By Matt Haynes
(Image: All photos belong to IN MY LENS Photography. Festival Poster belongs to Amplified Media)
*Photos to be added soon
This review covers the Main Stage bands.
For 'Amplified Festival Part I: Overall Thoughts', click here
For 'Amplified Festival Part II: Main Stage Bands', click here
So here we are my fellow music lovers – the grand finale of the Amplified Festival reviews. Prior to this, I’ve informed you of my thoughts on the overall running of the event and the bands who graced and wowed us on the Main Stage. Part III covers the final piece of the puzzle – the 2nd Stage bands. Very similar to what I said in Part II, there was simply too much to process and say in one review – therefore I decided to separate the band reviews into 2 parts.
For those of you that haven’t attended Corporation for a show (a fact I sincerely encourage you change as soon as you can), the 2nd stage was located in what is dubbed ‘Room 3’ at the venue. Whilst smaller in size to the stage across the hall in ‘Room 2’, it didn’t stop the bands from sounding just as big as their main stage counterparts
Knowing that there’s around 800+ bands in the UK grassroots scene along (trust me…I have an ever growing database to support this…), it isn’t easy whittling that number down to 12 bands over one evening. Somehow, Amplified managed to do this and chose the perfect range of bands. As we’ve already focused on 6 of the acts, we’ll move to focus on the final 6 to finish this trio of written ramblings off
OUR NORTH
One of the biggest challenges a band can face when playing an event of any scale is being the opening band. You essentially have to set the tone for the day, the bar of which the other bands have to perform to ensure everyone is engrossed in the energy of the event. This challenge was one faced by Sheffield’s own Our North and based on the size of the audience waiting for their arrival to stage…it wasn’t going to be a difficult one. When the time came, the group kicked the day off in glorious fashion. Combining heavy vocals with elements of melodic and hip-hop, Our North wasted no time in warming up the crowd slowly filling up the room. The group gave me very Bury Tomorrow vibes with their blend of heavy and clean, and it certainly felt like this stage was far too small to contain the hypnotic energy that had when performing. A pleasant mix of crowd interaction and spewing out melody after melody, Our North truly were a fantastic opening act to the day and one I hope will return to the festival on a higher slot should they continue to run the event.
INFIRM OF PURPOSE
The 2nd band on stage 2 (technically the 3rd band of the day), the last time I saw Infirm of Purpose was in the exact same venue on the exact same stage back at the start of the year. The group were one of the support acts for Phoenix Lake during their Seraphina album tour and were one that I thoroughly enjoyed at the time. It was good to see the lads on the bill once again and it was interesting to see how things would differ compared to when I last saw them. Something about this performance felt bigger, tighter and louder. Whether it was the boost in the overall stage production or simply the donning of the good old bucket hats, Infirm of Purpose brought a revitalisation to any energy I’d lost early in the day (early start and driving and all that jazz). Combining metal with drum ‘n’ bass, the group were the perfect follow up from Our North. The only criticism for myself was the fact there was a bit too much smoke during the performance, meaning we couldn’t really see the group’s on-stage energy more clearly. But then, the sound itself was enough to know the group meant business and had one hell of a time bringing their sound to Sheffield once more
DUSTHOUSE
‘You’re mine for the next 30 minutes!’ rang from the stage as I walked through the door to Stage 2. The third act in the room was another local squad, one I’d seen tagged on the good old socials several times over time and one that always seem to hold a strong reputation amongst their fans. This introduction along with a bold stance on stage told me this was a band that were confident in what they did. High energy from start to finish and plenty of feedback from the crowd – both in cheering the band on as well as plenty of moshing and dancing – further supported this and showcased a band that clearly has a strong following within their local scene. Whilst two or three of the songs in the set did blend together in terms of sound, there was a shift in energy by the closing section of the group’s set. The band market themselves ‘club metal made to move’ – they weren’t wrong. A bold introduction to a new band meant they secured a spot in scope of bands to keep an eye on as they continue to produce more music and hit up more shows
DACARA
Nearing the end of the 2nd Stage’s bands, this was a group I was eager to see. There’d been a lot of hype about this band online for quite a while, with the praise and focus often falling on their ability to blend modern metal with video game sounds and niches. Donning the recognisable green outfits and green lighting, Dacara took to the stage. This was a band that does it all – they pull of the look, know how to talk the talk and walk the walk. And most of all – they’re a band that know how to put on a show. The energy from the band – particularly that of guitarist David – was incredibly infectious and this was again reflected by the energy given back by the crowd. The only thing for me that stopped this being a perfect 10/10 performance was there wasn’t a lot of crowd interaction during the set and I felt just that tiny bit more could have made a bigger difference. I did pin this down to the band ensuring their high energy set was done within the 30-minute timeframe and to be honest, this is an incredibly small note on my side as the set was pretty much flawless from start to end. If you haven’t seen Dacara – this is a band you need to add to your list because it’s a performance that will leave you wanting more
BLACK COAST
As we find ourselves reaching the end of the 2nd Stage’s bands, we found ourselves graced with the presence of Stoke-on-Trent’s answer to nu-metal Black Coast. A band name that I had seen circling on social media, I didn’t know much more than their genre and name so didn’t know what to expect. I do admit that I had to take a breather outside having been back and forth on my feet all day, so I did miss the first half of their set. But each time I heard the doors open from fans coming out to do the same, I heard nothing but praise and excitement about the songs the group had performed so far, and so found myself getting energised to head back inside and embrace the music. It was somewhat refreshing to hear some good old nu-metal in the ears and similar to other bands on the stage, Black Coast were a band that pulled off their respective genre flawlessly. Considering their position on the 2nd stage line-up, Black Coast were for me the ideal group to prepare the fans for the final band of this stage
THE FIVE HUNDRED
The 2nd stage headliners and the penultimate band of the overall line-up, The Five Hundred are one of the main names that drew me to this particular festival. I’ve been lucky enough to share a stage with the group twice when in my former band, and it’s a band whose music is incredibly infectious and moreish on many levels. There was however a notable absence from the stage for this performance. Sadly, vocalist John would not be joining the festivities after receiving some news during the band’s performance the night before, and his presence was greatly missed by bands and fans alike. With this in mind, the remaining quarter that made up the group went on stage and poured their heart and souls into a set that had an extra layer of meaning that night. Emotional, deep and incredibly powerful, The Five Hundred showed why they continue to be one of the rising forces in the British Metal scene and gave a performance that would have made John extremely proud. Featuring iconic tracks such as ‘New World’, ‘Rainmaker’ and ‘Our Demise’ (a track that had a young fan head up on stage and smash vocally as a guest), this was a set that closed off the 2nd stage spectacularly whilst also serving as a reminder of how humble and united the scene can be
Two stages, 12 bands – one hell of a line-up. Along with highlighting the strong sense of community within the grassroots scene, Amplified Festival also highlighted just how strong the talent within the grassroots scene can be through these 12 bands alone. Of course, there are many, MANY talented bands…but then when you have to consider the impossible task of whittling that down to a select few for a line-up, Amplified have truly nailed this aspect on the head. It gave me a chance to hear bands for the first time and also gave me chance to ‘catch up’ with bands I have seen before.
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