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Depravation Fest 2024: Day 3

As most reports on the final day of a festival say, all good things must come to an end. Depravation Festival, held in the south west England town Swindon opened very well on Friday, was a massive success the following day and the Sunday promised to be every bit as special. Today would see a healthy mix of rock and metal sub-genres coming together to cap off the weekend, which began with Birmingham outfit, Second Cities. While their home may be the birthplace of heavy metal, Second Cities were something a little different, feeling more like an emo revival act. I can remember seeing 2000s emo bands in the same venue back when the music was relevant, and I didn't like it then, but I'm always willing to give a group a chance. Unfortunately, my personal tastes haven't changed quite enough since those days to enjoy the music and while I encourage them to continue and develop a sound of their own, this didn't do much to get the early crowd interested, with the Adele cover feeling particularly off.

Second up, Bournemouth based progressive metal band Drallion. It may be asking a lot from an audience still reeling from a Saturday night to take in progressive metal but Drallion really knew how to hook them in. Their music is intelligent and fascinating, but also catchy and heavy, making them appealing to all kinds of metal fans. It helps that they have a solid stage presence too, so really, Drallion has everything going for them. Checking them out again after the show, "Bloodshot" and especially "New Machine," which was also a highlight of their set at Levels, are particularly highlights. A very good band with a hell of a lot to offer. Don't miss out!

Unfortunately, there were a few late cancellations today which caused some changes in the times and positions, and since Thrasherwolf couldn't make it due to a member having a Thrasherpup, Webb, who were scheduled to be the penultimate band in The Rolleston, took their place on the main stage. Like several, if not most bands on the bill over the weekend, I went into their set completely blind, or deaf as the case may be and sometimes that's the best way to go about it, because you'll be even more impressed if a band turns out to be good, which is exactly what happened here. Webb are unashamedly heavy metal, taking influence from the genre's 80s heyday, though leaning on the meaner side in the vein of say Exciter or Sacrifice than Iron Maiden or Saxon. The trio is a well oiled, good time, metal machine and I loved every second of them! Songs like "You're Going Down" and "Spread Your Wings" went down a storm and really kicked the crowd into a higher gear. Frontman Ryan Webb is cool as can be, donning the sunglasses and outfit that helps set them apart from other bands on the bill and he's got a hell of a voice to boot. There's a lot more going on than just the old school influence but if you want a band that still carries that attitude from the old days, Webb is the band for you. Superb! More...

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