Incineration Fest 2025 Review

Another Incineration Fest is in the bag! That’s five in a row for us now, and once again, the one-day extreme metal festival was a blast. Featuring tons of brilliant bands in packed venues (sometimes a little too much) across a packed Camden on a beautiful and sunny Saturday. There aren’t many better ways to spend a day, especially when it comes with the company of so much talent. We didn’t see a bad band, and in the case of a select few, we saw some really special sets.

Naut – The Black Heart

Brendan – A decent way to get things going at Incineration Fest with a band that seem very much not the right fit for a festival that tags themselves as being “extreme”. I don’t mind that though – it’s nice to have some variety and Naut certainly bring that with their gothic, ambient hard rock sounds. I saw them a few months back ing Tribulation and they were better there (and had more on stage) but they are nothing if not watchable and their catchy riffs and beats certainly encourage you to move and get warmed up.

Carl – A fun start to the day, and a chance to experience something a little less extreme, which is even acknowledged by the band on stage. Naut were cool, even stripped back, delivering some really infectious tunes to a decent sized crowd (even if some are there more out of curiosity than anything else).

Copse – The Dev

Brendan – A first-time watch for me, and I use the term watch loosely as The Dev was packed out meaning most viewing was done from just inside the doors. I saw a few heads every now and then and managed to edge closer nearer the end but to be honest, you didn’t need to see them to feel the quality they had. The Dev’s sound was fantastic, from all corners, and Copse played like they were headlining delivering a memorable show and grabbing themselves more than a few new fans on the way, myself included.

Carl – One of my most anticipated bands of the day, and they did not disappoint, even if the Dev is so packed actually seeing the band is not quite possible. Still, it’s all about that immense heavy and emotionally wrought blackened post hardcore sound and it was thirty minutes of pure joy as far as I’m concerned. I loved them, my band of the day in the end, and I was so glad the others I was with also enjoyed them too.

DeathCollector – The Dev

Brendan – Now here’s a band that fits the festival perfectly and they delivered a no-nonsense blasting set of punchy death metal here. The Dev stayed full for these guys and the sound was spot on again. I have had the pleasure of seeing DeathCollector before so was aware of the quality they have. That last time was on the “Sophie” stage at Bloodstock so this is a much smaller affair, but they still bring it. We get a no frills set, from a hard-working band, jamming out catchy, heavy tracks and getting heads banging for the duration. Really enjoyable stuff.

Carl – Big up the change to a five-piece, it’s giving them a much richer and meatier sound, even if what they were delivering before was pretty damn thick. They never disappoint, and with this being their London debut, they bring it all, including a banging new track that causes a wave of heads being banged. Before the day started I had predicted the Dev being at its most packed during this show and looking around, I think it ended up being true. Old school death metal delivered with conviction, it’s a very mighty show.

Celestial Sanctuary – The Underworld

Brendan – I only caught some of Celestial Sanctuary, and even that was from pretty far back as the sold-out aspect of the festival was really starting to make venues feel “sold out”. I enjoyed what I heard, feeling the groove rumbling through the walls and floor from right at the back. I would have liked to get closer and enjoy more, especially as there seemed to be a little room on the floor but people had created an impenetrable Spartan Wall around the top of the stairs so even getting down there was impossible so listening from the back was the best I could do. I enjoyed what I could hear/see though.

Carl – Is the air conditioning broke in the Underworld? It felt like it, but to be fair, it’s always been a bit of sweatbox. I could only manage about half their set before I needed to get off the floor, which was a task in of itself as the venue was so packed, even the stairs out were filled with people refusing to move (one of the downer moments of the day). No reflection on Celestial Sanctuary who are fast becoming one of my favourite bands live. I was very glad I had seen them the week before though.

Blackbraid – The Electric Ballroom

Brendan – Having spent a day so far barely able to move or see anything, heading to the Electric Ballroom, one of the bigger venues, I was looking forward to a little ball room myself. I was shocked at how busy the Ballroom was for Blackbraid – just moving from one side of the floor to the other was a huge challenge as it was shoulder to shoulder all the way back to the bar. We did find a bit of space upstairs, so I did get to watch a big chunk of Blackbraid and I really enjoyed what I saw. Strong black metal sounds with little folk quirks that just added a touch of atmosphere and difference. Watching frontman Jon Krieger on a woodwind instrument is cool and contrasts nicely both visually and sonically to everything else happening on stage. Very enjoyable.

Carl – Brendan has the jokes, but I do concur with his summation about how packed the Ballroom was for Blackbraid, but thankfully, we found a bit of space upstairs that allowed us to experience the ‘unique’ black metal sound of the band. They’re good and it’s an enjoyable show, but I’m not quite as convinced as others.

Cryptopsy – The Electric Ballroom

Brendan – Truth be told, I watched Cryptopsy because I couldn’t be bothered to squeeze through any more crowds so I stayed put, found a bit of space and looked forward to what I thought would be some pretty professional, but run of the mill death metal. I was wrong. They were tons better than that and I am so glad I stayed. The technical tint to the band adds a lot, but their delivery of massive groove, extreme metal and death just sounded absolutely monolithic, and I went from interested to loving it very quickly. A great set from an iconic band.

Carl – I love it when you don’t expect too much and you end up being blown away by a show. That was Cryptopsy for me, a band I do enjoy on record but rarely have them on my radar especially when it comes to live performances. We had a good spot in the Ballroom, things had calmed a little now that the Roundhouse was open and the bands up there were delivering the goods, so it was a no-brainer to stay and check out some straight-forward death metal. I did not expect to enjoy it as much as I did, finding myself entranced when I wasn’t head banging like it was going out of business.

Wormwitch – The Underworld

Carl – In between Cryptopsy and Decapitated, I thought it would be cool to try and see if I could get into the Underworld for a bit of Wormwitch, and happily, I could. What I found was glorious blackened heaviness hitting with force. I didn’t watch too much, as I wanted to get back to the Ballroom, but once again, Wormwitch kicked my ass.

Decapitated – The Electric Ballroom

Brendan – I’m a big fan of Decapitated so there was no surprise factor or anything like that here. I expected big things, they delivered big things sounding massive on stage with everything clicking. The right level of drunk, the right band with the right riffs and blast beats to just create moments of magic. The lead guitar work adds a different dimension to Decapitated keeping them fresh and not just a band full of technical metallic crunch. They have plenty of that too though and play a strong set with plenty of old songs on the more extreme edge but are also happy to hit out newer, catchier and more melodic stuff to. They were great and were my favourite band of the day.

Carl – I’m not quite the Decapitated fan that Brendan is, but I’ve always enjoyed them live, even if it can get a bit samey. Not here though, this was a raging set that stood out because it had newer, groovier, more melodic tracks that dare I say it, sounded catchy. It’s the kind of formula break I needed and while their set doesn’t hit the way Cryptopsy did before, I still found myself amazed by how fast time went by. It’s a banger way to end the night.