The lineup for SonicBlast Fest 2026 was already killer. The story here is of it becoming more so. Voivod will have that effect on a bill, never mind 1000mods or Elephant Tree or Deathchant or Madmess, Mephistofeles, Teen Mortgage or Trash Talk. There was a lot to like before. Now there’s more to like.

I could go on and on, but that’s pretty much the story of it, and among the various assemblages around Europe this summer — June brings Freak Valley, July brings Stoned From the Underground, and there are multitudes more — SonicBlast continues to distinguish itself in quality, quantity and in the variety around the central capital-‘h’ Heaviness of its purposes. You see N8noface, Necrot, Snapped Ankles, Trash Talk and so on and know what I’m talking about.

Of all the adds this time around, Madmess stand out because they’re Portuguese natives and no doubt that’ll add an extra layer of fun, though seeing Conan or Elephant Tree or Kylesa lay waste would for sure be a treat as well. I’ve made no secret through the years of posting about fests as daydream-fodder. I’ve been to SonicBlast, and it very much remains a daydream.

The following came through social media:

The next swell arrives:

Welcome the fast, wild and unpredictable TEEN MORTGAGE and TRASH TALK, the greek stoner rockers 1000MODS, the metal legends VOIVOD, get lost in the dark occult doom of MEPHISTOFELES, embrace the psych haze with ELEPHANT TREE and MADMESS and welcome back the inflammable heavy rollers DEATHCHANT 🔥🔥

Prepare yourself for pure wildness.
Beach. Riffs. Repeat

We’re not done yet. More to announced soon 🔥

SonicBlast Fest
6-8th August 2026
Warm-up party at the 5th
Free camping
Praia da Duna dos Caldeirões
Âncora, Portugal

Tickets are on sale at BOL and Masqueticket (links in bio)

Artwork by @branca_studio

https://sonicblastfestival.com/
https://www.instagram.com/sonicblast_fest
https://www.facebook.com/sonicblastmoledo/

Madmess, The Third Coming (2026)

Granted, most of the about-festivals posting that happens in this space happens before the event in question. This is after. The 2026 edition of Doom City Fest took place on Feb. 28 in Mexico City, headlined by YOB with sets from Pelican, Primitive Man, Mephistofeles, Ocultum, Jaspe, Terror Cósmico, Apocalipsis and Cotton Mouth filling out the all-dayer with what is now documented-on-video volume and heart.

The sets were filmed by KingBong Productions, which, fair enough, with audio mixing/mastering by Fernando G Esteve, which explains why they sound so darn good. There aren’t clips up yet from all of the bands (if everybody was even filmed; I don’t know either way), but the five posted below should give you some sense of what the day was like, to say the very least. Pelican doing songs from 2025’s Flickering Resonance (review here) is cool to watch as they get into it, and I’ve yet to live a day I wouldn’t be happy to watch YOB play “Prepare the Ground,” so that’s an automatic win as well. Checking out the clips for this post was also my first time hearing atmosludgers Apocalipsis as well, and the complexity and the immersion of their nonetheless crushing tones were a cool find for me.

I checked out their 2015 LP, Dimensión Maldita, on their Bandcamp and it bears out the post-metallic-but-still-int0-metal-too onstage presentation of the video — a dark mirror to Pelican‘s airier tonality, if you want to think of the context of the day — though there’s more to it than that with factors like Primitive Man‘s unstoppable noise onslaught and the cultistry of Mephistofeles, but you know how these things go. In any case, I’ve put all five videos that are out now below, so if you want to make a choose-your-own-adventure out of it, by all means, have at it.

So far as I’ve seen, Doom City Fest hasn’t announced its 2027 date yet, but there’s time. They’ll host a Mexico City appearance for Amenra (who also played the first Doom City in Feb. 2020) in June, however, at the infamous Fuckoffroom. More info is available on the fest’s socials, which are linked under the videos below.

Please enjoy:

YOB, Live at Doom City Fest 2026

Pelican, Live at Doom City Fest 2026

Primitive Man, Live at Doom City Fest 2026

Mephistopheles, Live at Doom City Fest 2026

Apocalipsis, Live at Doom City Fest 2026

Video by KingBong Entertainment: https://www.youtube.com/@kingbongentertainment1732

Multitrack Mixing and Mastering Fernando G Esteve

YOB photo by Paola Baltazar.

