Cancer Bats — Bloodstock Open Air 2019

At 11:45 a.m. on Saturday, August 10, 2019, Cancer Bats faces a time slot rarely associated with the heaviness of its repertoire. The Ronnie James Dio stage hosts the Canadian quartet as it tours behind The Spark That Moves, released by surprise the previous year on its own Bat Skull Records label.

Liam Cormier jokes about being tired and the two coffees he has had, but the crowd responds with circle pits and jumping. Gatekeeper opens the set; Hail Destroyer and R.A.T.S. meet Sabotage by Beastie Boys. At the end, War Pigs brings Black Sabbath to the field, with a dedication to Birmingham and the pioneers of heavy metal.

After Bloodstock, the British dates continue. Later that August, Scott Middleton announces a break from touring to be there for the birth of his first child, with Wade MacNeil taking over on guitar for the following dates. The festival recording preserves the quartet before the substitution: an eleven-song snapshot that ends with an explicit link between Canadian hardcore and Birmingham metal.