More metal than Scrapheap Challenge - yes, it's Paganfest. Faye Coulman enjoys every minute.
Fuelled by a merry mix of ale and friendly banter, a distinctly tribal air of camaraderie is looming large among Paganfest’s greasepaint-smeared followers. All manner of makeshift warriors, wenches and pirates cluster eagerly about the stage as Russian maestros Arkona raise already giddy spirits with alternately bludgeoning and melodic anthems.
Awash with black and red paint, Viking enthusiasts Varg could, at first glance, be mistaken for teen metaller favourites Turisas. Refreshingly, this fleeting likeness extends no further than appearances and the unholy assault that follows is one of bicep-flexing, blackened proportions. Laced with tales of ale-quaffing, the Germans’ savage UK debut garners instant approval from the crowd as a multitude of plastic vessels are raised to a toast of “Hail Varg!” Fresh cuts from 2010’s ‘Blutaar’ span a vast spectrum of rapid-fire guitars and menacingly deliberate bridges, reminding listeners precisely why the band boasts a namesake meaning wolf in Norwegian.
Armed with only percussion and a single violin, Dornenrich are wondrously reminiscent of a scene from Anne Rice’s Queen Of The Damned, as Thomas Riesner wields his bow at warp speed. Punctuated by explosive blastbeats, these dirge-like masterpieces should give neoclassical giants Apocalyptica plenty of reasons to start worrying. Soon joined by an equally seasoned guitarist, the trio exhibit a host of orchestral, thrash and death metal trappings, tinged with My Dying Bride’s doom-laden elegance. Bathed in a sheet of blinding strobes, the violin is reduced to little more than a spectral blur, its sumptuous notes soaring above a wall of percussive brutality.
Perhaps the finest ensemble ever to grace the folk metal genre, Eluveitie unleash a dynamic performance peppered with new material from the groundbreaking ‘Everything Remains As It Never Was.’ Replete with fiddles, tin whistles, bagpipes and hurdy gurdies, the Swiss eight-piece are nothing short of otherworldly. Opening on a spellbinding violin solo, ‘Quoth The Raven’ unites gothic ambience with face-melting aggression. Though sometimes muted by a mass of guitars, songstress Anna Murphy delivers a superb performance, capturing gloom and sweetness in equal measure. An extravagant call to arms, ‘(Do)minion’ is crammed with cavernous grooves and whistle solos. As evidenced by a sizeable proportion of jigging metallers, fan favourite ‘Inis Mona’ is enthusiastically lapped up, bringing Eluveitie’s regrettably brief set to an exhilarating climax.
Having taken a cleverly carnivalesque turn of late, eccentric Scandinavians Finntroll showcase old school aggression infused with Danny Elfman-tinged bombast. Forged from a feverish momentum, ‘Under Bergets Rot’ is a sonic roller coaster of Halloweenish effects and rabid vocals. At the heart of this monstrous cabaret lurks an unmistakably black metal tone, supplying some much-needed adrenalin alongside a whirligig-like flurry of keys. The infamous ‘Trollhammaren’ is met with an inevitable roar of appreciation as its high-octane hooks accelerate toward a blistering mid-section.
Despite a diverse selection of ancient and avant-garde effects, the band’s reliance on exclusively electronic ornamentation produces occasionally stilted, overly synthetic results. However, were it not for Eluveitie's previous, instrumentally authentic show, these apparent shortcomings may have gone unnoticed. Nevertheless, the Trolls turn out a razor-sharp performance packed with a procession of quirky, uncompromisingly ferocious highlights.
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