DARK EASTER METAL MEETING
DAY 1

KOLDBRANN

Formed in 2001 in Drammen, Koldbrann is a cornerstone of the Norwegian black metal underground, committed to “True Norwegian Black Metal” values whilst also delivering a uniquely raw, rock-infused edge. Tonight, frontman Mannevond and his crew of miscreants tore through a selection of tracks across their discography, which included some truly vicious cuts such as ‘Ingen Skånsel’, ‘Et Uomtvistelig Falsum’, ‘I Unaturens Vold’, ‘Forstanden Seiler Sin Egen Sjø’, and, of course, ‘Koldbrann’. There couldn’t have been a more perfect band to get the thirteenth edition of Dark Easter Metal Meeting started, and the packed house was proof in the blood pudding!

SETLIST
‘Ingen Skånsel’, ‘Et Uomtvistelig Falsum’, ‘I Unaturens Vold’, ‘Forstanden Seiler Sin Egen Sjø’, ‘Koldbrann’, ‘Kaosmanifest’, ‘Moribund’, ‘Djevelens Treskeverk’, ‘Totalt Sjelelig Bankerott’, ‘Inhumanitær Inngripen’

SEVEROTH

It can’t be an easy feat bringing the complex, layered arrangements of Severoth‘s back catalogue to a live stage. As a one-man atmospheric black metal band from the Ukraine, the logistics of it all are mind-boggling and require a complete re-imaging of the process. For main man, Illia Rafalskyi, the challenge is to bring what is a solitary, layered vision into a collaborative, real-time performance. I was genuinely interested to see how this would play out. Thankfully, Rafalskyi prioritized the synth melodies to maintain the icy, frigid atmosphere that is so interwoven in his music, while the hired guitar guns condensed the multiple rhythm parts into a single, cohesive wall of sound that roared throughout Club Halle like a blizzard. The lighting in the venue matched the frigid vibe, dimly lit and washed in hues of blue and white. It was impressive to see how well the guys actually gelled. An effortless performance that transformed the emotional solitude of a one-man project into something larger than life.

SETLIST
‘Winter Sang Her Lullaby’, ‘Sunrise Will Come’, ‘And Winter In My Heart…’, ‘Far Above The Sky’

KYI

Austro-German black metallers KYI have garnered considerable attention since the release of their debut EP, Vagrant Circle, in September of last year. It was surprising to me how well they commanded the stage, given their relative noob status, not to mention that tonight was their official live debut. Following an eerie lute-led intro, theatrics were on full display, which included a naked girl being led onto the stage, where front-woman, Ynoxia, proceeded to pour a chalice of blood all over her. If this wasn’t enough, she then dripped candle wax onto the poor woman (the only thing missing was Anton Levay himself). Despite performing on the smallest of the festival’s three stages, KYI delivered a captivating set of dissonant black metal punctuated by a ritualistic, atmospheric vibe. A fine start for a band that will surely have an interesting and provocative journey in metal!

URGEHAL

True Norwegian Black Metal struck again on Day 1 of Dark Easter. This time with corpsepaint and spikes on full display. With 30+ years under their bullet-adorned belts, Urgehal are true masters of their craft and no doubt know their way around a stage. Tonight, they tore through the entirety of 2006’s, Goatcraft Torment (minus the seven-minute epic closer, ‘Et Steg Nærmere Lucifer’) as a twenty-year celebration of the album and tribute to the passing of Trondr Nefas (original vocalist). The repetitive, hypnotic, trance-inducing swagger of lead-off song ‘Goatcraft Torment’ (and every song that followed) was an exercise in pure Satanic aggression, proving that their unholy spirit is as powerful and destructive as ever.

SETLIST
‘Goatcraft Torment’, ‘Risus Sardonius’, ‘Antireligiøs’, ‘Dødsmarsj Til Helvete’, ‘Satanic Black Metal In Hell’, ‘Nefastus Nex Necis’, ‘Gathered Under The Horns’, ‘Selvmordssalme’, ‘Sentiment Of Chaos’

SAKIS TOLIS

For the second time, Dark Easter has welcomed Sakis. Three years ago, he bludgeoned Munich with the mighty Rotting Christ. This year, he graced the Euro throngs with his self-named solo project. It’s a different experience seeing Sakis solo, far more atmospheric and ritualistic compared to his main gig. Of course, the “Hellenic” vibe was on full display, with the setlist balancing both tracks from his two full-length albums, Among The Fires Of Hell and Everything Comes To An End, and a few choice cuts from Rotting Christ, (‘Tou Thanatou’, ‘Holy Mountain’). They also included a surprise cover of the Daemonia Nymphe song ‘Nocturnal Hekate’. If anything were to go awry in the RC camp, rest assured that the legacy of one Sakis Tolis will march forward, unscathed, on the battlefield of true metal.

