Preview- Metal Family Gathering 2025
Preview - Metal Family Gathering 2025
Written by Will Kriss // [DJWILLKILL]
WIDR FM
2-1-25
Metal fans who can’t wait for the next installment of Battle Creek’s Michigan Metal Fest (MMF) will have an opportunity this month to keep the party going.
On Saturday, February 8, the Music Factory in Battle Creek will host the second installment of “Metal Family Gathering,” which is meant to be an off-season celebration of all things MMF.
“It’s kind of a polar time of year from Metal Fest - a year is too long for us all to go without hanging out, going to a show with bands we all think are great,” MMF Owner Steve Maple said in an interview.
As such, most of the groups billed have played at MMF before.
“We like it to be that family feeling,” Maple added. “The bands that come around, a lot of them feel like family. That’s kind of where a lot of that comes from when I’m choosing bands for that. I want it to be bands that will really appreciate being there, because they not only fit with the demographic, but they’re like family. Because of that, I think we always get a really good mix of bands. It’s that family gathering you WANT to go to, instead of the one you HAVE to.”
The lineup for the event is as follows:
Cultus Black

Cultus Black has performed at MMF over the last two installments and proved to be one of the highlights both times. They will now be performing as the headliners for Metal Family Gathering.
Don’t let the aesthetics fool you - while they may appear to be a black metal band, their style is rooted firmly in Nu-Metal and Deathcore with a symphonic edge.
The group is fronted by longtime Motograter member James Legion, whose vocals lend a soaring atmosphere to their sound.
“Cultus Black is, in my opinion, one of the most standout bands I’ve seen come through Michigan Metal Fest,” Maple said. “I have had them on a couple other events, but hadn’t had them headline yet. When I got the opportunity, I jumped on it. I thought they were perfect for this spot. As I’ve told them, I’m just one of the people that really believes in them as a band. I believe they have what it takes to go all the way.”
Recommended Songs:
Two Kings Glass
Two Kings Glass isn’t actually a band. They are a custom glassblowing company based out of Pittsburgh, PA. They are event sponsors and have created a lot of MMF’s glass merchandise, such as shot glasses, beer mugs and more.
During MMF last year, they were given a slot on the main stage toward the end of the night as a sort of interlude between the headliners.
It was hard to tell what they were creating at first, but by the end of the slot, the audience was presented with a gleaming glass sword.
Originally, their slot for this event slot was going to be used for something similar, but health issues with one of the members have caused a change of plans.
“What we’re gonna do is, instead of filling that slot, we’re gonna do a tribute to these guys and explain to everyone what their mission is, where they come from, why our relationship is so strong, and what they’ve done for our scene and our festival,” Maple said. “We’ve only known each other for a year and a half, but we’ve gotten really close with everyone in that camp, so I just want to make sure we pay good homage to them. We’re probably gonna pass around a hat and try to collect a little bit of fundage for these guys. Those unexpected things happen, and that’s what family does.”
Mantra of Morta

