ArcTanGent Festival 2025: The Review – Friday

Hailing from the northern reaches of Norway and in the UK for the first time, Heave Blood And Die are a long way from home, especially with the mercury now approaching 30 degrees. But as the Tromsø quintet lurch into ‘Dog Days’, ‘Hits’ and ‘Stress City’, it feels like they’re already well acquainted with the experimental post punk scene the UK harbours. Offering an aggressive, synth speckle take on the genre that borrows the slightest few hints from noise and post rock, Heave Blood And Die wonderfully counteract the notion that post punk is inherently a stagnate genre reserved for the creatively redundant middle class, especially with their sound being chilly in delivery and ardently anti capitalist in message. They may suffer from some minor feedback issued – endearingly attributed to “too much rock in the guitar” – and be performing to a relatively modest crowd, but given the reaction, Heave Blood and Die are set to be band requested to return to Fernhill farm in the coming years. – DH

In regards to EYES across site, with this being just their second UK performance (the first being sister festival 2000 Trees) this was one of the most highly anticipated sets of the weekend even though a brutal clash with legend Emma Ruth Rundle meant some had to make a disheartening choice between a quiet cry or a disembowelling here. But would the Danish skull crackers deliver? Careening through banger after banger from their last three records, including this year’s highly rated Spinner, they certainly did. Frontman Victor Kaas leading the charge with his brutal yet tongue in cheek performance. Convulsing and contorting whilst spitting bile like lines. Their energy and captivating execution is unmatched by most bands, and arguably the set of the weekend. – AV

Following EYES turning the PX3 into the Fernhill Farm Fight Club, it’s time for some returning festival heroes on the Yohkai. With their name now pretty much synonymous with ArcTanGent, Alpha Male Tea Party get the heroes welcome they deserve as they walk onto the stage to Metallica’s ‘Frantic’, that snare rolling across the hills for miles. Performing content from their upcoming record Reptilian Brain, today’s sees the band incorporating vocals into their set for the first time at ATG. “We’ve sold out” pipes Tom Peters on the subject, and despite a single boo from some punter (there’s always one) no one here seems to mind. Instead, the bands newfound addition of vocals only compliments their flexible sound and their sense of humour which has also shined despite their previously instrumental approach. Or course through, it’s the older hits that get the biggest reaction, the thuggish breakdown of ‘Don’t You Know Who I Am’ going down an absolute perch here today. – DH

Up next on the PX3, a band that could possibly be dubbed as Depeche Mode for the ArcTanGent demographic. Sounding akin to Fange playing the sultry electronic hits after a popper or two, Paris’ Sure seem like a booking for those demanding more electronic acts at this festival. That doesn’t make them a token act though. Pulsating, pulsing and dare say gyrating with all the erotic swagger associated with acts like Health and Tayne, Sure are legitimately fantastic to watch, especially with their hardened edge complimenting their mostly electronic sound. They might not playing to the biggest crowd this weekend, but with the PX3 host to some serious shapes being pulled, this is certainly a band everyone in this tent are saying yes to. – DH

With their unique mix of ferocious and emotional sounds, Japanese sextet Envy bring a brutal and explorative energy to their Arctangent debut. Utilising a trio of guitarists, Envy draw on acts as diverse as Sigur Rós, Converge and Thursday, creating walls of blast beat fuelled noise amplified by clashing clean and distorted riffs. Despite singing in a language most of the Arctangent crowd are unlikely to understand frontman Tetsuya Fukagawa shows an uncanny ability to keep a large audience transfixed with expressive, flowing movements conducting the other band members and vocals which range from rapid, impassioned spoken word to a lilting croon and a demented screech. Throughout their 45 minutes on stage Envy teach a masterclass in passionate, varied post-hardcore. – TB

Photo Credit:

Abbi Draper (abbidraperphoto)

Back in the Yohkai, Andrew ‘Falco’ Falkous and drummer Jack Egglestone report for double duty this weekend with a rare(ish) appearance with Future Of The Left alongside their partners in noise rock crimes, Julia Ruzicka and Ian Catskilkin on top of their stellar set as mclusky. And this is a welcome return for the angular sounding quartet. Churning through their expansive back catalogue including all the top ten hits, ‘Arming Eritrea’, ‘Manchasm’ and ‘Robocop 4 – Fuck off Robocop’ it is hard to disappoint when they have written some of the highly celebrated records of the last century or more. – AV

