If you know Bergen, Norway, you’ll know that it rains… a lot! In fact, it has the reputation as the rainiest city in Europe, with an average annual rainfall of approximately 2,250 millimetres (88.6 inches). This year, so far, it seemed festival goers had been spared by Freyr (the god of summer, rain, and fertility in Norse mythology), with not a drop of rain over the first two days of the fest. Sun, and cool, comfortable weather prevailed! With such beautiful weather, our sight-seeing schedule conflicted with the first three bands of the day, which is known as the day shift (a collection of smaller, incredible bands who perform at various smaller venues throughout the city prior to the day’s bigger lineup starting). From what we heard, Bad Omen, Doombringer, and Ritual Death absolutely crushed the day shift!

Let us now dive into what was, arguably, one of the biggest days of the festival…

CULT OF FIRE (Hallen)
Having just caught this dark, esoteric, Buddhist-themed epic black metal band just a few months earlier at Germany’s Dark Easter Metal Meeting Festival, I knew what awaited the packed house. If you have never witnessed Cult Of Fire in a live setting, I can only describe it as a transcendental blackened metal experience like no other. The band literally bring to life the ethos of a Vihara (Buddhist temple), using it as the focal point of their performance.

As the band took to the stage, the intense gaze of a couple of serpent props peered through the swirling, perfumed smoke of incense that permeated the air. A pulpit filled with Buddah-esque props sat at stage center, bookeneded by two cross-legged guitarists. The serene, cult-like presentation is almost an antithesis to the auditory violence that spewed forth… are we witnessing evil incarnate or being subjected to a positive, life-affirming spirtual experience? Hard to discern, but I believe that is what makes these guys so fascinating. Everything is a mystery.

Setlist
‘MaluZrození výjimečného’, ‘Kālī mā’, ‘Untitled 1’, ‘Jai Maa!’, ‘Buddha 3’, ‘(ne)Čistý’, ‘Buddha 5’

PORTRAIT (Røkeriet)
As a last minute replacement, Swedish metallers, Portrait, were a welcomed addition to the Beyond The Gates family of bands. Hitting the smaller stage of Røkeriet to a full house, the guys put on one helluva an energetic set that consisted of black metal-tinged, classic-sounding heavy metal. By the reaction of the crowd, it seems like organizers made the right choice by adding Portait, as it was a fun set punctuated by some awesome crowd interactions by frontman Per Lengstadt. If you haven’t already, check out the band’s brand new album, The Host, released this past June on Metal Blade Records.

VENOM (Hallen)
To say these uber legends were one of the most-anticipated bands of the fest is an understatement. The excitement in the air leading up to their set was palpable. Add to that, the number of classic Venom tees be sporting was mind-blowing. Every which way you turned was another baphomet. So, as you could imagine, it didn’t take much for frontman, Cronos, and his crew to set the packed house off, and what better way to do that than with a duo of songs that literally gave birth to the sub-genre of black metal: ‘Black Metal’ and ‘Bloodlust’. This was immediately followed by a contemporary (albeit, no less old-school sounding) track, ‘Long Haired Punks’, taken from their 2015 album, From The Very Depths.

By this point, the threesome were on fire, filled with a confidence and comfort not often seen to this degree. Cronos’ playful interaction with the crowd was at once manic-driven and polite. I imagine this is how he carries himself day in and day out, no matter the situation. The whole thing just felt… genuine.

With all pistons in full gear, Venom then jumped into ‘Antechrist’ from their 2006 album, Metal Black. Everywhere I looked I could see punters screaming along with Cronos, which signalled to me that this crowd was the real deal… they came out of the woodwork to catch their favorite band in a land that would carry on the legacy and influence of Venom to an extreme degree. It all made sense. We are forty plus years since Venom unleashed their evil onto the world, and catching them tonight felt like a year hadn’t passed.

