It’s Saturday, June 21st 2025, and after its 10-year break, Ghostfest has risen from the ashes and has returned to Leeds University Union for the 20th anniversary edition! With UK exclusive sets, Reunions, IQ Lowering sets, and 18 bands split between 2 separate stages. It was a day not to be missed!
Party Cannon
Kicking off the Main Kerosene Mgmt Stage is Scottish Slam Metal IQ Lowering band Party Cannon, whose high-energy set is just one of two that the band is playing today, with the band warming up Ghostfest 2025 before heading down to the 02 Shepherds Bush Empire in London. Still, I can’t think of a better way to kick off the day festival than with Party Cannon! As soon as they hit the stage with “Grass Obligations”, the growing crowd comes to life with party poppers, cardboard cutouts, and inflatables. It’s a hit for the Party Cannon as always! The latest single from Party Canon is called“Thirst Trap”, which the audience is absolutely loving and just having an absolute party! It sounds even better to hear it live and in person!
Veiled
Quickly nipping down to see our local Leeds favourites down on the Pins & Knuckles second stage now is Veiled. The band, unfortunately, had technical difficulties during their set, which continued on and off during the set (and most of the other bands’ sets throughout the day, too). However, it didn’t stop the boys from bringing their heavy and dark set to life! Kicking off with “Forgive Me”, they performed like nothing was happening, which does show how talented a band Veiled are. When we finally got lead vocals back in the smooth transition, it didn’t affect the band at all; we were finally treated to every ounce of what makes them so special. Veiled will always be a band to watch; they are going to be big!
TRC
Heading into our first Northern Exclusive show back on the Kerosene Mgmt stage now is TRC. The Metalcore/Rap band from London, UK. TRC gets the set off with a bang! With the band reforming for its 20th anniversary show back in London in February 2025, it will be an experience for most of the fans in the audience to see TRC again, and they put on a strong performance, getting the two-stepping fans in the audience up and moving. TRC were here for a good time, and their set was a success.
Demoraliser
Grimsby’s very own Metalcore band, Demoraliser, has returned for their reunion show on the Pins & Knuckles stage this afternoon. To make it an even better performance, they are about to perform their Reform. Repent. Revenge EP album in full, which was originally released in 2010, the heavily packed out room is just full of movement and energy, which every single person is feeding into. Their fast and loud sound just gets everybody screaming back lyrics with lead singer James getting into the thick of it, and fans just grabbing at the microphone to join in. It’s getting hot and heavy over in the second stage down, but that doesn’t stop anybody from having a good time.
Heart Of A Coward
Up next is Milton Keynes’ melodic metal band Heart Of A Coward. Their loud set is matched perfectly with the lighting. Within seconds of them hitting the stage, the pits open, and the audience just opens up for them. With their on-point sound and strong vocals throughout the set, Heart Of A Coward. “Monstro” gets the crowd spinning and moving. Their strong set is the perfect middle section of this year’s Ghostfest.
False Reality
Walking into a very blue set is False Reality. With the only female artist on this year’s lineup, it was a show not to be missed. Kicking off there, they automatically grabbed the attention of the crowd while pulling them in. They open the floors up for the movement to begin. Although they were performing at the same time as Heart Of A Coward, their turnout was strong. False Reality is a band I can’t wait to see more of in the scene.
God Complex
Back to the main stage now for God Complex. Filling up the room with their groove/pop metal style. They didn’t leave one part of that stage unmoved; they had high energy, and a full set captured the crowd with nodding heads and movement from the floor. God Complex showed why Ghostfest was a ‘Legendary’ event!
Xile
Created in New Zealand and set in Liverpool, UK, is hardcore band Xile, a last-minute fill-in for this year’s Ghostfest, but they came to take over the Pins & Knuckles Stage with force! Starting off with a quiet set due to the stage running a little behind at this point and technical issues, their set is met with high energy! The crowd grew for Xile during their set, and with God Complex set completing, they are met with open pits and excitement!
Desolated
Having last played Ghostfest in 2015, metal band Desolated takes to the main stage. With the hot room slightly behind schedule due to technical issues, which causes the stage to be pushed back, the band finally gets back on track, kicking off their set. Desolated had just released their brand-new album, “Finding Peace,” with a strong element throughout their set, and fans kept the energy going in the room.