Back within the Bixler, We Lost The Sea sound absolutely mesmeric as they perform Departure Songs in full. It’s clear that everyone here knows every intricacy of this album, but this set almost feels like everyone is hearing it again for the first time as a collective. Truly, it’s a magical experience, one heavy with emotion that feels almost tangible. As haunting natures of ‘A Gallant Gentleman and ‘Bogatyri’ lead into the patience and payoff of ‘The Last Dive of David Shaw’ before the monolithic ‘Challenger’, everyone is fully lost within this set, even with the summer rays shining through the canopy of the tent. Given the sheet amount of anticipation and excitement surrounding this performance, one would have been forgiven in silently assuming that this would not live up the lofty exceptions surrounding it. However, this set has been nothing but a total triumph – this is a set and wonderful and emotional as the lives and deaths of the people that this album and it’s play-though pay tribute to. – DH

Giving the fans one last chance, Danish space-pop innovators Mew bring out their show for one last festival set on ArcTanGent’s main stage before calling it a day later this year. Opening their set with +- era track ‘Rows’, the Copenhagen five-piece proceed to storm through their almost 3 decades of hits, endlessly shifting from Coldplay style stadium pop to Radiohead-esque experimental indie all the way to Mogwai inspired post-rock. Propelled forwards by frontman Jonas Bjerre’s powerful falsetto vocals, the quintet present an hour-long history of their extensive back catalogue complete with impressively dynamic, often surreal visuals. Closing out on their 2003 hit ‘Comforting Sounds’, Mew offer a fitting sendoff to one of the most unique voices in modern pop. – TB

Much akin to Alpha Male Tea Party, Maybeshewill are by no means strangers to this festival. And much like their aforementioned Yohkai stage-mates, this performance see’s the Leicester post rock icons playing in a few form. A 20^th anniversary celebration that see’s the band joined by a stringed assembly composed of A.A. Williams, Sophie Green and Beni Weedon, here tonight, the band perform what genuinely may be the unparalleled Maybeshewill experience. Between the stringed trio adding even more textural emotion to setlist staples such as ‘Red Paper Lanterns’ ‘Zarah’, ‘Not for Want Of Trying’ and Maybeshewill airing extremely rare performances of ‘I’m In Awe, Amadeus! and ‘Last Time This Year’ (last performed in 2013 and 2010 respectfully) this stage closing performance feels much like a treat for both the band as it does for the thousands of fans filling the tent to it’s capacity. Legitimately, this is by far the best performance Maybeshewill has ever treated ArcTanGent to. If this is anything to go by, their full anniversary celebration in London come November is not to be missed. – DH

Photo Credit:

Jez Pennington (@JezPennington)

When Karnivool were first announced to headline this festival one might remember a touch of animosity. Some claimed they weren’t large enough. Some claimed their day in the sun was long over. Some joker online even questioned ‘who?’. They’re all probably feeling awfully silly right now mind you. With the audience spilling out from the main stage tent and with the band possessing a new album under their belts, a new live set and seemingly a new zest for performing, Karnivool are back and sounding better than ever. Opening with their new single ‘Drone’ prior to dropping into the career defining hits that are ‘Goliath’, ‘Simple Boy’ and ‘C.O.T.E’, the Aussie prog group sound quite simply huge.

Displaying a level of bold showmanship that’s stereotypically at odds with what is expected from progressive rock, the band come across like icons tonight, a sentiment most obviously shared and indulged by all those under the canopy of the main stage this evening. If anything, as the band lead through triumphant renditions of ‘Deadman’, ‘Themata’ and the colossal ‘Roquefort’, this headline performance comes to be a reaffirmation of the band’s talent and ability to lead crowds of this size. Yes, Karnivool may a band most typically associated with the prog scene of the 2010’s, but it’s crystal that they certainly do not perceive themselves as an entity trapped within a moment of a genre that has now passed. In fact, with the performance new material sounding spirited, inspired and most notably hefty, it appears Karnivool are on the cusp of once again becoming one of the most celebrated names in a genre they originally steered come the release of their new record.

Ultimately, as the band close the evening with a version of ‘New Day’ that see’s the audience being louder than the band itself, it has to be remembered that patience is a virtue when it comes to Karnivool. The band may have been somewhat absent from the scene and our lips in recent years, but if this headline set is anything to go by, that is most certainly to change. The ‘Vool are well and truly back. – DH