Photo Reports

On a dusky June evening in Helsinki, the veil between realms thinned at On the Rocks. Castle Rat, the theatrical D&D inspired metal quartet from New York, brought their “Old World Realms Tour” to the Finnish capital, summoning us into their mythic universe of sword-bearing sorceresses and haunted riffs. With local cult favorites Mansion opening the night with their sermon of apocalyptic devotion, the stage was set for a ritual of sound, sweat, and spectacle. We were there and saw it was damn good! We’re already getting excited about their upcoming new album!

It’s always fun to get to experience something very different than our usual fare, and that was handsomely delivered by the people from The Rock Orchestra, a touring orchestra that brings their versions of rock and metal classics on stages all over the world. With impressive stage decor including towers of skulls, candles, colorful glass panes that look like they come straight from a church, and a huge swinging skull in the middle of it all and that stage filled with an orchestra dressed in Día de Muertos inspired outfits and masks and 2 vocalists popping up from time to time to provide some stellar singing and crowd interactions, this was really a sight to behold. Every single song was an absolute rock and metal hit, going from rock classics like AC/DC‘s ‘Thunderstruck’, Iron Maiden‘s ‘Run to the Hills’ and Motörhead‘s ‘Ace of Spades’ to more modern hits like Evanescence’s ‘Bring Me To Life’, System Of A Down‘s ‘Toxicity’, and My Chemical Romance‘s ‘Welcome to the Black Parade’. The energy got really high though in the room with their closer ‘Killing in the Name’ (from Rage Against The Machine of course), with the majority of the orchestra throwing up middle fingers at the right moments, and inviting the crowd to get up on their feet and join them in the fun. A wonderful way to end our weekend, really!

Tokio Hotel is huge youth sentiment for me, as they broke through with ‘Monsoon’ almost 2 decades ago and radio channels in Europe played the song to pieces. In the mean time, the band has gone through quite some music styles going from the alternative rock and pop rock early on to the more electronic rock and synth pop nowadays, but no matter what, they continued to grow a steady and very dedicated fan base. At Helsinki’s Culture House, we were met with a quite packed venue of excited fans, ready to experience the epic show these 4 German guys bring every time. And we were not disappointed with the theatrics, having Bill show up high in the air wearing huge red wings, a stage set with mirrors that reflected the lights but also the crowd in front of the stage, several outfit changes by Bill on top of his already pretty outgoing stage presence and so on. The air was filled with positivity and love, and while it definitely wasn’t the usual kind of music I frequent shows of, I absolutely loved it.

The Preacher in Geraardsbergen came alive the night before the festival’s official start, as fans from across the globe arrived in Belgium a day early to kick off the rock ‘n’ roll weekend with the unofficial Wildfest preparty. The bands were Sin City Rebels and Beyond The Labyrinth. The music was loud, the beer was flowing, and the spirit was unmistakably alive.

We headed out to soak up the atmosphere and take some pictures to capture the vibe for those who couldn’t be there:

Starting with Voidfallen, this gig offered a great blend of Finnish metal. Unfortunately I must say that I haven’t seen a gig this empty in a long while. For Voidfallen I counted 11 people in front of the stage, and while this got a little fuller as the evening progressed, it still stayed sadly empty throughout the whole event. I would estimate the total amount of fans to be around a 120 during Amorals performance. Such a bad turn up was definitely not deserved.

I myself enjoyed all bands rather much, sound and light were done well and somehow the bands still managed to generate a good atmosphere even in a more then half empty Tavara-Asema. My favourite of the evening was probably Shade Empire, as I really liked the mood they were setting.

In mid-May, Ääniwalli became a vortex of technical brutality and progressive intensity as Born of Osiris brought their tour to Helsinki. With support from death metal and deathcore juggernauts Ingested, the genre-bending Entheos, and Portugal’s The Voynich Code, the night unfolded as a showcase of modern metal’s most forward-pushing acts. From polyrhythmic breakdowns to atmospheric interludes, each band carved their own sonic space into the venue’s concrete walls.

Luna Kills: A Band Poised for the Big Leagues

Already quite popular in Finland, but still relatively unknown outside of Finland, Luna Kills has quickly become one of the most promising acts in the European metal scene. With their newly released debut physical album Deathmatch, the four-piece has taken a bold step forward, evolving their sound into a gripping mix of alt-metal, electronic textures, and raw emotion. We attended their show at Club Hell in Diest, their very first show in Belgium, part of their first ever headlining European tour, and it confirmed what early fans already suspected: Luna Kills is ready for much bigger stages.

After gaining attention last year while supporting Dear Mother in the Netherlands, this headlining run shows how much the band has grown in both confidence and intensity. Frontwoman Lotta Ruutiainen’s dynamic presence and striking vocals command attention, and the band’s new material hits hard with a sound that feels both modern and unique. If they continue on this trajectory, Luna Kills won’t be under the radar for long—this is a band well worth keeping an eye on.

Support came from Tilburg’s fresh newcomers Pacemaker, who impressed with a tight, modern alt-metal set.

Full Moon Metal & Rock Pop-up Delivers Belgian Powerhouse Line-Up

The 13th edition of the Full Moon Metal & Rock Pop-up bar lit up the night with three explosive Belgian bands.

Starters were Promise Down, the heavy rock and rollers from Antwerp, known for their powerful stage presence and gritty sound. Fans can also catch them live this summer on Sunday, August 10th at the Alcatraz Festival.

Second in line was Toxicity, Belgium’s own tribute to System of a Down, who fired up the crowd with a set full of energy and nostalgia.

Closing the night was Torhout’s very own Crazy Copy Cats, a pop-rock cover band that brought familiar tunes.

The event blended genres, generations, and good vibes into one unforgettable evening. With strong performances from local talent, Full Moon once again delivered.

In the last week of April, Aborted kicked off their “Slashing Europe”-tour with guests Crypta, The Zenith Passage and Organectomy. As one of the first stops, on the 26th of April, the tour dropped by in Ghent to perform at Club Wintercircus, a fantastic new venue with an immersive sound system, hosted by us and our trusted booking partners Return Bookings and BE-sounds! With Organectomy’s sheer brutality, the technicality of The Zenith Passage, the venomous Crypta and of course veterans Aborted, the night turned into a showcase of proper death metal, showing off the diversity the genre holds at this time!

In anticipation of the new album of Rivers of Nihil getting unleashed upon the world, the progressive death outfit were trekking through the world to blow people away everywhere. For the European leg of “The Aggressive Progressive Tour”, they brought along Cynic, Beyond Creation and label mates Dååth, putting together a package that would blow anyone away who is into aggressive, progressive or both! Not wanting to miss out, we made sure we got to Tavastia in Helsinki for a Sunday night show that would round off our weekend perfectly!