Doom City Fest on Instagram

Doom City Fest on Facebook

As you’ll be able tell with all the atsigns and applicable emojis, the following lineup announcement for Hoflärm 2026 came out through social media and I was lucky enough that the algorithm put it in front of my eyeballs. Swedish rockers Blues Pills and Poland’s Dopelord — the latter of whom are on tour now with Napalm Death right now — headline the announcement, but with newcomers Kardeathian and Scott Hepple and the Sun Band as well as the doomly Void and the Nothingness and exploitation-themed heavymakers Mephistofeles rounding out, there’s plenty here to dig into even before you get to the context of the first announce, which brought Kylesa, Kadavar, Conan, Dead Meadow and others. You can see the full poster below. The names are many, varied, rad, and there are apparently more to come.

The three-dayer helmed by Caspar Orfgen (also of Daevar) is set for Aug. 13-15 in Marienthal, Germany. Here’s the latest:

⚡️ @hoflärm 2026 – 2nd Bandwave – Day Tickets Available ⚡️

Alright… we’ve got some big news for you.

Our final headliner for this year is:

@bluespills – High-energy rock with soul, grit and serious stage presence. Fronted by the powerhouse vocals of Elin Larsson, they blend vintage psychedelia with modern edge and live, they hit even harder.

And the second wave doesn’t stop there:

@dopelord_666
Massive riffs, crushing doom and the kind of low-end that shakes you to the core. Pure heavy worship.

@mephistofelesmetal
Fuzzy, dark and beautifully trippy. These guys deliver gritty stoner rock straight from the underground.

@scottheppleandthesunband
Garage-psychedelic goodness with groove and heart. Catchy, wild and made for late summer festival nights.

@voidnothingnessdoom
After sharing the stage with Daevar multiple times, the young band is set to play their festival debut at Hoflärm 2026. FFO Uncle Acid & Electric Wizard – dark, hypnotic, riff-heavy.

@kardeathian.doom
We can’t wait to welcome this new trio, formed by well-known faces from the Dortmund scene, to their festival debut at Hoflärm. Expect fresh energy, heavy vibes and a set that will leave a mark.

🎟️ Day Tickets are available now – don’t sleep on it.

📅 Final Day Split + more band announcements are coming your way very soon.

Background Photos: @blackout_fg
Poster: @caaspar.o

https://www.hoflaerm.de/
https://instagram.com/hoflaerm/
https://www.facebook.com/Hofcafe.Hoflaerm

Dopelord, Songs for Satan (2023)

The fourth annual Blue Moon Festival will take place next July into August, and granted neither is an unknown quantity, but having the likes of Fu Manchu and 1000mods on a bill together feels like a boon to just about anybody’s evening who might be in attendance. Ditto that for Dead Meadow, Acidsitter, Skyjoggers and everybody else in the first lineup announcement, which was made toward the end of last week.

I would expect this means Sons of Arrakis will be back on tour in Europe next Summer, and that Fu Manchu will look to get out as well. No idea on Fu or 1000mods, or Dead Meadow for that matter, but it seems likely they’ll be on the road too, which means (1:) look out for where else they’ll be and (2:) be grateful the festival exists to sustain the band plus a whole lot of others coming through. You know how these things work. I’m excited to see summer take shape.

From the PR wire:

BLUE MOON FESTIVAL – FIRST BAND ANNOUNCEMENT

A new cycle begins. As the moon shifts and the air thickens with distortion, Blue Moon Festival 2026 unveils its first transformation. This year’s edition — Metamorphosis — brings together a powerful constellation of heavy, psychedelic and genre-defying artists from across the globe. A lineup shaped by riffs, ritual, noise, vision and pure underground spirit.

FU MANCHU

Stoner-rock legends known for desert-driven riffs and the fuzz-soaked sound that shaped an entire genre.

1000MODS

Greece’s modern stoner heavyweights, delivering massive grooves and hypnotic riff walls.

DEAD MEADOW

A psychedelic rock institution blending dreamy atmospheres with warm, vintage fuzz.

MEPHISTOFELES

Occult doom drenched in lo-fi grit.

