Live Photos: Westfest 2015

Now in its second year, Westfest is going through some growing pains but has the potential to shape up into a top notch event. Riding on the wake of the Soundwave Festival in Australia, Westfest gives New Zealand heavy music fans a chance to catch some big name acts that might otherwise not make it down this far, this year bringing the immense talent of Judas Priest, Faith No More and Soundgarden as headliners alongside more than 20 other acts on the metal spectrum. This year's festival took place at the former home of the Big Day Out, Mt Smart Stadium in Penrose, after being shifted to a larger (and distinctly un-west) location due to expansion of the line-up. However the stadium, which was laid out with three stages of varying size, didn't play the best host to the fledgling festival - creating an awkward flow for punters and sound-bleed issues between the two smaller stages.

When it came to the Monster Mainstage, the headline acts pulled it out of the bag - for the most part. Old school English metallers Judas Priest, who were given the unfortunate afternoon time slot of 5:30pm, managed a highlight show that left fans completely elated, and Faith No More blew minds with their white-drenched and flower-laden stage, not to mention phenomenal showmanship - despite a slightly loose set. Soundgarden, who closed the evening, left things on a slightly sad note with leadman Chris Cornell showing signs of fatigue and was unable to reach the more challenging notes of the band's early songs. For an event that is filled with bogans you'd expect a more raucous event, but all-in-all the day was pretty mellow and with the teething issues ironed out (like a suitable day and venue) Westfest has a bright future on New Zealand's festival calendar.

Photographer Jessica Suo was roaming Westfest with her camera and took some fantastic shots of the evening's events, take a look below...