The Warm Up Day of Mystic Festival 2026 on June 3rd, 2026, marked the beginning of one last celebration at the iconic Gdańsk Shipyard. With the festival preparing to move to a new location, the atmosphere was filled with equal parts excitement and nostalgia. The industrial surroundings have always been an inseparable part of Mystic’s identity, making this year’s Warm Up Day a fitting farewell to one of Europe’s most unique festival venues. Among the artists we caught during the day were FRONTSIDE, DISHARMONIC ORCHESTRA, NECKBREAKKER, GRAVE, DAMNATION, SIX FEET UNDER, UNLEASHED, A.A. Williams, ICE NINE KILLS, KANONENFIEBER, and PRIEST.
The day began with Polish metalcore veterans FRONTSIDE, who immediately demonstrated why they have remained one of the country’s most respected heavy acts for over three decades. Promoting their latest album, “Nemesis,” the band delivered a confident and energetic performance, effortlessly winning over the growing crowd with their seasoned stage presence.
Austria’s DISHARMONIC ORCHESTRA offered one of the day’s most unconventional sets. Originally rooted in technical death metal and grindcore, the trio has long embraced a more avant-garde approach, blending surreal songwriting, progressive passages, and groovy bass lines with raw vocal performances. While their latest full-length album, “Fear of Angst,” dates back to 2016, recent compilation releases have kept the band’s legacy alive and reminded everyone how unique their sound remains.
One of the festival’s biggest young success stories was NECKBREAKKER. Returning to Mystic after their previous appearance under the name NAKKEKNAEKKER in 2024, the Danish death metal outfit arrived with a new identity, a deal with Nuclear Blast and their debut full-length, “Within the Viscera.” Despite their relatively young age, the band performed with remarkable confidence and relentless energy, proving they have all the ingredients needed for a bright future.
Swedish death metal veterans GRAVE reminded everyone why they remain one of the genre’s defining names. Even performing as a trio and facing minor sound issues, they delivered crushing riffs and uncompromising heaviness that easily overcame any technical shortcomings. Although fans continue to speculate about new material, “Out of Respect for the Dead” from 2015 remains their latest studio album.
Representing Poland’s death metal old guard, DAMNATION showcased the power of experience combined with fresh enthusiasm. Having returned after a lengthy hiatus, the band now features musicians associated with BEHEMOTH, AZARATH, and DECAPITATED. Their performance proved that classic death metal still has plenty of life, even if their last studio album, “Resist,” was released back in 2000.
SIX FEET UNDER brought exactly what fans expected—straightforward, groove-heavy death metal driven by Chris Barnes‘ unmistakable vocals. While the band has often been the subject of jokes regarding Barnes‘ live performances, he appeared to be in notably good form, delivering a solid set while promoting their newest album, “Next to Die,” released in April 2026.
The parade of death metal veterans continued with UNLEASHED. Rather than focusing on the genre’s traditional themes of gore and violence, the Swedish band continues to draw inspiration from Norse mythology, allowing their songs to stand apart lyrically. There were no unnecessary theatrics—just experienced musicians confidently delivering powerful songs from their latest album, “Fire Upon Your Lands.”
After so much relentless heaviness, A.A. Williams provided a welcome change of pace. The British vocalist’s deeply emotional blend of doom metal, post-rock, and shoegaze—described by the artist as “death gospel”—created one of the day’s most atmospheric performances. Her rich, velvety voice captivated the audience, while material from her newly released album, “Solstice,” fit perfectly into Mystic’s increasingly diverse musical landscape.
One of the most theatrical performances belonged to ICE NINE KILLS. Inspired by classic horror films, the American band transformed the stage into a campy B-movie spectacle filled with constant visual action. Combined with catchy metalcore and alternative metal, the performance was both entertaining and memorable, demonstrating why the band has built such a devoted following. Their latest studio album remains 2021’s “The Silver Scream 2: Welcome to Horrorwood.”
As darkness settled over the shipyard, Germany’s KANONENFIEBER delivered one of the strongest performances of the evening. Since launching the project in 2020, mastermind Noise has rapidly built a reputation for combining melodic black and death metal with lyrical themes centered around the First World War. Their intense and immersive live show demonstrated exactly why the band’s popularity continues to grow following the release of “Die Urkatastrophe.”
Closing the Warm Up Day on a completely different note, Sweden’s PRIEST swapped blast beats for infectious synthpop. Led by the charismatic Mercury, the masked trio proved once again that electronic music has a rightful place at a metal festival. Their energetic and danceable performance, featuring songs from “Dark Pulse” and the “Chaos” EP, provided a refreshing and uplifting finale to a diverse and highly successful Warm Up Day.
The Warm Up Day perfectly showcased one of Mystic Festival’s greatest strengths: balancing legendary names with exciting newcomers while embracing stylistic diversity. From uncompromising death metal veterans and rising extreme metal acts to atmospheric post-rock and infectious synthpop, the programme offered something for every kind of heavy music fan. Set against the unforgettable backdrop of the Gdańsk Shipyard for one final time, the Warm Up Day served as both a celebration of the present and a heartfelt farewell to a venue that has become an inseparable part of Mystic Festival’s identity.
Photos by Maria Sawicka
