Now in its fourth year, Maid of Stone has in a short space of time established itself as one of the very best festivals, ranking alongside the longer running Steelhouse and Stonedead for mid-sized events catering for a classic rock and metal crowd. Held on the same site as the much missed Ramblin Man Fair, it is more modest in its execution with less corporate backing, but has a more intimate feel, while retaining the same broad musical policy.

My first trip was for a day in 2024, but I took the plunge for the whole weekend last year and had such a brilliant time that the hotel was booked even before a varied and equally impressive line up was announced this time.

After spending the first three editions tinkering with the best format, the 2025 formula was repeated- three whole days and on two stages, a main stage with an eclectic mix of styles under the classic rock banner and a ‘Firestarter’ stage exclusively for the newer generation of bands, hosted by the Emerging Rock Bands media organisation.

Handily second stage slots filled the main stage changeover gaps, making it possible to hear all 37 bands over the weekend wall-to-wall; I remember my pride when reviewing the final Ramblin’ Man that I had covered 13 bands in a day but that included dipping in and out of some bands for only a few minutes. This time I was pretty much able to catch everything.

DAY 1- Friday 17 July

Main stage: The Temperance Movement, A Thousand Horses, FM, The New Roses, Anthony Gomes, Cassidy Paris

Firestarter Stage: Crow Black Chicken, Morganway, Sam Morrow, Devere, Regional One

Friday began with one of my current favourite artists in young Australian melodic rock singer Cassidy Paris and her band, She certainly made a striking arrival in a red monogrammed body suit topped off with a pair of devil horns, but initial anticipation turned into something of a letdown when her vocals on opener ‘Walking on Fire’ were horribly buried in the mix. Among the punky ‘Wannabe’, ‘Stronger’ and ‘Butterfly’, the ballad ‘Here I Am’ (we can forgive the taped keyboards) was where she really first came into her own.

Likewise – after a name check for Danger Danger probably received less of a cheer than it would at a melodic rock festival- she put heart and soul into their ‘I Still Think About You’, featuring an equally impressive solo from Jordan Smith who was on guitar rather than Dad Steve Janevski. From now on she was really on a roll with a pair of classics in the power pop of ‘Like I Never Loved You’ and the big hooks of ‘Danger’- reminding me of Vixen’s ‘Edge of a Broken Heart’.

In contrast Russ Grimmett of Fireheart (and the MoS stage manager) came on to duet on ‘There Is Nothing Left To Lose’ which owed more to the likes of Linkin Park. Closing her set with ‘Watch the Fire’, she would have won even more friends by wandering around the crowd after. I hope some of the new converts will join me at her 100 Club show in September.

My pattern for the weekend was now set of doing an about turn, rushing past the rows of lawn chairs and up a slight hill to catch the action on the Firestarter stage, which was being opened by Regional One. Their name may sound like a heat in a ‘battle of the bands’ contest, but they would be strong contenders in any such. They had a modern sound and yet catchy hooks, notably the Kiss-like ‘who-oa-ohs’ that introduced ‘Hide’, and ‘Smoke It Away’. Sadly just as they were hitting their stride technical difficulties curtailed their set.

There will always be room for some blues rock at Maid of Stone, which meant in this case my first chance to see Canadian guitarist Anthony Gomes, fronting a power trio completed by two Americans and someone who came recommended by friends. I was instantly taken back to a gig a couple of weeks previously where I had seen George Thorogood and Jared James Nichols- he mixed the showmanship and goof ball humour of the former with the latter’s pummelling musical approach and rough-hewn vocals. ‘Painted Horse’ with its catchy ‘bang bang’ refrain, ‘Fur Covered Handcuffs’ (sic) and ‘Blame It on Rock’n’roll’ were boogie-style rockers, showcasing his Flying V playing, but ‘Blues in the First Degree’ showed he could also play a more traditional slow blues.

Humour played a large part in his set and I had to chuckle that the title track from his latest album was ‘Praise the Loud’ which featured audience participation, then a lengthy rap about his first visit to a local Tesco heralded ‘White Trash Princess’ (a partner for the corresponding millionaire from last year’s headliners Black Stone Cherry?); while the female character on ‘True That’, with its big ‘who-oah’ hooks, claimed that ‘I’ve had 20 husbands but only two of them were mine’. It was a thoroughly entertaining set from a larger than life character- my only criticism being that he finished with a cover of the overplayed ‘Whole Lotta Love’ rather than an original.

After a quick detour to grab a curry from the legendary ‘Bollywood Box’ stall, next up on the Firestarter were Devere. They were brash and sleazy with vibes and image of the early and hungry Motley Crue and Guns’n’Roses, and by the time I arrived singer Sam Cassidy had stripped to the waist. I found myself being quietly impressed by ‘Empire’. ‘Like Lightning’, ‘See Right Through Me’ and in particular ‘Until The End’ which went in a heavier and even Maiden-esque direction.

The New Roses are confirmed favourites of mine and this was a perfect opportunity to bring their good-time rock to a wider audience. The Germans with the all-American sound began with a typically big anthem in the title track of most recent album ‘Attracted to Danger’ and ‘Bring the Thunder’, then I was concerned that to slip in a cover so early in ‘Rocking in the Free World’ sold them short, but in fact it got the crowd going, and was a vehicle for some dynamic and synchronised stage moves, especially from the Flying V wielding lead guitarist Norman Bites.

