LIVE REVIEW: Sleep Theory @ O2 Academy, Bristol

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LIVE REVIEW: Sleep Theory @ O2 Academy, Bristol
February 23, 2026Serena Hill


It’s not often a tour opener delivers two UK debut bands in one night, but Bristol was treated to exactly that. SLEEP THEORY have detonated over the last 12 months, and to roll into the UK headlining 1,500-cap rooms on their very first run is no small achievement. Add THE PRETTY WILD on warm-up duties and the stage was set for something special.

The Pretty Wild live @ O2 Academy, Bristol. Photo Credit: Serena Hill Photography

What a statement to make on night one of the tour. THE PRETTY WILD hit the stage like a band with everything to prove and absolutely deliver. Dual vocalists are always a compelling dynamic, but here it’s elevated by genuine chemistry, crushing harmonies, and undeniable stage presence.

There’s something profoundly powerful about feminine-presenting vocalists unleashing heavy vocals with this level of conviction. It sends a visible ripple through the room – especially among the women in the crowd – as barriers are smashed and long-held industry norms are kicked aside. This isn’t novelty, it’s dominance.

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The audience locks in fast, cheers growing louder as the set progresses. Choosing a support is always risky, especially when they’re also new to the UK, but this was inspired booking. THE PRETTY WILD feel like a band on the brink, and it’ll be fascinating to see just how far they go.

Rating: 9/10Sleep Theory live @ O2 Academy, Bristol. Photo Credit: Serena Hill Photography

Bristol showed up for this one. From the opening note, the crowd were in full voice — at times so loud they completely drowned out the band. That kind of response doesn’t happen by accident; it’s proof of the impact SLEEP THEORY have already made.

Live, the band are flawless. All three vocalists work in perfect harmony, translating the layered dynamics of the studio recordings into a massive, emotionally charged live experience — all while delivering a performance worthy of a headline slot. For an opening night, there’s not a hint of nerves. If anything, they look fuelled by the moment, fully aware this is their chance to make a lasting first impression.

Their blend of metalcore aggression and smooth, R&B-inflected hooks lands perfectly, particularly on the slower tracks. Even a metalcore rework of ByeByeBye slots seamlessly into the set, turning the room into a full-blown sing-and-dance celebration. One crowd moment sees the vocalist Cullen More call out: “Ladies, if you’re here with your fella, make sure he holds you tight”. Cue screams.Sleep Theory live @ O2 Academy, Bristol. Photo Credit: Serena Hill Photography

We’ve seen it time and time again in recent years: bands going from zero to international recognition thanks to TikTok. SLEEP THEORY are clearly one of the success stories, joining a growing list of acts able to cross the Atlantic and take on the UK and Europe off the back of viral momentum.

The only real criticism? Padding the set with three cover songs to stretch it to an hour and twenty minutes. It’s understandable given the size of the room and their still-growing catalogue, with just debut album Afterglow to their name, but honestly, a shorter set stacked with originals would’ve hit harder. Still – credit where it’s due – at least it wasn’t Wonderwall wheeled out for a cheap singalong.
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All told, this was a near-flawless show. SLEEP THEORY have announced themselves loud and clear, and we’ll absolutely be ready when they return to the UK — hopefully sooner rather than later.

Rating: 9/10

Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Bristol from Serena Hill Photography here:

























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LIVE REVIEW: Burning Witches @ Academy 3, Manchester

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LIVE REVIEW: Burning Witches @ Academy 3, Manchester



Five-piece Swiss heavy/power metallers BURNING WITCHES set out on their 2026 Witches and Kings tour with support from theatrical German power metal band HAMMER KING, with Manchester being one of three stops in the UK amidst their European dates.
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Hammer King live @ Academy 3, Manchester. Photo Credit: Libby Percival

HAMMER KING welcomed the audience to their kingdom as they began their theatrical portion of the evening, a set which felt closer to a co-headline set, as opposed to a support act. Frontman Titan Fox V towered over the audience as he announced they are here to “Make Metal Royal Again”, the title track of the second song of the night, a motto which also featured on the gold coins he threw out into the crowd.

The band’s set was jam-packed with the lead singer teaching the lyrics to shout along to, encouraging chants, brandishing an oversized hammer, and roaring riffs throughout. This was then topped off by a performance of their cover of KENNY LOGGINS‘ Danger Zone straight from the soundtrack of Top Gun, which went down extremely well with the audience, who sang along throughout.Hammer King live @ Academy 3, Manchester. Photo Credit: Libby Percival

To finish out their set, Fox V announced he would be recording the crowd to watch back at home, as he brought out a camera, which he waved around in the direction of the audience to capture the moment. For their first UK appearance, HAMMER KING have definitely left a lasting impression and a high standard to follow, making it all the more exciting to see what they get up to next time they visit.

Rating: 8/10Burning Witches live @ Academy 3, Manchester. Photo Credit: Libby Percival
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BURNING WITCHES follow up with a more serious and polished approach to power metal. The members of the all-female group are each powerhouses within their own right, performing expertly with ease. Based on crowd reaction alone, the band proved they didn’t need any gimmicks, with the stage decorated with nothing but their band logo and a couple of skull banners, while fans blew back the hair of each member with every hair flick. The only additional props for this set are the devil horn mask sported by singer Laura Guldemond for Dance With the Devil and the severed head held by a cloaked figure before the band plays Hexenhammer towards the end of their set.

