Live Review: Brutal Assault 2026

Live Review: Brutal Assault 2026

5th-8th August 2026
Words: Oli Gonzalez
Photos: Tim Finch

With the temperature peaking at 38°C on some days, this meant some bands sadly had to be skipped as avoiding heatstroke was more important. Still, here’s a breakdown of the highlights for this weekend; grab a drink as this could be a long one.

Tuesday Pre-Show

Filth

They weren’t here to play games. Nope. Vocalist Dustin demanded movement right from the get-go and wasn’t accepting half measures from anybody in attendance. A potent mix of rap and metalcore provided an equally potent cocktail that turned the Obscure stage into a riot zone! Their energy was infectious as it was impressive, ensuring nobody was going to be eased in gently to the weekend.

Ahab

The nautical doom heavyweights really brought it tonight, including the rain which seems as on-brand as it can get! Yep, normally the heavens opening would induce fear into the hearts of festival goers, but we were more than ready for this giving the punishing heat. We were more than ready for some low and slow grooves and pummelling too. A classic set with the likes of ‘Mobilis in Mobili’ and ‘O Father Sea’ provided this in spades and ensured many heads were banging, warmed up for the long week to come.

Sarcafargo (played by The Laws)

Perhaps I’m too young to appreciate the impact that Sarcafago had had on the world of black metal. Older festivals certainly did though as many sporting corpse paint and leather surged forward to the front as soon as Ahab had finished. The Laws, featuring founding members of Sarcafogo, would pay tribute tonight to one of Brazil’s seminal extreme acts…and doing them justice too! Everything felt tight but not overpolished, and captured that raw chaotic energy perfectly. Whilst being dressed in plain clothes ruined the illusion somewhat, the sun had set and the dazzling lighting amplified that energy, with the strobes bouncing off the brick walls, making for an impressive visual display.

Wednesday

Unearth

Finding a small slither of shade acted as a lifeline to catch one of the seminal bands in the early metalcore movement. They started off in full throttle, the only speed they know! The crowd matched this speed with circle pits and crowd surfers, even in the punishing near 40°c early afternoon heat! Where do they get their energy from?! Even a small technical issue from Buzz’s guitar couldn’t derail their momentum with frontman Trevor engaging the crowd during this unplanned downtime, as well as sending his gratitude to the festival and bands he was sharing the stage with today. Classics from seminal album “The Oncoming Storm” represented highlights in a set met with multiple challenges.

Novembers Doom

Novembers Doom; they definitely got the doom right, with punishing groove after punishing groove, hitting low and slow into your core. Opulent piercing lead guitar solos would emerge from the murky darkness, making seasoned metal fans and casuals purr in admiration. Vocalist Paul admitted he was struggling in the heat – who could blame him? Though he couldn’t contain his excitement and gratitude for being at the festival for the first time since 13 years ago. Instead of throwing in the towel earlier, the set grew stronger and stronger, with their years of experience and chemistry showing as they pushed through the grueling humidity. A more than valiant effort!

Elder

A set of 2 halves really. Being at the barrier initially made it difficult to fully appreciate the band given the immense boom and bass being pumped out. However, a tactical retreat further back fixed this. This allowed the more subtle melodic and psychedelic elements to seep through and ring about the Obscure arena, building on top of their solid rhythmic foundations. Another one where the struggle in the heat was real and may have robbed one of the most anticipated bands of the weekend from truly showcasing what they can do!

Crippling Alcoholism

There’s a target audience for the alternative post-punk act, if that is the best term to describe their one of a kind sound. I’m not part of that. Still, it’s easy to look at this through the lens of objectivity and just know when a good band has landed! Central to the sound were the bright salient synths that really drove the band’s energy and dynamism, with the guitars and bass locking in to provide the crunching grooves and also additional melodic support when required. There was huge disappointment when their late 2025 tour plans evapourated, making this feel like a shot at redemption. It’s clear they’ve connected with their audience. Was the Octagon really the right stage for them?

