Beyond the Gates, one of the best black metal festivals and one of the biggest ones in Norway is finally back in its original form after 2 years of pandemic. The festival brought Bergen’s black metal scene to life from August 2nd to August 6th. The performances take place at three different venues: Kulturhuset Club, USF Verftet, and Grieghallen. There are also plenty of events and DJ sets during the whole festival so attendees can have fun both during the day and at night, regardless of the time.
The third day of Beyond The Gates brought a real black metal vibe with WHOREDOM RIFE’s and ARCHGOAT’s performances. WHOREDOM RIFE had goat heads on the stage and the band were all covered in blood, which evoked associations with classic black metal performances from the ’90s. Although ARCHGOAT didn’t have any heads on stage, the band’s vocalist started the gig by spitting blood. The crowd went crazy, doing crowdsurfing right from the very beginning of their show. After ARCHGOAT, appeared Polish, no-faced band, MGŁA, shrouded in way too much smoke. The band focused on performing songs from the albums „Age of Excuse” and „Exercises in Futility,” but they play also „Mdłości II” and „With Hearts Toward None I.” The day ended with one of the best thrash metal bands from Germany, SODOM.
Photos by Aleksandra Majak
