Iron Firmament started off day two with might. One of my current favorite black metal bands from the PNW, the three-piece from Washington State have been building a solid reputation for themselves. With the recent release of In the Land of Prehuman Kings on WerGild Records, I was really eager to hear some of the newer songs live, as well as some favorite tracks from their last release, Cascadian Tactics.
Their sound has all the common descriptors: raw, atmospheric, Sabbath-style vocals. But above all, they are good songwriters and solid musicians—the real fundamentals that supersede any trivial stylistic labels. Their performance was solid, grounded, and executed with confidence, darkness, and directness. A must-check-out for anyone with an ear to the ground in today’s scene.
Next on the day’s list is Ahna. With a lead vocalist who is also the drummer, they already set themselves apart from most of the performances at this festival. Their sound is heavy, sludgy death metal with drone-like qualities and pummeling drums. At times, while singer Anju Singh was behind the drum kit wailing away with fury, all you could really see was the guitarist and bass player.
Primitive Warfare were another show-stealer. While familiar with their name, I had no idea what to expect. Hearing the genre tag “war metal” used so frequently, I was surprised to find that their music more closely resembled powerviolence and grindcore to my ear, in the vein of Iron Lung as well as Assück.
The drumming in particular was incredibly similar in style to that of Rob Proctor from Assück, which is no easy feat. I was loving the set from start to finish. The two-piece from South Carolina shared vocal responsibilities, interchanging between low guttural vocals and higher-frequency shrieks, accompanied by fierce drumming and, notably, the only band up to this point to address and speak to the audience. Polite gents!
Vancouver Local band Egregore were the only band to feature synth playing at the fest, and it was very tastefully done. The band expressed so many different styles and influences wrapped into one package that it was an impressive array of musicality.
Stampeding solos and melodic leads were interwoven through a dismal black metal foundation with ghastly sparse synth. Looking into them further, the name “Egregore” essentially means a psychic entity born from a group of people. That is just a badass name, and so fitting.
Discovering that their recent release, It Echoes in the Wild, was dropped in 2026 on 20 Buck Spin, I feel like I have a lot more listening to do. A moving and powerful performance for day two, and one to keep in the memory bank until their next return to the stage.
Nearing the end of the day, Volahn, a black metal band from Southern California with lyrical themes about Mayan heritage, tribalism, and mythology, now had command of the stage. Notable icy tremolo lead hooks cut through the low-end, bass-heavy black metal sound. Cinematic musical interludes between songs, paired with a more straightforward approach to songwriting, created what I felt was a good delivery. Strong, bold, and memorable, I’ll be searching out some of their recorded material, as well as checking out some of their affiliated bands through their creative musical ensemble Black Twilight Collective.
As the night drew to a close, the much-anticipated Ruïm initiated the descent into the remainder of the night. With large pitchfork-like stage props on both sides of the stage as well as smoke and murky yet cutting stage lighting, Ruïm anchored theirselves into a powerful presence for their set. Founded by the guitarist from Mayhem, Blasphemer (Rune Eriksen), the project is an continuation from earlier Mayhem material but with a fresh start. The music is angular, cutting, and sometimes mathy feeling. Arpeggios, reverb-laden hooks, and galloping drums created a menacing spectacle of sound and a grandiosity of dark spiritual power. This was a set that holds you captive, rattles you, cleanses you, then sets you free.