‘Forever Never Comes’ had more ‘who-oahs’ and ‘heys’ even than prime time Bon Jovi and raspy-voiced singer Timmy Rough went deep into the pit to conduct ‘Glory Road’. Sporting a cleaner-cut image than his biker gang looking bandmates, he was one of the best frontmen all weekend, working the crowd in immaculate English.

After another first punching anthem in ‘Every Wild Heart’, he got people to jump up and down during the audience participation of ‘Thirsty’, before a set that flew by ended with another couple of raucous autobiographical anthems with ‘who-oahs’ in ‘The Usual Suspects’ and ‘Down by the River’. As their UK popularity has yet to take off the way it should I hope they won many new friends and the good news for me is that they are about to repeat the feat at Firevolt festival.

Back on the Firestarter stage was a man after my own heart, Houston-raised and now-Nashville-based Sam Morrow with his band, sporting a classic mullet and fresh from touring with Robert Jon and the Wreck earlier this year. Several songs, including ‘Saturday Night’ and ‘South Texas’ Women’ were taken from brand new album ‘Southern Boogie’.

The timbre of his voice bore a remarkable resemblance at times to the late great Ronnie Van Zant, though the majority of the songs had a slow, swampy groove, which allied to his rather taciturn stage presence made for an overly laid back set: it ended with a cover of Floyd’s ‘Have A Cigar’ turning into a lengthy jam.

Two-time veterans of Ramblin Man Fair, FM were one of the main attractions, at least judging from the band t-shirts on show during the day, including your correspondent sporting his new one from one of their gigs (at Hastings) to mark its 40^th anniversary by playing debut album ‘Indiscreet’ in full. This time though it was a festival set which covered all phases of their career.

The format was their well established one of polished AOR with the golden voice of Steve Overland and the band giving off a real sense of enjoyment on stage with their synchronized moves and grins. However an LED video screen did add an unusual touch with videos relating to specific songs including opener ‘Digging Up the Dirt’.

Though the inevitable ‘That Girl’ and ‘I Belong To The Night’ got an airing from the debut, a major part of the set was post-reunion material: from songs like ‘Killed by Love’ with its ‘yay-yay-ohs’ and ‘Synchronised’ that are not too dissimilar in style, to the laid back southern blues of ‘Black Water’ with great guitar work from Jim Kirkpatrick.

Another fast-paced set reached a peak with a couple of anthems from ‘Tough It Out’ in ‘Bad Luck’ and the title track, and the modern day classic in the Springsteen/Bon Jovi inspired ‘Turn This Car Around’. No surprises for me or their other fans but it was great to see them go down so well on a bigger stage before a wider audience.

One of the more unusual acts were next up on the Firestarter stage in Morganway with an eclectic melange of rock, folk and Americana and even prog. This was epitomised by Kieran Morgan sporting a combo of boater, pink guitar and Slayer t-shirt! They followed opener ‘Devil’s Canyon’ with an unexpected cover of ‘You Oughta Know’.

Among originals such as ‘Machine’, the most interesting songs were those featuring Nicole Terry’s fiddle including ‘Let Me Go’ (which segued into a cover of ‘the Chain’) and at one point it also did battle with an organ solo. ‘I Feel the Rain’ ended an interesting set in somewhat epic fashion, though I found myself not totally sold on them and yet to warm to the vocals of admittedly magnetic frontwoman SJ Mortimer.

Like Ramblin Man before it, Maid of Stone invariably features bands who operate in the blurred lines between southern rock and country. One such are A Thousand Horses, but since I saw them 12 months ago in London they have released a new album, ‘White Flag Down’.

It was a conscious effort by their revamped line-up to move away from the country field, epitomised by opener ‘Dead Man Walking’ which reminded me more of the likes of Shinedown, and ‘Shadows’, alongside the older ‘Suicide Eyes’, But ‘First Time’ had a classic Black Crowes feel and ‘Part of My Story’ was particularly excellent.

‘Blaze of Somethin’ harked back to their more country-ish roots, while ‘The Passenger’ was a real grower. Their old country hit ‘Smoke’ was reinvented as a lengthy medley which included a snatch of ‘Champagne Supernova’ (Oasis is always a controversial choice to a UK classic rock audience, but I had already noticed that singer Michael Hobby had a little of the Liam Gallagher sneer) and a jam featuring long solos from both guitarists.

After a final newie in ‘Voices’, a highly impressive set ended with some vintage southern rock sounds- the bluesy ‘Travelin’ Man’ began with a harmonica solo from Michael and closed with a rock out, as did ‘Highway Sound’, climaxing with lovely Allman Brothers- esque dual guitars.

Firestarter stage headliners were Crow Black Chicken, an Irish retro blues rock trio. Stocky and bearded frontman and guitarist Christy O’Hanlon had a dry sense of humour and introduced songs about figures as diverse as Oliver Cromwell and Jim Jones (‘Jonestown’). Unfortunately their songs tended to be slow and lengthy in nature and after a long day I found my attention wandering, and left before the end to get a decent spot for the headliner.

The Maid of Stone line up was an interesting mix of the old (including the Saturday and Sunday headliners), the new (at the Firestarter stage) and all points in between. Friday headliners The Temperance Movement fell into the latter category. In the 2010s they released a trio of quality albums and were festival regulars (including twice at Ramblin Man) only to go on a long hiatus, prior to some rapturously received reformation shows last year.

