A look back at the Metal Hammer stage at Sunday’s High Voltage festival in Victoria Park.

With their riffing hitting like a sledgehammer to the cranium over and over again, High on Fire might be a little less at home in front of a crowd that is essentially Emerson, Lake & Palmer’s but even still, their anvil-heavy grooves are a perfect way to start the business end of the Metal hammer stage.

Clutch don’t need to worry about what crowd is put in front of them. With elements of funk, blues, metal, stoner and good ol’ fashioned rock and roll, the Maryland riff machine are on the form of their lives. The setlist might be a little heavy on the band’s past two albums (and the exclusion of The Mob Goes Wild verges on the criminal) but no matter what material the band choose to deploy, the good time dance is in full effect and Clutch emerge victorious.

With today’s prog heavy line-up, Opeth can’t fail. With the feeling that you’re in a forest (maybe this is because we’re stood directly underneath a tree), the setting is perfect for the Swedish prog-metallers. The band’s five song set reaches perfection during an immaculate The Drapery Falls. Right band, right time, perfection today from Opeth.

After the serene feel of Opeth, the whiskey-saturated, stoner-blues heaviness of Down is just the ticket. Booting off with Eyes of the South, Anselmo is on incredible form tonight. His performance tonight is animated, his moves verge on the theatrical and to see him enjoying himself to the extent that he does this evening is one of the best sights in heavy metal. With Down turning Victoria Park into their very own backyard, bring-a-keg party, it’s the perfect end to a hell of a weekend. Y’all come back now, y’hear.