The audience was gripped from start to finish, held within the grasp of frontwoman Guldemond and her powerful vocals, as she frequently held out the microphone to encourage the audience to sing back. This was about the extent of the audience interaction, aside from asking the audience for “fire” after forgetting the word lighter and making a joke about going for a smoke, before launching into Release Me, the ballad track from their latest album Inquisition, of which a good portion of the songs from the setlist feature on. The setlist then jolts in the opposite direction, with Black Widow followed by Evil Witch, getting the audience back into the momentum for the final stretch of the show. Guldemond keeps the audience on their toes by disappearing off the stage and reappearing through the back of the room to perform Lucid Nightmare amongst the crowd.Burning Witches live @ Academy 3, Manchester. Photo Credit: Libby Percival
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Overall, the show was a sight to behold from both bands, with an almost intimate feel in the low-ceiling venue while simultaneously being packed out. Whether you prefer theatrics or just straight-up power metal with no extras, everyone left feeling satisfied with their Sunday night offerings.

Rating: 8/10

Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Manchester from Libby Percival here:

























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Beyond Extinction: Triumph In The Face Of Tragedy

There is no correct way for a band to handle a member’s passing. Whatever decision they make, chiefly whether they continue or not, will always be understood and supported by their friends, family and fanbase. In 2023, Essex death metallers BEYOND EXTINCTION faced that very reality, when founding guitarist Zach Scott tragically took his own life at the age of just 20.



“The day after he died, we all said we needed to be together physically and immediately have those difficult conversations,” remembers vocalist Jasper Harmer. “We talked about the best way to deal with it, in both the long-and short-term, and one was to prioritise keeping ourselves busy. I think what helped saved us was that the band didn’t become associated with the trauma of the event; we became associated with the solution of how to continue.”



He does, understandably, admit he had no idea in that moment whether BEYOND EXTINCTION would have survived. “If you’d asked me at the time where I’d see myself in five years, the band absolutely wouldn’t have been a priority, and there were certainly isolated moments where it would have been easy to stop. However, none of us ever had that conversation – we all owed it to ourselves to keep going and, individually, refuse to be the guy that said ‘I can’t do this anymore’.”

Once they felt ready, Jasper – along with guitarist Jude Bennett and drummer Niall Ali – brought good friend Danny Russell in to fill Zach’s place. “He helped massively,” Jasper confirms. “We needed someone to step in with energy, enthusiasm and commitment from the get-go, and he was so reliable, understanding and mature, it did a lot for the rest of us.”

Jasper also confirmed that Zach had written and recorded material that ended up on Where They Gather, the band’s debut album. “There’s a lot of guitar parts that he wrote, but there’s a couple of songs where we repurposed and remixed his backing vocals from other released. That’s really cool because it’s so much more difficult to recognise his guitar playing, but having his voice on there is a real stamp of his contribution.”


The other big stamp is BEYOND EXTINCTION’s on the British extreme metal scene in the coming months. Where They Gather is a nasty, vicious album that has the potential to send them sky-rocketing, such is its nuclear delivery and deprived lyrical content. It’s set in a dystopian city inhabited by people just trying to survive at the end of humanity, and, as Jasper summises, is “a place where all my hate and repulsion have come to live”. Naturally, the healing process from Zach’s passing will have lent itself to the spite and bile that is unleashed, but Jasper also drew on his experiences of London, both in his capacity working for a homeless charity and as a hub of entertainment and pleasure.

“When I was in a more negative mindset, the tube train stopped being transport and started seeming like a horrible, underground prison; buildings went from office blocks to symbols of financial dominance and the constant flow of people transformed into liquid. So much of the physical landscape you’re in is reliant on your brain, and cities can brainwash people into a lifestyle that is unnatural and brutal on them.”



Brutal is also the perfect summary for Jasper’s own performance on the record; you can scarce believe the human body is able to produce such guttural vocal tones. “I reckon it’s down to my height,” he says with a smile. “I’m only five foot eight, so my centre of gravity is closer to hell and that means I can bring up more evil sounds!”

Jokes aside, BEYOND EXTINCTION have brought out one of the best metal records of the year and have just done their first shows outside of the UK, specifically in Ireland. There’s plenty in the pipeline for 2026 as well. “We’ve got one festival booked in next year and then more shows are in the works for the first half as well,” Jasper teases. “Nothing that I can really say at this moment in time, but as ever there’ll be nothing for a while and then it’ll come every day for a week, non-stop.”

And when they’re not ripping apart venues? You can often find them hanging out on the band’s Discord channel. “So many other bands I know have it,” explains Jasper, “and we started using it as a band organiser before deciding to open it up to other people. It gives people that opportunity to get away from the hell of Meta algorithms and onto a platform where we can all just speak, play quizzes and escape the world. We’ve got 70 people in it right now; I hope we hit 100 by the end of the year!”

Where They Gather is out now via self-release. View this interview, alongside dozens of other killer bands, in glorious print magazine fashion in DS125 here: