There was no chance of a lie-in for Straight For The Sun on the final morning of Bloodstock. The Birmingham band were first up on the New Blood Stage at 10:30am. Paul Castles spoke to vocalist Callum Green and guitarist Pauly Barter to find out how they did it. 
You performed very early on the New Blood Stage today (Sunday). How did it all go?
It was amazing and there was a better turnout than we could possibly have hoped for. We couldn’t be happier and were pleasantly surprised just how many turned up. It was that early we weren’t even sure that we would turn up!
How did you get in the right mental state to play that early?
Well, we’ve never played much before about 3pm so it was different. I was going through my vocal workout in the shower before I’d even woken up! It was a bit of a culture shock. But it’s been great to learn all these things that go with playing at a big festival like Bloodstock. The whole weekend has been a massive learning curve and it’s been just really cool to see how all these bands we look up to work and interact. 
Do you feel you were able to bring your A-game to Bloodstock today?
Yes, the adrenaline just takes over. Once we were on stage it was like ‘let’s kill it’ and it felt like 10pm! Our mantra is always to play every show like it’s our last, to leave everything on the stage. We will always bring that energy to our performance.
So how did you actually secure your place in the Bloodstock line-up?
We’ve a great guy in our corner, Dan from DC Sound Attack and he put us forward to Simon Hall. Thank you to Simon for being open to us and giving us the opportunity. We were a bit shocked one gloomy morning when the email came through. The noise I made when we got the confirmation is one usually only made by dolphins! We were all so up for it and rearranged a few plans to make this happen.
Catton Park is not too far from Birmingham, any family and friends supporting you today?
Nearly all our partners are here which is amazing, and drummer Jamie’s mum is here too! He didn’t know and then spotted her on the barrier after about three songs, really amazing support. It was great to see people who know us already and also so many new faces watching us.
You’ve a new single/video, ‘Pulling Teeth’ – what’s the story behind this?
It’s been a bit of a journey, three years in the making. There was a lot of self-doubt, as we have had several versions of this song. Gigs and tours meant that it kept getting pushed back. But once Bloodstock was confirmed that became the trigger and we thought we have to get this song out now. We had a focus and needed a new song to play. We wanted something fresh and to express the new evolution of the band. We’re now figuring out where we want to be and where we are now is very different to when our last release came out three years ago. We are very different as a band and people too. We’re more focused now and ready to hit it hard.
Are you now looking to build on the momentum generated today?
Totally, this is a pinnacle moment for us mentally. We want to be as good as these other bands and playing here shows us that we can be if we work. This line-up has been together seven years now. We wrote a lot of songs over Covid, and we’re now seeing what works for us and what direction we want to head in. It feels really exciting. The floodgates can open now and anything is possible. Today is a big confidence boost for us.
So what shows come next?
We’re supporting Armored Saint at KKs in Wolverhampton on Friday (16 Aug) so our two biggest ever shows will have taken place within five days. We then have a few more shows including with Space Pistol in Cambridge and they also played on the New Blood Stage.
And how is it in Birmingham for a young metal band right now?
Great, but we were very sorry to see Devil’s Dog close. We’ve still got Scruffy’s, the academy venues, Mama Roux’s, The Flapper, Dead Wax … there’s so many venues with a lot going on. It’s a thriving metropolis of heavy music with lots of great bands like Birmingham M2TM winner Kensei, Nameless, and Netherhall.
