Riff Fest is a FREE Metal festival taking place all day and night at The Alma Inn, Bolton. Every year the DIY festival organised by Adam Swarbrick and Jim MacGranthin gets bigger, better and more ambitious. This year saw even more Metalheads and music fans attend, with an even more impressive line-up, featuring the almighty Liverpool Doom Metal titans CONAN as headliners!
Photo Credit: Bruce Cowie
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OUTDOOR STAGE
The weather was beautiful and the turnout to the tiny Alma Inn was great from the start as the first band of the day Trollkraftt took the outdoor stage. This quartet play swampy Sludge Metal with a bit of a twist. Their vocalist exhibited a primal display of throat singing, turning non syllabic vocals into an extra instrument on stage. Trollkraft set the tone of the day with an incredibly loud and bass heavy sound, engineered by the talented Marios Sozos behind the mixing desk. Most of their songs were built on one of two slow pounding and churning riffs, although their second song had a faster, Punkier sound with a lead riff reminiscent of "Pretty Vacant" by the Sex Pistols. Undoubtedly the highlight of their set was an amusing stop/start song in which the band started a game of pass the parcel with the Riff Fest crowd. In a stroke of hilarity, the band had the whole crowd passing around the wrapped up mystery gift and when the riff came to a stop, some lucky Metalheads were treated to fantastic prizes such as a colouring book and a book about how to improve your golf swing! Festival curator Adam Swarbrick says that he thinks of Riff Fest as more of a giant party than a music festival, and Trollkraftt perfectly captured that tone, bringing strangers in the crowd together to share a good laugh, and some crushing Crowbar-esque riffs to boot! 8/10.
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I'm going to go right out and say it... I'm not the biggest fan of the Deathcore sound. However a lot of people are, especially some of the younger Metalheads in the crowd today. After the Abduction are doing a fantastic job representing Deathcore in Manchester and are genuinely one of the most brutal bands in the local scene. The quintet have a love for massively downtuned guitars and fast riffs that often spasm out into crushing discordant breakdowns. The band were performing on a massive high after playing Bloodstock Festival and brought that fantastic momentum to Bolton today. I saw a lot of fans wearing After the Abduction shirts in the pit and the band really got the crowd sweating and moving about. After the Abduction have refined their sound to be as evil and brutal as possible, like they are trying to conjure up demons from hell below us! 8/10.
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Photo Credit: Frenchie
Hogslayer were a ripping highlight at the very first Riff Fest two years ago and have come back with a vengeance, being the last band to be added to the lineup. The quartet have been a little quiet lately and have had to deal with a bit of a lineup change, but they returned to stage in style today. Hogslayer used to dress up in monstrous black facepaint, which they have now traded for black hoodies. The band have a tough, rugged sound that plays with mid tempo sludge riffs that explore odd groovy time signatures. There is certainly a small pinch of Meshuggah to their sound, with chuggy riffs and tribal influenced drums. The band are propelled by their energetic lead vocalist who moved all about the stage and even carried on screaming whilst crowdsurfing. Hogslayer are a band that put on a fun live show, but also deliver a dark and terrifying sound. 8/10.
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Photo Credit: Gareth "Benson Thrapple" Manning
Carrying on the party atmosphere was Nottingham based quartet Widows (headliners of the very first Riff Fest) who are gearing up to release their brand new album, "Oh Dear God". The band feel like they are happy with their latest line-up and new bassist and it's obvious that they are beaming with confidence. Widows perform like they have just drank ALL THE CAFFEINE, with so much energy pouring from the stage effortlessly. Musically they have that Thrashy Stoner sound nailed with plenty of groovy riffs, reminiscent of Clutch with a pinch of Motorhead too. Their new songs in particular are sounding excellent. One of my favourite things about Widows is the way they play around with the tempo of their riffs, speeding up and slowing down in a playful manner, almost like switching a vinyl between 33 and 45rpm. The icing on the cake is vocalist Adam Jolliffe who has an exquisite gravelly tone, and even whipped out a strange skull vocoder device to alter the pitch of his voice! Widows strong energy and pummeling riffs were perfectly made for the outdoor stage in the sunny weather. 9/10.
