Fortress Festival returns to Scarborough with another specially curated line-up representing the finest in extreme metal from across the globe.

All live pictures courtesy of Andy Pountney (Instragram), Fortress House Photographer, in collaboration with Reaper Agency (Instagram) and 3nation (Instagram).

FORTRESS FESTIVAL

Whilst still in its infancy, compared to some other festivals, Fortress Festival is truly becoming just that; a fortress. Each passing year, the festival is growing and the calibre of acts are not waning in the slightest. Interest from around the globe shows that Reaper Agency are on the right path in what they are doing.

Old Man’s Child were announced as headliners at the 2025 iteration of Fortress, and they head up the bill with the worldwide live debut from Gallowbraid. Exclusives and debuts have become synonymous with Fortress and this year’s festival is no different.

GROZA

An ominous thunder darkens the main auditorium of Scarborough Spa as Groza’s logo flickers on the screen adorning the backdrop. It’s an ‘all in’ situation as the venue is already packed and a sweat box. Groza do a great job in getting the crowd going. The drumming is first class and the riffs are hard from the masked Bavarians. The blend of epic and atmospheric taped effects and the vicious sound is excellent.

Each exultant shout of ‘Fortress Festival’ from singer P.G. is greeted with arms/fists/horns raised enmasse from the crowd. When they break down to more melodic and mournful passages in their music, there is a reverence in the room. To have this much interest and focus early doors is no mean feet. As the saying goes, if you’re not closing the show, you open it. Groza nail it. A great start from a band that have endured personal tragedy amongst their ranks over the years. The release in their music is clear and the Fortress crowd clearly show their respect to the band.

BLACK CILICE

Haze and red light is the order for Black Cilice. Their lo-fi approach gives a more true, orthodox feel to the music. With a heavy dose of reverb on the microphone, they manage to get the cavernous sound that some of the legendary black metal records have. The relentlessly dense riffs pummel; when they come up for air and leave the crowd in a fit of feedback, there is an element that feels like you’re being toyed with as they pull you through the ringer.

MESARTHIM

In terms of musical dynamic, Mesarthim are a complete shift towards more atmospheric territory. Whilst Groza and Black Cilice have their own aura, Mesarthim are more cosmic and offer more colour. The use of synth is far more proscribed. In addition, the image of the singer covered with a black hole like flickering face mask is unique. Another departure is the airing of some excellent solo work on the guitar. It walks the line between black metal, prog rock and symphonic metal in the strands they braid.

When they hit Master & Energy the beat is akin to dance beat, and the synths get heavily layered again. The vocals ground the sound in the extreme with a harsh vocal style. There is a huge swathe of people lapping up every moment of this rare appearance from the Aussies. It is this kind of booking that sets Fortress Festival apart; unique, rare and brilliant.

AEON WINDS

Managing to change things up again by not wearing masks, are Aeon Winds. It’s great to see the whites of the eyes as the band blast through their set. This isn’t just any set; like Mesarthim, this is a unique booking. Performing an ‘Aeon Oddyssey’ set, this is a global exclusive as the band perform music from their EP split with Midnight Odyssey. There is some great dynamism in their music and they seek to incite the crowd successfully. Whilst the relative anonymity of the opening trio of acts is effective, it is great to see more interaction with the crowd and those that have longed to hear these songs are not left disappointed.

OSSAERT

The most extreme band of the day so far are Ossaert. There is a level of aggression that some bands can only aspire to reach. In between songs there is an unnerving hush, soundtracked by a wall of noise or a haunting intro. Vocally, Ossasert are kind of band to give you nightmares. Like Black Cilice, they manage to get that cavernous feel. With that being said, it isn’t all screams and shrieks. None of it is clean, but the level of anguish vocalist P. achieves is sublime. There are plenty of shifts in tempo amongst their songs; the drums move from furious blasts to more refined motifs. Like every turn so far, the group have a huge crowd completely enraptured with their soaring sound that plucks an array of emotions from the air.

MIDNIGHT ODYSSEY

Another Antipodean turn that is a UK exclusive are Midnight Odyssey. Hooded and made up in white, the group offer some really great vocal harmonies in amongst their sound. The Ocean Room at Fortress Festival is a strange beast. It is compact, whilst also being wide, and the roof is low. Sometimes, the sound quality can fluctuate. During Midnight Odyssey’s set, the bass is dominant with the overall sound being one of power. Hearing the bands metronome in the mix was a little off putting however.

