A deep dive into the ninth edition of Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival

The ninth edition of Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival is set to take place at Badlands Bar on Saturday, July 8. With a stacked line-up of nine bands, along with two album launches, two single launches and a debut, the Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival offers a diverse range of subgenres that cater to all enthusiasts. ANDY “ANDO” JONES caught up with promoter Stu McGill of Stormrider Touring and Perth power metal legends Silent Knight, to dive into the details of the event and find out what makes this edition stand out from the rest. 

As the promoter of the Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival, how do you feel about this being the ninth edition of the event? What sets it apart from previous editions?

Running this event successfully for nine years has been amazing and that’s all because the fans keep showing up and buying their tickets. It’s really become a must-do event on the Perth Metal calendar. Five out of the nine bands we have on this year are ones we haven’t had play for us before so that’s exciting. It’s definitely a great cross section of genres, something to please everyone! Pre-COVID, we had a lot of interstate touring bands on the bill but unfortunately travel costs are at a record high and it hasn’t been feasible the last two years. Fortunately, Perth has very solid stocks in the original music department.

Your band, Silent Knight – Perth’s Power Metal legends, are headlining this year’s festival. Can you tell us more about your previous performances and what fans can expect at Stormrider?

Well, it wouldn’t be Stormrider without Silent Knight in there somewhere! I originally created the festival in 2014 with the aim to help my interstate friends get their band’s foot in the door in WA and create a platform for more people to see Silent Knight live. It has certainly paid off, some years we headline or some years we play a main support role depending on who else is booked. This year Silent Knight will play a 60 min set featuring songs from all three albums and it is a very energetic and fast paced show with great lighting and stage sound! We haven’t played live since November when we opened for Soilwork and Alestorm so we are itching to get back up there and play.

Some of the bands are celebrating milestones – what’s in store for the fans?

It turns out that five bands are celebrating milestones, which we hadn’t planned!

Thrash band Cold Fate are releasing their brand-new album Return to Reality, which has been a 12 year wait since their last.

Operatic Rock newcomers Imperatore are making their live debut and showcasing their new self-titled album which hit streaming services a month or so ago.

We have three bands all launching new singles; Vulgurite, who won the WA heat of the Wacken Metal Battle competition and came third in AUS/NZ releasing Laughing My Head Off, energetic stadium rock band Legacy Alive are dropping Ready, and the surprise edition of the super heavy Buried Shallow who just announced their new single Paint With Pain.

How do you select the line-up for the Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival? What criteria do you consider when choosing the bands?

Generally, I’ll have some idea of who I would like to book but I will also run submissions for a few weeks so I can gauge who might be interested and maybe find some acts I didn’t know about. Bands with their shit together is my favourite thing, so if you have some sort of music released, whether it’s an album, EP or just a single, that’s a great help. Music videos, good social media presence and a killer attitude from a proactive band goes a long way too because the show only sells if the line-up is great and the bands pitch in appealing to their fan base to come along and enjoy it.

What excites you the most about this year’s line-up and the overall atmosphere of the festival?

I am most excited for the diversity in acts and having the opportunity to bring a whole bunch of people from different walks of life together to share and enjoy something special. Standing on stage and looking out at a bunch of smiling faces is a great feeling, and knowing we can forget about our problems for a few hours and just feel alive, is the best!

Are there any special offers or activities planned for the event?

Each band will be selling their merchandise at the show so I am sure you can grab a great deal on all sorts of cool gear. I know Cold Fate are only making the new album available to buy at the show so if you want it first, you have to be there!

We have RTRFM 92.1 Critical Mass DJ Cam Crimson spinning tunes in-between the bands performances too so if you have any requests, ask him politely and he might indulge you.

Badlands Bar has a kitchen on site so you can order hot meals for dinner, and they have several bars to make finding drinks easy, including happy hour from 6-7pm where most drinks are $5.

Looking ahead, what are your goals and aspirations for the future of the Stormrider Heavy Metal Festival? Are there any plans to expand or introduce new elements to the event?

The biggest goal has always been to bring in some cool international bands, that took a bit of a backseat due to the high costs but it’s still on the radar. When I first started out, I also thought running for 10 years would be a killer milestone, so we’ll see if this year goes well enough to hit that round number next year.

How has Stormrider Touring evolved over the years?

From what started as something small and mostly to serve as a platform for my band to play at, I have done all kinds of shows including a few tribute nights, national tours for Silent Knight, brought interstate bands to Perth, I have looked after international touring bands on their Perth legs and even brought Dragonland from Sweden into Australia for their first ever east coast tour so I am pretty happy with how my reputation has grown and people have entrusted their bands to me.

Lastly, what can attendees do to prepare themselves for the intensity of Stormrider? Any recommendations or advice?

Come planning to have a great time and be kind to those around you. You might not all look the same, but this night is about unity so look after each other and yourself. Lastly, like I always say, book yourself a chiropractor for the following day if you plan on headbanging for nine hours straight!