Roadburn 2025 took place from April 17th to 20th at the legendary 013 club in Tilburg, Netherlands, continuing its legacy as a hub for boundary-breaking heavy music.
The third proper day of this year’s Roadburn festival began much like the previous one, with a good coffee and the search for some new culinary experience. This time we wandered into the market, so the choice for lunch landed on some fried cod, which we ate while waiting for the first band of the day.
There was already a sizable queue outside of The Engine Room long before WITCH CLUB SATAN‘s showtime, so it goes without saying that the hall filled in pretty quickly. The Norwegian trio showed up on stage engulfed in smoke, and wearing some woolen clothes cut out in a way that would leave their breast fully exposed, along with wearing some similarly made headgear mimicking a pair of horns, and of course, the staple of black metal: corpse paint.
It’s hard to place the band in terms of visuals; maybe they are meant to be shocking to some, to provoke, or simply make people talk about them. But mostly it’s part of the “feminist black metal” concept that the band has used as a label for themselves. Artistic expression notwithstanding, the band seems to reflect a time where it’s accepted that the socio-political message is taking the spotlight above the music – see the pro-palestine speech at every show of the band – and while by no means we argue the validity of certain messages, especially in these tumultuous times, perhaps a music festival would showcase bands more for their artistic talent than for what they are talking about. Eventually the show continues through other costume changes and more theatrics, with their obvious witchcraft theme (at some point the drummer Johanna took to the front to focus solely on the vocals, before returning behind the drums), and on some account from the crowd, towards the end they ended up fully naked, wearing only some long black hair wigs.
At that point, we had already left for the neighboring The Terminal to get ready for DØDHEIMSGARD‘s performance. Our third time in less than a year seeing them play “Black Medium Current” in its entirety, it still sounded as fresh and exciting as the first. Leaving aside for a moment the fact that it’s a monumental album, the live aspect itself is always something extra to look forward to, with a frontman like Vicotnik conquering the scene every single time. His way of interacting with his surroundings, with the audience, and how deeply into the performance itself he can get are certainly a huge part of what makes seeing DØDHEIMSGARD worthwhile.
While it would have been great to see once again the show in full, we also wanted to give some well-deserved coverage to this year’s collaboration project between Roadburn and Eindhoven’s Metal Factory music institute: HAATDRAGER. For those who are unfamiliar with this concept, every year for the past three years, the school has organized a programme in which the students end up playing together towards the end of the school year, resulting in a band that will then debut live at the festival. A very nice way to promote and bring out new talents. The seven young musicians create a sound between sludge, underground hip hop, and electronic, turning their rage into music. It was quite refreshing, really, but then again it felt similar to the year before with ONEIROPOREIA, despite the sound of the bands being very, very different. Besides, it’s always nice to see some youngsters giving their all on stage, especially when you know their parents and relatives are watching in the front.
The day was long and full of wonders (the night too). So we couldn’t stay for the whole gig, but had to go to 013 for STEVE VON TILL‘s “Calling Down The Darkness” commissioned show. A collection of solo material – most of which can be now found in his new record “Alone In A World Of Wounds” – and performed as part of a trio including Dave French (drums/keyboard) and Brent Arnold (cello), this set was deeply touching and emotional, reaching even more depth when he sat down at the piano. Of course, Steve is no stranger to Roadburn, and he must have felt right at home with this year’s residency (of which we did miss the other two shows, sadly). He did, in fact, make sure to thank everyone for the opportunity as well as for just being present to see his show. It’s rare to feel somewhat that a performance is still cosy and intimate when the show is on the biggest stage of the festival, but Steve von Till accomplished just that.
We still managed to find ourselves a spot back into the crowded Hall of Fame – this year, honestly, it felt like we had barely even been there at all – to see GREY AURA play their latest effort “Zwart Vierkant: Slotstuk.” A bit disappointed to have just moments earlier learned that PHARAOH OVERLORD was going to have a secret show at the nearby skate park, but one can’t have it all, and we had never seen the Dutch band live. Somehow, the expectations must have been a tad too high, as the gig itself did not feel as exciting as we thought, or at least not fully justifying the amount of sweat and crowd squeeze. Or it might just be the case of a band sounding better on record than live, or a combination of these. In any case, their experimental post-black metal felt a bit misaligned with the direction things had been taking today, musically speaking. Heading back to Poppodium, we found an opening to see a little bit of TRISTWCH Y FENYWOD. With a good amount of luck, as during the weekend it felt like being able to get into the Next Stage room, for nearly any show, was akin to some kind of miracle. This curious British trio performing in Welsh, with its folk sound and strange, traditional instruments such as their use of zithers – along with a more modern MacBook playing recordings like the sound of bats – created a pretty unique and somewhat minimalistic gothic atmosphere that easily captured their audience throughout the gig, focused on their homonymous album.
It was already getting late in the afternoon, and on the Main Stage it was the turn of SUMAC and MOOR MOTHER, showcasing their collaboration as materialized in the form of “The Film.” One of the best things about Roadburn as a whole, at least when it comes to the live aspect, is seeing these artistic collaborations come to life on stage, giving the fans a chance to experience something unique. This was no exception, and the combination of the two in this project felt like a natural part of their musical journey, including the visual aspect as well. It just felt like this clicked in a way that makes total sense.
