“Carve my name into your body, So when you’re in the ground I’m still with you“
All photography by Maisie Cooper – contact Maisie prior to any use.
August was finally upon us, and with it, the second iteration of Stormfest, Stoke-on-Trent’s answer to the multitude of small, hardcore day-fests which have been cropping up across the country in recent years. With big shoes to fill following the success of 2024’s iteration, we descended upon The Underground to see whether they could capture the magic once again.
It’s safe to say that the festival is sadly cursed, with a plethora of big names dropping off of the lineup in the months following its announcement. Bodyweb, Mercury, Long Goodbye, and even headliner’s God Complex all dropped off of the lineup at various stages, some as close as the week prior, something which immediately dampened the mood for many. Stormfest didn’t let in though, instead filling the slots with plenty of young, and local talent, and still promising a day to be remembered with the likes of Demeanour, Invasion, and Moralslip being added to fill out the day.
From the get-go, The Underground was packed, with plenty of locals turning out to catch every band on the bill. Invasion opened things up, one of the city’s newcomers, and having recently released their debut single, all eyes were on them as up-and-coming stars. It’s safe to say that they lived up to this, inciting two-steps, moshing, and crowd killing with ease, and putting on a performance that’d have you fooled that they’d been doing it for years. A shining light for upcoming SoT hardcore, they were a fantastic choice to open things up, and there was no doubt that things would only be up from here.
Demeanour then took to the stage, bringing their twist on hardcore to the streets of Stoke. Playing their recently released debut EP My Own Fate in its entirety, along with a handful of additional tracks, one thing was immediately clear; this band is meant for big things. Vocalist Izabel Lavin was every bit as ferocious as funny, going from delivering ridiculous vocals to talking about their love for the city and its dodgy corner shops selling Skylanders bodywash, something which almost nobody knew existed. Taking the time to call out women and queer people within the scene, and emphasising that nobody should allow men to hold them back, there was a clear message in the band’s set – freedom for all; women, queer people, Palestine, and any other groups facing oppression. It’s safe to say that, shitposting aside, this band’s moral compass is firm, and if you’re against what they stand for, you’re (very rightly) the enemy.
Now for a change of pace, with the return of Southwalk, who had announced their return along with the initial Stormfest announcement. If you’ve not been paying attention to the SoT scene, you’d likely missed this band the first time around, are absolutely grand, especially in a live setting. Whilst their recorded material would have you fooled that they’re just another emo project, there’s so much more to them than meets the eye. Putting on a set fulli of energy, every lyric dripping with emotion, Southwalk’s return to their home town was a sight to behold. Every track had a heavier spin on it, with chunkier guitars, and plenty of screamed vocals thrown in, the Southwalk we’re seeing on the stage now is a whole new beast than what came before, and they left us, along with many others, truly shocked and in awe of their performance.
Site favourites Bind. then put on a nu-core masterclass, bringing their unique and fun blend of hardcore and nu-metalcore to the city for the first time. Playing a slew of tracks from their upcoming EP War In Heaven (which they said is mid-recording with no set release date), the crowd lapped up every second. A band that improves every time we see them, Stormfest was no exception to the rule, and with the prospect of these new tracks being on the not-so-distant horizon, Bind. are on set to become of the stalwarts of the UK scene if not already.
Changing the pace a bit, the hardcore punk rockers in Nylon then kicked off an absolutely raucous set. Donning a much more traditional hardcore sound, they stood out amongst the rest of the lineup as something quite far removed from the rest of the day’s styles; something which was massively beneficial in keeping things fresh. Whilst they weren’t everybody’s cup of tea, it was hard to deny that they didn’t bring an infectious energy with them, and with all of their tracks being short and to-the-point, the pacing of the set was spot on. A welcome break from the streak of more modern hardcore stylings, it’s no wonder that Nylon seems to be cropping up across lineups all across the country at the moment.
Ever wondered what metal intended for sword fighting and riding horses into battle sounds like? Welsh metal outfit Asidhara are the answer to that oddly specific call! Right away asking the crowd to move in, and asserting that they are “music for headbangers, not for moshers“, Asidhara gave festival goers a well-needed break from the constant moshing that had come prior. Shouting out The Coming Strife and playing through a selection of fan favourites, they absolutely knew their audience. A band who have been lurking in the shadows for some time now, it seems that finally they’re gaining the recognition that they truly deserve.
Moralslip. for many, that name may mean absolutely nothing, but to those of us who’ve had our ears to the ground in the local scene, this was huge. Having called it a day back in 2023, the opportunity to see this band for one last time was something truly exciting. Taking the stage to a packed out room, filled with smoke from the smoke machines, there was an air of mystery around their set; were they coming back, or was this a final goodbye? That question remains unanswered, but one thing was clear – they’re still something truly special. Taking the opportunity to feature other artists from the local scene, including Invasion’s own Jack, Moralslip took pulled out all of the stops to put on one of the night’s most memorable sets. A special band which ended all too soon, we can only hope that this wasn’t a final goodbye, but more so a new beginning for the project, as they still possess a spark which is yet to be replicated elsewhere.
Returning to the festival once more, hometown heroes in Smother then took over, keeping the “big light” on over the stage, and setting the tone for what was to come; a real hardcore set. Playing through their garden2grave EP, with a slew of vocal features for good measure, the band put on a showcase of what it is that makes them so important in the local scene. The set’s closer in particular was something special though, with the band debuting a new, yet-to-be-released track, and it was truly marvellous. A slightly different direction for the project, it saw them become much more technical, but it absolutely works for them, and we can’t wait to hear it when the studio version finally releases. Smother are one of Stoke’s most promising exports, and they show absolutely no signs of stopping.
Closing out the night, this year’s Bloodstock, Metal To The Masses runners up 2×4 came out in a meme worthy fashion, donning football shirts and balaclavas to commentary clips from prior football matches. An entertaining set for the gimmick alone, it was a completely different vibe to everything which had come prior. Though the set was remarkably entertaining, with the band red-carding the crowd, and routinely throwing football based puns out, it was remarkably tough to understand why they’d been promoted to headline the festival. Musically, beatdown is a marmite genre, and with the band being the only beatdown act of the day, it was a bold choice. Obviously the bookers were in a tough position with so many big names dropping out, and with 2×4 being competition finalists, they absolutely had hype behind them, but for us at least, they just didn’t hit like the rest of the lineup.
Despite the day’s peculiar, and somewhat lacklustre ending, Stormfest 2025 was overall a resounding success. The Underground was consistently packed out unlike the year prior, and the emphasis on local, small names actually worked out in the festival’s favour. Whilst it was still a shame to see so many big names drop off, Stormfest clearly still did all in their power to ensure that this year’s instalment was something special, and as a Stoke resident, I’d say they exceeded all prior expectations. So where does this leave the festival overall, then? Well that’s an easy one; Stormfest is one of the most exciting local hardcore festivals we’ve seen in recent memory, and with this year’s instalment proving that they can pull it off year-on-year, and with it improving as much as it has, we look forward to seeing what 2026’s instalment has in store.