This show marked the start of their longer-term return with new album ‘New Promise Land incorporated’ on the way but began with one of their most famous older songs in the typically sinuous grooves of ‘Ain’t No Tellin’ and the rather more urgent ‘Built-in Forgetter’. Singer Phil Campbell seemed, outwardly at least, free of the demons that have troubled him and was a unique frontman, his gravel voice and feather cut allied to his spindly frame cutting some extraordinary dance moves, while his bandmates exuded a more studied cool.

‘Caught in the Middle’ had a relatively direct chorus by their standards, then after a new song in ‘Always Be Mine’, ‘Magnify’ had some ‘who-oah’s that the crowd eagerly joined in on and a riff reminding me of Primal Scream’s ‘Rocks’. Both that, ‘Be Lucky’ and ‘Take It Back’ were examples of an up tempo set, wisely for a festival, with relatively few of the quieter moments that punctuate their albums. That said, ‘Smouldering’ was a superb ballad that built in intensity.

There were a couple of songs that were either new or unfamiliar to me in ‘Silverlight Blues’ and ‘Get Yourself Free’, then Phil introduced a song that he said summed up the bond between them and their fans more than any other. It was ‘Pride’ which developed into a big number, culminating in one of the guitarists Paul Sayer stepping forward, tilting his head back and playing a solo of epic proportions, then he repeated the feat at the end of a superb ‘Only Friend’ with the whole crowd singing along- and not only the exuberant young man next to me who was shouting ‘we love you’ at the band all set.

That would have been a fitting closer but there was still time for a couple more in new single ‘Eat You Alive’ and an encore of the significantly rockier and faster ‘Midnight Black’ to get the crowd going. I’ve always been a bit of an agnostic when it comes to the Temperance Movement but I loved this headline set, showing them come back with a fresh vigour. I left the site in a very good mood, heading for my post-gig nightly routine- a beer or three and catching up with old and new friends at the Thirsty Pig, a 15^th century real ale pub conveniently equidistant between the Mote Park site and my hotel.

DAY 2- Saturday 18^th July

Main Stage: Saxon, Doro, Danko Jones, Phil Campbell’s Bastard Sons, Girlschool, Xander and the Peace Pirates, Haxan

Firestarter Stage: The Virginmarys, Battle Born, LN, Rattlesnakes, Kit Trigg, Untamed Silence

Deliberately or otherwise, the second day of Maid of Stone, just as last year, was distinctly more metalised than the other two. All female South Welsh trio Haxan had graduated from the rising band stage at the inaugural festival in 2023 to open the main stage. Dressed in black and white, reminding me a little of a more personable version of The Warning who played here two years ago, they were extremely tight and professional and on hearing ‘Killing Time’, I am sure I remembered it from one of the NWOCR compilations.

That was one of their more commercial and accessible songs: however, rather like South of Salem, their image and merch plays on more macabre elements (I even noticed the drumkit read ‘Haxan funeral and cremation services’), and this was reflected in ‘Grave Digger’, and a closing trio from the ‘Death of Me’ EP in the title track, ‘Thirteenth Hour’ and ‘Buried Alive’, all of which had a satisfying crunch to them.

There was a welcome change at the Firestarter stage which generally hosted fresh-faced young hopefuls, but I felt more sympatico with the middle-aged band members that constituted Untamed Silence. I was very impressed with their opening duo of songs – ‘Long Time Dead’ and ‘The Power’, even if ‘Nowhere’ was not as good.

Debbie Wade was an engaging frontwoman while guitarist David Jones mixed traditional and more modern guitar sounds. Free copies of their ‘Great Majority’ CD were being handed out in the crowd while a pair from their forthcoming album in ‘Requiem’ and ‘Embers’ had to these ears a bit more of a goth feel, before a quietly impressive set ended with ‘Deadspeak’.

Xander and the Peace Pirates were relatively late additions to the original bill, though to be honest their laid back style would have sat more comfortably on the Friday or Sunday. Opener ‘Fire’ showed off the remarkable claw-handed guitar technique of Keith Xander, although his vocals initially seemed rather buried, though two songs in a lengthy cover of ‘Red House’ stopped momentum building up. ‘Rain’ however climaxed with a superb passage where the guitars of Keith and new boy Jim Morris, who played a lot of slide, intertwined.

On ‘Let Go’ Keith showed off his falsetto, but even more impressive was ‘Searching For the Light’, whose soulful nine minutes climaxing in an epic guitar solo had much in common with King King, even an album title similarity. It meant though there was time for just one more song in the altogether lighter and funkier ‘Dancing in the Light’, culminating in Keith playing guitar with his teeth. I loved the set, and the guitar work in particular, however out of step it was with the rest of the bill.

Another departure from the norm back at the Firestarter stage was Kit Trigg, whose floppy hair, smiling face and bright blue t-shirt contrasted with some of the more aggressive images on show. His songs were hard to pigeonhole: indeed on ‘Making It’ I was picking up a whiff of those dance-rock hybrids from the early nineties like Jesus Jones or EMF, while he went solo on his tribute to a departed friend ‘Grow With the Flow’, but was a tasty lead guitarist on some of the heavier numbers.

His higher pitched voice also dovetailed well with the backing vocals of bassist Adam Thorn, and he even broke into a falsetto at times especially on closing numbers ‘Glass Ceiling’ and his best known number ‘Goin’ For Glory’.