SETLIST
‘My Salvation’, ‘We The Fallen Angels’, ‘Among The Fires Of Hell’, ‘Tou Thanatou’, ‘Seal 1 (Revelation 6:1-2): The Antichrist’, ‘Orkizome’, ‘Paranoia’, ‘Welcome To My Party’, ‘Holy Mountain’, ‘Live With Passion – Die With Honour’, ‘Nocturnal Hekate’

TODOMAL

Spanish atmospheric doomsters Todomal brought a unique and interesting spin to the festivities with a performance that leaned on the slower, melodic side of the extreme metal fence. This wasn’t a bad thing, as it definitely kept things from getting a bit too same-y. Having never heard these guys before, I was pleasantly surprised with their performance, which was a spacey blend of Candlemass and My Dying Bride dynamics with a bit of Pink Floyd and King Crimson thrown in. As such, it translated very well in a live setting, filling the smallest of the three venues with a booming, psychedelic-like ambience. Their set drew heavily from the second full-length album, A Greater Good (released back in 2023). This was undoubtedly one of the most interesting acts of the first day, and certainly made a fan of me. Check them out if you haven’t already!

VINTERLAND

If you know Vinterland, you’ll know these guys have gone to great lengths to stay out of the spotlight. Since their formation all the way back in ’92, the band essentially remained a studio-only entity. It wasn’t until their reunion (after going on hiatus for a number of years) that they came out of the shadows, playing a handful of rare shows. This year is certainly their most active, playing a string of shows to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their lone full-length album (1996’s Welcome My Last Chapter). Tonight, they gave a rare performance of this spectacular album front to back (minus the instrumental ‘So Far Beyond… (The Great Vastforest)’.

Sandwiched between Urgehal and Firespawn, the guys were in the perfect position to harness the already electric atmosphere and transfer that energy to the memory of LG Petrov that would immediately follow. It can’t be understated how timeless and influential Welcome My Last Chapter truly is. These songs feel like they were born to be performed live, and tonight they came across as even more epic than they do on wax. If you were lucky enough to be in attendance for this soon-to-be legendary performance, it’s one you will surely never forget!

SETLIST
‘Our Dawn Of Glory’, ‘I’m An Other In The Night’, ‘A Castle So Crystal Clear’, ‘As I Behold The Dying Sun’, ‘Vinterskogen’, ‘Still The Night Is Awake’, ‘A Winter Breeze’, ‘Wings Of Sorrow’

AUÐN

Iceland is a country of extremes. On the one hand, everywhere you look, you are surrounded by absolute, jaw-dropping beauty. On the other hand, that beauty is often shrouded by the extreme climate of this isolated North Atlantic island country. The same can be said as it relates to Icelandic black metal, which is mostly made up of the chaotic, dissonant sounds of the scene in Reykjavík and other locations (Svartidauði, Misþyrming, Sinmara, Wormlust, Zhrine, Carpe Noctem, Naðra, Almyrkvi, Andavald, Mannveira, Vansköpun, Nornahetta, Abominor, et al.). If you’ve ever heard these bands, you are well aware that their music is far from beautiful. So, where does the beauty exist in Icelandic black metal, and can black metal be considered beautiful? Tonight, in Munich, that beauty was exuded from venue Halle (the second largest stage of the three) by the one and only Auðn (pronounced auth-n). Dressed in their Sunday best (black suit jackets and trousers), the five-piece gave perhaps the festival’s most alluring performance.

For the most part, their set comprised songs from their most recent release, 2020’s Vökudraumsins Fangi, with a few gems from their 2014 self-titled breakout album and a couple from their 2017 sophomore effort, Farvegir Fyrndar. Now, to be clear, the aforementioned ‘beauty’ will certainly differ from individual to individual. After all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Where their peers are fantastic at creating a soundscape of dread and claustrophobia, Auðn cut through that tension like a cool mountain breeze. This was even more prevalent within the confines of Club Halle’s four walls, where their treatment of space and melody was allowed to breathe in an auditory recreation of Iceland’s vast, majestic wilderness. In the end, Auðn captured the full attention of the packed hall with a deeply melancholic, atmospheric, and beautiful performance.

FIRESPAWN

After four years of silence, Swedish death metal legends Firespawn made a triumphant return to the stage at this year’s Dark Easter. Their performance in Munich was part of a limited 2026 “Rebirth” run, which also included a high-profile appearance at the Inferno Metal Festival in Oslo, Norway. The guys occupied the “Sub-Headliner” slot on Saturday night, a placement that seemed strategically designed for fans of classic Swedish death metal (with the legendary Unleashed to immediately follow). The show was billed as a tribute to their late, great frontman L-G Petrov (Entombed, Entombed A.D., Morbid, Comecon, Nihilist). Stepping in to fill the unfillable shoes of L-G was none other than Jörgen Sandström (The Project Hate MCMXCIX, ex-Entombed, ex-Grave, ex-Torture Division). This was definitely the most talked-about performance of the weekend, and certainly lived up to the hype.