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Photo Credit: Bruce Cowie
Bury's craziest Grindcore maniacs are always a treat to see live and they tear up the stage. The band were preparing to play at a wedding, wearing smart suits, trousers and ties, and it didn't take long for vocalist Sam to split his trousers with his high energy on stage antics! Foetal Juice are gearing up for the release of their new album "Masters of Absurdity" and treated the Riff Fest crowd to some new songs that are sounding brutal as fuck. One of the best of these was "Noneckahedron", dedicated to Cannibal Corpse vocalist Corpsegrinder and his erm... Lack of a neck! Foetal Juice hit you with a relentless barrage of blastbeats, lightning fast riffs, as well as moments of discordance and vile shrieking vocals. Also considering there was a lot of Doom and Sludge on show today, they broke up the pacing of the day rather well. 8/10.
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Travelling from London was this bizarre Stoner/Doom trio dressed in tie dye shirts and corpse paint! Chubby Thunderous Bad Kush Masters (no I'm not making this up...) are too hippy for the Black Metal crowd, and too extreme for the hippy crowd! So thank the lord of Rifftopia that they found pilgrimage in Bolton today! Chubby have a nostalgic sound that isn't easy to place. I could hear the uber heavy stoner riffs from the likes of Sleep, as well as some Grungey tones in the guitar and vocals. But there was also some classic rock vibes, I could hear Alice Cooper in the snarling vocals and even a bit of Deep Purple in the psychedelic tinged chunky riffs. The Chubby trio obviously don't take themselves too seriously and know how to have a fun time, and I feel that transcended to the packed out crowd today. Loud spaced out bluesy Metal jams! 8/10.
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Photo Credit: Astrid Hurst
If you live in the Northwest and you support your local Metal scene then I'm sure you've heard of Boss Keloid by now. The Psychedelic Tech Sludge quartet have just played their biggest show to date in front of a packed out Bloodstock crowd, followed by a mini-tour which included a sold out London date. The local Metalheads piled into the outdoor stage area to welcome their local heroes home to their spiritual mecca which is The Alma Inn. When they performed "Lung Mountain", the opening track from their latest album "Herb Your Enthusiasm", it was earth shattering, and there were so many fans in the crowd singing along to the lyrics. The atmosphere was absolutely electric and it was one of those chills down your spine moments to see a band you've followed for ages look so triumphant on stage. As per usual, Alex Hurst's caveman-like vocals were a force to be reckoned with, bellowing across the Bolton skies. Unfortunately midway into their set, the crowd antics got a little out of control as crowdsurfing Pist frontman Dave came crashing into guitarist Paul Swarbrick, causing the sound to cut out completely! This caused a 5 minute delay as sound engineer Marios rushed to help get everything fixed. This was the only real bum note of the entire festival, and I felt bad for bassist Adam Swarbrick who had not only worked tirelessly to organise Riff Fest today, but had his own show interrupted. Fortunately, the show was soon back on the road, although some of the effects pedals wouldn't function still. Boss Keloid soldiered on through slightly fragile versions of their show stopping songs "Cone" and "Axis of Green". Through the band's sheer professionalism and dedication to their art, they still made them sound fantastic and salvaged their set, winning back the Riff Fest crowd! 8/10.
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Photo Credit: Adam Robertshaw
The titans of UK Doom Metal Arnuld Scouzenegger... I mean CONAN..! were the very special headliners of Riff Fest 2016 and it was incredible to see such legends play a free show. If there is one thing I've learnt about Conan it's that they render wearing earplugs useless by playing so loud, the whole of Bolton could probably hear them! The trio were in spectacular form this evening and the Alma outdoor stage sound system was able to harness their powerful sound. Conan opened with a newer thrashier number from their latest album "Revengeance". The title track of this album was also a huge highlight, with a Hardcore/Thrash leaning kick drum heavy beat that smacked everyone in the face with its sheer force as the rain poured down so hard it threatened to tear off the canopy above! Drummer Rich Lewis battered his kit so hard it felt like a herd of Elephants were charging towards the crowd! After a few faster numbers, Conan brought the tempo down and showed us why they are the kings of epic Doom Metal, with colossal slabs of guitar from Jon Davis and Chris Fielding, punctuated by their flattening tag team vocals sounding like primal caveman marching out to battle! Conan provided a truly historic and memorable performance tonight and were an incredible way to close Riff Fest's main stage. Their performance was hypnotic, punishing and will go down as one of the very best in Riff Fest history! 9/10.