If Haxan represent the new breed of all-women bands, Girlschool were the OGs during the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, smashing barriers that so many owe a debt to. They are still going strong, though as they came on I was surprised the drummer was very much a man (Larry from Blaze Bayley’s band standing in for an indisposed Denise Dufort). Indeed openers ‘Demolition Boys’ and ‘Come on Lets Go’ seemed to have been teleported in a timewarp from 1981, albeit that the band seemed tighter than ever and Jackie Chambers’ guitar playing had a sharp edge.

Singer Kim McAuliffe’s appearance and no nonsense London stage patter have also hardly changed and she was the first to break the swearing ban that was a condition of the festival’s licence with a kids playground nearby. ‘The Hunter’ did show some of her vocal limitations reminding us that she was only one of three lead singers in the early Girlschool, but it was one old favourite after another in ‘Future Flash’ with Kim, Jackie and young bassist Liv Airey providing some great synchronised moves, ‘Kick It Down; and ‘Nothing to Lose’ with a singalong.

They have been making albums pretty much ever since but other than ‘It Is What It Is’ from their most recent album, a festival set was perhaps not the time to play them. Instead two of my favourite Girlschool songs in ‘Screaming Blue Murder’ and ‘Race With the Devil’ followed, and the set concluded with two remarkably similar songs, a cover of ‘Bomber’ (cheekily introduced as a ballad) and ‘Emergency’.

Back in the day, my own musical ride with Girlschool was only a brief one before I moved onto more polished material, but as they rattled through all those songs in a fast paced 45 minutes, I have to admit I really enjoyed it.

Back at the Firestarter stage a band from the newer generation, Nottingham’s Rattlesnakes, got a big build up from the stage announcer but justified the hype- they had the stage moves with a pair of dynamic guitarists between a bassist wielding his instrument in the air, and a pocket sized bundle of energy in the powerful voice of Rowena Neale.

After opening in fierce fashion with ‘Spellbound’ and ‘Firestarter’, ‘Shadows in the Night’ went a stage further, verging on speed metal, but after ‘Love Me Harder’ the highlight of the set for me was ‘Forever’, where the pace dropped somewhat to give it a classic Euro power metal theme. ‘Crazy For Vengeance’ ended one of the surprise sets of the weekend and with their first album not even out till the autumn they are very much a band to watch.

Another late replacement to the main stage line up was Phil Campbell’s Bastard Sons. Sadly the former Motorhead guitarist passed away earlier this year after failing to come through a major operation. However his trio of sons are keeping the band flag flying with a slight change of name, and there was a touching opening as a voice that I assume was him from a live recording introduced David Bowie’s ‘Heroes’.

Son Todd not only carried all guitar duties admirably, but also did the majority of introductions rather than new singer Julian Jenkins, a veteran of the festival last year with Fury. I did though find his comment that ‘our Dad taught us many things, not all of them good, but he taught us how to rock n roll’ a little backhanded.

The ‘no swearing’ policy was tested to its limits with song titles (‘We are the Bastards’), Phil’s old ‘w*nker’ guitar strap that Todd has inherited and the usual routine of baiting Tyler Campbell (‘f— you’) before his bass intro to ‘Rock Out’. It was a varied set which took in their own material (‘Step Into the Fire’), Motorhead (‘Going to Brazil’) and Phil’s own solo career (‘These Old Boots’).

‘Dark Days’ in contrast was a slow grinding blues and Todd’s searing solo confirmed my thought that he was among the best guitarists all weekend. Inevitably though the best reception greeted the old Motorhead classics in ‘Ace of Spades’, and the always fun participation of ‘Born To Raise Hell’, while the first song Phil recorded with them, ‘Killed By Death, complete with searing solo, was a fitting end to a finely judged tribute to his legacy.

Swerving past the food stalls to pick up a macaroni cheese with pulled pork, I could initially only hear rather than watch LN. I assumed the mixture of clean and growling vocals was coming from two different people, but when I stood up I realised both sets were coming from lively frontwoman Ellen Hirst, who also explained the lyrical messages in the songs including calling out bullying and discrimination.

The self-confessed pagan and viking metallers have a striking dystopian image, while they closed with ‘Shield Wall’, inviting the crowd to start this Viking version of a circle pit. I kept my distance and made my way back to watch an interloper from an otherwise all-European lineup in Danko Jones and his eponymous band.

The black-clad power trio were not the most exciting visually, but he has a dry wit, turning the fact he had gone six songs without water into a protracted boast that he was tougher than the metallers on the bill. The songs are straight ahead rock’n’roll but the strongest ones like ‘Get High’, ‘I’m in a Band’, ‘Everyday is Saturday Night’ and in particular ‘First Date’ reminded me at times of Thin Lizzy in the songwriting if not the delivery.

Prior to ‘Good Time’ with its chorus lyric ‘I came here to f*** shit up’ he correctly identified that rock fans tend to be contrarians, so exhortations not to swear would have the opposite effect. After a while the songs did begin to sound samey and blur into one another but further highlights included ‘I’ve Had Enough’ and set closer ‘My Little Rock and Roll’.