AKERCOCKE

Ever the gentlemen, Akercocke are dressed the part, and ready to smash through Choronzon. They do not disappoint. As a group, they are consummate pros and fully engage the crowd in chanting, fist pumping and general revelry throughout. Musically, they are tight, however a couple of tracks feel swamped by the bass and drum. That being said, Kieran Allen is a real presence onstage on bass, and David Gray is one of the legendary metal drummers. Their rhythm, drive and groove is absolutely first class. Jason Mendonça is the focal point at the front of the stage, dazzling with fretboard gymnastics and a wide array of vocal styles.

The digital screens really come into their own for Akercocke’s show. They present a dizzying array of Satanic imagery with their logo motifs and upturned crucifixes. If helps intensify the suffocating and intense music they create. Prior to Son Of The Morning, Mendonça breaks away offering thanks to the crowd and the fact that they are celebrating life through music. This leads to more solemn moment in paying tribute to their former bassist, Federico Benini, who sadly died recently. As the set leads to its conclusion, the first sight of a pit breaks out with the duck for crowd surfing also broken.

TOTENWACHE

Hamburg’s Totenwache are up next in the increasingly warm Ocean Room. The band recently released their latest album Der Thron der Uralten and deliver a powerful set of churning black metal, riffs that cycle through pounding drums and often understated but decisively black metal vocals. The new album weighs in at a meaty 1h12m so it’s no surprise the band has enough to easily fill the 45 minute allocation.

DØDHEIMSGARD

Having given an insightful interview with Dayal Patterson earlier in the day in the theatre, Vicotnik and Dødheimsgard prepare to wow. The interview discussed his approach to writing music, his definitions of black metal and the influence of the early Norwegian black metal scene. It is an enthralling listen to someone that has been there, done that, and got the t-shirt.

When their stage time arrives, they play a full rendition of their latest magnum opus, 2023’s Black Medium Current. Lauded on release, the album features plenty of extreme black metal passages in the truest sense, however the album as whole is wildly progressive. Incense fills the air, and there is much tension in the room with the anticipation of what is to come. Like Akercocke, they utilise the visual aspect of the stage setup perfectly, if not better. DHG have nine people making up the live band and this makes for a grandiose show where each musician can be seen feeling every fibre of the music.

‘Theres a long road ahead…let’s commence…this is Tankespinnerens Smerte,’ says the enigmatic Vicotnik. He’s not wrong. Black Medium Current is 70 minutes long, and is a complete trip. They pay tribute to a departed colleague in Vasilis Serdentiotis from Pulsar 1081. He had performed with the band at Roadburn Festival recently. Interstellar Nexus is a huge highlight of the show. As a whole, the overall drama is absolutely superb, offering the kind of pomp that makes music and art superb. ‘Are you loving it?!’ asks Vicotnik. A resounding ‘yes’ is the answer. It is an absolutely spellbinding performance that will be talked about in the annals of Fortress folklore.

WHOREDOM RIFE

A sea of raised horns cut through the hazy blue air. Whoredom Rife are fearsome proposition. Singer, K.R., is confrontational with the front rows. He extends his mic stand over them, casting his own unholy spell over them. For the duration, Whoredom Rife deliver wall to wall true black metal in the most evil sense.

Such was the clamour for the band, their merch sold out a mite after doors opening on day one. This should help give a sense of what the crowd are like for their performance. It is unforgiving and one of those moments where you had to be there to truly witness the devastation from the Trondheim natives. If you haven’t checked Whoredom Rife out, you should. Their latest album, Den Vrede Makt, is a brilliant record.

OLD MAN’S CHILD

Taking the headliner spot on night one are Norwegian originators, Old Man’s Child.

An ominous drone fills the air of the main theatre as people file in for the final act of the day. All the lights go out save for the flicker of red LED’s on the amps. When the band hit the stage, they waste no time in setting about their task. They take the audience on a tour of their back catalogue in typically blistering fashion with most of their full length albums having representation in the setlist.

‘It’s our first time here…it’s beautiful! Castles, Viking invasions…’ says Galder, the bands mastermind, before Hominis Nocturna. Taken from the Revelation 666 album, they have fists pumping and the crowd feeding off the energy they have onstage. Old Man’s Child have no new material; their last album was released in 2009. The longevity of their catalogue is clear for all to see here.

A one-two from The Pagan Prosperity in the form of Doommaker and Soul Possessed has the crowd fully onside. They bring the symphonic element well in these tracks, again, adding a grandeur to proceedings. ‘Thank you guys so fucking much,’ says Galder, clearly enamoured with the reception Old Man’s Child receive. With Unholy Vivid Innocence and The Millenium King they round out a masterclass in symphonic extreme metal to bring down the curtain on a brilliant first day at Fortress Festival.

Black metal legends, Emperor, have been announced as headliners for the 2027 event. There are early bird tickets available now, here.

Stay tuned for our Day Two round up, as well as a larger gallery of images from a great weekend.

Fortress Festival: Website

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