Review: Stonedead Festival 2026

Newark Showground (August 29^th, 2025)

Reviewer / photographer – Dan Mann

I swear Stonedead is in fact every seven months, before you know it, it’s time to take the trip to Newark Showground!

Alas, the God of rain decided that this year was their chance to see the bands too. But, with poncho drapped and bush hat atop head it was into action for a day of excellent music and a chance to catch up with chums (a big part of Stonedead).

First off we had Aethoria, a band I’d seen only a few weeks ago at Maid Of Stone Festival. If there were any nerves being confronted by a 5000 strong crowd it didn’t show, a good start to the day’s proceedings.

Asmovel were next to hit the stage, bringing their flavour of classic heavy metal. A popular band, whose performance will I’m sure lead to even more people checking out their music and future gigs.

Crobot were next, a band I’ve never had chance to see before, and I wasn’t disappointed. Energetic doesn’t really do frontman Brandon Yeagley justice, the band certainly got the crowd into the Crobot groove of stoner / hard rock. One of my bands of the day.

The Damn Truth are on a seriously steep tragectory, and rightly so. I mean, you have to love vocalist Lee-La Baum‘s infectious energy, coupled with such a tight knit bunch of musicians. Bloody fantastic!

Armored Saint are a band I’ve not seen for many a year, and for some of us a much anticipated chance to see them again. Thankfully they didn’t disappoint, delivering the type of set AS fans were craving for. John Bush still has the chops, with the rest of the band clearly enjoying their set.

I know some Battle Beast fans were curious about how the band’s new singer Marina La Torraca would perform after last year’s departure of Noora Louhimo. Well Marina, certainly delivered the goods vocally, as did the rest of her bandmates. Regardless of the couple of minor backing track mishaps, Battle Beast supplied a very enjoyable power metal performance.

Magnum are another band I’ve not seen for a long time. Of course the much missed Tony Clarkin was playing guitar then, Brendon Riley, Tony‘s former guitar tech helped deliver that classic sound of Magnum, with Bob Catley‘s unmistakable vocals. It was wonderful to here Magnum‘s music live once again.

I’d not seen ACCEPT before, although I’m well aware of the band’s music and history. With what I call a proper, classic stage set, the band celebrated their 50th anniversary, with John Bush joining them for ‘Up to the Limit‘. I was joined in the photo pit by Armored Saint drummer Gonzo, who is no stranger to the Stonedead pit, having photographed last year.

And so to this year’s headliners Europe. They’re a band I always enjoy seeing, and it was the first chance to hear a couple of songs from their upcoming new album ‘Come This Madness‘. The rest of the set was from across their long catalogue, with plenty of singing along by the crowd. I know some people are initially dismisive of Europe, thinking their only about ‘The Final Countdown‘, and are then surprised by how much heavier they are live. They know how to give a crowd what it wants and were most certainly worthy of that headline slot.

You can catch them from the end of the month on their The Final Countdown 40th Anniversary Tour, with support from fellow Stonedeaders The Damn Truth.