FESTIVAL REVIEW: Winds of Agony 2025

It’s remarkable how many metal festivals spawn every year, especially multi-day affairs. Long gone are the days of festivals testing the water with a single-day event for a few years before developing into whole weekend events. The metal scene is evidently now so massive that new promoters feel there’s little to risk diving straight into weekend fests with budget-bursting headlining acts. Spain may not be the most obvious base for an esteemed underground extreme metal festival, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t conceive one. On the edge of hyper-touristic and sun-flooded Barcelona, Granollers hosts the inaugural black and death metal fest, Winds of Agony. With a line-up comprised of rarities and reliable favourites, enough dedicated metalheads from across the globe have undertaken this pilgrimage of the perverse that the tickets are sold out in advance. Hordes of black-clad folks descend on the venue Sala Nau B1 and here’s what they saw.

Saturday – May 9th

 BAD OMEN

Slightly standing out among this line-up is the Netherlands’ BAD OMEN, a rough-around-the-edges blackened speed metal battalion. Their filthy regurgitation of metal is undoubtedly alcohol-propelled and perfect headbanging fare. These Dutchmen draw influences from the likes of the usual suspects like MOTÖRHEAD, VENOM, SODOM and BULLDOZER while pollinating it with some retro NWOBHM and punk vigour. They only have one album to their name, Hell Returns, released by the beloved Nuclear War Now! Records last year. Bassist Nachtraaf looks suitably punky, while the guitarist dons the daring combination of a chainmail coif with blackout sunglasses. This seems to be a decent representation of their don’t-give-a-fuck attitude, accompanied by a balls-out rocking stage presence – a suitable appetiser for the day.

Rating: 8/10

DEATH WORSHIP

One the most popular bands of the day is war metal machine DEATH WORSHIP, featuring BLASPHEMY guitarist Deathlord of Abomination and War Apocalypse. The sole member of the band, he relocated from Canada to Germany and hired a live line-up. The black/death metal command has been a common guest on European festival line-ups these last few years, and for good reason. Their show is a storm of unbridled violence with breakneck tempos, sinister atmospheres and razor-sharp guitar savagery. A mosh pit grips the centre of the venue, dispatching bodies left and right like a tornado. The likes of Superion Rising, Holocaust Altar and Evocation Chamber exhibit the quartet at their most supreme. The sound starts off slightly muffled but very quickly improves, sharpening the aural weaponry. The only downside is that Deathlord‘s vocals are more akin to a punky shout rather than the black metal raspy growls on their EPs and demos.  Nonetheless, this doesn’t detract dearly from the carnage, and the backing growls of Alastor and Kadeniac mask this for much of the time. Their show whips by like a gale-force storm, and the devastation they shoot out will be a challenge for others to surpass.

Rating: 8/10

RIPPIKOULU

Another popular act adorning metal fests these days is Finnish death doomsters RIPPIKOULU. As one of the pioneers of Finnish death metal in the early 90s, they unveiled two demos unto the world before splitting up in 1995, following the death of their guitarist Markus Henriksson. They subsequently reunited in 2014 and have just released an EP in this time entitled Ulvaja. The band lurches between acerbic buzzing guitars with thunderous blastbeats and cold doomy speeds accompanied by melancholy melodies. Getting your head caved in never felt so ecstatic as the band batters the beer-drenched crowd of Winds of Agony with the entirety of the Muusta Seremonia demo. Given the trend for the proliferation of often generic death/doom metal over the past ten years, RIPPIKOULU were truly inspired and creative to forge this music with their countrymen in the early 90s. Many punters seem less intrigued by these Finns than the butchery of DEATH WORSHIP, but that could be put down to a disappointing lack of appreciation or an overabundance of alcohol.

