Mad About Rock

  Fortress Festival has revealed further new names to complete the line-up for the 2025 edition of the biggest black metal event in the UK. Dödsrit will now make their UK debut in the Grand Hall at Fortress Festival after having to withdraw from the 2024 bill. Expect a wall of soul-tearing riffing and D-beat-infused vigour on the main stage next year. The 2025 edition will see the seated theatre stage transform into a candlelit atmospheric escape on the Fortress Saturday (31 May) for attendees seeking something different in their music. Darkher, a haunting trip through the mind and spirit of founding member Jayn Maiven; Osi And The Jupiter, a neo-folk project from Ohio, United States, consisting of multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Sean Kratz; and a returning Sylvaine, the solo project of Norwegian multi-instrumentalist Kathrine Shepard, all make up the bill for the new stage in 2025. The theatre stage will revert to accommodate industry speakers on the Fortress Sunday (1 June) ...

  Fortress Festival has revealed the final line-up and poster for the 2025 edition of the biggest black metal event in the UK. Closing the line-up are four additional bands: Fen, Autumn Nostalgie, Crimson Throne and Nemorous. UK atmospheric black metallers Fen will perform a UK exclusive full album performance of their 2009 debut album “The Malediction Fields”. “‘The Malediction Fields’ era was an incredible time for us”, said the band. “We were feeling our way through the genesis of the band, defining our sound and very much doing things on our own terms. It was an exciting period of discovery, experimenting with ideas, textures and ambience as we observed the post-black metal sound and ‘blackgaze’ scenes emerge around us.” Fen added: “What better place to celebrate our history and perform that album in full than at Fortress Festival? An event almost tailor-made for the atmospheric, reflective-yet-furious ambiences we were looking to create. To do so with Agalloch as headliners – ...

  Norwegian black metallers 1349 and Danish one-man project Afsky have been revealed as the next band confirmations for the 2025 edition of Fortress Festival. 1349 will headline the main stage on Saturday, 31 May 2025, following the release of their eighth studio album "The Wolf And The King” on 4 October 2024 via Season Of Mist. The band was formed in 1997 by Ravn, who recruited bassist Seidemann and now-former guitarist Tjalve to help him pursue the vision of recapturing the original spirit of black metal. The longstanding lineup of Ravn, Seidemann, guitarist Archaon and drummer Frost (also of Satyricon) has been in place since 2001 and will bring their trademark crushing black metal to Fortress Festival. Afsky will bring his melancholic and depressive Danish black metal to the Scarborough shore with the live band on the Fortress Festival main stage. The band was set up in 2015 by Ole Pedersen Luk and has three albums under his belt, with the latest “Om hundrede år” released in ...

  A UK and international debut from the Finnish band and the only show outside of Finland until at least 2026 Standard weekend tickets on sale via FortressFestival.co.uk/tickets Moonlight Sorcery has been revealed as the next exclusive act to perform at the 2025 edition of Fortress Festival. This will be an international exclusive set, a UK and international debut and the only show outside of Finland until at least 2026 from the Finnish band. The band commented: "The slumber in frost and cold is over. We are honoured to perform at Fortress Festival as our first international show and we are looking forward to sharing this moment with the audience. It is time to present our Majestic Symphonies of the Nightside!" The band’s debut album “Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle” was released in September 2023 via Avantgarde Music to critical acclaim and landed on many “best of 2023” lists. The album was mixed and mastered at Unisound by legendary producer and musician Dan Swanö. Fortre...

  Fortress Festival has revealed a further four exclusive performances set to take place during the 2025 edition. Akhlys, Grift, Selbst and Perennial Isolation join Agalloch, Ulcerate, Forteresse, RUÏM, The Great Old Ones, Spirit Possession, Perchta and Belore, for what is promising to be another extraordinary weekend for black metal fans. Akhlys, who have just released their fourth album “House of the Black Geminus” to critical acclaim, will perform a 2025 UK exclusive set at Fortress Festival. Following the release of “Despondency Chord Progressions” earlier this year, the South American project Selbst will bring its music to a UK stage for the very first time with a UK debut and exclusive set. Celebrating the 10th anniversary of its debut album “Syner”, Grift will perform the album in full with a UK exclusive set. Perennial Isolation will perform its iconic 2021 album “Portraits” in full in what will be a UK debut and exclusive performance from the Barcelona-based atmospheric bl...

  Only a few days after revealing Forteresse for its line-up, Fortress Festival now confirms four more exclusive performances set to take place during its 2025 edition. The Great Old Ones, Spirit Possession, Perchta and Belore join the festival’s already impressive line-up of Agalloch, Ulcerate, Forteresse and RUÏM. The Great Old Ones and Spirit Possession will perform UK exclusive shows, while it will be a UK debut and exclusive show for both Perchta and Belore. Fortress Festival will take place on the weekend of 31 May - 1 June 2025 at Scarborough Spa. Standard weekend tickets are on sale: https://www.fortressfestival.co.uk/tickets New Zealand unorthodox death metallers Ulcerate will perform a UK exclusive set following their recently released “Cutting the Throat of God”. RUÏM - with iconic former Mayhem guitarist and Vltimas founder, Blasphemer - will perform a UK debut and exclusive show. Agalloch will perform a 2025 European exclusive headlining show; their first in the UK sin...

  Scarborough, UK; 2.06.24: Agalloch are the first band to be announced for the 2025 edition of Fortress Festival. Taking place on the weekend of 31 May - 1 June 2025 at Scarborough Spa, Fortress Festival will be Agalloch’s first in the UK since the band’s reformation, the first in the UK since 2015 and the only European show for 2025. The first early bird tickets are on sale now and can be purchased via https://www.fortressfestival.co.uk/tickets Following a seven-year hiatus, Agalloch announced their return to live shows in 2023. Since their 1999 debut album, the band’s discography has defined what it means to combine influences from a variety of musical genres into one brooding, colossal, and cinematic sound that provides the soundtrack to existential themes concerning life, nature, loss, and death. One of the first to combine elements from black metal, neo-folk, progressive rock, post-rock, and ambient music, Agalloch have influenced countless of bands in black metal and beyond....