Written by:	Auntie Sahar, X-Ray Rod
Published:	May 30, 2016
Event:	Roadburn Festival 2016 (Website)
Location:	013, Tilburg, The Netherlands
Galleries:	Roadburn 2016, Day 4 by Auntie Sahar (25) Roadburn 2016, Day 3 by Auntie Sahar (33) Roadburn 2016, Day 2 by Auntie Sahar (54) Roadburn 2016, Day 1 by Auntie Sahar (39)

Che: On the second-to-last day of this year's Roadburn Festival, as with the 2015 edition, the weather went South. Cold rain and winds greeted Rod, Zaphod, and I as we departed Marcel's house on that Saturday morning. But hey, since when has bad weather stopped trve metallers? Never, in my book. It was time for the next chapter, even if a little wet and shivery!

Rod: It was the last day for the "regular Roadburners!" I woke up with a far greater energy than the previous days, as the ride home was far better than the cab disaster during the first day. On the festival's Friday I didn't see as many bands as I wanted due to sheer exhaustion, so this day was the day I was going to rectify my previous mistake. Bagel and juice (breakfast of kings) fueled the tank and we were ready to go.

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Skepticism

Che: The Roadburn Saturday kicked off with a real treat: a fan-picked set from these Finnish godfathers of funeral doom. While not necessarily my favorite of funeral doom bands (hi there, Bell Witch!), I was nonetheless excited to check out this set, as I couldn't pass off a demonstration of this style's excellence from the masters themselves. After the guys and I made our way into the Main Stage, which was surprisingly empty even 5 minutes before set time, dim lights soon greeted us as all members came onstage in majestic, almost funeral-like dress (fitting, right?). Frontman Matti Tilaeus came in carrying white roses, which he slowly laid one by one across the front of the stage to set the poignant, melancholic tone of the music to come. As the set was fan-picked, most of the band's set unsurprisingly consisted of songs from their legendary first album, Stormcrowfleet. This was funeral doom not of an evil, desolate variety, but of a more sad, "let me hold you" type approach, the kind that can almost bring tears if you're getting enough into it. After a truly engaging set, I left the Main Stage knowing that I had to explore this band's discography more.

Rod: I was astonished to see Skepticism not gathering enough crowd at the Main Stage by the time the guys and I came along. Come on, it's fucking Skepticism! One of the fathers of funeral doom! Maybe I'm overestimating their presence, but it was definitely a big deal for me. Skepticism played a set made by the fans who voted in an online poll for their favorite songs. Naturally their groundbreaking debut, Stormcrowfleet, overrepresented their set with three songs, but I also recognized songs from Lead And Aether as well as from Farmakon. Slowly the crowd got bigger, but never reached even close to full capacity, which was fine for me at the end of the day. Once the stage got pitch black, the band slowly marched to greet the public. All members, especially the vocalist and organist, were sharply dressed in full "funeral" attire. As the vocalist started to slowly put white roses around the stage, the atmosphere was perfectly set and the concert kicked off with the grand "Sign Of A Storm."

To me, funeral doom bands can often be separated into two groups. There are the bands that make unbelievably crushing music that sends you mercilessly towards your inevitable doom? but Skepticism don't march that way. Their music and their show displayed a far more elegant and emotional tone. Instead of being pushed towards the inescapable void that is death, Skepticism's music slowly and gently caress you towards your tomb so that you may rest in peace. Far from oppressive, yet always melancholic and solemn. Personal highlight: Once their set was over, Matti (vocalist) started throwing the flowers and I caught one! It's currently in my apartment as decoration (I dried it).

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Chaos Ech?s

Che: After the elegant sadness of Skepticism, it was time for one of my most anticipated sets of the festival: Chaos Ech?s. This band wowed me last year with their Transient "debut," and this set (the first of two!) was an opportunity to see them bring it to life in full, in Roadburn's tiny new Extase venue. Making sure I secured a good spot for these French death metallers/doomers/whatever else-ers, I stood at the front of the stage, crowd slowly but surely enlarging, and with my curiosity reaching a boiling point. Eventually six members came onstage, which is only testament the scope of this band's complex, multifaceted sound. Suffice it to say, one really gains more of an appreciation for just how much is really going on on Transient instrumentation-wise when seeing it brought to life live. From the drummer getting seriously jazzy and hitting a cowbell-looking thing for eerie percussive effect, the bassist hitting harmonics, or the guitarists locking into twin melodies with each other, this was a stunning performance from start to finish. Heavy as hell at some points, dark and meditative at others, it only solidified the immense love and respect I've come to have for this band. If you're a fan of any form of experimental or improvisational music, you'd be doing yourself a disservice by not investigating this band.