Iotunn

Biases. We all have them. This was my main set of the week and THE absolute unmissable band, so there are biases. Though look in any direction right from the front and you could see a crowd fully engaged and locked in for 45 minutes. A band with a complex sound and difficult to pin down into one sub-genre, each composition spanned multiple movements and stirred up multiple emotions. As well as the fully euphoric anthems and scintillating choruses. Some decided to show their appreciation through the ancient art of the moshpit. Not really that kinda band, right? Not really the right band for the tiny Octagon stage too you could argue. This would be immense on the Obscure stage at a later slot!

Solstafir

Aching and breaking, sitting from afar to capture the Icelandic splendor of Solstafir seemed like the right choice. If anything, this worked better for them. The full impact of their deeply complex atmospheric soundscapes could be fully appreciated, as well as the dazzling display bouncing off the walls of the Obscure arena and into the inky night sky. This was as healing as it was therapeutic, offering much welcome contrast to the waves and waves of extreme metal BA has to offer! Especially the voice of Addi, even if sung entirely in his native Icelandic, the emotion pouring out of him transcended all language barriers.

Thursday

Cryptic Shift

Some complaints could be seen on social media prior to their set, but a respectable crowd emerged at this early 10.30am (not PM) stage time. Riding the momentum of “Overspace and Supertime”, they showcased a ridiculously complex tech-death metal sound. Flying all the way to Czechia to see a band up the road in Leeds felt crazy. What’s even crazier is being sat in the Natural Stand during the pouring rain watching this unfold, a bold contrast to the heatwave from the previous few days. They flew the flag for the UK today in style though and demonstrated the depth of talent that’s on the island. Surely they’ll have a bigger slot next time?

Baest

Part of a new breed of extreme metal in Europe, the Danes were up next. Sticking to the meat and potatoes of the death metal genre, they presented a slower yet no less bludgeoning flavour of death metal. Their stage presence is what they’re becoming known for though, and they needed every ounce of that to get through today. Especially given that the heavens had well and truly opened, drenching anybody within a 100m radius of the Marshall Stage. Though there was plenty of engagement. Especially when Martin joined the crowd to invite fans to form a circle pit around his Christmas tree (mic stand) whilst he continued to rattle out his guttural roars. 10/10 extroversion!

The Casualties

No plans to watch them but the opportunity emerged given the very short turnaround from Baest’s set finishing 5 minutes earlier. Offering a contrast to the extreme metal with their raw punk energy, they certainly looked at home here and had the crowd going wild with vocalist joining to split for their earliest ever wall of death, well before 12pm. A pleasant surprise and welcome contrast.

Sanguisugabogg

Deep into their European tour, they had caused chaos at Dortmund Deathfest only a few days prior. Now with a few shows under their belt, they looked like a well-oiled machine and like a different band almost! They turned the Sea Shepherd stage into a near-battle zone! Flying close to the sun only a few rows from the barrier to get into the thick of it seemed crazy at the time…because it was! Dodging crowd surfers like homing missiles to the tune of songs centered around the themes of ripping faces off and being pulled apart by a truck was perhaps the best way to describe the experience of their set. They sounded monstrous up there, on the sound engineer for the band’s birthday, so no wonder they incited one of the biggest circle pits of the weekend.

Castle Rat

Mixing good old classic doom metal with fun theatrics and an engaging power ballad lore made for one of the more memorable sets of the weekend. It’s easy to see why they’re becoming so revered and respected with their accessible sound spanning

multiple genres and audiences. It’s a shame the sound kept cutting out and made things quite uncomfortable at times. They deserved better.

