Among the huge number of tourists arriving at Oslo Central Station to enjoy the Easter break, you can spot one or two metalheads in their usual outfit.
Walking further into the city centre, you can find bigger groups gathering in local bars and cafés. Fans from Sweden, the UK, the USA, Argentina, Mexico, Greece, Turkey, and several other countries are getting ready for Inferno Metal Festival, some for the very first time, others coming back for their 8th or 9th edition.
This is a special year for the festival, as it marks its 25th anniversary of bringing together well-established acts of extreme metal, as well as new and upcoming bands. As a matter of fact, we could say that one of the most fun aspects of the festival is discovering new bands that have their own take on the genre.
Day 01
Not even the rain can stop the fans that are packing up Vaterland, a pizza bar that serves as one of the club venues of the festival.
Yvris, which formed last year, but have been 15 years in the making, bring their apocalyptic doom metal while reflecting on the imminent end of the world as we know it. “This is not progress,” screams Jake Leyland, as the crowd slowly headbangs. A great way to start the day.
On the same stage, Feversea, also from Norway, hypnotise the audience by combining aggressiveness (in the harsh vocals from Ada Lønne) with mellow moments. The set is a mixture of their debut album and their recently released EP Wormwood in the Veins of the World, and elicits a huge reaction from the crowd.
As we approach Rockefeller and John Dee, the main venues of the festival, the rain pours heavier and the anticipation runs higher.
1914 kick off on the main stage, bringing their Ukrainian flag and war outfits, along with a politically charged rant against Putin and imperialism, which draws a big hail from the crowd. Playing most of last year’s album Viribus Unitis, the group gives an energetic performance, always keeping the momentum on stage and already setting a high bar for the day.
Forsmán bring straightforward, brutal black metal combined with Icelandic magic. They play their upcoming debut album in full, and judging by everyone’s reaction, it will definitely be one of the most anticipated albums of the year.
Svarttjern, another trademark name in the Norwegian black metal scene, enters the stage bathed in red light. HansFyrste, as usual, puts on a hell of a performance with Hoest from Taake, who joins the stage for a one-off.
Hailing from Poland but now based in Norway, Myr are a new name on the scene who recently put out their great debut album Helvegen. It’s a blackened death metal outfit worthy of attention.
The death-metal giants from Incantation, bringing a special set based on their debut Onward to Golgotha, have the entire Rockefeller erupting in chaos.
Also hailing from the US but going in a completely different direction is Hulder, a one-woman medieval black metal project that sounds both menacing and atmospheric, with incredible growls by Marliese Beeuwsaert.
One of the most anticipated acts of the night, the legendary Tormentor take the main stage with Attila Chisar, who is doing double duty at the festival both as vocalist of the Hungarian band and, of course, Mayhem. With their classic formation, the group plays most of their debut, Anno Domini. Their thrash-infused black metal has the Rockefeller moshing like a beehive.
To wrap up the day, Cult of Luna amp up the smoke and strobe lighting for their opener Cold Burn. Few bands are able to create such an apocalyptic atmosphere to match their sound. Backed by two drum kits and amazing bass lines, it’s a set filled with long crushing songs, one for the slow headbangers amongst us.
Day 02
We start the 2nd day at local brewery Crow Bar. The tiny venue quickly gets packed before Villmark comes on stage. Their mix of folk and black metal immediately has the audience headbanging and the small stage does nothing to hold back the band; they put on a hell of a performance. Emilie’s haunting screams and dances, mixed with the violin and the astounding drums, make this gig one of the highlights of the festival.
Back at the Rockefeller main stage, Funeral blend their slow-paced doom gothic metal with Eirik Krokfjord’s amazing vocals, a fitting presentation for Good Friday. Downstairs at John Dee, Sovereign mix attitude with blazing fast thrash metal and catchy riffs. Múr, another amazing act from Iceland, convey their atmospheric sound through silhouettes and low lighting, balanced with Kári’s keyboards and harsh vocals – a truly cinematic performance.
Keeping the atmospheric mood, but making it ten times heavier, Der Weg Einer Freiheit, deliver a brutal yet serene performance, mirroring the tone of their latest acclaimed release Innern.
Changing gears a bit, The Kovenant come on stage covered in corpse-white paint and bringing their mix of symphonic black metal and industrial. Nagash, as always, makes faces and keeps things entertaining before we get into the main act of the day.
When it comes to Mayhem, expectations are always high. Coming fresh off their new album Liturgy of Death, the band do not disappoint and mix in classics from the Deathcrush EP and their debut De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas with the newest songs. As the huge screen behind them shows a bit about the bloody history of the band, Attila dazzles the crowd with his amazing theatrics and outfit changes. Judging by the huge amount of people crowdsurfing and moshing, it was a hell of a way to wrap up the second day.
Day 03
Kniven, another nice bar with a venue in its basement, is where Runn start their first notes and blastbeats of the day. The trio deliver a cavernous black metal with attitude: huge growls, dynamic drumming, and engaging riffs.
A similar scene takes place in Brewgata, where Hevn III, another trio, deliver a primordial, raw take on black metal.
As people slowly start to arrive at Rockefeller, Darvaza are already creating havoc. Their very well-produced blackened death metal grabs the audience by the neck. For those who prefer a more progressive take on black metal, Angell have got you sorted. This young talent, who recently released the solid demo Unveiled, keeps the growls and blastbeats of black metal, but adds more dynamic riffs, passages, and tempo changes. Really looking forward to a full release from Angell in the near future.
Back to more traditional black metal, Whoredom Rife keeps the momentum on the main stage with brutal riffs and non-stop pounding drums. The dynamic between the band is really good to watch, and K.R. keeps the crowd invested.
With Rockefeller packed at this point, Samael bring their mixture of industrial and black metal, taking the heaviness down a notch. In the meantime, downstairs at John Dee, Bizarrekult engage their crowd with post-metal that is both brutal and beautiful.
It’s time for some pyro magic now, as Kanonenfieber enter the stage, delivering what is probably the best performance of the festival. Wearing soldier outfits, with their faces covered, the Germans deliver a blistering set of blackened death metal that looks like watching a war scene by a theatre group, with very engaging music.
Wrapping up the evening, Enslaved writes a setlist that blends the prog, experimental side of their latest material with the heavier stuff from the past, with Havenless and Allfǫðr Oðinn being the highlights.
Day 04
Finally, we hit the last day of the festival, with Mork heating things up with their raw, experimental black metal sound along with another great pyro spectacle. Following up, more Icelandic magic with Auðn. Their chilling, long atmospheric songs, combined with great stage presence from Hjalti Sveinsson, keep the audience engaged.
The Irish from Primordial are the first to bring the folk sound back to the stage. Their distinctive mix of Celtic and black metal is as calm as it gets before the storm. With an extremely foggy stage and packed venue, Old Man’s Child, probably one of the most anticipated acts of the festival, bring in the chaos again with their symphonic take on black metal. At last, the Americans from Deicide give a masterclass on traditional death metal: few words, not much lighting, but a relentless, long set focused most on their early material. ‘Homage for Satan’ is a fitting way to wrap up Inferno Festival 2026.
These four days went by really quickly, and the overall mood of the audience and the crew was great. We can’t wait for the first announcements of Inferno Festival 2027, which will take place between 25th and 28th of March 2027.
