A selection of At The Barrier writers that frequent Fortress Festival offer a pick or two as to who we would love to see on the bill at Fortress Festival 2027.
Black metal legends, Emperor, have been announced as headliners for the 2027 event. There are early bird tickets available now, here.
Check out our reviews and galleries from Fortress Festival 2026 here.
ETHEREAL SHROUD
An exclusive, one-off set of Ethereal Shroud’s incredible 2021 album Trisagion may be highly unlikely at this stage, but if Gallowbraid’s worldwide debut live performance this year is anything to go by, the Fortress organisers could pull it off if anyone can.
Widely regarded as a modern classic of atmospheric black metal, UK musician Joseph Hawker and co. have never brought these lengthy masterpieces to the live stage before so this would be quite the coup, and revisiting Trisagion has reminded me just how special this album is – how much it can stop you in your tracks and leave you spellbound as the melancholic-yet-life-affirming melodies wash over you amidst tremolo guitars, pummelling drums and expansive atmospherics. Beautiful, devastating, essential. (James)
AMIENSUS
Since 2013’s Restoration blew us away with its strength of songwriting and focus on riffs as well as atmosphere, progressive black metal troupe Amiensus may be bordering on ‘not quite black metal enough for Fortress’, yet their sound is still very much rooted in the genre and the mesmerising atmosphere and bewitching vocal harmonies would add real variety to the main stage amidst the unrelenting walls of beautifully blasphemous chaos that (quite rightly) dominates the festival.
With 2024’s stunning twin releases Reclamation Parts 1 & 2 perhaps wishful thinking as a Fortress-exclusive set (clocking in at around 90 minutes), a collaborative performance centred around the Gathering split EPs with fellow countrymen Oak Pantheon would surely turn a few heads. The latter may have split in 2025, but if anyone can convince them to reunite for an exclusive show… (James)
SPECTRAL WOUND
Montreal 5-piece Spectral Wound have been enjoying a serious moment in the limelight following the release of 2024’s Songs of Blood and Mire. Their second-stage set at Damnation 2025 was absolutely rammed. Those who made it in bore witness to a set that was absolutely ferocious and musically, incredibly tight. Watching clips from that set, you’d hardly know that it wasn’t a studio recording. This is a band that is offering black metal fans everything they could possibly want – and more – and in Aristocratic Suicidal Black Metal they have created perhaps their masterpiece, or certainly a song that falls into the category of anthemic. (Andrew)
DARKSPACE
Darkspace is the elusive project of Swiss musician Tobias Möckl, best known for his work in Paysage d’Hiver. Since emerging in 2003 with Dark Space I, the band has pushed the boundaries of extreme music, blending pulsating electronic textures, vast walls of distortion, and cosmic black metal into a uniquely otherworldly sound. Their discography spans five full length albums, most recently in Dark Space II I(2024).
Darkspace lyrics are delivered in an invented alien language, adding to the project’s mysterious atmosphere. Their music ranges from eerie, space like ambience to overwhelming astral fury. For newcomers, Dark 3.11 is an ideal entry point, a hypnotic journey into the darkest reaches of time and space, and a perfect example of why Darkspace would be a fantastic addition to Fortress Festival. (Oliver)
PANOPTICON
Austin Lunn is a man synonymous with everything that Fortress Festival is about. Panopticon appeared at both of the first two iterations of the festival and have only gone from strength to strength since. Newest album, Det Hjemsøkte Hjertet, has received rave reviews, but its preceding release Laurentian Blue that I wanted to offer up as my second suggestion for Fortress 2027. The Dungeon Synth stage, housed in the Spa Theatre, was popular during Fortress Festival 2026, but what if it were used for acoustic performances for the fifth anniversary? And, if that is to happen, there is no act more appropriate to bring back than Panopticon! (Andrew)
MISOTHEIST
Misotheist seem to be a bit of an enigma in the black metal world. It isn’t known when the band formed, only that they crawled out of the black mire with their first self-titled outing in 2018. Since then, the anonymous group from Trondheim, Norway have released three albums each spewing forth their interpretation of darkness, blast beats and anguished screams. I, personally, hadn’t had the pleasure of experiencing their prior outings so was anxious to dive deep into their version of blackened squalor.
Their 2026 release, De Pinte, is a hulk of a record that is full of blackened brilliance. At four tracks long, there are some longform pieces here, but not once does the album lose focus. A full album set of De Pinte would be amazing. (Dom)
DAUÞUZ
Dauþuz are a black metal duo hailing from Germany. In the unique world of metal music, it feels like they stand alone as their music uses the theme of mining and the history of mining in Germany as the source material. They have a real gift for creating brilliant black metal, and the subject they use as stimulus is incredibly unique. As a genre, black metal is designed to make you feel a certain way. It pulls at the harsher side of things and challenges the aural senses. Dauþuz present an aural challenge, but any discerning fan of this style of music will appreciate the artistry on display here. This would be a great booking, but highliy unlikely being that the pair rarely, if ever, perform live. Still, one can hope… (Dom)
FOGWEAVER
Evie Fable is the mastermind behind the fantasy synth project, Fogweaver. With a brilliant catalogue of music, Magelight and Vedurnan stand out. The music is completely otherworldly and the artwork for the releases is magical.
Distinctly departing from the bleak, medieval castle aesthetics typical of traditional dungeon synth, Fogweaver is explicitly rooted in the fantasy world of Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea cycle. The music explores profound literary themes of cosmic balance, the magic of true names, and the deep mystery of shifting tides and fog-shrouded islands. (Dom)
STORMKEEP
Stormkeep has spent the better part of a decade building a world entirely their own, and with The Nocturnes Of Iswylm, their second full-length, they have not simply returned to that world — they have reshaped it, deepened it, and made it considerably more dangerous to inhabit.
Founded in 2017 and drawing early comparisons to the Nordic masters of symphonic black metal, Stormkeep established themselves quickly as one of the most compelling acts to emerge from the American underground. Their 2020 debut EP Galdrum was a striking declaration of intent — melodic, keyboard-drenched, rooted firmly in the classic tradition of Emperor and early Dimmu Borgir yet wearing its influences rather than being suffocated beneath them. (Oliver)
MALUM
Formed in Oslo in 2020, Malum emerged directly from the bleak traditions of the Norwegian second wave. The quartet focuses on a mixture of raw, atmospheric, and deeply melodic black metal. Rather than relying solely on traditional religious themes, modern existentialism, nihilism, and intense philosophical depth shapes their. Following their striking 2023 album In Nauseam, they have continued to carve a path through the underground. From The Voids is their 2026 release and is equally as savage as their 2023 debut. They would be a fine addition to the bill at Fortress Festival 2027. (Andy)
