Metalheads and new fans invited to unite at all-day Dundee music festival

Headbangers of all ages are set to savour one of Courier Country’s loudest rock events of the year.

Ear-bleeding bands from Dundee and far beyond – along with followers from all over Scotland – are set to descend on Beat Generator this weekend for the latest edition of the city’s Metal Fest following its successful debut last year.

Event organiser Drew Cochrane says he’s hoping to build on the success of both the inaugural all-dayer 12 months ago and a follow-up winter bash.

“The most satisfying aspect has been seeing people come to the first one from out of town then returning last December because they’d enjoyed it so much,” he tells me.

“I’ve heard a lot of people saying it’s the kind of thing Dundee needed.

“People have kind of felt for a while that there was a gap in the market and it’s been great seeing Beat Generator heaving with people having a good time, with both the venue’s owners and the bands happy.”

Something for all metal fans at festival

Software tester Drew will be appearing with his own Dundee-based band Catalysis, who won a Scottish Alternative Music Award in 2022, along with such fellow stalwarts of the city’s live music scene as Solar Sons, Vivisect, War Within and Wreaking Joy.

The last two bands named come from a hardcore punk background and sum up the diversity of Dundee Metal Fest, which Cochrane reckons is an affordable choice for everyone from diehard followers to completely new listeners.

“There’s a lot of sub-genres within metal and it can be a pretty vast gap between some of them in terms of what they sound like,” he explains.

“You have the thing that’s encompassed by the umbrella of extreme metal – very brutal, technical music with guttural vocals and stuff like that. People who like that maybe don’t like the more traditional Iron Maiden or whatever.

“We don’t want the metal scene to be closed off and hopefully we can introduce people to something new and a bit different that they might enjoy.

“The festival would be a great place to get started either if you’ve never really connected with metal before but you enjoy live music, or if you enjoy metal but you’ve not been to a show yet.”

All ages invited, from grandparents to angry teens

As for the demographic – again, it seems there are virtually no limits.

“It’s a pretty broad spectrum, but obviously metal in its various forms has been about since the late 60s with bands like Black Sabbath,” the guitarist declares.

“There are quite a few who are certainly ages with my parents – late 50 and early 60s – showing up, right down to the teenagers who are just getting into the rebellious phase and angry music for angry times.”

Besides the homegrown contingent, bands hitting Dundee include Cult Of Sobek, Disposable, Six Year Silence, Geordie outfit Souls Of Jack Ketch and melodic metallers Once Awake, who hail from Bergen in Norway.

“My thing has been trying to bring in high quality bands from outside, who might not be all that well known in Dundee, to an event where the line-up also includes local and other bands who’ve been around for a number of years with a substantial fanbase of their own,” says Drew.

“Dog Tired from Edinburgh are legends of the Scottish scene who’ve been around for a long time. One guy from Norway came over for the last metal fest and I got speaking to him and his band are now playing this one, so it’s a good way to meet new people.”

‘Strong sense of community’

Cochrane goes back a long way with Beat Generator and its proprietor John Cruickshanks, having staged his earlier Upload festival there from 2013-16 – and he sees North Lindsay Street as the perfect place to harness a growing camaraderie among Dundee’s metal noiseniks.

“Playing in bands as a teenager John was always good to me, and the venue has been the long-standing spiritual home of the alternative community in Dundee – whether that’s punk or metal,” he adds.

“The first festival last year had a really strong sense of community and I want the backstage atmosphere to be one of brotherhood without egos – everyone working together to deliver a fantastic day and win over new people to their bands.”

Dundee Metal Fest 2024 takes place on Saturday April 20 from 1pm. Tickets are available from the Ticket 24/7 website.