Agriculture: The Spiritual Sound review – unabashedly gorgeous noise from ‘ecstatic black metal’ band

The LA group deliver all the power and euphoria of heavy music with imaginative detailing on their second album, which will have you levitating with joy

Nova Twins: Parasites & Butterflies review – fearless rock duo balance anthems and introspection

Trailblazers Amy Love and Georgia South push the boundaries of their trademark hybrid rock sound while confronting mental health and naysayers

Bloodstock review – this is the UK’s best fest for true heavy metal madness

Trivium bring the bells and whistles, Gojira are supercharged and Machine Head get 1,011 crowdsurfers as they etch themselves on extreme metal’s Mount Rushmore

Judas Priest review – thrash, hellfire, dazzling guitar … Ozzy would have loved it

Still making stellar new music in their sixth decade, the Brummie band pay tribute to the late Black Sabbath frontman as they cement their place among the heavy metal gods

Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne: Back to the Beginning review – all-star farewell to the gods of metal is epic and emotional

The biggest names in rock, from Metallica to Slayer, came to pay tribute to the men who created their entire genre – and even in old age, Sabbath’s sound has bludgeoning force

Slayer review – spectacle, gore, mayhem and some of metal’s greatest songs

The thrash legends’ first UK gig in six years is a lean and unforgivingly mean set – no breathers, no ballads, only teeth-rattling bangers

Outbreak festival review – hardcore and pop hooks collide in impeccable genre-fluid lineup

Turnstile headlined with soaring high-tempo energy while Speed went route-one punk, Jane Remover caused pandemonium and Have a Nice Life electrified their fanbase in this most free-thinking of festivals

The Callous Daoboys: I Don’t Want to See You in Heaven review – gonzo mathcore troupe grab on to pop hooks

The Atlanta sextet are as unruly as ever – but there’s a newfound poise on their third album, plus some maddeningly catchy choruses

Spiritbox: Tsunami Sea review – cataclysmic throat-shredding with a side serving of soul

The Canadian metal band’s second album is an adventure in songcraft, from boulders of invective to ruminative, poppy grooves

Motionless in White review – gothically glam US metalcore will put a grin on your face

Backed by skeletons, cheerleaders and chainsaw-wielders, Chris Cerulli and co dispense any heavy metal menace in favour of a charming sense of fun

Uriah Heep review – after 56 years, progressive heavy rockers bid a blistering live farewell

They may not have created any true rock touchstones, but they still have the powerhouse vocals and guitar skills to get the audience on their feet

Trivium and Bullet for My Valentine review – glorious exchange of skull-crushing riffs and deafening roars

The veteran rockers turn back the clock on the dual anniversary of their breakthrough albums, with the south Wales band playing a conquering heroes’ return

Wardruna: Birna review – numbing Norse nature-metal better suited to Netflix scores

Traditional instruments, drones and repetitive lyrics make for some epic listening, possibly more suitable for a medieval TV romp

Slipknot review – metal mammoths deliver exhilarating sonic brutality

Heads bang, moshpits burst into life and riffs eviscerate every corner of the room as the band tear through their debut album 1999 in a visceral sensory haze

Poppy: Negative Spaces review – screams and sweetness as metalcore meets loungecore

On her sixth album, the multi-genre star seems to be having an identity crisis – but amid the industrial guitars and synthpop, she clearly trusts her own instincts