With a short but much-needed food break on our schedule, we took the luxury for once to wait until the next act on the same stage, ØXN. Murder ballads and Irish folk tales in the distinctive voice of Radie Peat (LANKUM) – and of course Katie Kim as well, in this case – was something we, and many other attendees, were really curious about. This despite the secret TEMPLE FANG show happening at about the same time (another notable secret show we sadly missed later on was that of BO NINGEN, which we still managed to catch on the main stage on the last day). ØXN‘s modern blend of folk, with its synths and a quite minimalistic setup, was a welcome experience to slow things down a bit and catch a breather in an otherwise hectic, and still overcrowded (but not unbearably) day. So was also the short glimpse we saw of MIDWIFE, playing “No Depression In Heaven” aided by THOU, in the more quiet, shoegaze-y form you’ll probably ever get to see them. While not mind-blowing in terms of excitement and things happening on stage, definitely an emotionally charged moment, allowing us to chill briefly before returning to the Next Stage for Japanese psychedelic trio KUUNATIC.
We are always sold when it comes to traditional Japanese instruments, mix that with some trippy rock psychedelia, and definitely you get our attention. The result was a very immersive experience – in a set balanced between the band’s two full-length albums, with melodies flowing together in the mesmerizing atmosphere that the three women on stage weaved together. Thankfully, the next appointment for us was with the nearby Main Stage, without any overlaps, as we easily lost ourselves in this music and almost forgot the time.
With a twist on their more traditional folk, and poppish sound, like in our first and until this festival the only encounter with this band, ALTIN GÜN promised a more psychedelic set, specially crafted for this show. The Dutch-Turkish ensemble is certainly unique in combining contemporary sound with traditional Turkish folk, setting them apart over the years as a force to reckon with in the genre. We certainly enjoyed this transformed version of the band in a more psychedelic way, not just as a continuation from the previous shows of the day, but also as it was somewhat reinvigorating and giving off a really nice vibe, putting the audience in a full 013 in a good mood. That led to some dancing in the crowd, and suddenly there was a contagious party feeling.
Still vibing with that mood, we headed to what eventually turned out to be the wildest, most exciting, eventful, chaotic, purely awesome and incredibly fun show we saw in the entire weekend. Clearly, we were not expecting it to be THAT good, although the expectations were somewhat high when we headed to The Terminal to see PAGENINETYNINE. Oh, how great that was! Back in Europe after a long time – let’s not forget the band re-reunited in 2017 – the Virginia-based 8-piece completely owned the venue with their explosive hardcore punk, this despite being on one of the biggest stages in the festival. The barrier surely didn’t stop Chris Taylor and Blake “Tiny Dancer” Midgette from launching themselves in crowdsurfing on multiple occasions, collecting bruises while losing shoes and who knows what else. There was lots of intense hugging with the crazy excited fans in the first row, and overall the band kept your head spinning round and round, not quite knowing what was going on anymore, just being overwhelmed by the sheer intensity of their performance. These guys know how to party, and they showed it with interest here tonight. We left the venue with an enormous smile on our faces, and since then, there hasn’t been a time, when thinking back about that show, that did not make us smile again. What a gig!
We were still reeling from that when, surprisingly, we managed to squeeze in a few minutes of ORA COGAN on our way to CHAT PILE. It wouldn’t be fair to give an account of a show we saw only a song and a half of, but clearly the Canadian artist is someone we should check out more, being in line with some of the more interesting shows of this day, of course, in its own original way. As for CHAT PILE, while saying all the time how a band like this, much like THOU, thrives in smaller, more intimate and sweaty shows, in direct contact with the audience, we can’t really say that the band does a bad job on a big stage either. They pinned down their audience with yet another intense and loud performance, focused on their sophomore album “Cool World.” More groovy than its predecessor, the record marked another step in the evolution of a band that seems ahead of its time when it comes to creating their particular formula of sludgy, post-noise rock. There was still room for the fan-favorite “Why” – as a recurring Roadburners inner joke – among the set, and all-in-all, the band delivered a really solid show as expected of them, without casting aside a good dose of humor as well.
At this point though we were feeling a tad overcharged and overexcited by all that’s been going on, and really the several hours in between big crowds were getting to us, so we felt like the best way to close the night was an intimate electronic/dark ambient set at the Hall of Fame with Finnish musician KAUKOLAMPI showcasing his talent as a solo artist, ahead of the HAUNTED PLASMA gig on Sunday evening. In the 50 minutes at his disposal Timo Kaukolampi went right to the point, playing some atmospheric tunes from his repertoire with only the occasional raising of his hands to incite the applause of the attentive crowd, definitely not the biggest in this hall, which felt really nice, being able to actually move around with more ease, and dance some at the music. Truly a good finisher for our night.
We did try to catch a little bit of FOUDRE! during their set in the Next Stage, but the place was so packed that we could not get further than the bar, and with the stage completely engulfed in smoke, it was impossible to see anybody on stage in any case. So we tried to get a beer at the Junction instead before the area closed off completely, and inadvertently got a free drink as it turned out that the internet was down when we tried to pay. The troubles of a fully cashless event, I guess, since we could have easily paid in cash (and offered to do so). An accidental win to conclude a very long day full of different emotions, but mostly a really fun one. Strangely enough, even after seeing 15+ bands and running around for the better part of the day, we didn’t feel quite as tired as we should have, and we were still in a very happy mood. Ready to face the final day of the festival, but not quite willing to accept that Roadburn was, in fact, nearing its end once again. Check our photo gallery here…
WITCH CLUB SATAN









































































DØDHEIMSGARD











































HAATDRAGER



































STEVE VON TILL
































GREY AURA




























TRISTWCH Y FENYWOD
















SUMAC & MOOR MOTHER


































ØXN





























MIDWIFE x THOU



















KUUNATIC


























ALTIN GÜN





































PAGENINETYNINE






























































ORA COGAN












































CHAT PILE


































KAUKOLAMPI














