The Best Punk, Rock and Metal Festivals
Stick on your battle jacket, raise your horns to the sky, and open up the pit at these incredible rock, metal, and punk festivals in 2023.
Skiddle Staff
Last updated: 15th Jan 2024
Those who like their music on the heavier side are in for a treat this festival season. The UK, Europe, and America are boasting some of the most celebrated and longest-standing punk, rock, and metal festivals with gorgeous lineups this year.
From the British heritage rock spectacular, Download Festival, to smaller gatherings like Radar, there's a colossal list of alternative events for music fans to choose from in 2024. This wealth of festivals covers just about everything from math-rock and post-rock to pop punk, nu-metal, doom metal, crust punk, and beyond.
So, to help you choose your fest(s), we've combed through the many excellent options available this year, listing some of the best headbanging, horn-throwing, and mosh pit-encouraging festivals.
Whatever you're looking for, you're certain to find it in our list of the best punk, rock, and metal festivals below...
Download Festival - 20th Anniversary
Photo: Download Festival / Facebook.com
When: Friday 14th - Sunday 16th June 2024
Where: Donnington Park in Derby, England
2024 lineup: Queens of the Stone Age, Avenged Sevenfold, Fall Out Boy, Machine Head, Limp Bizkit, The Offspring, Sum 41, and more
Britain's spiritual home of rock and heavy metal, Download Festival is the UK's premier live music event for metalheads, punks, and rockers alike.
The annual gathering welcomes performances from some of the biggest names in the game, and this year, they’ve angled their lineup to feature the more modern giants of the genre in the headline slots. Elsewhere on Download’s lineups, you can find just about every heavy genre including metal, punk, rock, alt-rock, death metal, metalcore, nu-metal, and everything in between, often with a splash of electronic music.
Known for its unbelievably friendly atmosphere, if you go to Download alone, or even in a group, you’ll likely end up with plenty of new mates and the photos and numbers in your phone’s contacts to prove it.
Photo: Damnation Festival / Facebook.com
When: Saturday 2nd November 2024
Where: BEC Arena in Manchester, England
2024 lineup: TBA
Damnation is Europe’s biggest indoor metal festival. Going down in winter, you can head out to some outdoor fests in summer, then save this bad boy to cheer you up when the post-festival/winter blues kick in.
Since it’s in Manchester, there are plenty of decent transport links, and tickets for Damnation, despite cracking lineups, are actually a bargain. Damnation never relies on the headliners to do the heavy lifting, instead, ensuring the entire lineup is banging from top to bottom.
To give you an idea of what to expect for the 2024 lineup, 2023's edition saw Enslaved, Electric Wizard, Katatonia, Amenra, and many more tearing up the stage.
Check out our 2023 review of Damnation Fest or our interview with the fest’s founder for more insight into this incredible festival.
Tickets for Damnation Festival
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Photo: Bearded Theory / Facebook.com
When: Thursday 23rd - Sunday 26th May 2024
Where: Catton Hall in Derbyshire, England
2024 lineup: Jane's Addiction, Amyl and the Sniffers, Future Islands, Sleaford Mods, Orbital, Dinosaur Jr, and more
This multi-award-winning family-friendly fest goes down in the heart of the National Forest. Bearded Theory has earned itself countless awards including some that recognise its programme for kids, its decent toilets (massive win, we all hate festival toilets), best grassroots, and best small festival.
There’s an award-winning bar, an award-winning free children’s village, and you can even bring your own drinks into the arenas!
Bearded Theory stays smashing it as it takes feedback from its attendees and does what it can to make those changes be they for the lineup or the festival as a whole.
When: Friday 30th - Saturday 31st August 2024
Where: The Foundry, Attic, and Apple & Parrot in Torquay, England
2024 lineup: Graphic Nature, Lake Malice, Kid Bookie, Blackgold, Pintglass, Pengshui, and more
Best Micro Festival winner at the Festival Awards, Burn It Down has an incredible reputation for bringing some of the best names in the alternative and heavy scenes to intimate venues.
Known also for its fantastic organisation, lovely crowds, and ability to identify and book up-and-coming bands that go on to become massive, it’s a highlight in many moshers' calendars. Set in three relatively small Torquay venues, all are within a three-minute walk from each other.
Sure to be as fantastic as ever, snag your tickets now below!