SKY JOGGERS

Fuzzy heavy-psych powered by relentless motorik energy.

SONS OF ARRAKIS

Sci-fi-driven heavy desert psych straight from Canada.

ZERRE

New Wave of Würzburger Thrash Metal.

GREEN MILK FROM THE PLANET ORANGE

Avant-prog/psych explorers pushing boundaries.

CURSED TO OCCULT

Ritualistic doom invoking the underground spirits.

NARBODACAL

Progressive Doom Warriors from Poland.

ACID SITTER

High-energy psych rock maniacs.

July 31 – August 2 2026

Strombad Cottbus

We’re beyond proud to bring these legends to Cottbus and invite you all to be part of the next chapter of the Blue Moon.

https://www.bluemoonfestival.de/
https://www.instagram.com/blue_moon_festival
https://www.facebook.com/bluemoonfest

Fu Manchu, “Eatin’ Dust” live in Pioneertown, CA, 05.31.25

You can see on the poster below it says ‘last names are in,’ which means that yes indeed, this is the final lineup announcement for Desertfest Belgium 2025 this Oct. 17-19 in Antwerp. Seeing the complete bill is cool in itself, from Graveyard and YOB  to Elephant Tree, Acid Mammoth, Black Capricorn and Froglord from this latest announcement, it’s another cross-generational assemblage that, front to back, screams quality. I mean really. Colour Haze, Lowrider, High Desert Queen, Mars Red Sky, MR.BISON, Wren and Oranssi Pazuzu, and that’s hardly scratching the surface. It’s going to be a hell of a weekend.

That’s been the case for a few years with Desertfest‘s Fall flagship edition. Desertfest Belgium has become an epicenter and an intersection on the Fall circuit, but the assemblage is stunning well before you get to it being Orange Goblin‘s last Belgian date ever or Acid King doing two sets — which is probably the only way to top Acid King doing one set — the Mars Red Sky and Monkey3 collab, or Psychlona‘s unmitigated hookmaking. Oh yeah, and Bongripper will be there. So it’s “all this and crush the universe too.” If you’ll be in attendance, mark yourself lucky. Also, note to self: check out Marx.

From socials:

We are beyond thrilled to announce no less than 14 (!) new bands that will be gracing the Desertfest Antwerp stages this fall. Please welcome:

Elephant Tree 🌑 Mephistofeles 🌑 Acid Mammoth 🌑 Nightstalker 🌑 Telepathy 🌑 Black Capricorn 🌑 Froglord 🌑 FVZZ POPVLI 🌑 Huracán 🌑 GROS COEUR 🌑 T E R Z I E L E 🌑 Fomies 🌑 Scott Hepple and The Sun Band 🌑 MARX

Just a quick note that Hedonist will play DF on Saturday 18/10 (instead of Friday) and that Neànder will play DF on Friday 17/10 (instead of Saturday).

All your tickets can be found at the usual spot right now.

https://www.desertfest.be/antwerp/information/ticketing/

Keep on rockin’ and rollin’…! 🤘
The DF-team

http://www.desertfest.be/
https://www.facebook.com/desertfestbelgium/
https://www.instagram.com/desertfest_belgium/

Elephant Tree, “The Long Forever” official video

I’ve covered Mephistofeles once or twice over the last couple years. The Argentinian three-piece are probably known as much for their visual style as much as grit-coated distorted riffing, indulging as they do in post-Electric Wizard-style exploitation in various degrees of the pornographic. Truth be told, that kind of thing puts me off, but I’ve been looking for an excuse to like the band, since the music is good. I’ve been through the upcoming EP, A Path of Black, twice now and its three songs should make a killer entry to anyone who hasn’t picked up on them yet. Hooky, filth-toned, semi-doomed but right on in terms of vibe, they bring forward the band’s appeal in a way that somewhat belies the fuckall of their presentation, but still keeps the swing loose and misanthropic.

They’ve signed to Helter Skelter Productions for the new release in February, and their two full-lengths are also being reissued as you can see in the copious PR wire info below. But don’t miss out on the video for EP opener “Lucifer’s Hellride” below. I think the title-cut is the best of the three, but this one surely gets the point across as well.

