Metal, Hardcore, Indie, Rock
Festival preview: Orgivm Satanicvm brings top-class extreme metal to Oslo on 3–4 January
As the year 2024 is coming to an end, we have decided to take a closer look at one of the first, and in my opinion, the most interesting, festivals of 2025. The appropriately named Orgivm Satanicvm will kickstart the year with a line-up of black and death metal bands of the highest caliber. Arranged in Oslo, Norway, on the first weekend of January, the fourth edition of the festival will bring a total of 10 domestic and international bands to the renowned Parkteatret venue. For this article, I have handpicked three bands per day to present to you.
Friday 3 January
Hellripper
Fans of early Venom, Bathory, and Sodom will be delighted to see that the British blackened speed metal phenomenon Hellripper (performing at Wacken Open Air 2024 in the photo by Sabrina Ramdoyal) returns to Norway for the first time since 2022. With three full-length albums and several smaller releases under their belt, the band has cemented their place as one of the most talented and relentless acts in the genre. While mastermind James McBain plays everything by himself in the studio, the live line-up should be expected to adequately convey the wild energy at the heart of the music.
Inferno
The Czech black metal act Inferno will take the audience to more ritualistic and somber soundscapes. Formed in 1996 and having released eight full-length albums, the band will finally perform in Norway for the first time. When I saw the band earlier this year, their hypnotic and experimental black metal left me in awe as if time had frozen. Inferno is a perfect example of minimalistic music and performance being greater than the sum of their parts. In many ways, the gig reminded me of Batushka but without the Gregorian chanting or the drama. So if that’s your thing, you don’t want to miss this opportunity.
Ruïm
The first festival day is headlined by no other than Aura Noir, Vltimas, and former Mayhem guitarist Rune “Blasphemer” Eriksen and his black metal band Ruïm. Together with drummer CSR, Blasphemer released the first Ruïm album in 2023 to much acclaim. Titled “Black Royal Spiritism – I – O Sina da Igreja”, the album displays top-class progressive black metal and continues where Mayhem’s “The Grand Declaration of War” left off. For Orgivm Satanicvm, the duo has gathered a full live line-up for their first-ever live performance.
Saturday 4 January
Doedsmaghird
The Norwegian act Dødheimsgard has been redefining and expanding the boundaries of black metal since the 1990s, and their previous effort “Black Medium Current” was praised as one of the best albums of 2023. Fans of industrial and avant-garde black metal were recently greeted with yet another masterpiece when mastermind Victonik reinvented the band and released an album under the Doedsmaghird moniker. More hectic, spontaneous, and raw, “Omniverse Consciousness” combines the best of black metal and industrial music in a way I haven’t heard since Mysticum’s 2014 masterpiece “Planet Satan”. Mark your calendars for Doedsmaghird’s first-ever live performance, this will be legendary.
Craft
The Swedish black metal band Craft might not be as well-known as their peers Marduk and Dark Funeral, but their nihilistic art should not be missed. Albums like “Fuck the Universe” (2005) and “White Noise and Black Metal” (2018) are some of the best black metal I have heard from their prolific homeland. The previous two Craft shows I saw were held back by vocalist Nox’s performance, but now that Koldbrann vocalist Mannevond has taken over, their gigs are bound to reach new heights. To add to the impressive list of exclusive and rare performances at Orgivm Satanicvm, this will mark Craft’s first Norwegian show with Mannevond.
Mortuary Drape
The Italian extreme metal legend Mortuary Drape returns to Norway after 10 years. Formed back in 1986, the band has made a name for itself in the underground with an awe-inspiring mixture of black, death, and thrash metal, where old-school guitar melodies meet pure armageddon. Based on the last time I saw them in 2022, we should expect no less than a euphoric and nearly perfect celebration of old-school extreme metal. To add to the anticipation, last year’s magnificent full-length album “Black Mirror” proved the band is still at the top of their game, also on the album front.
Even though these are my most anticipated bands, I recommend checking out the full program. The line-up for the first day is completed by the Norwegian blackened death metal band Order, whose vocalist Messiah and drummer Manheim are known for their input on early Mayhem releases, as well as the debut show of Jørn Tunsberg’s (Hades Almighty, ex-Immortal) band Vathr. On Saturday, the American black/thrash metal quartet Daeva will play their first show outside of their home country, and the Norwegian-Italian black metal entity Darvaza will return to Oslo for the first time since 2023. Check out the poster below and secure your tickets via Ticketmaster.