Septic Flesh

MY FRIENDS. One of the finest metal bands to ever emerge from Greece. They sounded almighty up there. Even though vocalist Spyros was showing signs of wear and tear. Classics that included ‘Anubis’ and ‘Vampire Of Nazareth’ made their way into the set, alongside hits from “Codex Omega”. This also highlights the desperate need for new material from the band. Still, the crowd was fully locked in and engaged. Who was the crowd surfer who made it all the way to the front from the sound desk (80m or so?). Impressive. As well as those playing the Septic Flesh drinking game; take a drink when Spiros says MY FRIENDS. Be warned, this could be as deadly as the band’s mix of haunting orchestral spice and ferocious death metal.

Body Count

I didn’t understand them, nor the hype. Now I do. Especially with a PACKED OUT Sea Shepherd stage. Imagine the blistering pace of and punch of thrash, with the raw Aggression infectious groove of rap. A cocktail that resulted in seas of bodies going over the barriers, which looked fantastic from the safety of the Natural Stand. Absolute chaos down there. In the words of Ice-T, this is built on a simple ethos: “we ain’t here to rock FOR ya, we’re here to rock WITH you”. Perhaps best personified either with their hit ‘Purge’ or ‘Raining Blood’ cover!

I was proved wrong to doubt their merit. Skipping a bucket list band for them was worth it.

Carpenter Brut

Not a metal band, should they be here? Check out the hundreds if not thousands bopping along, raving, moshing or going airborne, then that quickly becomes irrelevant, if anything, the French act have a clear distinct edge, with a sound built on a clean EDM spine with crunching distorted guitars and pulsating acoustic drums that echoed and reverberated around the fortress after the sun had gone down. This turned Josefov Fortress into a post-apocalyptic rave, looking absolutely spectacular from the Natural Stand. Something that quickly made me relocate to the ground to see it all up and close. The right decision!

Friday

Internal Bleeding

Tough conditions given the midday sun yet a solid turn out nonetheless. It was crazy to see a band of Internal Bleeding’s calibre on at this early 12pm time but this speaks to how thoroughly stacked the lineup is. Having missed them earlier in the year due to illness, this felt like redemption. They delivered the bruising and slamming brand of death metal they have become known for, and did their reputation justice. The crowd fed off this energy too and were happy to throw themselves around the pit. Though it felt like the band were going through the motions as far as crowd interaction goes and barking instructions rather than trying to genuinely engage. They could have given more.

Saor

Born in the frosty north of Scotland, Andy Marshall and co were a long way from home in the testing mid afternoon sun. Testing as they have consistently sounded phenomenal live with their brand of atmospheric black metal making them especially popular on the continent. Though something felt off today. Guitars and parts of the backing track kept cutting out, and Ella’s voice felt slightly more strained. 3 songs in a truncated 40 minute set felt too short and didn’t give the full immersive experience a band like Saor deserved. Whilst they still sounded good, this was far from their usual very high standards.

Thy Catafalque

Avant-garde is thrown around too much nowadays. The Hungarians suit this perfectly though, with a multifaceted sound characterised by a constantly changing lineup between songs to suit the dynamic and needs of the song. This kept things interesting! Their strengths though seem to lie in the 2 female vocalists in the band, such was their harmony and chemistry, sitting over more ambient electronic backdrops. The faster, more aggressive pace made for an uncomfortable listening experience at times, especially when the drummer overpowered everyone (which also happened at Samhain Antwerp). The guitar lead anthems are also a strength, and although many here didn’t speak a word of their native Hungarian, the connection was there. When will we see them at Eurovision?

Master Boot Record (MBR)

What even is computer metal? These sub genres are getting crazy right? In either case, MBR today demonstrated that they’ve plugged a niche we didn’t know existed with an electronic based brand of instrumental metal. With songs like the theme to classic video game Doom, their music taps into the secret love of tech all metal heads have, whilst those who love a good ol’ mosh turned the Obscure stage into a frenzy. Let’s not forget the guitarists who’ll be more than satiated with the dazzling chemistry and skill on display by Edoardo and Victorio. We all love exclusives too, so we were treated to a song, ‘Dark Mavericks’ from the upcoming album! A much needed injection of energy into the day’s proceedings.