Dig:

MEPHISTOFELES to release new EP through HELTER SKELTER, reissue two albums – first video from EP streaming now

Helter Skelter Productions (distributed & marketed by Regain Records) is proud to announce an alliance with the one and only Mephistofeles. The first fruit of this alliance will be a new EP, A Path of Black, set for release on February 26th, 2021 on CD, 12″ vinyl, and cassette tape formats. Also on February 26th, 2021 shall follow two reissues through Helter Skelter: Mephistofeles’ classic second album, I’m Heroin, on vinyl LP format and the band’s classic third album, Satan Sex Ceremonies, on CD, vinyl LP, and cassette tape formats.

One of the cultest names in the underground, Mephistofeles hail from Argentina and have prolifically perfected a literally addicting blend of garage rock, stoner doom, and ritual atmosphere that truly puts the SATANIC in Satanic panic! From 2013 onward, this power-trio have been pumping out one sonic drug after another, from singles and demos to EPs and even live albums, all culminating in three full-lengths to date. And now, longtime fans Helter Skelter Productions will be reissuing parts of Mephistofeles’ back catalog as well as some new recordings.

The first of these new recordings, A Path of Black is a quick-hitting slab of Mephistofeles at their darkest, druggiest best. Featuring three brand-new songs, A Path of Black is aptly titled: there’s garage-rockin’ energy to spare, but you literally feel the darkness dragging you down like a drug you can’t shake. If anything, this EP emphasizes the ROCK far more than the doom, but it’s all recognizably their signature sound. And like all Mephistofeles’ recordings, each of these three tracks is as immediately memorable as the last, the trio’s swagger truly something to behold.

See & hear a special promo video for the brand-new track “Lucifers Hellride” HERE at Regain Records’ YouTube channel. Preorder info can be found HERE at Regain Records’ Bandcamp. Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Mephistofeles’ A Path of Black
1. Lucifers Hellride [3:43]
2. Electric Ripper [2:47]
3. A Path of Black [5:45]

The first of the reissues, I’m Heroin was originally released in 2017 but in extremely limited quantities. Mephistofeles have always had a knack for compelling(ly lurid) record titles, and I’m Heroin is no exception: both phonetically and visually in its original incarnation of ( ( ( I ‘ M H E R O I N ) ) ), it conveys the sense of delirium and madness written large across the grooves of this nearly 47-minute work. Indeed, Mephistofeles’ second long-player goes all in on getting gone – hypnotic yet loose, jammy yet locked-in, devilishly drugged-out and above all FUN in its freedom. Minutes turn into hours, hours turn into days, days turn into weeks, ad infinitum…being stuck inside I’m Heroin is like being stuck inside a jellied coma you never wanna come out of! Preorder info can be found HERE at Regain Records’ Bandcamp. Tracklisting is as follows:

Tracklisting for Mephistofeles’ I’m Heroin
1. Transylvanian Funeral [9:09]
2. The Rogue [4:06]
3. White Butterfly [5:55]
4. Trash Lord [5:10]
5. Heroin [5:55]
6. Addicted to Satan [4:19]
7. Into the Night [10:48]

The second of the reissues, Satan Sex Ceremonies was originally released in 2019 but in extremely limited quantities. Mephistofeles have always had a knack for compelling(ly lurid) record titles, and Satan Sex Ceremonies is no exception – in fact, it pretty much sums up the Mephistofeles experience in a mere three words! As such, the album’s a slowly bubbling cauldron of eerie atmospheres and drugged-out sonics; amidst the ever-present haze of hashish and sulfur, it’s by far one of the band’s most authentically DOOM recordings. And at 47 minutes, the simmering slime Mephistofeles here dole out so effortlessly sounds more like 47 hours, so ensnared by addiction you’ll be. Preorder info can be found HERE at Regain Records’ Bandcamp. Tracklisting is as follows:

Tracklisting for Mephistofeles’ Satan Sex Ceremonies
1. Satan Sex Ceremonies / The Wrath of Jacula [15:03]
2. Profanation [3:30]
3. Down Again [4:15]
4. Overdose [3:12]
5. Syringe [6:12]
6. Curse of the Knife [5:17]
7. Chains of Agony [9:51]

http://mephistofeles.bandcamp.com/
http://www.facebook.com/mephistofelesdrone/
http://instagram.com/fuckoffhippieposers
www.helterskelterproductions.se
www.facebook.com/helterskelterproductions
www.helterskelterproductions.bandcamp.com

