Live Review: ArcTanGent 2026 – Thursday
20th August 2026
Words: Matt Noble
Photos: Rich Price
My first band of the weekend was Belgian post-metallers Psychonaut. Their low tunings give them a sludgy quality from the early Baroness playbook, as well as a bit of post-hardcore emotivity in the vocal delivery. With an enchanting stage presence, they calmly let their music and soundscaping do the talking, which is often spacey and ethereal. At times, the hypnotic rhythms even give their set somewhat of a tribal feel. This really is the sort of set to lose yourself to. It’s not all standing around pensively stroking beards, though, as they made time to engage the crowd and get everyone clapping along, living up to their slot on the main stage at a festival of this size. Showing their strength as individuals and as a unit, their polished and atmospheric performance isn’t just ‘good vibes’, but a spellbinding set that really shows off what the band is all about.
French post-black titans Alcest unfortunately had their set cut short due to logistical and travel issues, but made every second count on the main stage as soon as the lights dimmed. Their dreamy black metal is tailor-made for a festival like Arctangent, and they received a deservedly warm reception for their atmospheric, professional and technically flawless performance. Setlist staples like ‘Sapphire’ or the closing ‘Eclosion’ showed them in fine form, with their haunting vocal melodies, layered instrumentation and occasional blasts into extreme territory making their case as a festival highlight for many present. Last time out they were on the second stage. Delivering a (shorter) performance today with musical brilliance and heaps of presence, this felt like a step up even from then.
What can be said about Igorrr? It’s rare to have the adjectives ‘gothic’, ‘operatic’ and ‘electronic’ all in one place in a reviewer’s notepad, but no one else sounds like Igorrr, and don’t they know it. Utilising such a wide range of influences, to witness Igorrr is an experience of sorts. The instrumentation is unconventional, the lighting is manic – and that’s exactly what draws people into their musical cult. They get the crowd moving and dancing quickly, building a proper festival atmosphere, almost causing the band’s watertight performance to go over people’s heads. Hair-raising blackened vocal screeches and blasts of electronica keep us all on our toes for the full 75 minutes. The best and simplest way to describe and remember this performance would be the sheer intensity of it all, from the stage production, to the musical quality, to the titanic physical presence of those on stage. Again, this is a band that feels most at home at a musically open-minded event like Arctangent, and they really deliver the goods tonight.
Thursday night headliner Chelsea Wolfe follows on to pull out all the stops for such a (deservedly) high-profile slot. Her striking stage show and incredible sense of aura and grandeur command the main stage, but with a graceful calmness as the overflowing tent is lulled into a trance for over an hour. Amid the quiet moments, the crowd is incredibly respectful, hanging onto every note. But when they turn up to eleven, the band’s soundscaping, crushing distorted guitars, and use of electronics sound truly immense out the front, while Wolfe’s haunting, ethereal vocals lead with elegance.
After a guest vocal appearance from Alcest’s Neige that added a sense of one-off and ‘you had to be there’ to the festival headline, Wolfe played three songs from ‘The Dark’, her latest album that came out the following day (or about an hour after the set ended, in real time). This really felt like a special, celebratory performance that lived up to its billing. Closing with ‘16 Psyche’ to a rapturous reception, her set ended on a genuinely high note. Time to place your bets on a runthrough of ‘Bloodmoon: I’ with Converge this time next year?
Photo credits: Rich Price
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