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INDOOR STAGE
Photo Credit: Bruce Cowie
Opening the indoor stage was Atragon from Edinburgh. This quartet had a raw, Punky approach and attitude in their sound, but predominantly played traditional inspired Doom Metal with an ear for melodic lead guitar parts and solos, so it was an interesting mix. The tiny indoor stage at The Alma Inn failed to keep them contained as their high energy spilled them into the crowd, with the vocalist getting a piggy back on some random dude in the crowd! "I've never sang upside down before" joked vocalist Jan Gardner. After a spectacular showcase of their original material, Atragon ended their set with an obligatory cover of GG Allin's "Bite It You Scum!" This was a totally raging finale, but I'm a bit disappointed that the vocalist didn't get naked, shit all over himself, throw chairs at the audience and then get carted off to jail... Oh well can't win 'em all! 8/10.
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Photo Credit: Bruce Cowie
One of my favourite surprises of Riff Fest 2016 was Garganjua. In a similar way to headliners Conan, Garganjua deliver slow and truly epic Doom Metal riffs. However the similarities ended there as Garganjua explored gorgeous harmonised guitar melodies and lengthy songs that built into powerful crescendos. Their incredible riffs were made from really interesting chord progressions that emitted a sorrowful tone. The band truly took the Riff Fest crowd on a journey with their diverse sonic pallet. Go check out their powerful new album "A Voyage In Solitude"! 9/10.
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After swapping places with Garganjua before them, the Conjurer quartet arrived with the intent of demolishing the indoor stage with their sheer brutality. The latest signings to one of the UK's finest extreme labels Holy Roar Records were an absolute force to be reckoned with. Conjurer's sound isn't so straight forward to describe, but it seems to blur the lines between Sludge, Black and Death Metal seamlessly. Like any great Holy Roar artist, they like to play with off kilter rhythms and always leave the audience guessing where they will go next. The quartet launched into a loud and noisy assault of dissonant riffs and an avalanche of angular Sludge. Guitarists Dan Nightingale and Brady Deeprose amped up the extremity with their vocal trade offs, one with a low pitched growl, the other with a high pitched shriek. Their brilliant use of contrasting vocal styles bounced off each other really well and reminded me a bit of Raging Speedhorn or Napalm Death who use a similar approach. Conjurer show a diverse range of influences with "Frail" channeling a slower Post Metal sound similar to Neurosis, whilst their finale showed a Hardcore influence with brutal screaming where bassist Andy Price joined in on the mayhem. Conjurer have proven themselves to be one of the most exciting and vital acts to tour the UK this year and the quartet throw absolutely everything into their performances. 10/10.
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Photo Credit: Gareth "Benson Thrapple" Manning
Strain are local legends at The Alma and go way back. Now they have returned with a new drummer and the band looked at home on the indoor stage. Strain have a real anger towards them as their lead vocalist struck an impression on me immediately with his raw, gravelly bark. He poured passion and got right up into the crowd's faces, screaming like a madman! Strain played a belting set of Stoner Metal with plenty of groove in the riffs and lots of powerful chugging. Their energy never let up and they even threw in a couple of Thrashy moments. Truly pummeling Metal! You would never have guessed they're the oldest band here today! 8/10.
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Photo Credit: Bruce Cowie
This Sludge Metal quintet barely need an introduction in the North West scene as they seem to have built up an unstoppable momentum. The Hermits have just completed a mini-tour across the UK and performed at an all time high. In fact Boss Keloid guitarist Paul Swarbrick even stopped by to play a couple of songs with the band... Although I swore I could have seen him in the crowd too... Weird! Barbarian Hermit were one of the true highlights of last year's Riff Fest and they managed to come back with a vengeance. In fact this is was probably the most energetic and sweatiest I've ever seen them play. I think there is something about the tiny indoor Alma stage that makes bands who play there want to get out and move around to escape the claustrophobia! This band know how to deliver a powerful, bass rumbling, heavy sound that will make you deliver a load in your underwear! Standouts include their anthems "Burn the Fire" and "Widowmaker" that saw the crowd go wild and sing along. Their newer songs "No Sleep Til Buckfast" and "Del Toro" are sounding perfected too! The only shame was that they only managed to squeeze in one riff from their loving ballad to this very pub, "Alma". 9/10.
