I took advantage of the good weather by spending the morning strolling along the Oslofjord and then exploring the museum in the Midgard Viking Centre before heading into the festival site where I caught the Viking battle.

Then I tentatively headed into the Gildehallen for Smertekirken which was made up of the two founders of the Church of Pain  (June Bonsaksen and Alan Belardinelli) alongside Visobel Black and Morten the Maniac .

I didn’t really know what to expect other than a ‘pain ritual’, and when the four artists took to the stage there was a warning that the ritual would include suspension from body hooks and blood, with advice on what to do should you feel faint.

There was an opening stone ritual followed by one of the artists being attached to a suspension rig by hooks which had been strategically placed through skin on her chest, back and legs, before being hoisted into the air, with her entire body weight pulling through those body hooks.

More weight was added while Visobel Black performed an ambient accompaniment with her violin. One by one the artists then removed large pins which had been inserted through their foreheads, allowing the blood to drip onto a canvas creating a piece of alternative artwork.

Finally, the suspended artist was lowered to the floor and her forehead pins were removed adding to the bloody canvas. The performance was closed with a further stone ritual including members of the audience.

This was definitely different, and was not comfortable viewing (although I doubt it is supposed to be) but it was intriguing and there felt to be a connection between the performers and those in the crowd who had developed a connection. Powerful stuff.

Next up were Gangar who were described to me as “AC/DC played with a Hardanger fiddle” by a friend before they took to the stage.

The band were energetic as they ran around delivering their Nordic folk-rock, with the fiddle and saxophone predominant in the mix.

There were a variety of influences evident in their tunes, not least the previously mentioned AC/DC, of course, but also jazz, soul and maybe even djent which soon had the crowd dancing to the upbeat, infectious melodies.

By contrast, Eternity took to the Kaupangr stage a few minutes later and delivered a relentless, no frills set of Norwegian black metal.

Opening with ‘Sun of Hate’, the sound was dense, almost impenetrable, creating the perfect atmosphere as wave after wave of black metal crashed over the hordes at the front. As much as I enjoy the variety of styles Midgardsblot has to offer each year, black metal is where my heart lies and this set was exactly what was called for at this point.

I was impressed and hope to be able to catch Eternity again before too long.

A headliner size crowd had gathered back at the main stage with an air of expectation for Skáld, who have been generating a lot of interest and very positive reviews recently with their version of Nordic folk.

Big wooden frames (holding some of the percussion) and energetic drummers dominated the stage while traditional Nordic instruments were used elsewhere to generate hypnotic rhythms and mesmerising melodies.

These combined perfectly with enchanting vocals to create an utterly captivating performance to a rapturous response from the crowd with loud cheers and plenty of “expressive dancing”.

Based on this performance, I fully expect Skáld to be headlining this festival within a year or two.

This was followed by some heathen dark folk courtesy of the immense Vévaki on the Kaupangr stage.

Traditional instruments and enchanting vocals were once more to the fore as hypnotic, pulsating rhythms swirled around the Kaupangr area.

There was also an additional visual element with the band members’ impressive tattoos proudly on display.

The crowd were soon completely immersed and were pulled into Vévaki’s world, and I was privileged to have witnessed their ritual.

Einherjer were up next on the main stage playing the first of two sets at this year’s Midgardsblot, celebrating 30 years of their Nordic metal.

Both sets were highly anticipated with a mixture of classics and deep cuts having been promised.

Live favourite ‘The Blood and the Iron’ came early on and was followed shortly after by live rarity ‘Aurora Borealis’ which stirred up a Viking moshpit, complete with re-enactors in their armour in the pit.

‘Av Oss, For Oss’ was another highlight for me as the Nordmenn delivered a headline worthy performance. I can’t think of a better setting for Einherjer to be celebrating their anniversary.

Having been very impressed with their two albums, Black Braid were on my “must see” list and I was not alone as a big crowd gathered in the rain expectantly in front of the Kaupangr stage to witness the Indigenous black metal assault.

The stage was thick with smoke and red lights, meaning the band were mostly only visible as silhouettes as they unleashed their feral black metal, reminiscent of Mutilated Tyrant. I was not disappointed and the material was even more powerful live than the studio recordings.

This was an absolutely ferocious performance which may well have been the performance of the festival. They have just been announced for the Fortress Festival in the UK and I cannot wait to experience them live again.

The day was brought to a close by Týr and their powerful brand of Faroese folk metal anthems. Opening with ‘Blood of Heroes’ was a statement of intent as the enthusiastic crowd sang every word back to the band. ‘Hail to the Hammer’ kept the momentum going as did ‘By the Sword in My Hand’ and ‘Hold the Heathen Hammer High’.

Their rousing anthems were upbeat and the crowd were in good spirits, jumping, dancing and singing along as the band delivered a perfect headline set for the Friday night at the festival. It had been another great day and I couldn’t wait for the final part.

Review and Photos: Andy Pountney
@shot_in_the_dark_photography2

Part 4