The guys ran through a set comprised of songs from their three albums — Shadow Realms, The Reprobate, and Abominate. Not one to copy/paste L-G’s historic growl, Jörgen gave a performance uniquely his own, recalling his roar and energy in Grave. To these ears, his voice gave a subtle yet noticeable layer of brutality over that of L-G. This isn’t to say that L-G wasn’t brutal in his own right, just a different kind of brutality. L-G can never be replaced, but Jörgen is perhaps the one person in existence who can do L-G justice while adding his own twist in tribute to the late, legendary frontman. As can be imagined, the diehards went absolutely apeshit through the entirety of the performance, but things got even crazier when the guys launched into the crushing quadrumvirate of ‘Imperial Burning’, ‘Lucifer Has Spoken’, ‘The Great One’, and ‘Serpent Of The Ocean’.

BLACKBRAID

Indigenous atmospheric black metallers Blackbraid are a bit of an enigma, essentially going from a one-man bedroom band to a major festival headliner in just a few short years. Truly remarkable. Performing on the main stage (Werk) immediately following veterans like Unleashed and Grave showed the festival’s confidence in the band’s staying power. Taking the stage to an incredibly vocal and welcoming packed house, the guys immediately launched into ‘Celestial Bloodlust‘ from their recently released Nocturnal Womb EP. By the end of the song, the stage was awash with thick mist and warm, amber lighting, intended to mimic a forest at dusk. Frontman, Sgah’gahsowáh, wielded his mic stand like a spear, lunging it into the air with a fury that matched the intensity of the atmospheric black metal reverberating throughout the hall. It’s no wonder that Blackbraid was one of the most anticipated bands of the festival, as their performance was a near-perfect display of both musicianship and showmanship.

SETLIST
‘Celestial Bloodlust’, ‘Wardrums At Dawn On The Day Of My Death’, ‘The Spirit Returns’, ‘The Wolf That Guides The Hunters Hand’, ‘The River Of Time Flows Through Me’, ‘The Dying Breath Of A Sacred Stag’, ‘Twilight Hymn Of Ancient Blood’, ‘As The Creek Flows Softly By’, ‘Sacandaga’, ‘Barefoot Ghost Dance On Blood Soaked Soil’

SECRETS OF THE MOON

As one of Germany’s most prominent black metal bands, Osnabrück’s Secrets Of The Moon were welcomed like hometown heroes as they took to the Halle stage. This was not surprising, as tonight was one of their first performances since their farewell tour back in October of 2022. However, last year, they announced they would play a handful of select shows to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the album Antithesis. The dark and expressive songs were brought to life with the use of mist and almost zero stage lighting, which perfectly complimented the music pouring out of the house system. It’s a bit hard to discern exactly what the setlist comprised, as I cannot find a proper setlist online. That being said, I am almost certain it was a mix of some of their later-era stuff (such as Sun and Black House) and a good handful of tracks from the aforementioned Antithesis.

UNLEASHED

As one of the “Big Four” of Swedish death metal, it was a given that this performance would be epic in every sense of the word. The kings of Viking brutality delivered a fourteen-song set that focused heavily on newer material, which included ‘To My Only Son,’ ‘Hold Your Hammers High!’, and ‘War Comes Again’ from 2025’s Fire Upon Your Lands. Fans were also treated to a smattering of tracks hand-picked from their earlier releases, which included hits such as ‘Into Glory Ride’ and ‘The Dark One’ from their 1991 debut, Where No Life Dwells. As is tradition, the guys closed their set with fan-favourite ‘Death Metal Victory’. It was unfortunate to see the crowd had dispersed somewhat, leaving the festival’s largest venue about three-quarters full for Unleashed‘s set. To be fair, the band didn’t take the stage until after midnight, so it definitely made for a long day, and we still had another full day to go tomorrow. The guys didn’t seem to mind or even notice, giving one of the best performances I’ve seen from them. A killer ending to a killer day of metal!

SETLIST
‘To Asgaard We Fly’, ‘Destruction (Of The Race Of Men)’, ‘Don’t Want To Be Born’, ‘Hammer Battalion’, ‘To My Only Son’, ‘Hold Your Hammers High!’, ‘No Sign Of Life’, ‘The Longships Are Coming’, ‘War Comes Again’, ‘The Immortals’, ‘The Dark One’, ‘Into Glory Ride’, ‘The Hunt For White Christ’, ‘Death Metal Victory’