Culture
Sonic Temple 2025 Preview: Ohio’s premiere rock festival reaches new heights
By: Nicholas Kobe
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) – The full lineup for Sonic Temple 2025 has just been announced after a long, (and very fun) series of daily band announcements.
Now that the full lineup is in our hands how does Sonic Temple 2025 stand, both compared to the past and on its own merits? Spoiler alert: pretty damn well.
To be fair, Sonic Temple 2025 had me at “Metallica.”
A band needing no introduction, Metallica is the biggest metal band of all time, and Sonic Temple’s ability to host them says something about the festival’s over strengths. Metallica’s unique dual headlining sets, with no songs repeated between them, has been their gimmick ever since the release of 72 Seasons, and I think it’s a great concept. Perhaps not the most appealing set up for casual fans, but group certainly has a strong enough discography to support the kind of 3-hour superset diehard fans will appreciate.
Considering Metallica takes up two headliner slots (Friday and Sunday), that only leaves room for two more headliners. For these two, Danny Wimmer goes back to the nu-metal well they so commonly draw from to give us Korn and Linkin Park. Korn’s inclusion isn’t particularly shocking, considering they headlined festivals like Louder Than Life, it only seemed natural Sonic Temple show was going to come at some point. I enjoyed Korn’s closing performance at Louder Than Life, so I have no complaints about their inclusion here.
Linkin Park is a far more interesting story. Since Chester Bennington’s death in 2017, Linkin Park’s future has been uncertain, and their return earlier this year with former Dead Sara vocalist Emily Armstrong has been controversial. Not only because fans were unsure if Linkin Park could continue without Chester but also because of Armstrong’s history as a member of the Church of Scientology.
Nevertheless, the band’s reunion has so far been successful, and considering the Sonic Temple audience has been welcoming of controversial acts like Falling In Reverse and Pantera, I’m sure Linkin Park’s set will go over fine.
Armstrong’s addition to Linkin Park makes them the first band with a female member to headline Sonic Temple. This milestone highlights the growing representation of women in top festival spots, with acts like Poppy, Arch Enemy, and Jinjer also making waves. However, it’s a double-edged sword: the first female headliner comes as part of a legacy band known for its all-male lineup, suggesting there’s still progress to be made.
Another standout feature of this year’s Sonic Temple lineup is the strong presence of heavy bands. While past festivals dabbled in thrash and death metal, this year marks a full embrace of these genres. For a fan of heavy music, it’s a welcome shift.
Alongside headliner Metallica, the thrash lineup includes heavyweights like Testament, Exodus, Overkill, and Cavalera, which is sure to please die-hard thrash fans. Plus, the festival has expanded its death metal offerings. Building on last year’s melodic death metal acts like In Flames, this year brings legends like Arch Enemy and adds truly brutal death metal acts, including Cannibal Corpse (find Nicholas Kobe’s Cannibal Corpse interview at this link), Obituary, Power Trip, and Gatecreeper. With such a lineup, Sonic Temple is no longer just a rock festival with a touch of heavy music; it stands as a global contender for fans of extreme metal.
The lineup also features a solid selection of metalcore, with legendary acts like Killswitch Engage, Trivium, and Bullet for My Valentine alongside some of the hottest new bands captivating younger audiences who may not recall the heydays of Korn or Metallica. Bands like Bad Omens, Poppy, and Ice Nine Kills aren’t just popular—they’re excellent additions to the lineup. Ice Nine Kills, in particular, brings theatricality and camp that perfectly suit the Sonic Temple vibe.
Speaking of campy bands that have been atop my “Sonic Temple wishlist” for a while now, Gwar. My interview with Blöthar is still one of the funniest conversations I’ve ever had, and as someone who’s only witnessed Gwar on record and watching YouTube videos, I can’t wait to see all the costumes, hear all the music and get sprayed with fluids that should probably count as a biohazard.
I also love the two spooky oddballs of the lineup, Ministry and Rob Zombie. Rob killed it at Sonic Temple 2023, and I’m pumped for him to do it all over again this year. Ministry can’t really be pinned down to a genre, but their pioneering in industrial rock, and some of their new wave fusion elements on songs like Every Day Is Halloween will undoubtedly make them stand out amongst the crowd.
Two other strange picks are, ironically, legends. Having “classic rock” at Sonic Temple isn’t new, but considering it was mostly absent last year, having Alice Cooper come to Sonic Temple in 2025 was a surprise, but a damn welcome one. Including grunge also isn’t common with Sonic Temple, and while that’s probably because a lot of the biggest bands no longer perform, Alice in Chains wasn’t even on my radar of bands to hope would join Sonic Temple. Now that they’re here, I’m pretty damn excited.
Linkin Park and Korn aren’t the only nu-metal and post-grunge bands. The most noteworthy of these is Three Days Grace who are reuniting with their original lead singer. This undoubtedly will be a momentous set, especially considering Sonic Temple is the earliest of their slated shows. Considering how hits like Animal and I Hate Everything About You still get traction on TikTok, this set will undoubtedly be a selling point across generations.
Alongside Three Days Grace, you have Chevelle, Incubus, Sevendust, and Crossfade, the latter of which is also a reunion show. Unlike Three Days Grace, though, I haven’t for the life of me been able to find why this band has been receiving this kind of hype. Then again, my bias against this genre doesn’t mean it’s not important, and I think the balance between genres really makes any bands you don’t like an easier pill to swallow.
Though I shared similar praise for Louder Than Life 2024 when it was announced, it feels even more fitting here. Love them or hate them, every headliner has earned their place, and the undercard is packed with standout bands like Bloodywood, Silly Goose, Sanguisagabogg, and Frozen Soul. Danny Wimmer’s lineups just keep getting stronger, and while there’s always room for improvement, Sonic Temple 2025 represents a major leap forward. Simply put, this is the best Sonic Temple lineup on paper—ever.
Find Nicholas Kobe’s past coverage of Danny Wimmer Festivals (Louder Than Life and Sonic Temple) at this link. He’s interviewed several of the groups set to play Sonic Temple 2025, including Trivium, Municipal Waste, and Mastodon.