freely.
“This one’s for Trevor Strnad”
Mark: Cage Fight are brutal metal with the guitarist in the circle pit in the first song. Their stand in bassist from Poland does a great job as well. Vocals are off the scale as she screams into the microphone. It’s not going to be much longer before they’ll be headlining small festivals like Rabidfest, and they’re already gaining a lot of attention on the bigger festival circuit.
Nickie: Never one to mince my words – holy fuck! This was one of those unexpected live shows that will go down as the most memorable for 2023. “Eating Me Alive” is the Black Dahlia vocal tribute to Trevor Strnad which is a touching accolade as people raise their fists in respect. Relentless, poised, fucking heavy, so catchy, so ferocious, so tight. Bewitching screams and nightmare melodies, it’s exhilarating from start to finish.
“Fuck this”
Mark: Bound In Fear’s mosh pit can only be described as dangerous. Wet, slippery, and full of hardcore dancers. It’s a surprise no one has been kicked in the head. At one point the guitarist has enough and comes out to punch one of the more dangerous dancers in the pit. It calms things down briefly, but it’s only a momentary respite. Everyone with any sense has either vacated the room for the front bar or are standing at the back against the wall.
Nickie: Sunday has progressively gotten heavier, and as the final band steps in to end this weekend’s proceedings I’m not sure the Bullingdon’s walls will withstand the absolute blitzkrieg that Bound In Fear are about to convey. This band are absolutely not for the weak and drenched in that ‘red alert’ light you just know it’s about to fucking go off! Vocalist Ben has undoubtedly sold his soul at a crossroads and tonight’s delivery is vitriolic and uncompromising. There is an important speech about the importance of acknowledging Mental Health and removing any stigma that can be attached to talking about it before the ungodly finale of ‘Hate Circuit’ valiantly closes the bands set. And that… is how you effortlessly bring the house down.
With the festival having already secured and rebooked the venue for 2024’s year’s event this will be taking place on Saturday 02nd and Sunday 03rd November – it’s a definitive date for the diary that everyone should be pencilling in! This year will sell out!
We’ll see you down the front!
https://www.facebook.com/rabidfest
Review by Nickie Hobbs & Mark Bestford
Photos by Mark Bestford – Alienation Photography