Fagerlund's reviews

Wednesday

Diphteria

So the festival started in the afternoon with something from it's roots. It used to be a Grindcore festival for local bands, so here we are kicking off with a Czech Grindcore band! They actually had a pretty nice groove going on which I find is a bit unusual in Grindcore. I quite enjoyed them!

Obliterate

And after that we continued with more Grindcore, this time from Slovakia. These guys were more standard Grind though, and thus not as interesting to me. It was allright but not very memorable to me.

Tortharry

Death Metal from Czech came after that! And this was the best band I hadn't heard of before for this day I think! It felt to me like a Czech version of Dying Fetus kind of, but perhaps a bit more melodic. They also used the Imperial March for an intro to one song which was basically a Death Metal version of the Cantina-song. That was cool.

Mallephyr

And after that I went to the tent stage for the first time this festival, to see this Black Metal band from Czech as well. They had a really cool atmosphere going on and I think it's something I'll have to check out a bit closer at some point as I find this kind of Black isn't at it's best live really.

Mortifilia

Back to one of the mainstages, and another Czech Death Metal band. This of the Brutal kind, and again kind of generic. Can't say I remember much from this band actually...

Melechesh

So, time for the first band that I had actually heard of (and seen) before the festival! So I knew these guys are good live and I really like their style. However, it feels like they work a lot better in a smaller venue where they can create a much better atmosphere. The music was still good however, and a nice show!

Nuclear Assault

Then some US-Thrash in the same vein as Annihilator I guess. I never liked this style of Thrash much, and the vocals for this band was really not to my taste at all. So I left pretty early to go to the tent-stage instead.

Ad Nauseam

At the tent stage we had some Italian band labelled as "Avantgarde Death Metal". Now this is an interesting genre that I've never seen before... I'm not sure where the Avantgarde-part comes in though, it sounded more like Death Metal to me. Anyhow, it was pretty nice!

Triptykon

So this band was one I was really looking forward to seeing on this festival! I've not managed to see them before and lately I've been listening a lot to them. And it was pretty much exactly what I expected them to be. Really heavy and grim, massive soundscape. And Tom G is a pretty good frontman as well, keeping it interesting all through the show. Really nice!

Katatonia

So, Katatonia are always nice. Have seen them many times before but they pretty much always deliver a solid show. They were clashing with another band on the tent stage though, so I only watched the beginning and the end of Katatonia. But that meant I got to see some of the best songs as well so that's okay! A solid show, and a nice change of music from the rest of the festival I suppose!

Mortally Infected

So in the middle of Katatonia I went to see this Slovakian Death Metal band, it was some pretty good Brutal Death doing the typical steamroller thing where it just crushed everything in their path. Pretty good stuff.

Soulfly

So last time I watched Soulfly I was really not impressed at all. Max is just a shell of himself, his vocals are lacking the power they used to have... but this time it was actually quite allright. The vocals were still weak compared to what he used to be, but it was much better than last time. They had some pretty good stuff going on, but also some not so good... some of the new songs are just... I don't know. Cheesy? Really doesn't fit their style I think. It was funny to see Melechech's singer do a guest appearance though. But all in all it was an allright show.

Thursday

Acid Force

Slovakian Thrash Metal kicked off this day, and I can't remember much more than it was of the more agressive type. Apparently nothing that really grabbed my attention here...

Gutslit

And here's a rarity! Brutal Death Metal from India! These guys had quite a lot of energy on stage and you could tell they were quite excited to be here. That's always fun to see as it makes them perform better. Nice show!

Ramming Speed

More US Thrash, and again not really my cup of tea. This was a bit more aggressive style though, but not really having quite that punch I like in Thrash. 

Nervosa

These Brazilian girls did play Thrash with a punch though! It had a lot in common with Holy Moses and other German Thrash bands, which is my favourite kind of Thrash. So this show I really did enjoy! I would think they need some more variety though, because towards the end of the set it felt like I'd all ready heard all of it a couple of times. 

Squash Bowels

Goregrind from Poland came up next, and I basically only watched them while waiting for the next band so didn't pay too much attention to be honest. Again, not really my style.

Be'lakor

Here we have some Melodic Death all the way from Australia though! I discovered these guys last year and was really pleased to see them added to the lineup as I didn't think I'd get a chance to see them! They delivered a nice show however, all though the sound wasn't that great for their show for some reason. Don't know what they did since it was perfectly fine on the band playing the stage before them... but ohwell. Nice show, good stuff!

Vildhjarta

After a bit of a break I went to see this Swedish Djent-band. Djent is a genre I'm not that big on, but decided to give them a chance anyway. They spoke Swedish to the crowd, asking them if they were horny. That's cute I guess. But the vocal style really doesn't appeal to me at all, so this wasn't a good show for me.