Grave

BA doesn’t often book bands in consecutive years. But then again, bands like Grave don’t come along very often and they don’t tear apart the festival in the same way they did in 2025. After seeing their energy at Incineration 2026, it’s easy to believe this. Within literal seconds, the pits to hell had opened and the ritual commenced and the momentum would not slow down. Despite pulling double duty on bass and vocals, it was almost as if Ola was down in the pits with us such was his commanding and constant presence. The standard bearer for Swedish death metal.

Primus

When announced to headline Arctangent 2026, the impact of this sent shockwaves through Europe. Despite missing half of their set, it was clear to see this impact as the Sea Shepherd stage was packed out! Whilst some point to the band’s alternative rock stylings as being the antithesis to the extreme metal that BA is known for, contrast is good, right? Believe me, this WAS a contrast. Listening to Les sing about a racecar going by the name of Jerry and a big brown beaver belonging to Wynona was bizarre and took some getting used to. But seeing Les’s ridiculous skill on the bass and making slap bass look effortless was infectious, and the hypnotic grooves coming from that block of wood meant that escape was quite impossible. Finishing 10 minutes early in such a monumental occasion seemed to rub people up the wrong way though.

Eivor

The Pagan Problem Part 1/2. You may know her as the voice behind the theme tune for The Last Kingdom (if not, go YouTube). Featuring a seemingly typical lineup of drums, keys, and Eivor herself with a guitar and standing behind the mic, the noise radiating from them was far from typical! Especially with the Pagan throat singing, the cavernously deep double bass, and the war drums; this made for some hauntingly beautiful arrangements that will wake up our Pagan ancestors. This sounded majestic at times and deeply atmospheric and indulgent. It’s a shame so many people talking ruined this and some even going down the more disrespectful route of mocking some of her throat singing techniques just didn’t sit well at all. People at BA; do better!

Katatonia

It was late at night but the sound engineers had worked hard to make the Swedish progressive metallers sound tight, ferocious, and larger than life. Though there was only so much they could do. Many metal heads had divided opinions but this is clear; Jonas was having a terrible night behind the mic! Out of tune and seeming a shadow of himself at times, this was nowhere near his usual high standards and made for an uncomfortable experience, raising the question of whether an instrumental set would have been better.

Saturday

Coffins

Amongst the band’s who had travelled the furthest to be here, the Japanese four piece took to the stage in the baking hot Obscure stage. We had seen quite a variety of artists plying their trade on this platform but perhaps none of the death-doom metal persuasion. Whether it was the slow bludgeoning body blows, the chest pounding double kicks, or frantic punk inspired D-beat patterns, there was one constant. The walls of distortion and the low-fi deliberately retrograde presence; nothing at all was aesthetic about this bruiser of a set! Just raw unfiltered sludge!

Wormed

After levelling Offal Fest 3 as co-headliner, Wormed were on the must see list! Just watching them sound check, seeing the nasty tones pouring out of the amplifiers and feeling each pulsating strike of the drums raised the anticipation further!

They took to the stage 5 minutes early, which explained why the crowd was so sparse and a measly 3 people attempted to start a circle pit. Though the bodies quickly began to multiply, and Wormed seemingly fed off that energy. They seemed to up the ante and all those individual elements began to cluster into one unholy wall of blistering cosmic noise! Just like in Manchester almost one full year prior. Except for this it was hotter; much hotter. Dodging crowdsurfers was expected. What wasn’t expected was to see the first and only cockroach pit of the festival! What a bizarre but intriguing moment! A slow start but gathered momentum of a run away freight train and finished very strong indeed.

