Day 2, August 24th.

Saturday begins with a brew in the Media Centre, or to be more precise 4 brews, luckily none made by my new found friend Angela, from Avondale Radio; top tip here, if she ever offers you a brew, be cautious, be very cautious, she’s a milk in first type of girl, and literally shows the teabag the cup! Once I’d overcome the trauma of witnessing such tea making ‘skills’ a chat with likeminded media people was on the cards. A post mortem of Friday appeared to be top of the list, along with the lack of space in the pit due to restrictions placed on us because of the use of ‘pyro’ (pyrotechnics) during performances.

As I nonchalantly ambled through the camping area I cast my eyes around, taking in the wondrous sights (and sounds, and smells) that were presented to me on that short journey into the arena. I smiled to myself, somewhat triumphantly I guess, half gloating, yet half reminiscing and in a state of envy. Laid bare before me for anyone to witness were the pained cries of those in obvious self-inflicted pain, along with the scorn of those who had no sympathy at all for the previous individuals, and who were expecting miracles  to be performed there and then, also present were those few who still had no idea where they were, and looked like members of the cast from the video of Thriller having overdosed on Spice.

Then suddenly the smell of ‘The miracle cure’ filled the air, the God of Bacon had obviously taken pity on those in need, and had, or was in the process of delivering cures to the afflicted. Anyway, enough of that, ‘cos you’ll want a bacon sandwich now, won’t you? So, Red, Brown, or Au Natural?

At 1100hrs, and before any music day starts, a small but very moving ceremony takes place in the area of the Disabled Access. It is to commemorate ‘Absent Friends’, all those no longer with us. It started right back at the start of Stonedead as a military ‘thing’,  it’s steeped in the traditions of what the military do, ‘we’ remember those who are no longer with us before we have fun, ‘we’ stand silently, and we raise a glass (normally of Port) to ‘Absent Friends’. Now, this ceremony encompasses everyone who those present wish to remember, not just the military. It is by definition a very solemn moment in the proceedings, it is always well attended, and Neal, one of the festival organisers leads.

A short while later, and with the possibility of rain still present, it’s time for the music to begin. The back and sides of the stage are once again attached after yesterday’s metrological scare, it once again looks like a stage. First out of the traps, and right on cue, are The Hot One Two. I wasn’t overly familiar with them at the time, I do have to admit. I was aware that they’d won the poll (of Stonedead Facebook Page Users) which offered, to the winner, the chance to open Stonedead 2024.

Even after my previous night’s research, I still wasn’t sure what I was about to witness, so an open mind it was. Cambridge based, formed in 2017, and completed in 2018 The Hot One Two are fabulous. Their music is on the ball, and it’s relentless. With an obvious no standing still on stage for more than 10 secs rule in force they all cut around the stage, there’s always something going on, I’m sure that if the drummer could, he’d also be out of his seat and playing on another part of the stage; on that note you could watch Kev Baker (their guitarist) gurn until the cows come home, if you ever give up music Fella then a new career awaits. From a photographers point of view, he is the gift that keeps on giving, yet he never misses a beat, he’s all over it. All too soon it’s over, there’s no polite applause, the reaction of the crowd is genuine, they obviously loved The Hot One Two, as did I, a class act, and I hope destined for great things, I shall be watching!

Next up are Tailgunner. What a name, and yes, taken from the 1990 Iron Maiden track of the same name! UK based, and from the mold of all things Metal from the Maiden / Saxon era, Tailgunner are a slick 5 piece outfit, slick both musically, and visually. There has been a lot of thought and a lot of practice put into the band, and their ‘show’. They know their way around the stage, and they are not scared to use the whole stage, something that bands that are just starting out need to learn the art of. The set started at a frantic pace, and continued that way, even when Craig, the vocalist, ends up on his arse after slipping whilst running around on the rain soaked stage. To his credit, he picked himself up and carried on, all without issue, the show must go on attitude……not “ooo look I’ve chipped a nail, we’ll have to get H&S involved, stop the show immediately”. The music is non-stop, and it’s of an extremely high standard, from a punters viewpoint that’s a good thing.

There are also some choreographed moves from the guitarists and the Bassist whilst pyro adds effects to the scene, there is a Union Flag, there is a Welcome to the Revolution placard, all part of the show; if Tailgunner continue in this vein then it won’t be long before they are playing alongside the ‘Big Boys’ in their own right, the fact that they have already supported KK’s Priest is testimony to their credentials.