Rod: As I decided to see Skepticism's set in full, I knew it was going to be troublesome to get a spot for Chaos Ech?s. These French virtuosos played their first of two sets at the Extase, which was the newest addition to Roadburn's stage menu. Extase has the unfortunate shape of a bottleneck, as the entry/exit is barely wide enough for two people shoulder-to-shoulder. As you can imagine, getting in can be bitch if you are late! But as the crowd was getting bigger and the stage hotter than hell, a few people started getting out and thus gave me a decent spot in the middle where I could at least have enough room to breathe and take off my jacket. For their first set, Chaos Ech?s played their incredible, Metalstorm Awards nominee and staff picked debut, Transient. The sounds that swept through the audience were simply out of this world. With incredible and sharp improvisations, Chaos Ech?s walked through the reams of death, doom, drone and ambient like no others. The dissonant and twisted riffs mixed with an unpredictable drumming accentuated the mind-altering and ritualistic vibe the band was going for. All six members (3 guitars, bass, drums and synths) had a transcendental communication with each other throughout the set which left the audience with their jaws all the way down to the center of the earth. All kinds of hypnotic and intense, the hour passed me by without registering that it was over even though everyone had already stopped clapping. I certainly threw most of my wallet to their faces once I regained my senses!

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Misþyrming

Che: After being left in a daze from Chaos Ech?s, I took a little time out from seeing bands to interview some Oranssi Pazuzu guys, who were loads of fun to talk to. But then it was time to turn things up a notch in the Green Room with the cold fury of Icelandic black metallers Misþyrming (I still have no clue how you're supposed to say that). This band had been chosen as Roadburn's "Artist In Residence" for this year, as Rod explains below in greater detail. On this Saturday, the third and final day they performed, Misþyrming brought their well-praised Söngvar Elds Og Óreiðu debut to an eager audience. Dressed in more "traditional" black metal garm than some other bands I had seen thus far at the festival (corpse paint, spikes, bullet belts), all members came onstage and simply raged out from there. The brand of black metal employed was aggressive and mean, but also pleasantly melodic at points, albeit from a more dark, mysterious direction. The best comparison would be to Leviathan, not in terms of sound, but in the sense of the music being predominantly furious and uncompromising, but also seeming to have a more peculiar, otherworldly underbelly lurking beneath it. I like to say a lot that Icelandic black metal at the moment is almost something of a reflection of the Icelandic landscape itself: desolate and forsaken, yet also strangely beautiful in its own unique way, and Misþyrming demonstrated this excellently with this set.

Rod: Besides choosing a curator, Roadburn festival also selects a so called "Artist In Residence" for each year. This means that said artist(s) will be able to perform in all the first three days, presenting different sets or even different bands they are involved with. Usually this honor has been given to seasoned bands, but this year it was different as Misþyrming, formed in 2013, was the band chosen. On the first day, these Icelanders played a set consisting of only new material from their upcoming album. Friday gave us Úlfsmessa, a collaboration day in which the bands Naðra, Grafir and NYIÞ played along with Misþyrming in a 90 minute ritual. I didn't see either of the two sets, but I felt like I had to see these guys at least once before forming a full opinion. This third and last day of their stay was going to focus on their debut, Söngvar Elds Og Óreiðu, which was going to be played in full. Once they came to the stages, wearing what basically looked like "burn and ashes paint," one thing struck me: these guys are so young. Half the band is around my age, and I'm even older than the frontman! Damn, talk about an impressive CV. The title of their debut translates to "Songs Of Fire And Chaos" which is pretty on point with what Misþyrming presented us: chaotic, aggressive, dissonant, yet at times oddly melodic black metal in a stage that at the time felt hotter than a volcano. Just the stage presence of these guys was enough for to demand your attention, especially from the frontman. I must say that I feel conflicted with these guys. I enjoy them on album and I certainly did have a great time seeing them? but I just don't get the hype. These guys are good, damn good for being a new band? but I'm just not seeing the X factor I guess.

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Converge

Rod: Curiosity came knocking and I quickly went up to the higher section of the Main stage. Converge were going to play a very different set consisting of their slower, heavier and more atmospheric songs, rather than the aggressive metalcore they're more known for. I always approve of bands that dare to go outside their regular activities and was eager to see some of the guests who were going to perform along Converge. I must admit that I'm not too familiar with their discography besides the classic Jane Doe and their last two albums. This is probably why I was all the more excited to hear "Cruel Bloom" and "Wretched World," which are the last two songs of their 2009 album Axe To Fall. To my delight, these songs were played beautifully. The legendary Steve Von Till, from Neurosis fame, came along to add his smoky, bluesy cleans along with his thunderous roars. Chelsea Wolfe, owner of a delicate, foreboding, yet gorgeous voice, was a perfect complement to SVT's harsher performance. I wished for SVT to stay for longer than just one song, but then "Wretched World" started and I couldn't care less about anything else anymore. It's simply the most beautiful and melancholic song I've heard from these guys and overall in my musical journey. Chelsea Wolfe added so much in this song that I got misty eyes and a lump in my throat just by seeing it happening in front of me. This video does not do it justice but you guys can at least get an idea of how great this collaboration was.

