Continuing our review which kicked off with details of the Friday night, and the Metal 2 The Masses Final from earlier in the day…
It would have been nice to see more local support as the room was nowhere near capacity like it was last year, but now the real fun begins as the venue starts to fill up for the opening bands of Uprising proper. As well as reviewing the event, Moshville Times also interviewed many bands throughout the day but I made sure that I made it over to the 2nd stage to catch one of my favourite bands – Tribe of Ghosts. The ceiling is very high for this Brighton-based band, who I’ve watched grow from humble beginnings to the juggernaut that took to the stage that day. Beccy and Adam’s chemistry on stage is infectious and their energy is limitless. Their dynamism and crowd interaction can get a full room on their knees and worshipping them like deities. Songs such as “False Gods” and “Hive” shake the venue to its foundations and leave the crowd desperate for more. It’s a shame their set had to finish but such is the nature of the beast, and with the promise of more to come, I make my peace and return to the press room.
A few more interviews down and I’m able to catch a band I’ve been looking forward to for years. Barbarian Hermit made themselves known in 2018 with the album Solitude and Savagery, to great acclaim. Their thick sludgy riffs and cool changes in tempo, slowing things down to a drip, then opening back up to even grander riffage was a sight to behold. The band’s songwriting prowess is a work of art at times and is captivating from start to finish. Having also released some newer material in 2021 – One – I don’t think I’m alone in hoping there is something new on the horizon.
It is one of the highlights of any event for me to be able to walk through the crowds and see so many happy people and friendly faces I’ve not seen all year, all the while making new friends and enjoying the buzz and atmosphere. The work that goes on behind the scenes all year to produce this event is truly inspiring and Simon and the team are some of the hardest working people in the business and it really shows at every event they put on, and this is reflected in the attention to detail, from band booking and lineup placement, to the stage crew, press room and everything in between. As press, we were so well looked after. The information available for timings, bands etc was exemplary.
The next band I caught is testament to all the hard graft Simon and the team put in, and booking a band of such calibre demonstrates this. Having not heard of them before but being highly recommended to me, the Swiss outfit Cellar Darling took to the stage. The band are made up of former members of Eluveitie, and led by multi-instrumentalist Anna Murphy, they delivered an astoundingly atmospheric (although a little short) set. Due to a host of technical issues meaning the band could only play 3 songs, the crowd response was epic! In spite of the setbacks, the band kept their cool and were on top form. If you’ve not heard of them before, check out songs such as Avalanche, Freeze and Dance and prepare to be blown away!
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Now it is time for one of the most anticipated bands of the day – Brujeria. I remember when I first heard of them in 2000 when Brujerizmo was released, so I’ve known for a long time what to expect, except I didn’t. Now there are plenty of bands with filthy riffs or dirty tones, but every one of them can’t hold a torch to Brujeria. Their sound is so dirty, that if you were to eat 20 day old guacamole and shat out music, it would be Brujeria. The brown-note tones and layers of decades-old filth encapsulated the atmosphere perfectly. The band themselves have a revolving lineup that has included Dino Cazares, Billy Gould, Shane Embury and a host more, adorn the stage in gangster accoutrements and a Mexican flag with a severed head on top – it is a terrifying sight to behold. It was a shame to see the room slowly but steadily empty as their set wore on, and the majority of their crowd interaction was in Spanish, which, unless you can speak it, was reduced to a few “marijuana” chants. Overall, this has been a bucket list band moment, and I was not disappointed one bit.
Now, the day is coming to a close but there is still one more band to see. Uprising’s headliner – Katatonia. Now, I’ve never been a fan of this band, but after 30 years and 12 studio albums, Katatonia are no strangers to the international festival scene and can handle the heat at Uprising. Hailing from Stockholm, Sweden, they brought their brand of gothic doom metal to Leicester to great acclaim, and to everyone that enjoys their music, pulled off the perfect end to a spectacular day. To the unacquainted listener, the pace of the set was against the previous bands, and with bands such as Brujeria, Discharge and Breed 77, could be seen as a slightly strange choice, but I do want to reiterate the prestige and prevalence of having Katatonia headline an event such as this, and how breath-taking the set was.
Uprising, for two years now has become one of the highlights of the festival scene and will go down as one of the greatest metal events the UK will see in 2024. Under the increasingly larger backdrop of similar metal festivals being cancelled or postponed, it really shows that if properly organised with love, care and attention, and a fantastic team, events such as these not only go ahead, but prosper and thrive. It would be all too easy to find a million superlatives to talk about the event, but there are always things to improve.
There needs to be a special mention of the ever-enthusiastic ShowSec Security for thinking they’re patrolling Area 51 and creating the merry-go-round of checks and stops, and I would have liked to see a wider variety of food stalls too, but there was nothing that detracted from the pure enjoyment that Uprising delivered. I absolutely can not wait to see what’s around the corner for Uprising 8 and if you’re thinking of going to a UK indoor metal festival in 2025, this should be top of your list. Earlybird tickets should be right around the corner so keep your eyes peeled and I’ll see you there!
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