BACK TO LIVE

Even in ordinary times, a field in a farm on a Welsh mountain is an unlikely place for a small, world-class rock festival. In these extraordinary ones, however, there’s a whole book to be written on the stress and logistical hoops organisers Max Rhead and Mikey Evans endured to make the tenth-anniversary Steelhouse Festival finally happen.

Negative lateral flow (LFT) tests in hand, 4,000 fans from all over the UK have made the trek up here for the three-day event and the atmosphere is a potent cocktail of joy and relief, with a small shot of PTSD. We’re in an outside space and beneath (thankfully) clear skies, but there’s a mental adjustment to be made when first walking through a throng of unmasked strangers. Maybe it’s the familiar smell of sizzling meat and chemical bogs, or maybe it’s the Motörhead ‘Road Crew’ beer they’re serving (6.2% ABV), but by the end of the warm Friday, this all feels comfortingly normal again.

Gratitude and pent-up artistic energy radiate from every act to hit Steelhouse’s single stage, as they play to probably the most receptive audience they’ll ever have. , , and are all feeling it, and bring their A-game to Friday. headlined the first Steelhouse back in 2011, and Spike and band are back with their retro swagger and can’t-fail pleasers like and . And with Buffalo Summer’s Andrew Hunt ably temping as lead vocalist, Friday headliners serve up a headbanging slab of old-school hard rock. Amid the Bastards’ own tunes are a killer take on Hawkwind’s and Motörhead’s , and We are .