SÁTAN FESTIVAL, JUNE 5TH, 6TH, AND 7TH, STYKKISHHOLMÚR  (ICELAND)

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Jun 272025
 

(Our French contributor Zoltar made his way to Iceland again to attend the June 2025 edition of Sátan festival, and we received the following report, with a few of Zoltar‘s photos.)

Be warned, you’ll often read this same phrase over and over again in the following report: Only in Iceland…

Mind you, it’s far from being my first time here as after a first visit in the mid-00s as a regular tourist (no metal involved), I had the chance to attend a few times the now defunct Eistnaflug festival and also to be invited to be part of the Wacken Battle Iceland jury. Yet, this tiny country with a big heart never ceases to amaze me, on all levels.

And yes, only in Iceland could a festival be set up in the middle of freakin’ nowhere (that would be in this very case Stykkishholmúr for you, roughly one three-hour drive up from Reykjavik, population 1,300) in early June called Sátan Festival. And yes, there’s a twist here. The accent makes all the difference, since Sátan (look it up, google it if you don’t believe me) is first and foremost the name of a local mountain with an old legend attached to it.

Besides a hard-to-transcribe-on-paper pronunciation – try something like ‘sauthan’ – the name has actually something to do with a legend about a troll, a haystack, a horse, and a couple of extra things I’m not entirely sure of anymore… But that’s not what really matters here, as this new and up-and-coming festival (this is their second edition) encapsulates everything that makes the Icelandic scene such a special one. Continue reading »

FORTRESS FESTIVAL 2025 — MAY 31-JUNE 1, SCARBOROUGH, NORTH YORKSHIRE, ENGLAND: DAY 2

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Jun 252025
 

(This is Part 2 of Daniel Barkasi‘s extensive report on the 2025 edition of the UK’s Fortress Festival, covering the second day of the two-day event, again accompanied by his own photos. To check out his report on Day One, go here.)

Sunday, Day 2

As it turns out, running stage to stage for 11 hours taking in as many bands as possible may sap the energy reserves a little. Who knew? This was always going to be a whirlwind of an excursion, so we were mentally prepared for the madness. My body, however, said no – at least to getting out of bed early enough to grab breakfast at the hotel. Alas, we made due with some protein bars and various other food items I had picked up from a Sainsbury’s, as time was of the essence to get down to the Spa for the second day of insanity. Today would prove just as wild as the first. Continue reading »

FORTRESS FESTIVAL 2025 — MAY 31-JUNE 1, SCARBOROUGH, NORTH YORKSHIRE, ENGLAND: DAY 1

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Jun 242025
 

(We proudly present the first part of Daniel Barkasi’s extensive two-part report on the latest edition of Fortress Festival in the UK, lavishly accompanied by his own many photos. We plan to post his report on the second day of the event tomorrow.)

When deciding to travel to a foreign land, many preparations need to occur. Especially when it’s a country that you’ve never been to before. It’s true that these ears have traveled much distance for live music – we’ve been to Germany many times for Wacken (x3), Summer Breeze (x2), Party.San and Trveheim, for example – but somehow in all our travels, the UK had never been one of them.

From afar, I’ve admired several UK based metal festivals that have been boasting insane lineups that would simply never occur in North America. Cosmic Void, Damnation Festival, ArcTanGent, Incineration Festival are all ones on the list to hit up – but the mighty Fortress Festival was the one that screamed the loudest. Partially due to the mind-boggling lineup, but also the unique location, a seaside resort town known for its beach, views, history, and massive fortress (hence the name of the fest).

What better locale for two days of furious black metal, sans an old stave church in Norway? Continue reading »

NORTHWEST TERROR FEST 2025: THE FULL REPORT

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May 302025
 

(We are most grateful to Denver-based NCS writer Gonzo for this amazingly comprehensive and vivid report on the 2025 edition of Northwest Terror Fest. Except where noted, the photos are credited to PNW photographer extraordinaire J. Donovan Malley and NWTF staff.)

This won’t be true for everyone, but for me, there are perhaps no other words in the English language that have sparked more friendships than “hey man, nice shirt.”

I remembered this as I was standing on the corner of 10th Ave & Pike St. at just before 4 p.m. on a clear Thursday afternoon in Seattle. The 2025 Northwest Terror Fest was less than an hour from officially kicking off. I was in front of Neumos and Barboza clad in my long-sleeved Blood Incantation shirt amid a small crowd of similarly clad festival diehards. As usual, I was looking for Islander – both to say hi and to grab my festival pass for the weekend – and before I could even find the man himself, I got sucked into my first conversation with a stranger about our mutual love for Blood Incantation.

This interaction set the stage perfectly for the next three days of music, friends, community, and probably more beer than one man’s liver should ever be tasked with handling. It was once again time for me to dive headfirst into Northwest Terror Fest. Continue reading »

GONZO GOES TO ROADBURN 2025

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May 192025
 

(Our Denver-based writer Gonzo went to Roadburn 2025 in April. Here’s his extensive report on the experience.)

For almost as long as I can recall, I’ve wanted to make the pilgrimage to Roadburn. The 4-day affair in Tilburg, Netherlands, has been one of the most consistently raved-about experiences in heavy music on the planet for the better part of two decades, and I’d been dead-set on getting my ass there for at least half that time.

As it turns out, 2025 would be the year I’d finally get to see if Roadburn lives up to the hype.

The short answer?