The Tower

After that it was time for the first band on the tent stage for the day, and this was The Tower a Czech Epic Doom Metal band. They reminded me quite a bit of bands like Manilla Road and Cirith Ungol. The vocals didn't have the same kind of charm though. I was also pretty tired at this point so it was a bit too slow for my taste. They had a couple of faster songs that sounded better to me, but overall not really a fan.

Arcturus

So after a bit of a break I went to see Arcturus. I was very curious to see this Norwegian Avantgarde band... as their music is really intense and out there I wanted to see what this was like live. And it was pretty interesting! All those melodies at the same time, very chaotic. ICS Vortex really has a special kind of vocals going on. I did feel it was a bit weird seeing them in daylight though, I imagine it would have been a lot better in a closer venue.

Excrementory Grindfuckers

So I had to see what this band was all about. German Funny Grindcore I guess. They actually started ten minutes early... which was good. It meant I could leave earlier, hah! I don't mind joke bands - if they're actually good. But this was just random sampling and bursts of double kick drums. Nah.

Asphyx

But that's good, because it meant I didn't miss anything from Asphyx! Asphyx are always a must see for me, as van Drunen is one of my absolute favourite vocalists. And in Asphyx you get the whole spectrum of Death Metal. From the fast to the slow. And it was excellent as usual. I think it might be time for a new album or some changes in the setlist however! 

Enslaved

Enslaved are soo good live! Unfortunately they were clashing with Hour of Penance and I've not seen them before, so I only watched a couple of songs from Enslaved. But what I saw was excellent as usual. They have this great energy going on at all times, and the music just sucks you in. It's easy to forget that their songs are really long! 

Hour Of Penance

So off to the tent stage and catch the second half of this Italian Death Metal band. This is one of those bands who don't know the meaning of "slow". They blast ahead like there's no tomorrow making it a really intense show and just a wall of sound coming at you. Good stuff!

Bloodbath

Well, I really did not like the new album. But Bloodbath didn't really clash with anything so... and it was as bad as I feared. I mean, my main gripe with Nick Holmes is that he's nowhere near Åkerfeldt or Tägtgren in power. He's not bad, but he's just nowhere near his predecessors. So the old songs sound like shit. And what's even worse, the new songs also sounds like shit. They just had no presence on stage whatsoever. To make matters even worse they also had a lot of technical issues delaying the show quite a bit. But that was almost a relief... I'm glad I managed to see them before Åkerfeldt left that's for sure! Ohwell, I didn't watch until the end and actually went for a nap instead so...

Cannibal Corpse

So after waking up again I went and saw the second half of Cannibal Corpse. Again, that's one of those bands I never really got into. It's too much same same for my taste, and has no groove. Allright to wake up to I suppose!

Agalloch

Ah, Agalloch! One of the main reasons for me to go to this festival! This band never really plays in Sweden as far as I know, so it was really cool to get a chance to see them! The sound was a bit so so at some points however which took away some of the goodness (especially the sampled keyboards were pretty loud). But other than that it was a really nice show. So good music!

Sarke

So after a bit of a rest again it was time for some Norwegian Black Metal! And I guess you could say it's more that really oldschool style of Black Metal, in the vein of Venom and bands like that rather than the "traditional" Black Metal. And it's always nice to see some variety, and this style is more dynamic I think! It was a cool show!

Sunn O)))

So... I've heard this name so many times, and I know they play different music... but I've actually not heard them before. And this was... strange. First they were late. Then they started playing some notes... for like 2 minutes. Then another break of 10 minutes of silence. Just blowing out smoke on stage. I don't know what that was about. Maybe it was a song? I have no idea. And then they started playing. All though I'm not sure it's fair to call it "playing". It was just... weird. I guess you have to be high to understand this thing. But I don't do drugs, so this was completely no comprehension to me...

Svartidauði

So after that I had to cleanse my ears for a bit - and luckily it was time for some Icelandic Black Metal! I've heard this band before and was really happy to see them play this festival. They put on a really solid show, but I only watched half because I was so tired at this point...

Friday

Endless

So this band was labelled as "Progressive Metal"... but it sounded like Metalcore to me. Didn't like at all.

Antropomorphia

Some Dutch Death Metal came up after that, and it was pretty generic. Nothing too memorable really, but it was all right. 

Demonic Resurrection

And then another Indian band! These guys I had actually heard before, so this was interesting to see what they would do live. Apparently it was their second time at Brutal Assault as well, so I guess they were the more experienced band of the Indians. Their style is a Blackened Death however, which is pretty cool. But again, this is one of those bands that I think would do better in a smaller venue... because they loose so much from playing in the sun. Still a pretty good show!

