Wildfire Festival – Rocking Up A Storm

Where – Wanlockhead Inn, Scotland

When – 26th/28^th June 2026

Review and Photographs by Linda McDermott

Day Two, Saturday 27^th June 26

Wildfire Festival returned to The Wanlockhead Inn, Scotland’s highest pub, for three days celebrating some of the best up-and-coming rock bands from across the UK. After a brilliant opening day, Saturday promised another packed line-up and, with the Scottish weather determined to keep everyone guessing, it certainly didn’t disappoint.

After a night of relentless rain, it was dreich to say the least, but the undead emerged from their battered tents and made their way to the Inn for the first band.

13 Screams were welcomed by a great crowd. With stand-in bassist Eck from Dead Fire stepping in with just four days notice, the band certainly gave it some welly. Playing songs from their latest album, Hunt Down and Kill, they never let the energy drop. James had everyone laughing when he joked that if the lyrics were different, they weren’t errors, but “limited edition mistakes” made especially for Wanlockhead.

Opening track Figure It Out hit hard from the first note and immediately set the pace, while Sink or Swim stood out with its cathartic lyrics. A cracking start to day two.

Next up were Welsh three-piece Kit Trigg. Adam, Kit, and Max brought bags of energy to the stage and proved to be a great addition to the festival. Snake in the Grass mixed harmonies, rap, and a bluesy feel to create something a little different.

One of the most touching moments of the weekend came when they dedicated a song to their friend Will, who had sadly passed away. Before playing it, they asked everyone to give him a loud cheer so he could hear it up in heaven, which they duly did. It was a lovely tribute, building into a melodic song full of riffs and driving beats.

Free and Easy brought a real seventies feel, and with Adam making his Scottish debut, he couldn’t have asked for a warmer welcome. Their varied set had something for everyone and there really wasn’t anything not to like.

If you’re looking for subtle, Eld Varg probably aren’t for you. Get your kilts on, grab your claymores, and prepare for battle. Their thunderous heavy metal was packed with huge riffs and commanding vocals that sounded ready-made for a film soundtrack. Vulcan’s Hammer was a standout, full of power and emotion, while every song painted vivid pictures of warriors and fierce battles. Despite being only, a three-piece, they produced an enormous wall of sound that filled the tent from start to finish.

The day is in full flow and from the moment LN walked on stage in full costume and character, their stage presence was hypnotic.

The song Brothers was dedicated to making every LN show a safe place, whether you’re straight, queer, or neurodivergent. If anyone didn’t feel safe, she wanted them to tell her. LN took charge encouraging everyone to move closer, but here was a little hesitation until she firmly said, “Now,” and everyone moved forward with a smile. Then came Johnny, a head on a stick that somehow became part of the show as LN invited everyone to say hello. Heavy riffs, pounding rhythms and LN dancing across the stage with dreadlocks flying in every direction made for a brilliant performance. A song for the peasants, (LN fans) another for the moshers, whose efforts resembled more of a Scottish dance than a mosh pit, but who cares, it was all fun.

The weather had changed yet again. If you weren’t running for cover from the rain, you were looking for somewhere to warm up. That’ll teach us for complaining it was too hot yesterday! But enough of the weather forecast, it was time for the next band.

Electron kept the metal flowing with a powerful set packed with head banging riffs and plenty of intensity. Drawing from Defiance and other material, they barely gave the audience a chance to catch their breath. Burn It Down was a standout, delivering a relentless combination of driving guitars and strong vocals that kept the energy exactly where it needed to be.

And the music just keeps coming. Fresh from playing Love Rocks, Alabama Crow arrived full of confidence. What’s not to love about these guys? Their blues-infused rock always goes down well, and they looked right at home on the Wildfire stage.

Introducing their forthcoming charity single, Reach, with its uplifting chorus and positive message, it’s a song sure to resonate with plenty of people. They followed it with a cracking bluesy number complete with a superb guitar solo before turning things up with what they described as their heaviest song of the set.

I’ve seen plenty of creative ways to encourage people to visit the merch stand, but Billy may have found the best one yet. Disappearing off stage before returning with a dog, he announced that anyone wanting to see more of it would have to head over to the merch stall. I’m not sure if it worked, but it was definitely worth a try. They finished with the singalong favourite Alabama Crow, complete with plenty of audience participation.

Those Made Broken were a band I’d never heard before, but if they’re playing Wildfire, you know they’re going to be worth watching. The Glasgow alternative rock band impressed from the outset with melodic songs backed by heavy riffs, while John’s vocals tied everything together perfectly.

They also treated us to their new single, Echo Chambers, due for release on 17th July ahead of a new album in September. It’s another emotional, powerful track that left me wanting to hear more. I can definitely see myself downloading their music.

What’s not to like about Apriori? They have it all, plenty of riffs, Tony’s distinctive vocals, Mousey battering out the rhythm on the drums and Mark adding that extra spice on keys. Along with the rest of the crowd, I really got into the set, with firm favourites including Turn It Up, Voodoo Love and Shotgun Blues. There was the battle for the honour of playing the tambourine for one song, something that’s becoming a tradition at their gigs. They really should be selling tambourines at the merch stand so everyone can join in! Go check them out.

As the mist descended on the festival, I think we’d experienced just about every type of weather possible by this point, but regardless, it was time for the penultimate band.

Midnite City brought their brand of 80s melodic rock to the stage. Their songs have that sleazy, feel-good factor that’s impossible not to enjoy, and with several albums behind them they’ve built up a catalogue full of crowd-pleasers.

The audience lapped up every minute, singing along to favourites including the ballad Hardest Heart to Break, before Girls Gone Wild showed a more upbeat side. Another cracking performance that kept the atmosphere buzzing.

Headlining Saturday night were the ever-entertaining guys from Blue Nation. Neil, Luke, and Nick have a natural way with an audience, and the banter between songs had everyone laughing almost as much as the music had them cheering.

The tent was packed and, everywhere I looked, people were smiling, singing along, and enjoying every minute. Song after song landed perfectly, with the crowd hanging on every note and showing their appreciation at every opportunity. Blue Nation have worked incredibly hard to build the following they have today, and it’s easy to see why. Great songs, brilliant musicianship, and a genuine connection with their audience make every performance feel special. If you’ve not seen them yet, go and check them out. I really do think they’re destined for even bigger things.

That was it for the bands on day two, although the music certainly wasn’t finished yet. There was a bit of a party going on inside the Inn, so there was only one place to head next.

Ransom was entertaining a room that was quickly filling up. As they were playing their own set on Sunday, tonight was all about the covers.

They seem to charm everyone wherever they go and, before long, the whole bar was singing along to a brilliant mix of well-known rock songs. Whether we knew all the words or not, whether we were in tune or completely off-key, nobody cared. Everyone was having a brilliant time and, for anyone seeing Ransom for the first time, they’d certainly earned themselves a place on the must-see list for Sunday.

And that was day two at Wildfire done. We’d had fantastic music, sunshine, rain, mist and just about every other weather condition Scotland could throw at us. It was now time for a wander back through the mist to the van for a good night’s sleep before doing it all again tomorrow. Happy days.

Bands Facebook pages

Blue Nation

https://www.facebook.com/BlueNationMusic

Midnite City

https://www.facebook.com/midnitecityuk

Apriori

https://www.facebook.com/apriori.rocks

Those Made Broken

https://www.facebook.com/thosemadebroken.music

Alabama Crow

https://www.facebook.com/AlabamaCrowBand

Electron