Back on the Firestarter stage Battle Born, given a second chance after having to withdraw from last year’s festival, had a more dynamic stage show with hair flailing and line astern poses. As you might expect from the band name and image, the music was energetic speed metal: I wasn’t quite as struck with them as with Rattlesnakes, but still impressed with the likes of opener ‘Indigo Eyes’, ‘One On One’ and ‘Power Force’. They showed their ambition (and influences) by covering the Judas Priest classic ‘Electric Eye’ which could have gone very wrong but made a success of it, and set closer ‘Born to Battle’ was further proof that bands like them are keeping the traditional metal scene very healthy.

A praiseworthy facet of the weekend was an unusual gender equality, so it was fitting that the Saturday ‘special guest’ slot should be the ‘Queen of Metal’ in Doro. The German who manages to look exactly the same over 40 years after she burst onto the scene with Warlock was greeted with palpable love and warmth by all around. Those Warlock songs still form a large part of the set including opener ‘Earthshaker Rock’, ‘Burning the Witches’ and ‘Fight for Rock’, alongside those from her solo years in ‘Justice’ and ‘Raise Your Fists in the Air’.

Although perhaps not the most original, the delivery was thoroughly enjoyable with the band showing the stage movements and sense of fun so typical of European acts, notably the hirsute pair of excellent guitarists in Bas Maas and Bill Hudson. My only reservation was that her voice seemed a little thinner and less powerful than I expected, struggling to make itself heard above a wall of backing vocals, though this may again have been a mixing issue.

‘Warriors of the Sea’ was comfortably my favourite of the Doro originals, then after her trademark ballad ‘Fur Immer’ and ‘Fire In the Sky’, ‘All We Are’, with a big singalong to its simple chorus was, I thought, the inevitable closer. However there was a surprise in store as she talked about supporting Judas Priest many years ago, and they embarked on a cover of ‘Breaking the Law’, though the initial slowed down and acoustic part was unrecognisable before it burst into more familiar form.

Headlining the Firestarter stage, despite having been on the scene for well over a decade, were The Virginmarys. It continues to amaze quite what a racket two men, singer Ally Dikaty and drummer Danny Dolan, can make. There was a raw and punky anger to them on songs sometimes accompanied by political messaging on ‘You’re A Killer’ and ‘Just a Ride’. On the likes of ’My Nettle’ and ‘SOS for You and I’ the pace was unrelenting, until it momentarily dropped for ‘White Knuckle Riding’.

The Saturday night headliner was a low risk choice for Maid of Stone in the almost universally beloved Saxon. The enduring NWOBHM veterans are constantly on tour, but this was their only UK show of 2026. Next spring’s UK tour will be in support of a new album but wisely for a festival, this was a Greatest Hits show.

It did open though with the best thing they have done in years, the title track of last album ‘Hell Fire and Damnation’, complete with Brian Blessed intro with some splendly aggressive guitar work from Brian Tatler: his and Doug Scarratt’s dual guitars were well to the fore on ‘Power and the Glory’ and he has a greater stage presence than long-time predecessor Paul Quinn, with the result that there now seems to be much more on stage interaction between the two.

Even with this type of set Saxon will throw in a surprise or two and ‘Dogs of War’ fitted the bill this time, before the festival themed ‘And the Bands Played On’ (a rare one where Brian didn’t quite capture the distinctive Paul Quinn soloing technique) and a couple from closer to the present day in ‘Madame Guillotine’ and a fast and furious ‘Sacrifice’.

As a 75 year old cancer and heart attack survivor, Biff Byford’s voice has aged remarkably well and though he stands in the same spot a little more these days, he not only looks the part in his long grey hair and military coat, but his blunt Yorkshire wit held the crowd spellbound.

Prior to ‘Motorcycle Man’, with a video of vintage racing, he did a version of the spiel about how music and technology have changed since 1980 that he gave on last winter’s tour to mark the 45^th anniversary of ‘Wheels of Steel’. It made me briefly wonder if we were again to get the album in full but instead he offered the crowd a fielder’s choice of ‘Broken Heroes’ and ‘The Eagle Has Landed’, the latter epic winning the day though he apologised for the fact they could not bring the full size Eagle backdrop as the stage was too small.

From ‘Heavy Metal Thunder’ onwards it was one familiar favourite after another, with songs showcasing the excellence of individual members, from Doug’s solo on ‘Dallas 1pm’ to Nibs Carter’s bass intro to ‘Strong Arm of the Law’. Biff then asked a crowd member for the loan of a cut off (no ‘battle jacket’ nonsense here!) to wear during ‘Denim and Leather’, while ‘Wheels of Steel’ featured a long singalong though even he has moved with the times and took a mobile phone out of his pocket to livestream the moment.

He then asked which further songs we wanted to hear, but they played the lot regardless: an epic ‘Crusader’, and ‘Never Surrender’, not usually my favourite but given added poignancy as Biff referred to it being a theme song with his recent health troubles. As more ‘story songs’ in ‘747 (Strangers in the Night)’ and ‘Princess of the Night’ ended the set, the band all headbanging at the front of the stage, my adolescence (and doubtless that of the majority present) was flashing before me. After another reliably excellent Saxon show, I left the site for the pub with a warm glow- not least as I had been too engrossed to keep checking the World Cup score and England were four up on their way to that remarkable 6-4 win over France.