Insomnium

Another must see act! Given the huge crowd that had assembled by the Marshall stage and sheer quantity of merchandise scattered around the festival, it was a must see for many others. Most bands that had played that stage had sounded phenomenal. Insomnium were no exception, as they sounded ferocious as they worked through older material, as well as new tracks from the upcoming album, making this the first time many people had heard these live. Skipping segments from their cult classic “The Winters Gate” seems like a missed opportunity though given it’s 10 year anniversary. Normally a force of nature, Niilo vocals sounded rough. Was he exhausted? Maybe. It was a lot hotter here than in his native Finland. Despite some crowd surfers, the audience lacked energy and it felt as though there was a disconnect. Until he asked the crowd a very simple question; “What do you want to hear next?”. The screams became inaudible – like a university debating society- though this woke the crowd up and the iconic opening to ‘While We Sleep’ rang out. A stronger finish to the set.

The Ghost Inside

Going in blind at festivals can be a gamble. Seeing a band you have no prior knowledge of can horrifically backfire. Though sometimes the gamble does pay off. Or in the case of The Ghost Inside, I found myself becoming a fan in real time and getting genuine goosebumps ! ‘Dear Youth (Day 52)’ being just one moment to cause this reaction. Such is the invigorating modern metalcore energy and empowering nature of the song. Not to mention the direct on the nose lyrics, which were plastered on the screen behind the band. Which speaks to the electrifying presence they have at one stage and the genuine connections forged. Whether it’s the devoted fans at the front bouncing up and down and singing along to every word, or the uninitiated like me. It goes without saying that the pit was absolute chaos and countless fans went airborne. What a genuine wholesome connection with the audience. What a set! What a privilege to have seen this.

Candlemass

1985. Long before many that were gathering around the Marshall stage were born. The nation of Sweden has produced countless seminal metal acts across all genres. Especially Candlemass, the band widely regarded as one of the most crucial acts in the doom metal genre. Seeing fans young and old singing along to classics like ‘Bewitched’ and ‘Gallows End’ was pretty special tonight, and shows how many hearts the Swedes have touched with their music. Even if they have had to adapt the music due to the natural, inevitable aging process and member changes, with lower tunings and vocalist Johan now singing with a more fierce gravelly tone. Rather than the high pitched haunting wailing vocals of Messiah the band are known for. Still special to see though.

Left To Die

Like many attendees, I was too young to have seen the late great Chuck Schuldiner perform. Which leads to a question; what would Death sound like if they were still around today? Left To Die provided an answer to this rather complex question, featuring ex-members of the Floridian extreme metal pioneers as they burned through a mix of Death’s mid 80s era hits. ‘Open Casket’, and ‘Leprosy’ were amongst those, capturing the raw primitive aggression from this era but also with the mind-boggling technical guitar passages which cut through supremely sharp and accurately through the sublime mix! Matt Harvey would have done Chuck very proud indeed as he pulled double duty with a blistering lead guitar performance and vocal display reminiscent of Schuldiner himself! Close your eyes and you couldn’t tell the difference between the two! Hearing some of the older demo previously unreleased tracks from the very VERY early days of the band made an already special set feel even more prestigious!

Wardruna

The Pagan problem; part 2/2. Wardruna are a fantastic live band. Always have been and always will be. Just a few seconds into ‘Kvitravn’ will remind you of that. There’s so many pretenders out there claiming to be Pagan. Though with an array of traditional percussion instruments providing the pulsating rhythms, the horns adding a dissonant and haunting undertone to the music, whilst the moraharpa and dual vocal harmonies of Einar and Lindy-Fay acted as the melodic focal point. A pattern that continued throughout the set. The problem? The crowd! When people won’t shut up during the quiet parts, it makes you wonder why you or the band should bother! This was never a problem having seen them in a theatre 18 months prior! Why would it be different here? The problem was amplified during ‘Hibjornen’; what should have been a spine tingling lullaby from just Einar became a futile attempt to become fully immersed due to the countless drunken idiots thinking their loud conversations were more important. A disappointing experience through no fault of the band.

Photo credits: Tim Finch

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