FESTIVAL PREVIEW: Incineration Festival 2026
Words: Oli Gonzalez
Photos: Tim Finch
It’s that time of year. Camden Town is to be invaded once again by a horde of extreme metal fans as Incineration Festival has conjured up one of the finest festival lineups of the year! With many still talking about the majestic Blood Incantation “Absolute Elsewhere” set from the year prior in the nation’s capital, what can we expect from the 2026 edition? With everything from modern black metal through to seminal death metal acts and everything in between spread across five venues, here are just a few reasons why you should get your tickets now before it’s too late!
Electrifying Ballroom Lineup
All heads are gonna roll as Swedish death metal heavyweights storm the Electric Ballroom, riding the momentum of their rather punishing new album “In Death Throes”. They won’t be the only band on that stage who have recently released new music as Norwegian sognametal standouts Vreid demonstrated their expansive approach to black metal in the shape of “The Skies Turn Black”. Black metal with a progressive twist seems to be the theme here with Der Weg Einer Freiheit and Afsky also gracing the second largest venue for the day, with the stage to be headlined by Swedish melodic death metal masters Hypocrisy!
Dragged Into Sunlight
A riddle wrapped in an enigma. Dragged Into Sunlight don’t play often. They emerged from five years of hibernation as they tore Damnation Festival apart in November 2024 in a set that’s gone as one of the greatest in the festival’s history! Those of you who were unfortunate enough to miss their visceral and gripping intense live show that day have a chance at redemption at Incineration. If you don’t, you may have to wait a while as they rarely play live!
Old School and Brutal Death Metal
Lovers of blast beats, guttural vocals, and heavy as hell riffs will be more than satiated this year. One of the bands who started the whole slam metal movement Internal Bleeding take over as they headline the Underworld stage in what’s to be one of the wildest sets of the weekend. A rare UK appearance for Grave takes place at the Roundhouse, a special ‘set with their original lineup whilst Tomb Mold and Grave Miasma ensure the riffs come fast and heavy on that stage too.
Gleaming Local Talent
Despite the influx of international heavyweights, the likes of Vacuous, Beyond Extinction, and Yersin will ensure that the best of the British underground extreme metal scene will be represented. Their sets and many more can be found on the smaller Dev and Black Heart stages.
Blood Fire Death
Over 20 years ago, the world of extreme metal lost one of its true pioneers, Thomas ‘Quorthorn’ Forsberg. The creative force behind the reason why many musicians picked up their instruments for the first time, Incineration Festival will host a rare and monumental headline set as Blood Fire Death play tribute to the music of Quorthorn and Bathory. The lineup features a who’s who of black metal royalty, a star studded supergroup with members from Enslaved, Waitain, Djevel, and Trelldom, as well as ex-members of Gorgoroth, Mayhem and Bathory itself! Performing the songs of Bathory with full arena production, this supergroup have wowed audiences across Europe as they bring to life the original creative vision of Quorthorn. A rare set that simply cannot be missed.
Logistics
Let’s address the elephant in the room; there were issues with overcrowding in the early hours of 2025’s festival. Though the festival has learned from their mistakes and have assured fans that the Roundhouse – the largest of the five venues – will open much earlier and there will be no venue specific tickets on sale this year. All of which aim to provide a much more positive experience for the fans.
The term unmissable is thrown around too much. But with rare performance that may never be replicated and extreme metal heavyweights that seldom play in the UK, Incineration Festival 2026 is just that.
Unimssable.
Photo credits: Tim Finch Photography