DAY 3- Sunday 19^th July

Main Stage: Uriah Heep, The Almighty, The Wildhearts, Hannah Wicklund, Heavy Pettin’, Tuk Smith and The Restless Hearts, Velvet Rush

Firestarter Stage: Chez Kane, Aethoria, Anchor Lane, Silverroller, Square Wild, Queen Horizon

Sunday was possibly the most diverse of the three days, the main stage hosting a mixture of new names, eighties and nineties favourites and ending with one of the doyens of rock. In the first category came Germans Velvet Rush on what I think was their UK debut.

Singer Sandra Lian in her long dark hair and black body suit had a striking image and a powerful and slightly raspy voice, while the music on the opening trio ‘Sound of Letting Go’, ‘Give Me Your Lovin’ and ‘Shake That Thing’ sounded to me like a cross between AC/DC, post-blues Whitesnake and Gotthard.

‘Nature of the Beast’ was easily my favourite, closely followed by ‘Fire Spirit’. If I was to be picky, the likes of ‘Thrilled by Rock’n’Roll’ and closer ‘Euphonia’ were not the most original sounding, but of the lesser known bands, their name was repeatedly dropped by people during the weekend as one of the best of the new discoveries.

Opening up on the Firestarter stage were Queen Horizon, hometown heroes from Maidstone and given a second chance after having to withdraw last year. Kerry Baker was an energetic frontwoman, and an electric cello player made for some different sounds but their style, more indie rock with a touch of prog, felt a little out of place on the bill and made little impact on me personally.

Tuk Smith and the Restless Hearts were an act I was looking to see: I never saw the frontman in his previous band The Biters, partly as the name put me off, but a number of gig buddies of good musical taste had recommended his current new project. His bandmates were among the best dressed of the weekend while he showed humour by referring to them by famous lookalikes and joking they were all picked for sharing his fringed hairstyle.

‘Little Renegade’ was a promising opener and the musical style difficult to pigeonhole, but best described as low slung rock’n’roll with slashing riffs, a lovely lead guitar tone from Tobin Dale and romantic songwriting reminding me of fellow southerners Dan Baird and Tom Petty (‘Looking for Love, Ready For War’ in particular) as well as early Rod Stewart or the Faces (‘Sadie Mae’).

He admitted that ‘East Side of Town’ ripped off Thin Lizzy but that he was trying to persuade people it was ok to be influenced by bands other than Zeppelin- which was more than fine by me. Meantime a supposed cover I didn’t recognise, but it appeared to incorporate snippets of various songs including Cheap Trick’s ‘Surender’ and ‘Love Gun’.

‘Take the Long Way’ also made an impact on me, before they ended with ‘Runnin’ With the Wild Ones’, boasting not only a superb chorus, but a jam to climax with plenty of harmony lead guitars: this was the point for me where a promising set became a great one.

A second successive female fronted band were on the Firestarter stage, this time one from ‘oop north’ in Square Wild, led by the charismatic Lucy Shevchuk, who appear to have attracted quite a following. Their sound is another hard to categorise with several influences ranging from prog to the ska-pop of No Doubt, but it was their closing song ‘Masquerade’ with some scat singing that made the most impact on me.

In recent years Heavy Pettin’, one of those eighties hopefuls who failed to make the big commercial breakthrough they were tipped for, have returned to the scene after a long absence. Since I saw them headline Firefest in 2024, they have released a comeback album in ‘Rock Generation’, the title track of which opened the set.

Now sole survivor (pun intended) from the original line up, singer Stephen ‘Haymie’ Hayman was a good frontman and seems to have lost the helium-fuelled rasp that so divided opinion at the time, but a lot of the time allowed his band’s backing vocals to carry the tune. I also got irritated by his reference to old songs, which included ‘In and Out of Love’, ‘Rock Ain’t Dead’ and ‘Love Times Love’, being ‘hits’, which with their highest charting single reaching No 69 in the UK charts is stretching it.

The guitar team of Davo Aitken and Richie St James Dews, looking a little like Gary Moore in his rock phase, worked together well – unfortunately at times too far down in the mix- and pulled some great poses together. They ended with the best of the old songs ‘Sole Survivor’- and the new ‘X-Rated’, and were an entertaining watch but for me one of the less impressive main stage bands of the weekend.

Silverroller are a band I have wanted to catch for a while. Their music attempts to recapture the spirit of the late sixties and early seventies but their image even more- singer Jonnie Hodson has the best rooster cut this side of Rod Stewart in about 1972, and he and the band also model the period ‘Man at C and A’ fashions that greeting card manufacturers love to parody.

Musically they impressed me with songs like opener ‘Black Crow’ and ‘Other Side’, soulful with the playing of organist Lucas prominent, then after ‘Into the Light’, ‘Oh Mama’ added a very funky dimension. ‘Come On, Come In’ was another soulful number with impressive guitar and organ solos, before they closed with ‘Hold’. All this was accompanied by a celebratory atmosphere as they actually inked their new contract with Frontiers Records on stage! I was quietly impressed and keen to hear a full length set.

South Carolina raised, Nashville-based Hannah Wicklund’s profile has been intermittent in this country over the years and it had been nearly three years since I saw her open for Greta Van Fleet. Stylishly turned out, and fronting a three piece band, her music was equally individual with an original guitar style far removed from the stereotypes of the blues rock world she is associated with.

However for a long time I struggled to connect with her music, some of it previewing a yet to be released album: few song titles were introduced, and they lacked obvious hooks, ‘Bomb Through the Breeze’, and ‘Ghost’ were notable exceptions.

