News

Well… Holy Wars might be over, mun. The mighty Megadeth have announced that 2026 will see their final studio album and a farewell world tour. After more than 40 years of neck-snapping riffs, political jabs, and solos so fast they could start small fires, Dave Mustaine & Co. are hanging up the bullet belts — on their own terms. 🥁...

If you thought emo was all about heartbreak, try checking your bank balance after buying My Chemical Romance tickets.Yep — The Black Parade is coming back to the UK, and so are the empty wallets. The band have announced two massive nights at Wembley Stadium on 10th and 11th July 2026, part of their “Long Live The Black Parade” tour....

From the fearless maniacs who climbed aboard their trusty festival wheelie steeds, to the unsung heroes who shoved those bins into glorious battle – you absolute legends made Bloodstock bin jousting the stuff of METAL HISTORY! 🤘🔥 Want to relive the carnage? Got shaky footage of your mate being launched like a catapulted pasty? 📹 Drop your vids in the...

Move over Charles, there’s a new face for the fiver – and he’s biting the head off inflation! Artist Dion Kitson has gone full heavy-metal banker, hand-cutting and designing 1,000 special edition Ozzy Osbourne-themed bank notes as a tribute to the Prince of Darkness himself. And honestly, they look so good we’d be tempted to pay council tax just to...

Well lads and lasses… this one hurts. Brent Hinds – the mad-eyed, riff-slinging, banjo-picking, Harley-riding co-founder of Mastodon – has tragically passed away at just 51 years old. The news dropped like a sledgehammer on August 20th when reports confirmed Brent died in a motorcycle crash in Atlanta, after a BMW SUV failed to yield at an intersection. He was pronounced dead at...

Ah, A-Level results day — that glorious, nerve-shredding, heart-thumping moment where thousands of teenagers open envelopes (or emails) like they’re finding out if they’ve just been added to the Glastonbury lineup. Some of you will walk away today feeling like you’ve just headlined Download Festival. Others might feel more like you’ve been booked as the 11:30am opening act on the...

There was a time when pulling out a BlackBerry in public made you look like you were either a CEO closing a multi-million pound deal… or a teenager arranging to meet outside Greggs for a sausage roll and a cheeky cider. From its humble Canadian beginnings to its spectacular fall from grace, the BlackBerry story is a cautionary tale of...

So, you’ve just been handed a chunky plastic wristband at the gate, the band walks on, the lights drop… and BOOM! your arm is suddenly glowing purple, pulsing to the drum beat like you’ve just been drafted into some sci-fi mosh pit army. And you’re thinking: “Alright… who’s hacking my wrist?” Well c’mon butt, let’s pull this thing apart (figuratively...

From Cassette Panic to a £1.2 Million MP3 Bill 🎹 1980s: The First Digital Freakout Before Metallica were scowling at Napster, before kids were on LimeWire downloading The Best of Slipknot only to get Rickrolled, the music industry was already panicking about digital copying. The big fear? Digital Audio Tape (DAT) – a new format that could make perfect copies...

You don’t just listen to Iron Maiden. You live them. You feel Steve Harris’ bass gallop in your bones, you scream Bruce Dickinson’s high notes until your neighbours file noise complaints, and you’ve definitely pointed dramatically in the air to “The Trooper” at least once. Since 1975, Iron Maiden have gone from playing East London pubs to commanding stadiums, festivals,...

(Spoiler: It’s basically every day ending in ‘y’) Jack Black. Actor. Comedian. Rock deity. Human ball of chaos. Whether he’s on stage belting Dio notes like a caffeinated banshee or turning a press junket into a mosh pit, the man has never stopped being metal. Let’s break down the moments he proved he’s more rock ’n’ roll than you’ll ever...

When you think of Ozzy Osbourne, you think bat-biting, heavy metal chaos, and possibly subtitles on The Osbournes because no one outside Birmingham could understand a word he was saying. But under the leather, eyeliner, and decibels that could wake the dead, there’s another side to the man — Ozzy the Dad. And not just any dad, but the kind...

Pull up a stool, grab a pint, and get ready, butt — we’re diving headfirst into the glittery, over-sprayed world of hair metal. It’s the story of how rock ‘n’ roll took one look at punk’s scruffy mug, glam’s sparkly trousers, and metal’s iron fist… and decided to chuck them all in a blender with three cans of hairspray and...

Birmingham, Steel City of Sound 🏭🎶 Let’s set the scene, mun. It’s the mid-1960s in Aston, Birmingham — a city built on smoke, steel, and hard graft. Factories clanged day and night, and if you weren’t at the football, down the pub, or in a working men’s club, chances are you were clocked in at one of the metalworks. Tony...

We all love a good metal festival. The riffs. The pits. The questionable food that tastes better than a Michelin-starred meal because you’ve been drinking since 10am. But let’s be honest, there are some things that make even the most die-hard headbanger scream: “I was tamping, mun!” Here’s The Riff Report’s definitive list of festival nightmares that could make even...