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Photo Credit: Bruce Cowie
Perhaps it was because it was the middle of the festival and I was starting to feel exhausted, but I found Enos to be an incredibly overwhelming force. The Brighton based Metalheads kicked into a Thrashy, Stoner number with massive weighty riffs behind them. They had a rawness to them and a vocal style reminiscent of Iggy Pop & The Stooges. As their set went on, Enos explored more psychedelic territory, infusing Kyuss-esque wah and fuzz into their epic compositions. A ten minute spaced out Doom jam nearly had me zoned out in a trance, but they followed it up with a much more immediate riff rocker reminiscent of Queens of the Stone Age. Perhaps Enos were sandwiched into the wrong part of the festival line-up as I honestly found it hard to concentrate at times, perhaps through my own fatigue, but they made an overwhelming impression nonetheless! 8/10.
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One of my favourite bands of the North West Metal scene played a blinding set to close the very first Riff Fest. They made a very welcome return today and brought a brand new line-up and a whole new direction in sound to showcase. Iron Witch are still rooted in Sludge Metal, but with a new guitarist and vocalist in the line-up, they have decided to abandon their older material in favour of their new direction from their full length debut album "A Harrowed Dawn" which has only just been released. Whilst I'm a little gutted I'll never get to hear the old Iron Witch live again, I have to say I'm very impressed with the new sound. The quintet have forged a much darker, even more miserable and agonising sound. Their new riffs have much sharper edges. Vocalist Dave Mould barked at the Riff Fest crowd like he was in agony. Both his voice and the sound of the guitars sounded like they were slowly bleeding to death. The highlight for me was their lengthy set (and album) closer "Solitude and Decay", which builds from gloomy, clean guitar into an onslaught of violent, pounding riffs. Though there were a couple of sloppy transitions, the overall force of their set was terrifying and intense! 8/10.
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I'm surprised that the Alma Inn was still standing after the mammoth, noisy onslaught of Conan out in the garden, but there was still room for more chaos as Riff Fest saved one of the best bands til last! OHHMS are a psyched out Sludge quintet from Kent and like Conjurer before them are signed to the almighty Holy Roar Records (you can tell I'm a big fan right?!) OHHMS delivered a bit of a free for all of crazy and noisy Metal as a real bang to take Riff Fest 2016 out with. OHHMS play very lengthy songs that have a loose jamming feel to them. This also gives them a real unpredictability that feels like their wheels could fall off, or their amps could explode at any second! Even when the band might jam out one riff repetitively, they manage to grip their audience with a true intensity and ferocity. The band play all over the stage and outside of it, with their bassist climbing up the stairs in their apocalyptic finale. OHHMS exhibit a destructive power and free form approach to their music, making them one of the most lively and energetic bands in the UK Metal scene. Their closing set left me with ears splitting, and all of the sense knocked out of my brain! 9/10.
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Riff Fest '16 was a roaring success and I think team indoor stage might have just won this year! A huge thanks to all the Riff Fest and Alma Inn crew, as well as all the bands of course! The whole event was incredibly well organised, with a fantastic sound and a killer line-up!
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August 27th 2016 @ The Alma Inn, Bolton.
Thank You to these Snappers:
Lindsey Appleton (L.A. Photography)
Bruce Cowie
Astrid Hurst
Gareth "Benson Thrapple" Manning
Rich Price (Rich Price Photography)
Adam Robertshaw
Adam Swarbrick
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Photo Credit: Adam Swarbrick
Riff Fest '16 was a roaring success and I think team indoor stage might have just won this year! A huge thanks to all the Riff Fest and Alma Inn crew, as well as all the bands of course! The whole event was incredibly well organised, with a fantastic sound and a killer line-up!
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August 27th 2016 @ The Alma Inn, Bolton.
Thank You to these Snappers:
Lindsey Appleton (L.A. Photography)
Bruce Cowie
Astrid Hurst
Gareth "Benson Thrapple" Manning
Rich Price (Rich Price Photography)
Adam Robertshaw
Adam Swarbrick
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