Yes. Fuck yes. And then some. Continue reading »

SHOW REVIEW: SWALLOW THE SUN, HARAKIRI FOR THE SKY, GHOST BATH, SNAKES OF RUSSIA – FEB. 28, 2025, ORLANDO FL

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Mar 212025
 

(Daniel Barkasi provided us the following wonderful report on the February 28 Orlando stop of Swallow the Sun‘s recently completed U.S. tour with Harakiri for the Sky, Ghost Bath, and Snakes of Russia, accompanied by the wonderful photos of Brittany Barkasi @Turn off the Thunder.)

Personally, Swallow the Sun is a band that has meant quite a bit over the years, both to myself and many friends – memories that will never fade. A good friend even made merch in the form of necklaces and keychains for this very tour, which are super high quality and wholly unique. For yours truly, ever since having my blackened heart soothed by The Morning Never Came in 2003, these Finns have been a constant in the listening rotation.

I first caught them live in September of 2007 (17-½ years ago – time is damn cruel) on what now has to be described as a dream tour, with Katatonia headlining, and Insomnium, Scar Symmetry, and Swallow the Sun supporting. Hard to imagine that tour was real, but for me and a bunch of others in the old Peabody’s (miss that place) in Cleveland, it was quite an affirming event. Since then, we’ve managed to see them a bunch of times, and when the opportunity arises, it’s one that we can’t turn down.

Adding to the allure of the melodic death/doom legends were Harakiri for the Sky, the post-black stalwarts who have eluded me for quite some time. Add to that the pummeling sounds of Ghost Bath and the dark electronics of Snakes of Russia, and we had a varied collection of fantastic acts to take in.

So off to Orlando we trekked to a usual landing spot in central Florida – the incredible Conduit – for a memorable evening of heart-wrenching musicality. Continue reading »

NIHILITY ACROSS AMERICA 2025 AT THE DNA LOUNGE, SAN FRANCISCO

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Mar 062025
 

(The Polish titans Decapitated recently finished their Nihility Across North America Tour, with support from Incantation, Darkest Hour, and Exmortus. Our friend Ben Manzella caught their February 27 show at San Francisco’s DNA Lounge and provided us with the following report and his photos of the performances.)

It is hard for me to believe that it was nineteen years ago that I started to desire to be at a concert almost any night that it was possible. For obvious reasons, this has hardly been possible but I couldn’t help but be reflective as I walked into the DNA Lounge for the Nihility Across North America tour. As I think I mentioned in my review of Decapitated’s show last year, Vogg was the first person to allow me the time to interview them in person. We haven’t been able to talk again in person since that night, but it still means a lot to me. It was great to be able to see this tour celebrating a pinnacle moment in the career of Decapitated. Continue reading »

OSLO DEATHFEST: DAY 2

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Dec 052024
 

(This is our Oslo-based contributor Chile‘s report on the second day of the second edition of Oslo Deathfest, which took place on November 29-30 this year, accompanied by his photos.)

Saturday morning came too early, the sweet aching of the body’s night excursions seemingly still present. A couple of cups of coffee later, all is well again, the mysteries of the organism. A perfectly choreographed self-hypnosis ritual. The ice has retreated from the streets and given way to the rain in a move surprising absolutely nobody here. We are ready to go.

Second day of Oslo Deathfest keeps the format of the previous day, but goes even harder with eight bands in total and starting at four in the afternoon to accommodate them all. We are once again greeted by the organisers and the good people at Vaterland for the first two bands.  Continue reading »

OSLO DEATHFEST: DAY 1

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Dec 042024
 

(Our Oslo-based contributor Chile had the good fortune to attend the latest edition of Oslo Deathfest on November 29-30, and he has given us the following lively report, accompanied by his photos.)

Time does fly on the wings of death. Nowhere more true than on the ice-covered streets of Oslo, where a moment of inattention takes you straight into the abyss or the pavement, whichever comes first. A bit dramatic, but that’s life. Threading slowly and with great care, walking through winter streets alone, he stops and takes a breath with confidence and self control; Friday has finally come to bring us the first day of Oslo Deathfest, the annual fest of unreadable logos.

A full year has already come to pass from the first edition of Oslo Deathfest, which aims to be a regular gathering for both the bands and the fans of that most beautiful genre of gut-wrenching riffs and crushing rhythms, namely death metal. Last year’s first edition was a success in itself and it was only normal to expect that the organisers would build on that by trying to expand the festival.

And they do. Going from nine bands in 2023, mostly of local fare, but still full of strong names, this year’s festival brings us fourteen bands of colourful, international variety from four corners of the Earth spread over the course of two days. Continue reading »

BLOOD INCANTATION: LIVE AT THE BOULDER THEATER, OCTOBER 4, 2024

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Oct 182024
 

(Denver-based NCS writer Gonzo had the good fortune of seeing Blood Incantation perform in Denver on the day of their newest album’s release, preceded by the solo set of Steve Roach, and he’s given us the following show review. We’re also grateful to Denver photographer Jacob Juno for allowing us to use his photos from the show throughout this article.)

Hype is a helluva drug.

And perhaps no band in modern metal is aware of that statement the way Denver’s Blood Incantation are. Their 2019 opus Hidden History of the Human Race was released to a cacophony of effusive praise from every dark corner of the internet, catapulting the band into interdimensional stardom.

Fast forward to 2024. The past five years have seen Blood Incantation’s career become anything but predictable. There are probably fewer words that haven’t been used to describe Timewave Zero than those that have, and the Luminescent Bridge single was a nice surprise that left many (myself included) wanting more.

It felt like a culmination of all of this, then, to have the band play a special one-night-only headlining set at the foot of the Rocky Mountains last week. And to properly commemorate the release of Absolute Elsewhere, they even brought along the king of ambient sound himself, Steve Roach, to open the proceedings.

What followed was a night nobody in the Boulder Theater would soon forget.

Continue reading »

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