Tickets for Burn It Down
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Photo: Roadburn Festival / Facebook.com
When: Thursday 18th - Sunday 21st April 2024
Where: Tilburg, The Netherlands
2024 lineup: The Jesus and Mary Chain, Chelsea Wolfe, clipping., UBOA, Khanate, Lankum, Blood Incantation, and more
Tilburg's annual Roadburn Festival is one of Europe's most progressive metal events, attracting a myriad of scene-defining artists and thousands of fans from all over the world since 1999.
Known for championing underground artists whose music pushes the boundaries of genre and art, the boutique festival hosts live shows across multiple venues, with the city's renowned 013 music venue usually at the festival's epicentre.
Creating a platform to facilitate more unique and challenging live setups and performances, the event's mission is to provide its audience with an unforgettable, once-in-a-lifetime, live music experience.
More than just metal though, the fest brings rock, alternative hip-hop, electronic, and folk this year, too.
Photo: ArcTanGent / Facebook.com
When: Wednesday 14th - Saturday 17th August 2024
Where: Fernhill Farm in Bristol, England
2024 lineup: Meshuggah, Animals As Leaders, And So I Watch You From Afar, Three Trapped Tigers, Tokky Horror, and more
An award-winning independent music festival based on a farm on the outskirts of Bristol, ArcTanGent is one of Britain's most progressive live music events, created with fans of technically challenging rock music in mind. In fact, the festival describes itself as the UK’s only fest dedicated to the very best music from the worlds of math-rock, post-rock and noise-rock.
Back in 2018, the festival won the Best Small Festival Award at the UK Festival Awards. That same year, the fest was shortlisted for the Best Lineup Award. Not bad at all.
Regularly hosting over 70 of the best mosh-inducing bands and artists, the festival welcomes thousands of music lovers each year, routinely selling out. We can't wait to see how this year's edition goes down.
Photo: Sick New World / Facebook.com
When: Saturday 27th April 2024
Where: Las Vegas Festival Grounds in Las Vegas, America
2024 lineup: System of a Down, Slipknot, Alice In Chains, A Perfect Circle, Bring Me The Horizon, Loathe, Slowdive, Sleep Token, Spiritbox, Knocked Loose, and more
This festival in America has one of the wildest lineups we’ve seen for a minute. Bringing all those alt-metal, nu-metal, and other heavy legends you adored in the 2000s to Vegas alongside some newer names in those scenes, and hardcore and electronic, Sick New World was all over social media when its first edition was announced a couple of years back.
The only issue with this one is you have a million bands to cram into one day. And the unforgiving Vegas desert heat. But if you can hack that, you’ll likely have an incredible time at Sick New World. Just remember one of the most important festival essentials - suncream!
Photo: RADAR Festival / Facebook.com
When: Friday 26th - Sunday 28th July 2024
Where: O2 Victoria Warehouse in Manchester, England
2024 lineup: headliners TBA, Dirty Loops, Plini, Heart Of A Coward, Vola, Graphic Nature, Oxymorrons, and more
One of the newest progressive rock and metal festivals to appear in the UK with a Best New Festival awkward from 2022’s UK Festival Awards to prove it, Manchester’s Radar Festival is back this summer.
Providing three days of live music from an array of some of the world's most current and contemporary bands, Radar Festival is perfect for those who hate the mess of camping as it’s an indoor event.
While the lineup is already looking juicy, there are more announcements to come that’ll reveal more bands including the headliners. And get this, the way they organise the fest means there are no clashes! It’s a dream come true.
Photo: Rock im Park / Facebook.com
When: Friday 7th - Sunday 9th June 2024
Where: Rock am Ring - Nürburgring in the Eifel region, Germany / Rock im Park - Nuremberg in Bavaria, Germany
2024 lineup: Green Day, Parkway Drive, Queens of the Stone Age, Avenged Sevenfold, Babymetal, Die Arzte, Dropkick Murphys, Machine Head, Electric Callboy, and more
What was originally planned as a one-off event has now grown into one of Europe's biggest and most adored rock music festivals, if not the world's.
Launched back in 1984, this festival in Germany has become so popular with the global rock and metal scene that its organisers created the sister event Rock im Park. Welcoming up to 150,000 devoted music fans across both events over the same weekend in June, ticket holders can expect to mosh day to night to some of the greatest punk, metal, and rock acts the world has to offer.
As with every year, Rock im and am are set to be up there with the best rock festivals in 2024.
