By Kitty Staunton

Ensiferum [8] put on an impressively tight show, and even the vocals were sounding as crisp as a studio recording. Singing-wise they were unusually excellent for a band that would probably get away with screaming like maniacs and still be appreciated for their image. They gave a great mix of impressive musical talent, exciting stage presence and are definitely worth a watch.

Amon Amarth [9] stole the show with an explosive set met to a fantastic response from crowd, of which the majority were noticeably there just there to support them. They blasted their way through a mix old favourites and tracks off their newest album and seemed to effortlessly put on a great show. It seemed especially easy because all of the members ooze so much charisma and the whole group seem to have a really distinct connection. As the band gave a teasing break, the crowd began pining for "Twilight of the Thunder God"; A wonderfully surreal moment when you're surrounded by huge sweaty Viking men chanting "Twilight!" without a hint of irony.

Children Of Bodom [7] were severely let down by the poor sound quality that meant that a lot of Alexi's vocals and guitar parts were lost in the mush of noise. They ripped into the Academy opening with "Not My Funeral" and straight into a set packed full of impressively technical goodness. There was plenty of older material "Hate me", "Angels don't Kill" alongside a showcase of the newer tracks. "Shovel Knockout" displays some mind-blowing drumming. That said, I personally reckon their running order could have been tweaked as there were quite a few chunks of similar sounding songs. That said, they gave a great performance. The main focus for everyone throughout of course, was renowned speed-shredder Alexi and its often astounding how he manages to sing lead vocals whilst playing such intricate riffs. He has an effortless air of detachment about him, as though he could be doing it in his sleep. An impressive stage-move of thrusting his guitar around his body and catching it perfectly gets a massive "ahhh" of approval. Today is his birthday too, (of course the crowd sing him a beautiful rendition mid-set), yet he thankfully seems sober and delivers a great show. Ending with a powerful encore of "Was it worth it" and "Hate Crew Deathroll", the crowd are leaving wanting more. A tight set, but I have to admit, this wasn't the best show I'd seen them play.