Rating: 8/10

BLASPHEMY

A sizeable chunk of the congregation arrives early for headliners BLASPHEMY. These Canadians have obtained mythical status in the extreme metal subterranean. Over the past ten years, they’ve played so many festivals and concerts around the world that it no longer feels like a rarity to see them in the flesh. Of course, their cult-like status for sincere chaos back in the day has seen them trending across social media, mostly responsible for catapulting war metal away from the depths of the underground into a pushy algorithm. Even at Winds of Agony, it seems like 20% of the audience is sporting a BLASPHEMY t-shirt or patches – something that would have been unheard of even just ten years ago. Their mystique may have been depleted but thankfully, they’ve evaded ruining their audacious reputation with new releases, gimmicks or embarrassing antics.

The instrumental Ross Bay Intro leads them on stage to a tsunami of ovation from the crowd before they launch into the unrepentant War Command. Immediately, a mosh pit detonates in the centre of the hall. Dark punchy rhythms, grindcore-flecked drumming and a maelstrom of cacophony from guitarists Caller of the Storms and  Deathlord of Abomination and War Apocalypse brutalise the venue. This show is testament to why BLASPHEMY shaped the war metal sub-genre so decidedly. The dynamic energy of the members is off the scale, despite their age. And with such an outstanding discography, the fans are rewarded with classic after classic: Blasphemous Attack, Weltering in Blood, Nocturnal Slayer, Emperor of the Black Abyss, Fallen Angel of Doom and so many more utterly pulverise the venue’s collective ear canals. While vocalist Nocturnal Grave Desecrator and Black Winds has been known to perform intoxicated and disappoint, tonight he was on form and faultless. Black/death metal live rarely meets this summit.

The Canadians leave the stage and so do a fair number of attendees. However, the true BLASPHEMY maniacs in attendance know to remain as they haven’t played their most popular song. What follows though is a muscular five-song encore, including Necrosadist, Empty Challice and closing with the fan favourite Ritual. Clocking in at just over an hour, this was a beast of a performance and highlight of the night by far.

Rating: 10/10

CORPSESSED

As mentioned, Finnish death metal stood a breed apart when it first kicked off in the early 90s. Decades later, it got a second wind when newer acts looked deep into the past to expand on the old school death metal trend that had been kicking around a few years. This is where CORPSESSED come in, handily also from Finland. Their doom-drenched death metal is a change of pace from the frenetic headliners. Despite their competence, their music doesn’t proffer anything that seasoned old school death metallers haven’t heard many times before. They maintain solid energy, but it’s creeping very late into the night (technically, Sunday morning) with alcoholic conquering bloodstreams, leading to the large gathering shedding members as the set progresses. It’s lacking that throat-grasping factor but really, it’s just incredibly challenging to clean up a BLASPHEMY set.

Rating: 6/10

 Sunday – May 10th

ATONEMENT

Local squad ATONEMENT blast away the cobwebs and kick off day two at Winds of Agony with a high-energy display of black/thrash metal. They began life in 2010 but only released their debut full-length Tiranos del Paramo last year. Rebellious and unaccountable, this punk-strewn metal is the ideal accompaniment to any alcohol binge. Skilfully, the Spaniards draw influences from classic 80s American thrash and crossover. With dirty riffs and bludgeoning percussion, their style resembles the likes of CHILDREN OF TECHNOLOGY and, similarly, their anthems are well-suited for post-apocalyptic sojourns. Being locals, there is a loyal collective of fans headbanging and singing along to the odd line. Their stage presence is lively and fun, well-suited to the live venue. Their set remains engaging as it goes on, and it’s highly likely they’ve converted some new fans.

Rating: 7/10

BARBARIAN SWORDS

Another local band on the bill is BARBARIAN SWORDS. Ordinarily, they’re a death/doom group. However, today they’re performing a special set around their 2023 release Anti-Dogma Megaforce, an album that waves the banner for a more scathing, faster death metal with lashings of black metal tendencies. They waste scant time exploding on stage and unfurling their belligerent tunes. Boisterous and unforgiving, the four-piece takes no prisoners with their exploration of extreme metal. Again, the local metallers are out in force to show their valued support. With such infectious energy manifesting on stage and in the pit, it’s a real shock that BARBARIAN SWORDS aren’t more well-known outside of their homelands.