Slam Dunk Festival North and South
Photo: Slam Dunk Festival / Facebook.com
When: South - Saturday 25th May / North - Sunday 26th May 2024
Where: South - Hatfield Park in Hatfield, England / North - Temple Newsam in Leeds, England
2024 lineup: You Me At Six, The All-American Rejects, I Prevail, Bob Vylan, La Dispute, Pennywise, and more
If songs about pizza, loving your friends, and hating the town you’re from have your heart, Slam Dunk is the one for you as the champ of pop punk festivals.
Born out of The Cockpit music venue in Leeds, Slam Dunk Festival first began as a club night for fans of alternative genres of music, such as punk, pop punk, rock, emo, and metal. Now a huge annual, two-part event, Slam Dunk has become one of the most sought-after live music festivals for pop punks, rockers and metalheads throughout Europe and beyond.
Over 50,000 fans make the journey to either one of the festival's two homes every year to witness performances from a wide selection of established names, upcoming talents and everything in between.
Photo: Graspop Metal Meeting / Facebook.com
When: Thursday 20th - Sunday 23rd June 2024
Where: Dessel in Belgium
2024 lineup: Tool, Alice Cooper, Five Finger Death Punch, Judas Priest, Avenged Sevenfold, Bring Me The Horizon, Scorpions, Machine Head, and more
Known for great organisation, loads of crowd surfing, ace lineups, and quality sound, Graspop has long been considered one of the greatest heavy metal festivals.
Boasting a wide variety of music with bands on stage until the early hours of the morning, Graspop is revered by heavy music fans across the continent and beyond, with around 60,000 making the pilgrimage to the Belgian field each year.
It’s one of those festivals where you’ll definitely make a friend or two (although to be fair, that’s most rock-leaning festivals anyway). But the strong organisation is definitely a strong point and somewhat common when it comes to European festivals.
Photo: Bloodstock Festival / Facebook.com
When: Thursday 8th - Sunday 11th August 2024
Where: Catton Park in Derbyshire, England
2024 lineup: Opeth, Architects, Amon Amarth, Flogging Molly, Igorrr, Malevolence, Whitechapel, and more
Bloodstock has been providing its devoted following with four days of some of the darkest, heaviest, and most chaotic music known to man since its unholy inception back in 2005.
Set upon the grounds of Derbyshire's Catton Park, the festival welcomes 20,000 metal and punk fans each year, presenting a mammoth lineup of over a hundred prominent international acts over four stages.
Alongside performances, Bloodstock also has a signing tent for you to meet your favourite bands and get a picture with them. Head to Bloodstock Open Air this year, raise your horns to the sky, and open up the pit this August.
Photo: Hellfest Open Air Festival / Facebook.com
When: Thursday 27th - Sunday 30th June 2024
Where: Clissson, France
2024 lineup: Machine Head, Avenged Sevenfold, Metallica, Foo Fighters, The Prodigy, Dropkick Murphys, The Offspring, Suicidal Tendencies, Megadeth, and more
Like last year, we thought about posting a picture of the stages, the bands, or the people at the fest, but we need to take a moment to really appreciate that lineup. As always, drop-dead gorgeous! Hellfest has never messed about with its lineups, and 2024 is looking no different with some bloody massive names that’ll leave heavy music fans drooling.
The monstrous metal Mecca has a reputation for fantastic sound quality, the atmosphere is brilliant and, again, that lineup! It’s always been one of the best heavy metal festivals, and we can’t see that changing anytime soon.
With all this in mind, it’s no surprise weekend tickets have already sold out. But that doesn’t mean you can’t snag a resale ticket from someone who can no longer go… keep an eye out as the fest has a resale platform!
Nova Rock Festival
Photo: NOVA ROCK Festival / Facebook.com
When: Thursday 13th - Sunday 16th June 2024
Where: Pannonia Fields in Nickelsdorf, Austria
2024 lineup: Green Day, Avenged Sevenfold, Jane's Addiction, Machine Head, Maneskin, Avril Lavigne, Alice Cooper, Bring Me The Horizon, and more
One of the largest rock festivals, each year Nova Rock welcomes 55,000 rock and heavy music fans through its gates to mosh out to some of the biggest names in the industry.
Joining the massive names listed above, they've also got Steel Panther, Body Count ft. Ice-T, Pendulum, Corey Taylor, and more, so you know you’ve got plenty of diverse sounds to enjoy at this year’s bash.
Tied together by excellent sound, fantastic stage designs, and a cracking atmosphere, Nova Rock is a brilliant four-day event for any fan of heavier tunes.