Mephistofeles, “Lucifer Hellride” official video

Plenty of this lineup looks familiar from what Psycho Las Vegas would’ve been in 2020, and duh, that’s the idea. You’ve still got Danzig doing Lucifuge, still got At the Gates and Katatonia and Emperor and Mercyful Fate. Still got the possibility that if I go, I can hang out after Pinback‘s set and bother Rob Crow about how badly he needs to do another Goblin Cock record. Wino, Fatso Jetson, Elder and Blackwater Holylight playing the pool party, six or seven curveball emo bands — all that fun stuff. Spectacle unmatched in heavy music, set in the Planet Earth’s official home for damned souls. It’s as perfect as it is incongruous.

Makes me wonder what Crowbar have going on next August.

But what you probably want to know is whether your ticket if you had one for 2020 is still good for 2021. Yes.

Behold:

Psycho Entertainment presents Psycho Las Vegas 2021

Psycho Las Vegas has been rescheduled to August 20th – 22nd, 2021. Psycho Swim has been rescheduled to August 19th, 2021. If you already purchased a pass for either event and want to attend in 2021, there is nothing you need to do – your passes will automatically be valid for the new dates.

80 of the 83 bands originally booked on the lineup are returning in 2021. The bands who are not joining us next year are Ty Segall, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and Crowbar.

Danzig, Mercyful Fate, Emperor, The Flaming Lips, Blue Oyster Cult, Down, Mayhem, Satyricon, Obituary, Warpaint, Blonde Redhead, HEALTH, Watain, Ulver, Katatonia, At the Gates, Poison The Well, Paul Cauthen, Amigo The Devil, Exhorder, Wolves in the Throne Room, Thursday, Pinback, Zola Jesus, Drab Majesty, Boris, Eyehategood, Repulsion, Immolation, Midnight, MGLA, Windhand, Cursive, Tsol, King Dude, Pig Destroyer, Brutus, Profanatica, Lower Dens, Cult of Fire, Intronaut, boysetsfire, Death by Stereo, Curl Up and Die, Adamantium, This Will Destroy You, Khemmis, Mothership, Guantanamo Baywatch, Dengue Fever, Kaelan Mikla, Black Joe Lewis, Fatso Jetson, Wino, Creeping Death, Mephistofeles, Frankie and The Witch Fingers, Toke, Foie Gras, Flavor Crystals, Silvertomb, Lord Buffalo, Warish, Alms, Bombers, Glacial Tomb, Relaxer, Black Sabbitch, Hippie Death Cult, Vaelmyst, Mother Mercury, Two Minutes to Late Night

America’s rock n’ roll bacchanal returns to Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino August 20th through August 22th, with another resort-wide casino takeover unlike any of its kind. Now approaching its fifth year in the swirling neon decadence of Las Vegas, PSYCHO will feature over seventy artists across four stages including the world-class Events Center, the iconic House Of Blues, Mandalay Bay Beach, and the vintage Vegas-style Rhythm & Riffs Lounge in the center of the casino floor. PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2021 will continue to redefine America’s conception of what a festival can be.

Psycho Entertainment presents Psycho Swim “The Official Psycho Las Vegas Pre-Party”

Old Man Gloom, Elder, Polyrhythmics, Death Valley Girls, The Skull, Blackwater Holylight, Here Lies Man, DJ Scott Seltzer

America’s rock n’ roll pool party returns to DAYLIGHT Beach Club on August 19th for the second annual PSYCHO SWIM. This official all-day pre-party celebrates the best of previous PSYCHO LAS VEGAS lineups with performances from a host of festival alumni as well as new PSYCHO additions.