Blood Eagle

Danish Oldschool Death Metal! This was actually one of my favourite bands of the festival. They play some raw style of Death with a lot of power in it. And they delivered it with a lot of energy as well, despite the crazy heat. I really like this style of heavy Death Metal because it this nice groove in it which makes it really headbanging friendly (but it was too hot for that...). Really nice show!

Decapitated

So since this was the Metalcore day apparently I had a quite long break this day and came back to see Decapitated. To my surprise the crowd was HUGE at this point. I guess I shouldn't be surprised since it's so close to Poland so a lot of Polish people were there. But still! And they delivered a fast and furious gig, as expected. I have no idea how they managed to keep that pace up in this heat. Very impressive.

Sebkha-Chott

And after that I saw this French Avantgarde band. It was very... strange. First, kudos to them for wearing those masks. There was actually another member as well, but I didn't see him at first because he was lying down on the stage at this point... then he got up and did all the important stuff in the band. Like playing a trumpet backwards and waving a huge stick around. And the music itself was quite interesting as well, some kind of Jazz/Fusion mixed with Grindcore. Pretty cool!

Winterfylleth

I really like this English Folk/Black-band, they have a pretty special sound I think that's really their own. But since it wasn't that long ago since I saw them last time I left pretty early to catch the bands on the mainstage.

Brujeria

So I managed to catch the end of Brujeria, the funny Mexican Grindcore suite with Shane from Napalm Death among others. I still think it's funny that they only speak in Spanish... this wasn't very well received at this festival I think. People were just not very responsive at all. But they did their thing and played on anyway.

Kataklysm

It was quite some time since I last saw Kataklysm so this was a pretty nice show for me as well. They're a really solid band. However I think the singer was being a bit silly, complaining that the crowd didn't move enough and claiming that the band hadn't slept for two days so they had a reason to be off... I guess he forgot that this was the third day of the festival so most of the crowd had probably been up for one day longer than the band so... Ohwell, despite that it was an all right show.

Lantlôs

Back to the tent stage where this German Shoegaze/Postrock band played. I felt quite quickly that this was not a good live band. I can imagine that this band is nice to have in the background while doing something else. But when it was only them, and not much happening on the stage... it got a bit dull I think. I was really not in the mood for this.

Primordial

Then we have another one of these bands that don't really suite playing in daylight on a big festival stage. You could really see the poor Irishmen suffer in the heat as well. Not that it really affected their performance much, but they use their dark robes and pale make-up to create this ghastly image... and when it's full sunlight and sweat the image kind of crumbles. The performance was superb though, I really like their catchy style, it's really good at brining in the crowd as well.

Napalm Death

Poor Shane had to do two sets in one day during this heat, I don't envy him! He and the rest of the band did a good job of keeping the intensive Grindcore up though, and it seemed that for as long as I watched it was a good show. 

God Dethroned

Back to the tentstage once again to some oldschool Dutch Death Metal. I was really excited to see these guys since they split up just a few years ago. So nice to see them back in action! The sound was pretty crap though, and it sounded really muddy from where I stood. But other than that they played pretty much every song I wanted to hear so that was cool.

Candlemass

So, since one of the headliners had to cancel just a few days before the festival Candlemass were moved from the tent stage to the mainstage. That was nice to see! I really like Candlemass since Mats Levén joined them on vocals. He really managed to raise the bar, and he really suits the band I think. And for this show we also had Jörgen Sandström handling the bass guitar which is always nice to see. A funny thing I noticed was that Jörgen would often come up front, being used to being the frontman himself and almost competing with Mats for the spotlight from time to time. But then again, it's not a bad idea to have two people taking on that role anyway. Really nice set as usual!

Svartidauði

So... because of the cancellation Candlemass' tent stage spot was vacant... and it seems Svartidauði stepped in to play a second set on the festival! I think this was a great choice, really great for the band to have a spot with some more exposure, and their style of Black Metal is kind of doomy so it felt like a good replacement as well. So for me, I'm happy to have seen them twice in two days!

Sepultura

So I got back to the mainstage in time to see the second half of Sepultura. They're celebrating 30 years as a band this year, which meant a LOT of old songs. Which is perfect to be honest. I haven't really listened to new Sepultura, but the old songs are so good live, with all that energy. Derrick is an awesome frontman and he really does justice to the old songs. Really good show!

