Photo Reports

The “In The Airwaves 2026″ European tour stopped in Helsinki for a night of spectacle and heavy music as Avatar took over Kulttuuritalo Helsinki. With strong support from Maori metallers Alien Weaponry and the “deathjazz” from Norwegian Agabas, the evening steadily built toward a theatrical and high-energy headline performance.

Check out the gallery capturing the intensity, stage presence and connection between band and audience during a night where metal met performance art in true Avatar fashion.

Eclipse came back to Finland for handful of shows. Together with One Desire they played in front of a slightly disappointingly small crowd at Tampere’s Tavara-Asema on the 29th of January.

Modern metal outfit Sylosis has been turning heads for quite some time now and the UK band is about to release their new album ‘The New Flesh’ on February 20 with Nuclear Blast. But they’re not waiting on the album to be out and are already touring through Europe with “The New Flesh tour”, bringing along some of the best of the extreme metal scene with the US technical death masters Revocation, Dutch deathcore stars Distant and the Texas crossover thrash misfits of Life Cycles! We were at their packed show at Tavastia in Helsinki and saw a show that anyone who loves their metal heavy and technical, yet catchy and massive, should most definitely go to if they come anywhere near you.

ROYAL REPUBLIC the Swedish rock band known for their energetic performances and catchy tunes, presented their ‘Lovecop Europe Tour 2026‘ in late January 2026 in Stuttgart. They blend rock, garage-punk, and funk elements, captivating audiences with their humorous lyrics and highly enegertic live shows. The band has gained international fame with hits like ‘Tommy-Gun’ and ‘Addictive’. 

In a fully packed Wagenhallen venue in Stuttgart ALEX MOFA GANG opened up the set. The German 5 piece started the night with a convincing set of their rock music infused with some punk and indie influences. Despite some minor technical issues at the start, this was starting the party and highlighted by a crowdsurfing salto by vocalist Sascha Hörold.

After ROYAL REPUBLIC entered the stage, there was no more holding back. Adam Grahn and his light-up guitar are kicking it off. From front to back the crowd was dancing, singing, jumping and partying along with the 4 Swedes from start to end. It was the perfect show with highest entertainment value you can expect from a concert. ROYAL REPUBLIC are simply the masters of disco-rock at current times and show that you do not need pyro and high sophisticated animations on the back of the stage. A well designed light-show and a highly motivated band with their high‑octane, dance‑heavy show in combination with a strong disco‑rock pulse is just perfect. Adam is leading the crowd through the night with his typical signature humor and fantastically designed stage choreography. The audience willingly follows and there is no holding back until, after 90 minutes, the last notes are played.

If you still have a chance to see this live: just go! You will not be disappointed.

Jinjer played a sold-out show in Brussels last week, marking only the third date of their “Duél tour”. Even at this early stage, the Ukrainian progressive metal band appeared fully locked in, delivering a confident and intense performance.

The evening opened with Textures as first support, followed by Unprocessed. During Unprocessed’ set, technical difficulties occurred at the beginning of their second song, causing a brief interruption before the band was able to continue and complete their performance.

Touring in support of their latest album ‘Duél’, Jinjer focused heavily on the record, with approximately half of the setlist taken from it. The songs already sounded tight and well-rehearsed, fitting naturally alongside older material. Frontwoman Tatiana Shmailyuk stood out not only vocally but visually, appearing on stage in what seemed to be traditional clothing — a notable contrast to her usually striking stage outfits. The choice added an extra layer of impact to an already powerful performance.

Fan favorites “I Speak Astronomy,” “Sit Stay Roll Over,” and “Pisces” were met with an enthusiastic response, closing the night on a high note. For a show so early in the tour, Jinjer’s Brussels performance made it clear that the “Duél tour” is off to a strong start.

On the 17th of January, Cobra The Impaler and Modder joined forces for a double bill that rocked Club Wintercircus. Two of Belgium’s most impressive heavy acts shared the stage supported by Bloed.

Bloed, three siblings (brother – sister- brother), kicked things off. They are clearly one of the rising names in the Belgian underground scene, and their set made that obvious right away. Being raw and uncompromising, they were the perfect band to warm up the room and set the tone for what was still to come. First timer for me, but defo not the last time.