Rating: 9/10

DARVAZA

Now it’s time for something more traditional and darker. Two-piece Italian/Norwegian black metallers DARVAZA are fleshed out with a live band and take great pride in releasing their live ceremony to Granollers. Formed just ten years ago, they’ve cultivated quite a name for themselves before eventually releasing their debut full-length Ascending into Perdition in 2022. Perhaps being part of the Nidrosian black metal circle gave them an advantage. Their black metal is ritualistic, pensive and fairly raw. While they keep the older spirit alive, their music sounds somewhat dated to the 2010s when this kind of black metal reached a new audience and became popularised. The music feels a bit too formulaic to watch a full set of, although frontman Wraath maintains a vigorous stage presence.

Rating: 6/10

AURA NOIR

While the metal world praises 90s Norway for bestowing the likes of BURZUM, MAYHEM, DARKTHRONE, EMPEROR etc. on the planet, AURA NOIR are rarely mentioned in the same breath, despite forming in the 1993 and being one of the finest paradigms of early black thrash metal, a subgenre that swelled particularly enormously from the 2010s onwards. The self-proclaimed ugliest band in the world threw in the towel prematurely in 2020. Fortunately, it was more like a hiatus as they thankfully reactivated in 2022. Tonight, they don’t bother warming the crowd up as they launch straight into one of their best tracks first, Black Thrash Attack. The barbed dual guitar-work of Aggressor (a man who has selflessly contributed endless creativity to the metal world) and Blasphemer is an unmatched pairing in black thrash. Riffs are devilish, carnal, threatening and torturous, peppered with tasty thrashy solos. Bassist and vocalist Apollyon is an entertaining frontman, calling the crowd ugly (which honestly may be a compliment). A phenomenal set including Trenches, Conqueror and Belligerent ’til Death spans their career and keeps the attendees enthralled throughout. Closing song is Condor, another high-octane selection, which Apollyon humorously introduces as “The bird song”. AURA NOIR are fantastically consistent live, always delivering a flawless performance.

Rating: 10/10

BEHERIT

The masters of Finnish black metal need no introduction. Last year, BEHERIT played their first live show in excess of thirty years (although they had played a handful of secret electronic shows in Finland and Estonia before under the moniker H418OV21.C). They’ve made a flurry of keenly anticipated performances across the globe, and tonight, they’re in Spain for the first time. Needless to say, it’s evident from the population density of Sala Nau B1 that almost everyone wants to eyeball them. And for good reason. Mainman Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance has stated that this year’s shows are likely the last to feature the exclusive classic black metal material that everyone wants to witness. So far on this recent slew of performances, the setlist has constantly changed as Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance has stated many times that he doesn’t want to repeat Beherit shows live. Unfortunately for our more visual readers, BEHERIT barred professional photographers from taking photos.

Immediately, the fans understand that they’re in for a take-no-prisoners show as BEHERIT strike first with Black Arts from 1993’s inspirational Drawing Down the Moon. The Finns’ black metal sounds as chilling live as when you first heard it as a teenager; it remains atmospheric, cosmic, eerie, trance-inducing and otherworldly. The stage is appropriately cloaked in dry ice and the lighting silhouettes the line-up. The whispered vocals have been modulated with electronic assistance to work louder and better in the live environment. Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance dons a tattered top, pitch black shades and walks around with a free microphone and some kind of stick the length of a drumstick, and also handles the programming for the show.

Unlike other BEHERIT setlists, the show solely represents elder material from no later than 1993. Of course, a hefty serving of Drawing Down the Moon material is present. The likes of Nocturnal Evil, Sadomatic Rites, and Saloman’s Gate are phenomenal to witness and effortlessly slam sweaty bodies into each other in the pit. Occasionally, guitarist Black Moon Necromancer of Hades takes over lead vocal duties while Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance takes a leave of absence. The night reaches fever pitch as the audience explodes for the band’s most popular song Gates of Nanna, and this is pursued by Lord of Shadows and Goldenwood, closing out the night. Wordlessly, the headliners leave the stage, proving that in a world of insincerity and attention-seeking, sometimes the classics are the best.

Rating: 10/10

Check out our photo gallery of all the action at Winds of Agony 2025 from Duncan McCall here: 

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