Third time I'm seeing them... and seeing that backdrop still gives me goosebumps. With this lineup I knew it was going to be good since I saw them earlier this year in Stockholm. That was one of the best shows I've ever seen. With Gene Hoglan on the drums and Steve DiGiorgio on the bass you have a damn solid rythm section. And special creds has to go to Max Phelps who does the nigh impossible job of tackling Chucks part. But he does it so well! He sounds like Chuck, he plays like Chuck and he almost looks like Chuck too... I think he's doing an excellent job in that department! So no guests on this show unfortunately, I guess because it was a bit of a shorter set and not worth it to fly the others in. But that's okay, because they still made a really solid set. This was probably the highlight of the festival for me actually.

Toxic Holocaust

More US Thrash! All thought I like this band a bit more than I liked the earlier bands in the same style, it's still not really my thing. I watched this one sitting down from a distance. They seemed to do a pretty good job of delivering their intense music. Allright set in the end.

Dødheimsgard

And the last band of the night was this Norwegian Avantgarde band. I've been listening to these guys on and off for a couple of years but never had the chance to see them live. So I was curious about this one, as they're quite chaotic. And that's a good description of the show as well I suppose. Especially the singer was entertaining to watch as he was dancing around on stage. Not sure what he was doing, but it looked pretty funny. It was a pretty good show to end the night with I think!

Saturday

Rectal Smegma

With a name like that I think there's no doubt what genre they were playing. Grindcore, Grindcore all day. One of those wall of sound bands pretty much. Wasn't really my thing.

Blood Red Throne

So I've heard a lot about this Norwegian Death Metal band, but never listened to them so was curious to see them. It started out great since only the monitors were on, so you heard nothing but drums. But even after the sound issues were fixed they didn't really have much to come with if you ask me, I even fell asleep sitting down while they played so...

Psycroptic

I woke up in time to see this Australian Death Metal band on the other mainstage though! These guys manage to add in some melodies to their brutal style, and I quite enjoy it! They also had some half bad sound unfortunately, but I still really enjoyed their set!

All Out War

So I watched half of this set while taking a rest, and I can just conclude that Hardcore really isn't my style.

Procession

Trouble unfortunately had to cancel pretty late, but were replaced by this Doom band from Chile/Sweden. Great trade if you ask me! I think Procession are awesome, so great to get a chance to see them live as well! This is one of those bands that play Doom Metal that is a bit closer to traditional Heavy Metal I guess, which just gives some good energy on stage. It always impress me when a trio manages to create so much sound like this as well, really nice show.

Skálmöld

Icelandic Viking Metal, and I'm not sure what to think about this band. They seem to not really have a specific focus, they're a bit here and a bit there... They had some nice melodies going on, but for the most part they just felt generic. Wasn't too impressed, they were lacking that little extra that I think a Viking band needs these days.

Outre

So there was another schedule change here, Outre were supposed to play as last band but they switched places with Ne Obliviscaris (some travel issues I think). This resulted in Outre having a really small crowd... which was unfortunate. Also, again... Black Metal in daylight is always a bit off... but still they sounded nice, and they delivered a pretty good show still. The style kind of made me think of a mix between Behemoth and Watain. Pretty cool stuff.

Carach Angren

Long time since I saw these guys so had to go check them out again! I remembered them as pretty decent... but this was actually terrible. So bland, so boring. The vocals really ruined it for me this time around. Me (and like half the crowd) left after the third song so I guess I wasn't alone in being disappointed...

Cryptopsy

Off to the mainstage instead to see Cryptopsy! And well, I really enjoy old Cryptopsy with Lord Worm on vocals... so new Cryptopsy is a bit meh. I mean, it's not bad but now it sounds so generic. It's still fast as hell though, as Flo is crazy behind the drums. It was allright.

Demilich

I heard these guys were really good, so went to check out some Finish Death Metal. It was way too slow for my taste though, so they couldn't really keep my attention for too long. It was all right, but I think I need to be in a different mood to watch something like this live. I'll probably give them a new chance at a different time.

The Haunted

So instead I went back to the mainstage and watched The Haunted. Now, I've been listening to their latest album quite a lot lately. I really like it. So it's always nice to see them live these days, because I think Aro has brought a lot of energy and passion back in the band, and he's a really good frontman as well. Just watching him stand on the fence leaning over the crowd firing them on shows how good he is at this thing. Also great choice of songs I think!

Phurpa

So... on the last day of the festival a fourth stage suddenly appeared. And it had Buddhist monks on it doing throat singing. Which was certainly special. I have no idea what they were doing at a Metal festival, but it was pretty cool.

Dead Congregation

Greek Death Metal! A lot of good bands has popped up from Greece lately I think, and this is one of them. Really solid Death Metal, they know what they're doing. Good show.

