FESTIVAL PREVIEW: Damnation Festival 2018
Winter has come. The nights are longer, the temperatures are plummeting and festival season is longingly missed. Luckily, Damnation Festival is here to keep spirits up and provide a day full of killer metal to satisfy our festival cravings. Since 2005, the one-day event has gone from strength to strength, providing a lineup covering the best across the spectrum of heavy music. 2018’s edition is no different and ahead of the festival kicking off this weekend, let us dissect this year’s billing so you have the lowdown on who we think you should watch at this year’s festival!
Back in 2016, the decision to provide three main stage bands performing headlining-level sets proved to work a treat and since then, it’s become a custom at Damnation. 2018’s billing features three heavyweights in extreme music, all of which certainly warrant a watch. Grindcore and extreme metal royalty NAPALM DEATH close proceedings for the day on the Jagermeister Stage following performances from multi-instrumentalist and icon IHSAHN and Swedish death metallers ENTOMBED AD.
Elsewhere, the riffs come thick and fast as there are numerous bands providing riffs of neck-snapping ferocity. In a special one-off show to celebrate their 30th anniversary, British death metallers CANCER will perform an exclusive show, Polish death metal horde VADER will further bolster their impeccable live reputation and ANAAL NATHRAKH will bring the soundtrack to the apocalypse in a rare live outing. If black metal is more of your fancy, Damnation Festival more than has you covered! Mysterious metal collective BATUSHKA grace the Tone MGMT Stage for a UK exclusive performance, SAOR will bring the sound of the Scottish highlands with their unique brand of atmospheric black metal, GHOST BATH will create an immersive atmosphere, A FOREST OF STARS hit the stage on the back of their latest release, Grave Mounds and Grave Mistakes, and blackgaze newcomers MØL will surely give a stunning performance in what will be one of the performances of the day.
Whilst this year’s Damnation Festival is packed to the brim full of quality death and black metal, there is a bountiful number of bands performing throughout the day that offer something different to the onslaught of riffs. Australian powerhouse NE OBLIVISCARIS take to the Jagermeister Stage with their violin-infused progressive death metal, fellow countrymen CALIGULA’S HORSE offer a moment of respite with their progressive rock and VOLA open the Eyesore Merch Stage on the back of their stellar new album Applause of a Distant Crowd. ROSETTA will bring post-metal bliss to Damnation, UK tech metal favourites MONUMENTS hit the festival in support of their latest opus Phronesis whilst THE OCEAN will bring their wide pallet of sounds to Damnation as they close the Eyesore Merch Stage for the day. Just a cursory look across the bill showcases the breadth of variety on offer at this year’s festival!
That, and with the sheer sonic ferocity on offer from hardcore newcomers LEECHED, the oppressively crushing nature of HUNDRED YEAR OLD MAN or the sheer riff worship on offer by watching the excellent OHHMS, whatever your poison, Damnation Festival has you covered. We’ll see you down the front.
Damnation Festival takes place at Leeds University Union on November 3rd.
For more information on the festival like their official page on Facebook.