After a relatively quick and efficient change over (well from my side of the fence at least) The Bites are next on the still (despite the best efforts of the man with a broom) rain soaked stage. This year, as it’s a multi-national offering from the organisers, The Bites are here representing California, the United States of America. Frontman Jordan Taylor ably demonstrates his colours, modelling his Stars & Stripes Axel Rose inspired shorts by taking to the stage, without fear or favour, telling the assemble masses exactly who The Bites were, and as soon as the show gets going the Hollywood Glamour could be seen appearing through the cracks.

Appearing to be a born entertainer just like those before him in the earlier sets, Jordan Tyler bounces, bounds, and ‘dances’ around the stage, epically failing to standstill for more than the duration of the long notes that he’s holding very, very well….and he also manages to avoid the stage puddles! I immediately liked The Bites as soon as they came on stage, I thought I would after looking them up, there’s just something about them, the energy, the apparent sleaze, their ‘good time’ attitude, I dunno, I just like them. The end of the set comes far too quickly for my liking, and unusually for I manage to put my cameras down and applaud them ‘properly’, a sign of my genuine appreciation for their efforts.

Representatives for the UK, and the USA are now joined by two Scandinavian entries. Firstly the fantastic Bonafide, followed by the equally most excellent Eclipse.  

Formed in 2006, and pretty much still with the same line up for the last 12 years Bonafide hail from Malmö Sweden. I’m only familiar with them through research; if I had to describe what I think then perhaps a grubby with a hard edge, rocky blues sort of sound? If that makes sense? They interact easily with the audience, and it’s plain to see that many stood before them already know of them. When after ‘we’ (the photographers) are turfed out of the pit I stand to the side and watch for a while, I like what I see, but would I be a 24/7 ‘fan boy’ no, probably not is the answer. It’s always nice to see band members react (and interact) to a photographers lens, and Bonafide were right on the money, Mr. Anders Rosell especially, Thank You Sir.

Eclipse, the second of the Scandinavian representatives, are next in the frame. Whilst looking around the same age range as Tailgunner, they have actually been around since forming in Stockholm in 1999, with this year obviously being their 25th anniversary. To celebrate that fact they produced a cracking set, only interrupted by a ten minute deluge for one final ‘F**k You’ from the Weather Gods. If this was designed to test the resolve of either the band, or those in the arena, then it failed completely. A flawlessly delivered set was completed in style, and with good humour. You can probably tell, but again I’ll never be a fan, I can see, and appreciate class and quality when I see them, and in Eclipse I saw both.

At this point how can I not mention Krusher in his own right, as THE compère? His stories, anecdotes, however you want to describe them, they are legendary. As Eclipse end their set Krusher steps forward, he asks the crowd to all raise an arm with their middle fingers extended, and to shout loudly towards the black heavily laden clouds the immortal words…”Fuck Off Rain”, it was simply epic, what a sight to behold, even Krusher himself looked rather pleased with the offerings….and on the subject of mentions, before I continue I need to mention (in no particular order) Mr. Pit himself, Timbo, his glamorous assistant Rob, and their Big Boss, the lovely Jules. Security can make or break a festival for photographers, and these 3 (and the rest of the team) certainly make Stonedead, well from my side they do, so Thank you.

Right, who’s next? Ah yes, Doro, the rightful, and the sitting Queen of Metal. Doro has held court since the early 80’s, when she was part of Warlock. German by birth, but now living in America, Doro (and her band) are eagerly awaited by the assembled Stonedeaders, the arena is packed. (Is this the German entry, or another American one, you decide?) Doro does not disappoint, not for one second. There is a mixture of Warlock tracks, and some of her own ‘solo’ offerings, all are delivered with perfection, both musically and vocally. The crowd sing along to quite a few, you can see in Doro’s face what that means to her.

Visually Doro is fabulous to photograph, as is the rest of the band. Both Bill Hudson and Bas Maas oblige when they notice the lens, they give me several seconds of opportunity to get ‘that’ shot of them individually! As the set ends there is genuine disappointment from the crowd that it is over, they want more, sadly with timings already tight, the ‘one more song’ doesn’t happen. Doro you were excellent.

Ugly Kid Joe, you know, them of the ‘I Hate Everything About You’ fame, well they were up next. You could be forgiven for thinking that was all that UKJ gave the music scene, you might know of the ‘Cats In the Cradle’ cover as well, but how wrong you would be. They’ve been around since forming in 1989 in California, you will note another band representing the USA! Covering their whole ‘lifespan’ UKJ played tracks from their early days off of ‘Americas Least Wanted’ released in 1992 right up to the 2022 album ‘Rad Wings of Destiny’. There was even a cover of ‘Ace of Spades’, which I’m sure had the purists turning in their graves, but for me, when delivered in UKJ style, worked!