Cradle Of Filth

At this point there was so much people in front of the mainstages so it took me like three songs to move across it... so I kind of saw them against my will. What I was was really bad though... I must say though that these days I don't think I know anyone who still likes them... a lot of people used to like them... and still there was this many people watching them. Pretty odd I think.

Lvcifyre

This English Death Metal band released one of my favourite albums last year, so when they were a late addition to the lineup I was happy to see that! On album they have a pretty atmospheric sound... this didn't really come through live though. I don't know if they simply chose the brutal songs or what it was, but it sounded more generic live than it does on CD unfortunately. I still enjoyed it though!

At The Gates

So I skipped the first half of At the Gates to see Lvcifyre since I've seen AtG so many times at this point, but I still made it back to the mainstage in time to see the second half. If I was surprised by the amount of people on Cradle then I was kind of shocked by the lack of people on At the Gates! So weird! I did see the most beautiful headbanging conga-line though, which just kept growing longer and longer for each song they played. That's what this band does to people. At the Gates fuckin' Love Death Metal, and that's just the way it is.

Einherjer

This was a cool band in the line-up I think! I was actually surprised they were still active, as I haven't heard them since their two first albums and I saw Battered (the new band with basically the same members) some years ago. I guess they reunited! Really cool to see these Norwegian vikings live as well, as I think Frode has one of the coolest voices around for this style. I was actually planning to see Cult of Fire here, but it was impossible to get to that stage because it was overcrowded so I ended up seeing all of Einherjer instead. But that's not too bad, as they did a really good show!

Vader

After that it was time for the Polish Death Metal Machine! Vader is just one of those bands that are never bad. But as I knew they were playing on the afterparty the day after (see later) I just watched the first five songs. And they started with Wings - my favourite Vader song. And continued with the best songs of the new album. So that was cool!

Anaal Nathrakh

Instead I went to see Anaal Nathrakh again. This is one of those bands that doesn't seem to be able to perform live. It's just always a bit off. Which is unfortunate because they make some really cool music. But as it was I only watched three songs from up front, then I went back and sat down and watched the rest from a distance. All in all it was all right I guess!

Ne Obliviscaris

And then finally the last band of the festival. At this point I was really tired and my feet were hurting like hell so I was actually debating whether to stay or not... but then they started soundcheck and the guitar player played Death's Spirit Crusher. That convinced me to stay. And I certainly don't regret it! This Australian Progressive band were really damn good! I'm only sad they didn't play earlier while I had more energy, because at this point it was difficult to properly enjoy them. But this was a really good show, for sure top3 of the festival for me and I'll have to check them out further soon. Great ending of the festival!

Afterparty - Sunday

So, the day after the festival there was an official afterparty in Prague at a pretty cool venue that was half outside and half inside, with one stage on each place. Five bands were playing, but I was a bit late so missed some of them.

Hemdale

I'm pretty sure the first band I saw was Hemdale, but as they had no backdrop and I arrived in the middle of the set I don't really know... they played some short and sweet Grindcore anyhow with some terrible jokes and puns in between the songs. Not bad.

Vader

And then due to sound restrictions Vader played the outside stage really early. I've never seen such a small open air stage I think, the place held maybe 150 people or so, and that made it basically full. So we got this strange mix of a really intimate show while still being open air. It was awesome. And then of course Vader dropped the bomb. "So we played the normal hits set at the festival yesterday, but today we play the special set for you guys, right?". They played almost only old songs from the 80:ies and early 90:ies. Some songs they've never played outside of Poland before. As well as Wings, and three songs of the latest album. Pure awesomeness. This happened to be on my birthday as well, so I felt truly lucky on this one! I mean, for me Vader are good enough to see two days in a row under normal circumstances... but then they spiced it up like this as well. Really cool!

Ad Nauseam

And then finally it was Ad Nauseam who also played on the festival on the first day. Much like on the festival they did a solid set, and they have some cool rythms going on in their music. But after a while the police actually showed up, again because of sound restrictions I think, or maybe some neighbour had complained or something, I don't know. It was too bad anyway!

And that concludes my Brutal Assault experience! All in all I must say this was a really cool festival. Some things here and there were really weird, some things could be improved (only one water place in the whole festival area when it's 35+ degrees every day?!) but overall I had a really good impression. The food for example was great. Rarely have I seen so many options at a festival for very good prices! The lineup was insane. As you can see I managed to see a lot of bands, but I still missed a couple that I would have liked to see. I was simply too exhausted to go see them all. That's how great the lineup was. I think that the place this festival is in makes it really special as well, just being inside that fortress creates a special atmosphere. I'd recommend anyone to go really!