After what feels like a very long wait, Metal 2 The Masses is back for another year at our old faithful, the Jericho Tavern. There is a promising line of patrons as we wait for doors, and a buzz of excitement in the air for the return of this year’s competition. It is nice to see the metal scene is still alive and kicking in Oxford! On the bill tonight and kicking us off for Heat 1 of the road to Bloodstock are Barbed Wire, Nvmeral and White Noise Machine.
Barbed Wire are up first and what a way to open. This trio are not messing around and explode onto the stage with brutal screaming vocals and chugging breakdowns in vast quantities. The crowd are ready to go, and it takes a matter of seconds for the pit to open. If you like a band you can “BLEGH” to, these are your guys. They are loud; so loud the floor is vibrating, and the bass can be felt all the way to the back of the room. The sound is punishing, relentless and creates an atmosphere of perfect chaos. They own the stage and command the crowd and certainly make their presence known; if you are anywhere in the vicinity of these guys when they are playing; you will know about it.
A short but high impact set, their vocalist does not stand still for a second and encourages the crowd to behave in the same vein. This is the kind of music that you find yourself screwing your face up to and is a prime example of where “ohh this sounds disgusting” is used as nothing but a compliment. This was a set of utter filth and consisted of everything you could want from hardcore; walls of death, spin kicks and windmilling, and some deathcore groove thrown in for good measure. You were feeling this, whether you were ready or not. This competition is called Metal 2 The Masses and this band left us all in no doubt as to why.
Oxford based Nvmeral, a five-piece progressive post-hardcore outfit are up next, the first of our returning bands for 2026. They hit us with roaring screams blended excellently with crushing riffs and melody and bring a refreshing, distinctively early 2000s-esque sound to proceedings. This band has a presence that dwarfs the stage which has nothing to do with the fact there are five of them playing up there.
The vocalist spends most of this time amongst the crowd, giving us a dynamic, high-energy performance peppered with mic drops that more than held everyone’s attention. Everyone is moving, especially to the final song which brings the headbangers out in force. They played as a cohesive unit, hitting us with aggressive rock and then interspersing it with softer reprieves. Heart-wrenching melodic vocals combined with energetic drums and lots of tempo changes that kept everyone on their toes, Nvmeral achieved an emotive, intense, anthemic sound that was well received by the crowd.
White Noise Machine return to M2TM for the third time. They are a heavy melodic trio hailing from Hampshire and slam into their set with a thumping, classic sound. Vocalist Amy Wheeler delivers clean, sharp vocals perfectly, which pierce the room and captivate the attention of the crowd. You can hear and see that this band are confident, polished, experienced performers, with great synergy between the band members, enabling them to delivery a rousing, energetic set.
The songs are catchy, beautifully rhythmic and absorbing. Movement is both encouraged and reciprocated, and the crowd is soon dancing on command. This was a powerful act to close out the heat.
It is obvious how much this means to all the bands competing. All music tonight was passionate, energetic and tight. The genres were varied and the bands all had their own distinctive sounds and the crowd have a tough decision on their hands.
After some deliberation time, Nvmeral take the crowd vote and Barbed Wire take the judges vote and both will now progress to the next round of the competition. Stay tuned for Heat 2 next weekend!
Words & images: Kate Elfström