Setlist
‘Black Metal’, ‘Bloodlust’, ‘Long Haired Punks’, ‘Antechrist’, ‘Leave Me in Hell’, ‘Don’t Burn The Witch’, ‘Welcome to Hell’, ‘Buried Alive’, ‘In Nomine Satanas’, ‘Grinding Teeth’, ‘Pedal To The Metal’, ‘Countess Bathory’, ‘Warhead’

DARKSPACE (Røkeriet)
The triumvirate that is Darkspace (Wroth – guitars/vocals, Zhaaral – bass, vocals, and newest member Yhs – guitars, vocals) made their long-awaited return to Earth from the blackest depths of the cosmos to bestow on us mere mortals a visual representation of trans-inducing, interstellar black metal. What has been almost a decade since their last recorded transmission, the collective recently released their brand new album, Dark Space-II, via Season Of Mist. Unfortunately, for those in attendance looking to hear something from the new album, the band chose instead to focus on their first three albums. Now, this is certainly not a bad thing, as those albums now stand as classics in the realm of atmospheric black metal.

Through fractal electronic samples, layers of extraterrestrial drones, and vocal transmissions (like whispers from the outer reaches), the band hypnotized those willing to be hypnotized by the haunting dimension of celestial configurations being emanated forth from the more-than-capable house speakers. Add to this, the chilling hues of blue and white that enveloped the members onstage, bringing to life a quasi-cosmic horror vibe, where, at any minute, a Xenomorph or Facehugger could have spung to life, tearing through the audience, and it all would have made sense. A truly universe-pondering performance like no other of the festival.

Setlist
‘Dark 1.2’, ‘Dark 2.10’, ‘Dark 4.20’

BEHEMOTH (Hallen)
What can be said of Poland’s Behemoth that hasn’t been said a billion times before? Of course, their miltiaristic-like approach to all things related to their brand could be found in spades during tonight’s performance, with every single aspect feeling like a very well-rehearsed rendition of something they have done countless times. As could be expected, the band were tight as could be throughout their meat and potatoes performance, with no real suprises in store for the clearly eager fans of the band. They bashed out all their hits, one after another. They scaled flaming risers that ascended to the upper depths of the venue. They postured and pranced like extreme metal madmen, all of it to the delight of the sardine-packed house.

Definintely an entertaining performance, but nothing you haven’t seen these guys do time and time again. I can understand why organizers included Behemoth in the billing, as they are certain to pull bodies, but, I just can’t help think that the festival might have been better served by something a little less… predictable. That being said, this was certainly a performance for the pro photographers up in the photo pit, as the spectacle on display was sure to provide some truly stellar moments captured for all eternity.

Setlist
‘Once Upon A Pale Horse’, ‘Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer’, ‘Conquer All’, ‘Ov Fire And The Void’, ‘Cursed Angel Of Doom’, ‘Christians To The Lions’, ‘Demigod’, ‘The Deathless Sun’, ‘Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel’, ‘Bartzabel’, ‘No Sympathy For Fools’, ‘Chant For Eschaton 2000’, ‘O Father O Satan O Sun!’

DEATH SS (Røkeriet)
1977. Nearly fifty years. That is how long this Italian powerhouse of heavy/doom metal (early); industrial metal (mid); heavy metal (later) has been kicking. Tonight, we got a bit of everything from Death SS, including, yes, some naked people. This makes total sense, as the band are quite provocative, both musically and visually, and are certainly not shy putting themselves out there. What I loved about their performance was that it reminded me of a band of misfits and carnies coming to town with the circus and dropping jaws with their outrageous and, to some, slightly offensive exhibition.

It was surprising to me how well Death SS fit in with the rest of the billing of the day, and the festival as a whole. At first, I wasn’t sold when organizers made the announcement of their appearance at BTG 2024. In fact, they were just as compelling and enjoyable as any of the bands of the weekend, perhaps even more so, in some cases.

As far as material, well, there is a whole slew of songs to cherry pick through, as the band have ten full-lengths and a bunch of EPs in their extensive catalog. Tonight, they put together a set that included songs that went all the way back to their 1982 demo with the song ‘Cursed Mama’. From here, they swaggered their way through tracks from their 1988 debut full-length, … In Death Of Steve Silvester (with the track ‘Terror’), all the way up to their latest album, 2021’s X (with the song ‘Zora’). In the end, there was a little something for everyone, whether old or young. An awesome performance that definitely has to be checked out to be believed!

Setlist
‘Peace Of Mind’, ‘Cursed Mama’, ‘Horrible Eyes’, ‘Where Have You Gone?’, ‘Baphomet’, ‘Zora’, ‘Baron Samedi’, ‘Terror’, ‘Scarlet Woman’, ‘Vampire’, ‘Heavy Demons’

Check out our coverage of Day One of Beyond The Gates HERE, and stay tuned for Day 3 coming soon!