ArcTanGent reveal first 28 bands

November 6, 2019 James Weaver

The first 28 bands for next year’s ArcTanGent have been announced!

Leading the charge in today’s announcement is the first headliner for next year’s festival; Swedish progressive metal titans OPETH! Joining OPETH include UK prog giants TESSERACT (as a 2020 UK festival exclusive), American post rock legends THIS WILL DESTROY YOU, EMPEROR vocalist Ihsahn, post-metal Belgians AMENRA (as a 2020 UK exclusive show) and British undefinable five piece ROLO TOMASSI, who will be playing two full album sets across the weekend, performing both Grievances and Time Will Die And Love Will Bury It.

Also announced in today’s announcement is EARTHTONE9, GIRAFFES? GIRAFFES!, FRONTIERER, GOST (who headline Friday’s PX3 Stage), RAKETKANON, Quail vs Kenny (this is a special ArcTanGent commissioned set featuring a collaboration between Jo Quail and Howard James Kenny), SCALPING, OHHMS (performing two sets over the weekend, one of which will be a specially commissioned film called SUBJECTS), PERTURBATOR, SVALBARD, ALPHA MALE TEA PARTY, STAKE, CURSE THESE METAL HANDS, BOSS KELOID, BODY HOUND, VASA, LUO, BRIQUEVILLE, FES, TANKENGINE, THE K. and MOUNTAIN CALLER.

Festival organiser James Scarlett explains a bit about this first announcement and the importance of the first headliner for him and ArcTanGent, “OPETH’s Ghost Reveries is one of two albums (the other being THE MARS VOLTA’s Frances the Mute) that I always credit with setting me on the leftfield musical path that has led to the line ups I book every year at ATG. In 2005 I’d never heard anything like it and from there onwards my musical tastes just took off and led me to all my favourite bands. Essentially what I’m saying is that OPETH was part of the original ArcTanGent DNA and so I couldn’t be happier to announce that they’re joining us at Fernhill Farm for a Friday Main Stage headline set! I also just realised it will be almost exactly 15 years since Ghost Reveries was released – amazing!”

OPETH singer/guitarist Mikael Åkerfeldt adds, “we’re excited to play the ArcTanGent festival in Bristol on the 21st of August 2020. Been to Bristol a few times and it’s always a pleasure. It’ll be one of the last festivals we play that summer, so we wanna “go out with a bang” and need your help and participation to do so.” TESSERACT‘s James Monteith says, “it’s a huge honour to be asked back to ATG to play in 2020, probably the most forward thinking rock music festival in the UK. It’ll be our only UK festival performance of the year, so we’re planning to make it a very special occasion. We have an exciting new production and stage design in the works, and maybe.. just maybe there might be some new music too. Bring on ATG 2020!” And Ihsahn says, “my very first tour outside of Norway was in the UK, back in 1993, and since then I’ve always loved coming back. This will be my first performance at the ArcTanGent festival and also in the Bristol area and I very much look forward to play.”