Latterly the show turned round when she brought on a fellow Nashville resident in the colourfully attired Erin Clare on flute. The sound was more varied as she had someone to play off in new song ‘Diamonds’ followed by a cover of ‘Piece of My Heart’.

Even better was another cover to close in CSNY’s ‘Ohio’- partly because as Hannah’s own introduction said, its message of speaking out is even more relevant than ever today, and partly the way a lengthy jam reinterpreted the song quite brilliantly. Though for me it was a mixed set, her name alongside that of Velvet Rush was one of the most mentioned as a new discovery of the weekend.

In a total change of musical emphasis, Scots Anchor Lane were tearing through their set including ‘Choke’ and ‘Stutter’ with fast-paced punky energy despite a three piece line up lacking a bass player. New single ‘This Is the End My Friend’ had a more commercial edge to it and ‘Karma’ was another to make my first live encounter with them since before the pandemic a favourable one.

With the news that one of rock’s great heart on sleeve characters, Ginger, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, the appearance of the latest incarnation of his Wildhearts was always going to be emotional and there was a huge outpouring of love towards him when introduced by DJ Paul Anthony.

They also seemed to have more diehard fans than any other band, who were bouncing to opener ‘Failure is the Mother of Success’, from their latest album in their chequered stop-start career, singing the ‘ooh-oahs’ in ‘Mazel Tov Cocktail’ and going wild for another new song in ‘Maintain Radio Silence’.

Not always a given, Ginger was in a good mood and feeding off the crowd’s goodwill so ‘Cheers’ with its catchy and cheeky ‘everybody knows your name’ chorus captured the mood, and there was particular love for ‘Everlone’.

However then things took a distinctly unusual turn as Ginger asked if we loved ‘riffs’ and that he and fellow guitarist Ben Marsden were going to play some of their best ones- there then followed a lengthy jam where one riff segued into another in seemingly never ending fashion.

I was looking at the clock as time was running out for at least some of that glorious run of spiky singles that made them chart regulars in the mid-nineties, but instead they were completely absent as they closed in rather deeper fashion with ‘Diagnosis’.

This was a contrary choice of set and certainly not aimed at a wider festival audience where a large number of fans like myself are more casually acquainted. But if anyone has earned the right to do as he pleases, it is the singular and much-loved Ginger.

Aethoria are another female fronted metal band making an name for themselves- indeed this year they won the battle of the Bands to open up Stonedead. They are at an early stage of their career, with just a handful of singles behind them but were another band to watch with an impressive singer in red headed Mecia-Jane Holden– though here they might have been a better fit for the previous day’s line up.

With a speedy approach and twin guitars, ‘Bring Me Home’ and ‘Stepping Stones’ were among the songs that confirmed them as contenders in the burgeoning traditional metal scene in the wake of bands like Tailgunner, while ‘Popcorn’ (sic) was a tongue in cheek closer.

Co-headliners, or special guest depending on which festival publicity you read, were The Almighty. The Glaswegians only reformed in recent years for the odd special show, but these seem to be becoming more frequent as only a week before I had seen them open up Iron Maiden’s Eddfest.

Back in the day I was never a fan but I enjoyed Ricky Warwick in the revamped Thin Lizzy and their subsequent morphing into Black Star Riders, and The Almighty’s headline at Stonedead last year made me an unlikely convert as their raw and aggressive rock’n’roll has aged well and not been subject to trends. I found I instantly recognised openers ‘Power’ and ‘Jonestown Mind’, as well as ‘Over the Edge’ and ‘Takin’ Hold’.

There were darker moments from later albums such as ‘The Unreal Thing’, the grinding ‘Addicted’ and ‘Wrench’ where Ricky Warwick got the crowd to pogo to its chorus ‘whose side are you on’.

They are not the most visually exciting band- Andy ‘Tantrum’ McCafferty and Floyd London swapping places either side of Ricky is as far as it goes, but the latter’s passion for his art is always worth watching, even if the ‘f’ word was used too much for the festival edict. Sometimes his gruff demeanour weakens to reveal a sharp sense of humour such as when revealing that the epic ‘Jesus Loves You….But I Don’t’ was written while what we should bowdlerise as a ‘Number Two’.

Biker-style anthems like ‘Full Force Loving Machine’ and ‘Devil’s Toy’ were accompanied by songs that proved there are hidden depths within the band’s repertoire – ‘Sin Against the Light’, ‘Thunderbird’ with a great climax featuring a lengthy solo from Tantrum- in which I even swear a smile broke across his face!- and the atypical ballad, ‘Little Lost Sometimes’.

With the clock running on, it was time for their best loved hits, beginning with ‘Destroyed’. Floyd then switched to acoustic guitar to play the intro to ‘Wild and Wonderful’, drawn out including with audience participation, before a rather more concise classic to end in ‘Free’n’Easy’ (it was just as well Uriah Heep did not play their song of the same name).

You can now count me a fan and I stayed to the end but then fought my way past people dallying and the rows of lawn chairs as I was keen to see a confirmed favourite in Chez Kane headline the Firestarter Stage, where a larger than expected crowd had gathered.

The petite but powerful Welsh woman, a little more modestly dressed than at her London headline I saw recently, opened with ‘Personal Rock’n Roll’ then a pair from her debut in the big chorus of ‘Too Late for Love’ and the Def Leppard-inspired ‘All of it’. However it was a faltering start through no fault of her own with a series of sound problems, notably affecting Harry Scott Elliott’s guitar.