Mantra of Morta is based out of Indiana and contains influences of groove, alternative and melodic metal all rolled into one.
On top of playing at the Music Factory many times, they are also one of many bands whose performance was disrupted during the infamous storm of MMF ‘22, but were later rescheduled to the following year.
Maple himself has played many shows alongside Mantra of Morta, even back when his band was still operating under the name NuSkin (now known as Killcrown).
“Talking family, these guys have gone back further than a lot of bands with me,” Maple said. “I was put on a show with them. It was a cancer fundraiser called ‘Mosh out the Masses,’ and we met them down in Indiana, they were headlining. I was blown away by them and thought ‘other people need to see this band.’ I actually had them come up and play a Maple House Party, those were things that used to be before MMF in Delton.
They came and played in my hometown with me and a few other bands, and it was a show we put together at the VFW. Since then, I’ve always worked to bring these guys back. I try to bring them back at least once a year, as I do with every band I’ve built a really good relationship with. I believe that will keep people wanting them and being able to see them, and that enables them to grow, and that tour stop is always rich for them.”
Recommended Songs:
Burned in Effigy
Of all the bands booked for this event, Burned in Effigy is the only one I hadn’t heard of before now.
According to their socials, the Chicago-based group is a five-piece that combines “classical and progressive elements.” Their YouTube channel also describes them as being a “neoclassical” death metal band, which I’m slightly ashamed to say that I had to look up the meaning of:
“Neoclassical death metal is a subgenre of technical death metal that combines death metal with classical music. It's characterized by technical playing, heavy instrumentation, and elaborate solos.” - Google
Well, color me intrigued.
Unlike other groups on this lineup, Burned in Effigy is the only one that hasn’t played at Michigan Metal Fest before.
“Burned in Effigy, I actually just stumbled across these guys,” Maple said. “I saw their name on a few flyers and just randomly checked them out. I found their music and it was like, right off the bat, ‘WOW, these guys put so much detail into this!’ It also reminded me of The Black Dahlia Murder, which not a lot of bands really do. I don’t mean that in a bad way - I really dug what they were doing, it just had this different flow to it, and I think they’re a really cool band. I feel they’re gonna have a lot of growth. It’s one of those bands I heard and thought, ‘I gotta get some people to check these guys out, see what everybody has to say.”
He’s not kidding - their music reminds me a lot of The Black Dahlia Murder as well, with the really high-pitched “shrieking” vocal style.
So in other words, this oughta be good! Let’s see what you can do, BIE.
Recommended Songs:
Stranded Beneath

Rounding out the bill is Battle Creek’s very own Stranded Beneath, who played their first-ever festival performance at MMF last year.
Drawing influences from artists like Lamb of God and Gojira among many others, the group got their start in 2019 and have been hard at work in the years following.
“I’ve known them for a couple years and had them play two or three different shows with us so far,” Maple said. “The crowd loves them, they’re really respectful people, and we’re about that. Hard-working good people get the gold, I want good bands with awesome people to get great gigs.”
After MMF was over, I had the chance to interview vocalist Thor Smith for that review.
Ahead of Metal Family Gathering, I was also able to conduct a follow-up interview with Smith via email to see what’s become of them since.
(Interview has been edited for length and clarity).
To begin with, at the time of their MMF performance, Stranded Beneath was still down a few members, but were able to play thanks to some friends who stepped in.
“Things have been busy for all of us, but despite that we haven’t really slowed down aside from maybe being less frequent on social media,” Smith wrote. “We buckled down on the search for a drummer and found Dave Richard. Dave is an amazing dude and we can’t wait to show off his skills this year.
Now that we have a full band, we plan to hit the benchmarks we set back at the end of 2023, as far as saving for studio time to release new music. We have been working behind the scenes to add a new song to our setlist and building our live wireless rig. We hope to include automation in the near future and put out a better overall sound.”
With the addition of Richard, Smith says the group is excited to take on Metal Family Gathering.
“With a new drummer, some new merch, a new song, several shows and a festival under our belt, we are expecting to put on our best show yet,” Smith said. “We really have grown a lot as a band and are ready to finally walk onto the stage with a band of permanent members for the first time since we started Stranded Beneath and really get people excited to see our name on the next show flyer.
As always, we are thankful that we got invited to such an amazing show. We feel that while we are new and have our lives outside of music that keep us busy, that we really do have a close family-type connection with the scene, promoters, volunteers, and bands. We are happy to contribute to building that connection.”
Recommended Songs:
More Information
Again, the 2025 Metal Family Gathering will take place on Saturday, February 8 at the Music Factory in Battle Creek.
For the official Facebook event page, click here.
Doors open at 6pm, with Stranded Beneath scheduled as the first band at 7.
For ticket information, click here.
All photos by Will Kriss and Emily Sabourin, show flyer image provided by Steve Maple.
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