DAYLIGHT Beach Club is nestled next to the Mandalay Bay Resort And Casino and features a 4400-square-foot main pool, daybeds, cabanas, and bungalows, with an elevated stage offering unobstructed, up-close-and-personal views of artist performances.

https://www.facebook.com/events/2513255765662644/
http://www.vivapsycho.com
http://www.facebook.com/psychoLasVegas
http://www.instagram.com/psycholasvegas

A Message from Psycho Las Vegas

Psycho Las Vegas 2020 has begun the process of unveiling its lineup, and already it’s all-over-the-place in that precariously well-named kind of way. That is, Psycho, and, well, yeah. Familiar faces Elder and Windhand return, and Ulver, Blonde Redhead, Mayhem, Kaelan Mikla, Mephistofeles and Ty Segall and the Freedom Band will join on as well for a varied and already kinda overwhelming aesthetic reach that should be perfectly suited to the festival’s gonna-blow-minds mission and generally hallucinatory vibes. Like a mirage all the more so for the blurred vision of those in attendance. There’s a difference between drinking in the heat and drinking in heat. At Psycho, they do both.

Also they get stoned.

I got asked the other day if I was planning to write another book anytime soon. I said I wasn’t, but that’s not entirely true. I’d like to fly out to Psycho Las Vegas 2020, maybe a day early, eat a bunch of mushrooms in some stupidly-deluxe hotel room and gonzo my way through 20,000-odd words over the course of the four-day fest experience and then publish that in paperback. It would not be a common photos-and-words review. It might not be a review at all. But it would be something, and I think it would be fun to do, and an experience befitting the atmosphere for the fest itself. I haven’t made that pitch yet to Psycho. I’m not sure if they’d go for it.

Anyway, here’s the lineup announcement. Private bathrooms for the win:

PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2020: First Round Of Artists Announced Including Ty Segall & The Freedom Band, Mayhem, Ulver, Windhand, Blonde Redhead, And More; Tickets On Sale Now!

America’s rock n’ roll bacchanal, PSYCHO LAS VEGAS, will return to Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino for a second consecutive year August 14th through August 16th 2020. Set to commence with a pre-party at Daylight Beach Club on August 13th, PSYCHO LAS VEGAS remains the premier rock festival destination offering fans one of the most unique and immersive festival formats in the world.

Now approaching its fifth year in the swirling neon decadence of Las Vegas, the resort-wide takeover will utilize four stages including the world-class Mandalay Bay Events Center, the iconic House Of Blues, Mandalay Bay Beach, and Rhythm & Riffs Lounge located at the center of the casino floor. With its signature mix of grit, grime, and grandeur, PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2020 will continue to redefine America’s conception of what a music festival can be.

The curators of the event are pleased to unveil the first round of artists to grace the PSYCHO stages with California garage rock icons Ty Segall & The Freedom Band, New York alternative noise rock veterans Blonde Redhead, Virginia doom metal unit Windhand, and Massachusetts psyche metallers Elder (scheduled to play the pre-party), as well as Norwegian black metal legends Mayhem, long-running Norwegian dark ambient collective Ulver, Icelandic synth punk trio Kaelan Mikla, and Argentinian dark electric “mausoleum music” makers Mephistofeles.

Tickets for PSYCHO LAS VEGAS as well as the PSYCHO SWIM pre-party, which requires a separate ticket from the main festival pass, are on sale now!

PSYCHO LAS VEGAS offers several pricing tiers and payment plans starting with a $20 deposit. 3-Day GA Weekender passes start at $199 (excluding tax and fees). Limited VIP 3-Day High Roller passes – which sell out annually – are available for $499 (excluding tax and fees) and include:

— VIP access for all three days of the festival + entry to the Thursday pre-party
— VIP hotel and festival check-in at Mandalay Bay
— Dedicated lines for expedited entry to all stages of the festival
— Private viewing areas, seating, restrooms and bars at three stages of the festival
— Limited edition and exclusive merch item for 2020 High Rollers only

Tickets for all PSYCHO LAS VEGAS events can be purchased at VivaPsycho.com or AXS.com.

Meticulously curated, PSYCHO LAS VEGAS has gained worldwide recognition for consistently delivering lineups that grow increasingly diverse and eclectic with each passing year, the magnitude of which have yet to be seen in North America. From post-rock, to black metal, to world music and even electronica, PSYCHO’s wide-ranging allure has expanded ceaselessly since its inception, bringing together musicians and artists from seemingly immiscible corners of the musical world.

https://www.facebook.com/events/3255628101138593/
http://www.vivapsycho.com
http://www.facebook.com/psychoLasVegas
http://www.instagram.com/psycholasvegas

Elder, Live at Psycho Smokeout 2019