Own my damage, own my scars
They paint a broken life's shattered art
And time won't turn my wretched world?

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Dead To A Dying World

Rod: I went to the balcony section of the Green Room only to find there was not much room there for me to see the band directly. Fortunately for me the control room with all the screens for the different cameras was right next to me. Watching Dead To A Dying World was almost like watching a football match with all the different camera angles in front of me! This massive seven-headed collective came all the way from the U.S. to present their eclectic style of extreme metal. Three guitarists, one bassist, one viola, plus a man and a woman handling the vocals... it's a lot to take in, eh? Well, so is their style. Dead To A Dying World feel for the most part doom based, but they clearly draw inspiration from death, sludge, black, and gothic metal elements as well. Both vocalists provided clean vocals as well as growls, and high-pitch black metal shrieking. The dynamic in terms of voices was impressive to say the least, as the different choice of voices did not feel forced. The musicianship of the rest of the band was impeccable and the long songs totally justified their lengths. The riffs and drumming were crushing while the leads and clean passages were beautifully accompanied by the elegant sound of the viola. I only have one tiny complaint which is not a real complaint at the end of the day: the songs are long and the vocalists aren't always singing, so there were some very awkward moments where the dude and dudette just stood there looking around or sitting down on the floor with a beer in hand. It kind of breaks the music's spell if you watch them just laying around while the rest of the band is rocking out, you know? They might be in need of a bit of stage presence when they are not singing. When performing however, they were great, especially the female singer who provided the harrowing black metal shrieks.

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Amenra

Rod: I must admit that I wasn't too sure about Amenra's first acoustic set. I knew I loved their abrasive style of post metal, but I feared their acoustic tunes were going to feel like long intros that didn't go anywhere. I entered the stage around 10 minutes after they started, and I knew right away that I was going to eat my words with shame. But that's ok, Amenra are a forgiving and caring bunch of musicians judging by their acoustic interpretations. Naked and fragile. Those could be the better descriptions for what I witnessed. All members sat forming a circle, and looked down as if an imaginary fire was keeping them warm. The songs played were for the most part acoustic interpretations of previous, otherwise metal Amenra songs, while other song were exclusively acoustic. The addition of violin and delicate female vocals made the songs even more touching, and pulled my heartstrings all the way. The music juxtaposed with visuals of vast and empty landscapes enhanced the feelings of solitude. Only the heartless wouldn't be moved by this emotional set.

[url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzuf_jDMabg&t=25m50s ]All the prayers in the world won't bring me back
But I know that I'll be safe inside your heart
There will be sinners, there will be saints that cross your path
But don't lose heart now, love? you'll be alright[/url]

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ATOMIKYLÄ

Che: After just hanging around the festival grounds buying food and merch for a few hours after Misþyrming, I was then off to get the brainmelt going with the psychonautic force that is Atomikylä. Roadburn went for the full blown meal of Finnish psychedelic metal this year in booking Oranssi Pazuzu, Dark Buddha Rising, and Atomikylä, a collaborative band composed of members from both Oranssi and DBR. With Oranssi performing on Thursday, and DBR on Friday, it was now time to close things out with Round 3 of this transdimensional package.

Once again cramming into the tiny Extase, Atomikylä unleashed their heavy, doomy, but nonetheless trippy and relaxing approach onto the crowd. The band is essentially composed of Vesa (guitars/vocals) and Jukka (drums) from Dark Buddha Rising, and Jun-His (guitars/vocals) and Ontto (bass) from Oranssi Pazuzu. Live you really get an excellent idea of just how well these four work together, and the megaton of sound that they've been conjuring lately from their "Wastement" rehearsal space in Tampere, Finland. The unison between trippy and heavy that this collaboration generates also feels a lot more natural live. The more psychedelic moments of the band's set were like floating on a cloud, and there were many people in the crowd (self included) who were literally dancing along to some of these more relaxing melodies. But when it got heavy, more embracing of DBR's drone doom type approach, with some neckbanging riffs topped off by the shrieks of Vesa and Jun-His, I was in need of my oxygen tank. This was a highlight of the day for sure, and a fantastic end to the trippy Finnish package that Roadburn went big with by booking all three bands.