Next up was Modder. Modder continues to stand out. Their sound is massive: colossal riffs, thundering basslines, and grim industrial sound effects, all delivered with impressive precision. They played incredibly tight. Drummer Gregory Simons completely blew me away—whether blasting at full force or locking into grooves that felt like they were hitting you straight in the chest. The filthy guitar riffs, the electronic textures from Simon Felix, and the relentless energy and showmanship of bassist Maurice van der Es all came together perfectly. Watching Modder live is not just a sonic experience, but a visual one as well.

Headlining the night was Cobra the Impaler, and from the first note it was clear they meant business. They don’t take prisoners. Unlike their namesake Vlad, instead of stakes, they use powerful drum patterns, razor-sharp riffs, and commanding vocals. This band is built for the stage: energetic, focused, and completely in control of the crowd. Their set kept shivers running down my spine from start to finish, and they left Club Wintercircus buzzing long after the final note faded.

Wow… Time flies… Another year is over and I’m still able to do what I love most: concert photography. Since October 2021 GRIMM is a home for my photographic work, thanks to the whole team for letting me be part of this great journalistic family. I love to be here and having the opportunity to bring the atmosphere and the feeling of live performances to our readers and viewers; at least I hope I do. At the end of the year, it is always time to look back and choose our personal highlights. Creating this collection is always hard since in the course of a full year an amazing amount of photos is made and there are much more than this. But still, I’m confident that you will enjoy my choices. If you are not, please let me know.

This year’s list of artists shown here (in random order): VULVARINE, STEPFATHER FRED, ANKOR, DONOTS, WOLFMOTHER, THUNDERMOTHER, SKINDRED, TUK SMITH & THE RESTLESS HEARTS, SALTATIO MORTIS, PARKWAY DRIVE, MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, MOONSHOT, MEGADETH, KISSIN’ DYNAMITE, HELLOWEEN, ENGST, GATECREEPER, ENEMY INSIDE, DISTURBED, DANKO JONES, BEAST IN BLACK, APRIL ART, EMIL BULLS, ELUVEITIE, AVANTASIA, ARCH ENEMY, AMENRA, NITA STRAUSS, COBRA SPELL

When the Arcane Dimensions Tour stopped at Vorst Nationaal in Brussels, the night unfolded a little differently than other dates on the tour. Unlike shows elsewhere, the Brussels stop was far from sold out. Rather than letting the vast hall feel empty, the production team moved the stage much further forward than usual, creating a noticeably cosier and more intimate atmosphere that made the venue feel surprisingly full.

Charlotte Wessels opened the evening as the warm-up act, delivering a strong and personal set. Her presence became even more meaningful later in the night, when she returned to the stage during Epica’s set to sing a duet with Simone Simons — a highlight that brought together two beloved voices from the symphonic metal scene.

Amaranthe kept the energy high with their genre-blending sound and relentless momentum. Epica then closed the night in commanding fashion, their symphonic grandeur translating beautifully in the more intimate setup.

2025 was another great year of concert photography in my neck of the midwest! I captured many bands I wasn’t super familiar with, which makes it fun. And I captured quite a few bands that I had been patiently waiting to capture.

It was super difficult to narrow down my photos but I present to you my 2025’s best of list! The bands included here, in no particular order are: Nonpoint (first and last band captured in 2025!), Black Stone Cherry, Asking Alexandria, Ivent Animate, Aurorawave, Ayron Jones, Close Enemies, The Plot In You, VCTMS, What Lies Below, Powerman5000, Northlane (crowd), and 2 very special local to me bands, Graveyard Daisies and Never Again!

Being able to start and end the year with Nonpoint was beyond amazing. Another highlight was getting to witness Tom Hamilton (Aerosmith) play with his new band Close Enemies. And as always, the metalcore crowd surfers are always a fun and exciting highlight!

I am happy to be going into my 5th year covering shows for GRIMM!

For My Pain… were on a Finland tour to celebrate the release of their new album ‘Buried Blue‘. We managed to catch up with them at Olympia-Kortelli in Tampere on the 15th of January.