Photo: Wacken Open Air / Facebook.com
Photo: Wacken Open Air / Facebook.com
When: Wednesday 31st July - Saturday 3rd August 2024
Where: Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
2024 lineup: Scorpions, Korn, Amon Amarth, Behemoth, Testament, Opeth, The Darkness, Spiritbox, Flogging Molly, and more
Wacken Open Air became one of Europe’s biggest heavy metal festivals after winning the hearts of metalheads worldwide with its stellar lineups, passionate crowds, and immaculate sound.
If you need more proof to back up how amazing this festival is, in 2018, it won the Best Major Festival Award at the European Awards and Best Festival at the Helga!
Wacken tries to ensure the bands they book cover as many styles of hard rock and metal as possible, and this year will be no different with punk, death metal, nu-metal, thrash, metalcore and more on its lineup. A cracking festival and one that’s going down in a country known for its brilliant beer, Wacken is a belter.
Resurrection Fest
Photo: RESURRECTION FEST / Facebook.com
When: Wednesday 26th - Saturday 29th June 2024
Where: Viveiro in Spain
2024 lineup: Avenged Sevenfold, Alice Cooper, Bring Me The Horizon, Machine Head, The Offspring, Sum 41, Megadeth, Bad Omens, Babymetal, and more
What’s better than your favourite bands playing back-to-back at a festival full of likeminded music fans? All of that plus reliable, sunny weather. Yeah, it’s actually possible to do all that without getting caked in mud!
This brilliant music festival in Spain brings music fans together to enjoy some of the most important bands across the scenes over four sunny days.
Resurrection is already looking ace but what makes even better is the fact it’s a bit of a beach festival. Near some of the best beaches in the region, you can make your festival experience extra special by camping on one or getting the shuttle over! Waking up to stunning views and the sound of the sea gently lapping up on the sand will surely soften the blow of the hangover each morning.
Photo: Rebellion Punk Music Festival / Facebook.com
When: Thursday 1st - Sunday 4th August 2024
Where: Winter Gardens in Blackpool, England
2024 lineup: The Stranglers, Stiff Little Fingers, Sham 69, Hotwax, The Meffs, Meryl Streek, Smoking Gives You Big Tits, and more
Rebellion is the largest of the UK’s independent punk festivals, attracting thousands to Blackpool for four days of jamming. Set indoors so you don’t have to worry about rain, the festival hosts artists including new punk bands, legendary bands from yesteryear, and a splash of other alternative sounds across up to seven stages.
Outside the tunes, there’s the literary festival which has seen John Lydon, Rat Scabies, Glen Matlock and more in the past, the Punk Art Exhibition, and Rebellion Radio with interviews and the festival’s highlights to sink your teeth into.
Rebellion is a super family-friendly festival and children under 12 go free, so if you’ve been desperate to introduce the kids to some banging tunes, this is the perfect festival for it.
Photo: 2000 Trees Festival / Facebook.com
When: Wednesday 10th - Saturday 13th July 2024
Where: Upcote Farm in Cheltenham, England
2024 lineup: The Gaslight Anthem, Manchester Orchestra, Kids In Glass Houses, Boston Manor, The Mysterines, and more
2000 Trees shines a light on over 80 emo, punk, rock, and metal artists. The award-winning fest is adored by fans of hard tunes and strong moshpits, thanks to its cracking lineups, welcoming atmosphere, and relatively cheap tickets.
More on the medium-small end of the scale, 2000 Trees welcomes around 15,000 fans of banging tunes to the farm, where they can enjoy huge, mosh-worthy tunes or acoustic vibes. Trees is also a sustainable festival, even nominated for the UK Festival Awards’ first Transport Impact Innovator Award in 2023.
With that "everyone's welcome here" metal vibe, checking out 2000 Trees is a great shout. Head over, enjoy the tunes, make some mates, and make this festival season one to remember.
Thanks to rock, metal, and punks scene that makes everyone from all walks of life feel comfortable and accepted, no matter which you choose, we’re sure you’ll have a cracking time and even make some friends for life.
Find loads more festivals now on Skiddle. Or check out the best dance fests, house and techno fests, and trance fests, if you fancy checking out some danceable fests too.
Check out our What's On Guide to discover even more rowdy raves and sweaty gigs taking place over the coming weeks and months. For festivals, lifestyle events and more, head on over to our Things To Do page or be inspired by the event selections on our Inspire Me page.
Header Image: 2000 Trees Festival / Facebook.com
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