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Neurosis

Che: After getting worn out by the surprisingly crushing Atomikylä set, I wasn't in much of a mood to do anything, but I changed that opinion quickly and decided I might as well check out some of Neurosis' 30th Anniversary set in the Main Stage. I don't not like this band, I'm just not intimately familiar with their discography, having only listened to two albums thus far. So I spent much of this set wandering in and out of the Main Stage, for 10-15 minute glimpses here and there. Neurosis are definitely quality music, but I've found that I have to be pretty damn crazy about a band to actually want to stand around watching them for 2 hours. And I always prefer to watch bands whose material I know like the back of my hand, because why not? It's always easier to get into something when you actually recognize what's being played.

What I did glimpse of Neurosis, however, was pretty damn savage, Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till especially rocking out like madmen and delivering their trademark, fearsome snarls over thundering bass, pounding drums, and interesting industrial-type noise effects.As I'm not familiar with all their material just yet, I didn't really distinguish one song over another all that much. But I did recognize the "DON'T CRAWL, SEEK HIS BURN OF WAR!" of "Through Silver And Blood" when it reared its head, said song being a total banger. All in all, what I glimpsed of this was an oppressively heavy end to the evening, that firmly convinced me, as with Skepticism, that I need to explore more of this band's discography.

Rod: After Amenra, I managed to take a spot in the second row close to the center and stayed there like a true camper. This gave me plenty of time to reflect on the upcoming event I was about to witness. Neurosis are a band I hold close to my heart for a number of reasons. I discovered them in my teenager years with Given To The Rising and I was hooked immediately by their complex style and deep philosophy hidden in their often abstract lyrics. Reinforcement of the will and the ability to carry on through life's ups and downs. That is what their hard-hitting music means to me, among other things. I was waiting patiently as the stage was getting darker and the crowd bigger when a question was asked: Are you lost?. And thus it began. The bass lines of "Lost" from Enemy Of The Sun cut deep through the minds of the public, screaming in excitement. It was a valid question further developed by the rest of the sample questioning our perception of time within our all too short lives and yet, it all seems limitless? The man asked once again: Are you lost? and I found myself screaming at the top of my lungs, along many others in the audience: YES, I AM!

What came next were two hours of Neurosis celebrating their 30 year anniversary of their vast career. They covered from their late 80s hardcore punk era to their newer post-metal rituals of self-discovery. Songs like "Times Of Grace" and "Water Is Not Enough" blasted through with a violence and apocalyptic vibe only these fathers of the genre are capable of. All three vocalists (Scott Kelly, Steve Von Till and Dave Edwardson) summoned a maelstrom of painful screams and roars that hit harder than an earthquake. Along with the storm came Jason Roeder's imposing drumming and Noah Landis' layers of chaotic noise (well mixed with his erratic playing style!). On the other hand, the hardcore punk numbers (some of them had not been played in over two decades) surprised the audience with a shot of adrenaline that managed to get the crowd moving and losing control. As the crushing yet vitalizing songs ended, a silence and pitch darkness engulfed the stage and moments later the tribal drums made their march unmissable: "Through Silver In Blood," the band's crowning achievement in my not-so-humble opinion, hit harder than a jackhammer and proved why they are still masters of their craft. Hypnotic and primal. I was almost begging for everything to stop at this point as both my mind and body became just a shell of what they once were. The tribal drums finished their fiery dance but it was not over just yet, as the bells of tranquility began to sing their last song, "Stones From The Sky." We could hear the sky crack open and collapse under our heads when the riffs started to lose their structure and only noise was left? a peace was found within the abyss.

Set list:
Lost (From Enemy Of The Sun)
Times Of Grace (From Times Of Grace)
Water Is Not Enough (From Given To The Rising)
To What End? (From The Word As Law)
Left To Wander (From The Eye Of Every Storm)
At The Well (From Honor Found In Decay)
Takeahnase (From Souls At Zero)
Self-Taught Infection (From Pain Of Mind)
Day Of The Lords (Joy Division Cover)
An Offering (From Sovereign)
Through Silver In Blood (From Through Silver In Blood)
Stones From The Sky (From A Sun That Never Sets)

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Outro

Che: This day at Roadburn seemed to be all about the heavy, albeit in different forms. Skepticism were emotionally heavy, Neurosis and Atomikylä were riff heavy, and Chaos Ech?s and Misþyrming were heavy in terms of the sheer darkness and mystery they brought to their respective stages. As this strange Dutch festival demonstrated with this day, there are many different ways to interpret "heavy," and it's not always about speed or crushing riffs.

Rod: At the end of the day, I'm pretty sure this was my favorite day of the festival. The first and last two bands of the day blew me away. Many of the sets were unique in their own way, either by playing full albums, fan-picked sets, acoustic offerings or exploring their discography. It goes to show how much the bands care for this festival and want to make it as special as possible? And special it was indeed.


Three down, and one to go. Check out the Day 3 Gallery while you eagerly anticipate the final installation