She hit her stride with the lively pop rock melodies of ‘Nationwide’ while the title track of current album ‘Reckless’ had me singing along to its anthemic qualities and her lively stage act culminated in her writhing on the floor during ‘Love Tornado’, before the dance-rock hybrid of ‘Night of Passion’. That was a number of songs where the benefits of adding a keyboard player to a revamped line up has paid off.

However it is the quality of the guitar work that lifts the studio songs into a new dimension and both guitarists, the extravagantly shape pulling James Ready, and Harry, got their turn to shine either individually or collectively on ‘Strip Me Down’, ‘Love Gone Wild’ and ‘Tongue of Love’.

Chez is also very personable as a frontwoman and when she spoke of her love for the eighties rock that she was too young to remember at the time, and her pride at her gamble in playing this music paying off with a first festival headline, she was a woman after my own melodic rock heart.

Talking of which, the big choruses of ‘Rocket On the Radio’ reminded me of countless favourites from the late eighties. A set that I hope won further new friends ended, as per usual, with ‘Power Zone’, culminating in the two guitarists shredding furiously against each other.

By that stage though I was hovering at the back of the standing area, aiming to turn on my heels the moment she finished and gain a decent place for Uriah Heep. They rank among my all-time favourite bands and I have seen them over 25 times since the 1988 Reading Festival. As they are winding down live activity with their ‘Magician’s Farwell’ tour, sadly there won’t be many chances to extend that record so their presence as Sunday night headliners was a major draw for me. (Though had England not fallen just short of reaching their first World Cup final in my lifetime, a very tough choice would need to have been made).

There was an extra poignancy as founding member and guitarist Mick Box actually missed several shows earlier in the year with illness, but looked hale and hearty enough in an unexpectedly smart blue shirt. As with the UK theatre leg of the same tour 18 months or so ago, the stage set was elaborate and it was a career spanning setlist, beginning with a couple of newer songs in ‘Grazed by Heaven’ and ‘Save Me Tonight’.

‘Shadows of Grief’ and the battle between Mick’s wah-wah guitar and Phil Lanzon’s psychedelic sounding organ was a reminder that the original Heep were one of the great pioneers of heavy rock, yet attracting a fraction of the critical acclaim of fellow countrymen Zeppelin, Sabbath and Purple.

The seemingly ageless Bernie Shaw has few peers as the genial frontman, working the crowd notably on the audience participation to ‘Stealin’ which began with Dave Rimmer’s bass solo. After all these years the original Byron-era songs now sound more natural in his hands than they once did.

A newer number in ‘Hurricane’ was a reminder that the current line up can write songs in the old way but with added freshness and ‘Sweet Lorraine’ a suitable live track that has only made a way back into the set in recent years, but my only complaint was that the whole period in their distinguished career between 1973 and 2018 went unrepresented.

There was a moving moment when Mick picking up an acoustic guitar could only mean ‘The Wizard’ and Bernie put his arm around him and shot an affectionate look at the point he sang the ‘me and my magic man, kinda feeling fine’ lyric. The song did show that the current line-up is not quite as strong on the vocal harmonies as previous line-ups with the likes of Trevor Bolder and Lee Kerslake.

With Bernie teasing about the days of seventies FM radio and prog rock epics, even in an hour and a half festival set there was time for a near 13 minute epic in ‘The Magician’s Birthday’, featuring a lengthy battle between Mick’s feedback-strewn guitar and Russell Gilbrook’s drums, and more keyboard wizardry from Phil.

Mick took the microphone in his usual endearing fashion and self-referentially used his ‘appy days’ catchphrase before cranking out some vintage 1970 riffs in ‘Gypsy’ and during another epic in ‘July Morning’, accompanied by a light show, I had the perfect vantage point to observe every little nuance and subtlety in each of the band members sounds and thinking that no band had a right to sound that good 56 years after they started.

Out come Mick’s acoustic guitar and Bernie conducted the wordless singalong to ‘Lady in Black’ but there was still time for a couple of encores. ‘Sunrise’ has the quintessential Uriah Heep sound and Bernie was giving the vocals his all and I couldn’t stop myself bouncing through the usual rip roaring ‘Easy Livin’. As the band took their farewells to the strain of ‘Land of Hope and Glory’ I hoped it wouldn’t be the last time I see them, but if so they were leaving on top of their game.

Indeed, reflecting with other fans during my now traditional nightcap at the Thirsty Pig, exactly the same could be said of Maid of Stone. The weather had been perfect, dry but amid a brief respite from our heatwave temperatures, the site easy to move around with wall-to-wall music, the atmosphere friendly and intimate, and yet a terrific variety of bands under the classic rock umbrella- a mixture of guaranteed quality and inspired lesser known picks. Can’t wait to see what the 2027 version brings!

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

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David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 19 July 2026.

UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 21 July 2026

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Power Plays w/c 20 July 2026

BAD PRESS Old Hatchback (indie)
MARYLANE Seven (indie)
WOOD BURNT RED Fire Me Up (indie)
EMERGENCY RULE Hollow Gold (Wormholedeath Records)
SOME DAYS ARE DARKER Dead Romance (indie)
SWEET GORILLA Feels Like I’m Still In Love (5000 Records)

Featured Albums w/c 20 July 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)

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