Celestial Sanctuary
With the running stage delays causing the slight delays getting through the crowds to the photo pits, it makes cutting through the opening two-stepping pits to the Celestial Sanctuary stage that bit more special. Experiencing first-hand what the audience is being presented with, which is a loud and extra hot set. There is a strong crowd that has gathered and is bringing the energy to match the Celestial Sanctuary set!
Graphic Nature
After a bit of a rocky start due to the follow-up from earlier technical difficulties on Kerosene Mngt Stage, Graphic Nature, who were a last-minute fill-in for the festival, started their 404 set. Though with the unfortunate delay, which led to them starting at the same time as Pint Glass, meaning their set was a little quiet, it didn’t stop their fans from taking to the Stylus floor and two-stepping away. As soon as they kick off, their fans just sing back every lyric and have the time of their lives. Graphic Nature’s is always a highlight whenever I get to witness them perform, and you can see they won’t be stopping anytime soon.
Pint Glass
Quickly nipping over through the sea of yellow Hivi jackets, we get back to a very hot and sweaty Pins & Knuckles stage where the geezers in Pint Glass are packing in a high-energy set. Their loud and powerful set gets the crowd up, moshing and too stepping away to singles like “Head Of The Firm”, and “7.62”. Although they had some technical difficulties during their set, with their backing sound effects being too loud and reverb issues. Overall, they created one of the hottest sets of the day!
Humanity’s Last Breath
With the stage class with Street Soldier, the fans were split across both the Kerosene Mgmt stage and Pins & Knuckles.That being said, the turnout was high with today’s theme of the floor in the moshing area and the balcony, where you could watch the action from afar.r It didn’t stop Swedish deathcore band Humanity’s Last Breath from entering their dark, Mysterious set. With their precise performance being heavy and dark, they fit the bill perfectly. “Instil” showcased the talents of Humanity’s Last Breath, with the slow and heavy atmosphere, it was a good set!
Street Soldier
With the unfortunate Stage class with Humanity’s Last Breath, we didn’t make it into the Street Soldiers photo pit, but standing inside the very growing two-stepping mosh pit made it even more special. The Yorkshire lads put on a heavy show with the pits opening up and heads bopping along to songs like “Walk With Tha Talk”; you could feel the energy in that room. Street Soldiers have a strong and intense presence about them, which just allows you to be who you want to be during their set.
Filth
Running quickly back on the Pins & Knuckles stage for North Carolina Hip Hop influenced Heavy Metal band Filth, whose high energy stage performance has drawn in another massive crowd, with the audience opening up the pit, as their infused sounds create a heavy and intense atmosphere, which is perfect for the tiny room. Their loud and proud sound is booming over the speakers, which just completes the Pins & Knuckles stage perfectly.
Signs Of The Swarm
Having just performed a last-minute pop-up show in London the night before with fellow Ghostfest members Pint Glass. Signs Of The Swarm took to the main stage for their UK Exclusive festival set. Their dark and mysterious set is kicked off with ‘IWONTLETYOUDIE’ with fans from around the Stylus singing along. Our first crowd surfer comes over on a dolphin from the earlier Party Cannon set, which prompts a sea of crowd surfers coming over the barrier, keeping everyone on their toes throughout the set.
Martyr Defiled
Closing off tonight’s Pins & Knuckles stage is The Last Ever Reunion, Eras Set from Martyr Defiled. The heavy crowd has formed in the room for the Lincoln band. With songs taken from across the band’s catalogue, the audience was treated to singles such as ‘Nemesis’, ‘No Hope’, ‘616’, and ‘An Act Of Sedition’. Throughout the pyramid stage, fans just went on for a party, joining in with moshing or two-stepping. Martyr Defiled performed their hearts out, and you could tell that every moment was being taken in and enjoyed by them!
Ingested
For our final act of Ghostfest 2025, we have Ingested, our Death Metal/Deathcore from Manchester. With the crowd pulling into the Kerosene Mgmt stage, the heated room is about to get even hotter with fans just opening the pits for one last time. Although their set was cut short due to them starting late for technical issues earlier on, their sound ended this evening set on a high note.
Overview of Ghostfest 2025
Ghostfest came back and made its mark! Its 20th anniversary was a hit! It had its ups and downs, which are easily fixable. It was one of the friendliest festival atmospheres I have ever attended, and it was the perfect reunion of bands, fans, and festivals. You can see why fans have missed Ghostfest, and its strong return will hopefully lead it to be even bigger and better next year! Massive thank you to the Ghostfest team for letting Metal JunkBox have this opportunity.
