Metal, Hardcore, Indie, Rock
Norwegian black metal trio Witch Club Satan are preparing for a major lineup change. Drummer and vocalist Johanna Holt Kleive says she will step away from the group following its October 30, 2026 concert at Rockefeller in Oslo.
The band’s founding lineup — Kleive, guitarist Nikoline Spjelkavik and bassist Victoria Røising — is also due to perform in Bodø on October 28. For fans hoping to see the original trio, those are the final announced opportunities before Kleive’s departure.
In a personal message shared through the band’s official Instagram account, Kleive reflected on the expressive freedom Witch Club Satan had initially offered her. She described the creative process as intense and said the pressure surrounding the project had become difficult for her personally.
On Friday, I will be standing togetfher with Victoria and Nikoline at Rockefeller for my final concert with Witch Club Satan for the foreseeable future. It is within this space we have created together that we have been allowed to push boundaries to the absolute limit.
We have allowed ourselves to flirt with sides of ourselves and create spaces that can seem extreme. It has been an intense process, and at times I have felt immense shame. Stepping into such a transformation is an intense process.
One might ask what anyone wants with such a brutal and aggressive form of expression. I entered this project because I believed in the constructive anger—that there was something liberating in aggression, a force that could tear down a series of more or less inhumane structures holding us back.
But over time, It feels as if I allowed myself to be swallowed by the darkness. The pressure for me personally, became too heavy to bear. It has cost me dearly, and as with all projects, it can take directions you either like or dislike. Nevertheless, I believe that things should be allowed to live, and in that sense, Witch Club Satan is a brilliant project. It was always meant to be a club where new witches could step up, challenge their own limits, learn an instrument from scratch (as our dearest Hedda did), and experience the joy of expressing themselves on stage.
I care very little about idolization. Creating belongs to the the people. Giving more people a voice, and a platform, is something I believe creates a healthy humanity. We have given thousands of people a feeling that anything is possible, that they can live out who they are without asking for permission.
We wanted to give others the freedom we ourselves have longed for. I do no longer feel that freedom, so I am taking a step back to rediscover the joy of why I create. But I am hugely looking forward to playing an insane concert with the two others first. I promise to blast beats like never before.
The wording leaves open the possibility of future changes: no permanent replacement or timetable for Witch Club Satan‘s next lineup has been confirmed. Kleive described the Oslo appearance as her last with the band “for the foreseeable future,” rather than announcing a permanent retirement from music.
Founded as a performance-art project before developing into a black metal band, Witch Club Satan released its self-titled debut album in 2024. The group’s most recent activities have included the video for “The Kids Will Kill Us”.