Frontman Whitfield Crane made friends of us photographers when, after our allotted ‘3 songs’ he caused a major stir when he invited us all up on the side of the stage to continue shooting. Cue Security and Mr Festival Media himself, Mark, having a ‘WTF moment’ as that was obviously not in the plan. This provided us a rare opportunity to get some shots from a different perspective, and personally I appreciated the gesture. It’s safe to say that the set that UKJ delivered was, by the vast majority of, if not all of, those present in the arena, very well received, experience and class shone through, and it involved the audience, which then means the band aren’t just going through the motions, right?

Step forward KK’s Priest. For a short while KK stands alone on stage, in ‘that’ pose, amid a barrage of pyro that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Baghdad on a Saturday night let alone Newark! The band then takes to the stage, greeted with cheers and horns by the capacity crowd. From their 2020 formation, right up to today, they have gone from strength to strength, never slacking, and always producing the highest quality music, and this shows right from the off.

We’d had a brief to say that the photographers aren’t allowed in the pit until song 6 at the earliest due to ‘more pyro being used’, surely a sign of things to come? A few of us decamp to the area towards the rear of the arena to shoot wide angle from there. The pyro budget was obvs a generous one with a flames (and the accompanying smoke) aplenty, allowing some nice ‘effects’ shots from our current position, when the smoke allowed! Note here to Stage Managers / Effects Guys, smoke and ‘dry ice’ are a feckin’ pain in the arse for photographers, I know they’re ‘your toys’, but just FTR cameras cannot see through them; with me here, or is further explanation required? We all have a job to do, and I thought it was a team effort?

After getting back to the pit gate, through the assembled masses, we’re in for our ‘3 songs’. And what a time to go in, the band are now relaxed with it all, they’re just being themselves and they’re enjoying it, so they’re good to photograph. The set has had a balanced mixture of new tracks along with some older tracks (and a couple of slower numbers in there to boot), all proved popular, as you would expect, and all received rapturous applause. All in all ‘magnificent’ wouldn’t be too far off the mark if you had to sum this performance up in a single word; if you’re not familiar with KK’s Priest take yourself, and you device of choice off into a darkened area, slide the volume to 11 and play both of their albums, ‘Sermons of the Sinner’ from 2021, and ‘The Sinner Rides Again’ from 2023, then you’ll know. In fact play them twice!!!

The end of the ‘day’ is nigh, it’s nearly Saxon time. If it wasn’t rammed before, then the arena is now, you can sense the anticipation in the air. There’s a mere youngster at the front, the 73 year old Biff Byford, standing there with an air of authority he surveys his audience on the last gig of their current European Tour, a tour where they’ve supported Judas Priest, and a tour where they’ve had headline slots themselves, but tonight, the last night, Saxon are most definitely THE headliners. We are treated to a flawless set, a mixture of tracks from Hell, Fire and Damnation, the most recent offering from Jan 2024, to the ‘older’ classic Saxon tracks, all played to ‘that’ standard. In between tracks Biff has conversations with the audience, another sign that the band are enjoying it all. Nothing has been compromised throughout the years, Biffs voice is still the same, the band members are always expected to give everything, and they do; the standards were there at the very beginning, and they are there now, Saxon remain Saxon!

You’ll be pleased to know that I have (well nearly) also finished rambling, so will bring this little epic to a close a few points of my own. Firstly, if anyone ever finds a Lens Caps, or perhaps a Viewfinder Rubber Eyepiece lying somewhere that they shouldn’t be, then it’ll be a safe bet to ask Lynsey if they’re hers…..!!! Secondly, as previously mentioned, never let Angela make you a brew, and thirdly, don’t wear a fecking top hat to a festival, and if you really have to, have some consideration and stand at the side, don’t be an inconsiderate twat….!

And before I go, Thank You to Reg (the FRAME Music Editor) for the opportunity, Thank You to Mark Ellis for looking after the Media people, and lastly Thank You to the Stonedead Organisers for having me, so Ladies and Gentlemen, and without further ado please join me in raising your glass to the Stonedead organisers, without whom, you know the rest…..oh and did you know, Stonedead 2025 is already sold out……!

One Day (and a bit), One Stage, One Monster Rock Show….

Words and Images by: Taff Wiltshire / FRAME Music

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