FESTIVAL REVIEW: Bloodstock Festival 2023 – Part 1


 

A lot has changed in the twenty years since my first Bloodstock. What began as a relatively small indoor gathering in the middle of Derby city centre now welcomes around fifteen thousand metal fans from around the world annually. From two days, two halls, a signing room, and a “Metal Market” to four days, four stages, a signing tent, art gallery, gaming zone, and curiosities such as Viking battles and even early morning Heavy Metal Aerobics sessions, the changes to Bloodstock have been gradual but necessary.

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Rock For Ronnie Concert In The Park Benefiting Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund All-Star Talent Announced


 

The Rock For Ronnie Concert in the Park will take place on Sunday afternoon, May 7, 2023 at Los Encinos Historic Park in Encino, benefiting the. Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund (https://www.diocancerfund.org). The Rock For Ronnie event, slated to be an afternoon of live rock music, silent and live auctions, food trucks and fun geared to the entire family, is the cancer charity’s first post-Covid event back in the park. The event just named a who’s who of Rock and Heavy Metal luminaries for the finale/all-star jam. 

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ALBUM REVIEW: In Flames – Foregone


 

“My momma always said life was like a new In Flames album. You never know what you’re going to get”. Okay, so opening with a paraphrased Forrest Gump quote might seem a little harsh but, considering the Swedish melodeath act’s somewhat less than consistent form since the early 2000s, not entirely without cause. Without a single original left member to their name and being unable to keep a steady line-up since 2008, it’s not entirely surprising to find In Flames has gone from the brink of global domination to struggling to keep themselves near the top of the pile.

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